Born into it. Dad started the company in 69 and my brother and I were cutting hangers in February then running a Ridgid 300 all summer. Learned how to use a slide rule in high school chemistry the same time he was teaching hydraulics from Clyde Wood's / Automatic Sprinkler's book, also with a slide rule. Thanks for the memories. This industry has treated me much better than I deserve.
Bobby McCullough Atlanta Sprinkler Bobby McCullough, Atlanta Sprinkler Office: 770-867-5790 ext.224 Fax: 770-867-5797 Cell: 678-898-7404 [email protected] www.atlantasprinkler.com On Mon, Jul 22, 2013 at 9:21 AM, Brad Casterline <[email protected]>wrote: > Congrats John. If I had not wasted a couple years pursuing an English major > I would have 40 also. I spent the summer of '73 in Cleveland, and was back > there 2 years later. I think a person's first mentor makes a huge > difference. I hated sprinklers that summer, but when I got back into it, > Vince Sabolik was there, and I caught the 'strange sprinkler condition' I > have had for 38 years from him I'm sure. > Congratulations again. > BTW, would you happen to have kept the 1973 Edition of the Rigid Calendar, > Chapters June, July, and August? > > Brad Casterline > > -----Original Message----- > From: 321 [mailto:[email protected]] > Sent: Saturday, July 20, 2013 8:05 AM > To: [email protected]; John Farabee > Subject: Forty Years > > This past Tuesday, July 16th, marks the 40th anniversary of my employment > in > the Fire Sprinkler Business. > > On that first day, July 16th, 1973, I walked into "Automatic" Sprinkler's > Birmingham, Al office and sat on the stool in front of a drawing board with > a parallel bar. My new boss, Melvin Smith, came over and shook my hand and > said "Welcome to the Fire Sprinkler business...let's get you started." I > looked around at the other drawing boards in the office and the plans that > they were working on and thought to my self "Look at all the detail on > those > plans...wonder what all of that is?". It wasn't long before I found out. > > I look back on the changes that we have seen in the last 40 years in this > business. Welded Cross Mains and Grooved Fittings, Thin Wall Pipe, > Mechanical Tees, Grid Systems, Computer Hydraulics, (remember Alan > Johnson's > first Wang set up in the '70's), Horizontal Sidewall Heads, CPVC Pipe, > Residential Heads and Systems, CAD, ESFR and High Challenge Heads, and on > and on...I tell the younger guys that work for me that when I first started > we had 3: different sprinklers: Upright, Pendent and Sidewall. Now I think > there are in excess of 250 different heads listed on Reliable and Tyco's > head charts. > > Some times I get told that I am an "Antique" and my methods aren't > applicable to today's world...but it all still works. I tell my > salesmen...give me a preliminary, you have to know what you sold because if > you don't it only gets worse from your desk to the field. I tell my > designers...Put tie down dimensions on EVERYTHING...they argue that "but > boss...it's CAD...it doesn't matter. I send them out to work a week in the > field laying out the garbage they drew and that usually cures the dimension > issue. I tell every one in the building..."It's all about the POJ (Pipe on > Job) date...that's the schedule nucleus...be the first trade in" The same > principals apply today that applied 40 years ago. > > I learned from At Bateman to write the proposal before preparing the > estimate. I thought he was crazy but it makes perfect sense. I learned from > Chuck Hura that if you have backlog you can manage it to become > profitable...but with no backlog...you can't even cover your fixed cost. > > Today...we face new challenges that we never dreamed of 40 years ago. > Microbial Induced Corrosion and spontaneous failure of CPVC Pipe and > Fittings. An economy that has been on it's back struggling for the past 6~7 > years with business failures that would have seemed impossible a generation > ago. > > Yet with all of the challenges, the Fire Sprinkler Industry has become a > serious force in the world. Forty years ago we were only involved in a job > if an insurance company mandated it...now we are in every building code > that > there is. > > Looking back on this I reflect and ponder my future and how much longer I > will stay with this. My wife asked me "Well you've put 40 years into > it...what know?" I replied well...I've had a good run for the past 40 > years...I guess I'll stick with this "Sprinkler Gig"..it's been good to me > so far!! > > John W. Farabee > Vice President > Bass United Fire and Security > Pompano Beach, Fl > > > 561-707-5150 > _______________________________________________ > Sprinklerforum mailing list > [email protected] > > http://lists.firesprinkler.org/listinfo.cgi/sprinklerforum-firesprinkler.org > > _______________________________________________ > Sprinklerforum mailing list > [email protected] > > http://lists.firesprinkler.org/listinfo.cgi/sprinklerforum-firesprinkler.org > _______________________________________________ Sprinklerforum mailing list [email protected] http://lists.firesprinkler.org/listinfo.cgi/sprinklerforum-firesprinkler.org
