4 The Legend—November 2016

District 3 Employee News

November 2016

What’s Inside…

DDD Corner

What’s an R-Cut

Richland County Employ-

ees Lend a Helping Hand

Employee News

Get to Know...

Get to

Know… Jim Prussak

Jim, an HT2 in

Medina County,

has been with

ODOT since

2010 when he

started as a

seasonal. Medi-

na County Man-

ger, Matt Si-

mon, says, “He

is one of the

hardest working

employees in

Medina County.

An interesting

fact about Jim-

my is that he lived in San Diego for 17 years

and now works for ODOT. He is an asset to

the Medina team because he is a versa-

tile employee. He can do anything and is al-

ways willing to lend a hand when necessary.

In 2014, he received his herbicidal spraying

license. Jimmy has been a mentor for many of

the new hires and is a great role model. He is

an all-around great guy and we are grateful

to have him in Medina County.”

FAMILY: Wife, Judy and daughter, Kelcie (16)

PETS: Daisy (black lab) and Moe (guinnea pig)

HOBBIES: Gardening and hunting

BOOK LAST READ: Lonigan by Louis

L’Amour

FAVORITE MOVIE: An Officer and a Gentle-

man

FAVORITE TV SHOW: Survivor

FAVORITE RESTAURANT: Red Lobster

FAVORITE WEBSITE: MSNBC

FAVORITE PLACE TO VISIT: San Diego, Cali-

fornia

MY PET PEEVE IS: Red tape

FAVORITE CD ALBUM/WHAT TUNES ARE

YOU LISTENING TO: Classic Rock

THE TALENT OR SUPERPOWER I WISH I

HAD IS: To read minds

LEAST FAVORITE CHORE: Cleaning up after

the dog

IF I COULD CHANGE ONE THING ABOUT

MYSELF IT WOULD BE: To be taller

FAVORITE SPORTS TEAM: Browns, Cavs,

Indians and Ohio State

FIRST JOB: Wallee Fees Poured Walls

BEST ADVICE EVER RECEIVED: Don’t mort-

gage your future.

NOBODY KNOWS I: Worked in Dutch Har-

bor, Alaska

WHO, LIVING OR DEAD, WOULD YOU

MOST LIKE TO HAVE DINNER WITH: Dad

New Hires

James Wyatt – HT1 - Lorain

Dana Smith – HT1 – Lorain

Hershel Ricker – HT1 – Medina

Donald Rostofer – Env. Specialist 2 – P&E

Reclassifications

Aaron Martin – HT2 to HT3C/M – Ashland

Promotions

Jerry Schlett – Trans Tech 1 – P&E

Craig Van Horn – Trans Tech 1 – P&E

Retirements

Dale Bullocks – HT1 – Lorain – 29 years

John R. Kasich

Governor

Jerry Wray

Director

Howard Huebner

District Deputy Director

Dates to Remember

11/6 Daylight Saving Time

Ends

11/11 Veterans Day (ODOT

Closed)

11/24 Thanksgiving (ODOT

Closed)

In August, when District 3 personnel discovered the replacement of an aging

10 ton bridge on State Route 113 in Erie County could possibly be delayed

this fall due to property owner restrictions, a team made up of construction

and P&E employees worked together to come up with a solution. According

to District 3 Bridge Engi-

neer, Marlin Wengerd, “I

did not want to take the

old bridge through an-

other winter.” However,

the old wooden struc-

ture provided the only

access for trucks to and

from a local orchard, so

avoiding a closure dur-

ing their harvest time

was crucial.

Construction staff reviewed

the situation with the contractor, Simonson Construction, requesting the box culvert

be moved up in the schedule with their supplier since they had originally scheduled

the work for

2017. Their

supplier was

able to accom-

modate this

request and

have the cul-

vert available

for delivery on

September 15.

(Continued on

page 2)

D3 Collaborates With Contractor and Property Owner to Replace Bridge in Record Time

The Legend District 3 Employee Newsletter

Old 10 Ton Wooden Bridge on State Route 113 in Erie County

Newly Constructed Box Culvert With Pre-cast Wingwalls

3 The Legend—November 2016 The Legend—November 2016 2

After we presented our Criti-

cal Success Factors at the lat-

est round of focus meetings,

you heard me talk about

“mapping our processes.”

