Underground and Overhead Construction
in the Dick Umbel Region

The secret is out! Many of our readers may not know that an "underground" operation of
Asplundh has existed in Maryland for more than 30 years—an underground construction operation, that is, and overhead construction work has been done there, too, for over 10 years.

To uncover the facts about this operation, I (Writer/Editor Kristin Wild) visited the Dick Umbel Region in June. The following notes and photos will expose the whole truth about the region's hard-
working, skilled people and their outstanding collection of equipment. Together, they have successfully
built or repaired mile after mile of electric, gas and telecommunications lines in Maryland, D.C., Virginia
and North Carolina.

Just a two-hour drive south of Willow Grove and I found my way to an Asplundh office trailer on the outskirts of Baltimore, Maryland where Supervisor Ricky Smithson gave me an overview of his office and yard. General foremen of URD, service lateral and street lighting crews work out of this office. An inventory of cable and other supplies for the trucks is maintained in the yard as well.

My odyssey began by meeting General Foreman Todd Sommer who led me to a service lateral job nearby, overseen by General Foreman Kevin McFatridge. Using a small backhoe, his crew dug a trench for Baltimore Gas & Electric (BGE) electric and gas lines that they would be hooking up to a brand new
condominium complex.

With so much to see in just two days I had to keep moving, so I followed Todd to visit one of his URD crews. They had already dug a trench to accommodate electric, gas and telephone cable being installed in a new housing development. While there, I saw the crew setting a padmount transformer and checked out their new service truck, equipped with a generator and compressor for power tools.

Before long General Foreman Darren Marsteller came by to lead me to one of his street lighting crews. They were in the process of installing over 5,400 feet of cable and building 70 street lights in a large apartment complex renovation. His crews work for BGE and Potomac Electric Power Co. (PEPCO).

General Foreman Norm Barker soon arrived on the scene to accompany me on a visit to one of his excavating crews that are "on call" for Verizon telecommunications repairmen. At the end of the day, we
went into downtown Baltimore to see one of his crews in the process of building a concrete vault underground for BGE switching gear.

As evening approached, I finally got to meet with Manager Dick Umbel who had orchestrated my day behind the scenes. A personable man with a solid background of more than 30 years in the utility construction industry, he had to brag a little on his team and the growth they have achieved over the past two years. With the leadership of Vice President/Sponsor Gregg Asplundh and the strength of the company behind him, the Umbel Region has also upgraded and expanded its equipment fleet to support his region's growth.

Dick also acknowledged the expertise of his supervisors, general foremen and long-term employees who established Asplundh as a serious construction contractor in the Middle Atlantic before he came onboard. They continue to develop well-trained, dedicated people for the Asplundh team.

Early the next morning, I met up with General Foreman Paul Burchell and his Coordinator Jay Nock who showed me one of their numerous buried service line repair/replacement crews working for Verizon. Coordinator Rodney Rill also assists Paul in overseeing these crews.

Stopping at the Umbel Region office/shop in Odenton, I met Malley Kelbaugh and Lisa Sullivan, the admininstrative experts behind the scenes. To keep the overhead down, the office/shop is shared with
Brian McBrairty, Asplundh's tree operations manager in the area.

It was there that I met up with my last operative, Supervisor Russell Franklin, who led me around to see three different overhead line construction crews. They were setting new poles and upgrading lines for BGE and PEPCO.

Unfortunately, time ran out before I could investigate the directional boring operation that General
Foreman Paul Leatherman oversees. However, he was part of an impressive demonstration of a Ditch
Witch directional rock drilling rig given on July 12 in the Umbel Region for customers and interested folks
from around the company.

When people think of Asplundh, they usually think "trees". Well, now it's time to start thinking
"construction", too. And if you want to see a productive, multi-faceted and proud Asplundh construction
operation, go underground and overhead in the Dick Umbel Region!.