Case Study 2

Whatever it Takes

Home Addition

This story highlights Tivey Construction’s willingness to go the extra mile in order to ensure the client’s satisfaction. It would be easy to throw in the towel in the face of unexpected jobsite disruptions. However, Tivey Construction understands those moments are opportunities to shine, and that’s exactly what happened during this home addition project in 2014.

Setting the Stage

In 2014, we began pouring a new 700-square-foot concrete slab for a home addition project. Unfortunately, about halfway through the installation process, we experienced an unexpected disruption from our concrete supplier. This severe material delay heavily impacted our progress. Consequently, the final batch of concrete was not placed until very late in the afternoon.

Typically, it takes at least five to six hours after concrete is poured before it can be walked on or finished with a power trowel. This machine looks like a cross between a floor buffer and a ceiling fan. Because of the supplier delay, the subcontractor crews grew tired of waiting on the curing process. Ultimately, the entire crew walked off the job site at about 7:00 PM.

The Pivotal Moment

I immediately recognized the potential disaster facing this addition. Without hesitation, I personally took on the role of the concrete subcontractor and “trowel-master.” Interestingly, I had never operated a power trowel before this moment. My only relevant experience involved operating a standard floor buffer while serving in the Navy 30 years ago!

Disaster Avoided

The concrete was finally sufficiently cured to start the troweling process at about 9:00 PM. As a result, I found myself single-handedly running a heavy trowel machine in the dark. Fortunately, the homeowner graciously volunteered to hold a floodlight at ground level so we could spot any concrete imperfections.

By 11:30 PM, we successfully finished the entire surface. To this day, that homeowner proudly claims our slab to be the sweetest slab he’s ever seen. Furthermore, he has enthusiastically repeated this testimony in subsequent stellar reviews.

Conclusion

While situations like this are not fun for anyone, Mark Tivey decided to focus entirely on solutions rather than disappointing the client. It is this exact type of solution-oriented thinking that sets Mark apart from other general contractors. Faced with a critical problem, Mark remained calm, stayed collected, and delivered beautiful results for the client. This is the precise level of dedicated service you can expect when working with Tivey Construction.