Many of you asked, what is

process mapping and why

are we doing it?

The mapping process is a

simple diagram used to understand the work

flow we currently use to perform our work ac-

tivities. It gives every individual involved the op-

portunity to define:

What we as an agency do

Who is responsible for each step

To what standard the process should be

completed

How the success of the process can be

determined or measured

This will provide us the opportunity to develop

additional measures and personal goals that are

linked to our core processes to ensure we are on

track to meet Critical Success Factors.

As we complete these process maps, we will ei-

ther schedule visits or host meetings

between our process teams and

other districts, counties and work

teams in an effort to bench-

mark and identify any best

practices that we can incorporate

into our processes or provide

them with best practices to

incorporate into theirs.

Stay safe!

Butch

Traffic Team Q&A What Is an RCUT?

An RCUT is an intersection where

minor road traffic must turn right

and make a U-turn to complete a

left turn or crossing movement. Left

turns are permitted from the major

road at some locations.

Where Does an RCUT Make

Sense?

RCUTs are used along rural, high-

speed, four-lane divided highways

to maintain the integrity of the ma-

jor highway as a through route. They are also effective as a corridor treatment along

signalized routes.

What Are the Benefits of an RCUT?

RCUTs improve safety and overall roadway operations. A typical four-leg intersection has 32 conflict

points and an RCUT reduces this number to 16. Because RCUTs eliminate all crossing conflict points,

they greatly reduce all crashes and in some locations eliminate fatal and injury crashes.

Are We Implementing RCUTs in District 3?

District 3 currently has two RCUTs planned, including:

US Route 30 & State Route 603 in Ashland County

US Route 224 & Westfield Road in Medina County

For more information on RCUTs, please contact Jared Feller, District 3 Traffic Engineer, at

419.207.7058 or jared.feller@dot.ohio.gov.

Bridge Collaboration Cont...

Once this schedule was confirmed, Dis-

trict 3 worked with Burnham’s Orchard to

schedule the work during a window of

time in September that would minimize

the impact on their operations. Luke

Wysocki, District 3 Area Engineer, added,

“I have to give Burnham’s a great deal of

credit for accommodating our construc-

tion during their harvest time.”

Simonson started the work as scheduled

on September 7. The box culvert was ac-

tually delivered a day early on September

14. The contractor also utilized pre-cast

wingwalls to expedite the remaining con-

struction once the box culvert was set. The

weather was favorable throughout construc-

tion, which allowed the work to be completed on time and the road re-opened within 21 days as

promised to Burnham’s and the public.

“This is a good example of teamwork between ODOT, the contractor and local property owners

on the coordination and construction of one of our projects,” explained Mike Fair, District 3

Construction Administrator.

Kudos to Richland County Employees for Lending a Helping Hand

On October 7, employees from the

Lexington Outpost and Richland County

Garage gathered at Keith and Melissa

Brokaw’s home to cut trees, split and stack

wood for them for the winter. Keith, an

HT2 in Richland County, was injured on

the job this summer. After filling his out-

door wood burner and shed with wood

for the winter, everyone enjoyed a deli-

cious picnic. Many thanks to you all!

Left to right: Ben Rayl, Craig Brokaw, Colton Acevski,

Keith Brokaw, Matt Dailey, Dave Shaffer, Melissa

Brokaw, Ted Stone, Steve Haip, Brett Wirick and up

front, Boone Mayes. (not pictured: Jeanie Burows,

Denny Vanhouten and Brenda Mayes)

Approach View of New Structure on State Route 113 in Erie County

3 The Legend—November 2016 The Legend—November 2016 2

After we presented our Criti-

cal Success Factors at the lat-

est round of focus meetings,

you heard me talk about

“mapping our processes.”

Many of you asked, what is

process mapping and why

are we doing it?

The mapping process is a

simple diagram used to understand the work

flow we currently use to perform our work ac-

tivities. It gives every individual involved the op-

portunity to define:

What we as an agency do

Who is responsible for each step

To what standard the process should be

completed

How the success of the process can be

determined or measured

This will provide us the opportunity to develop

additional measures and personal goals that are

linked to our core processes to ensure we are on

track to meet Critical Success Factors.

As we complete these process maps, we will ei-

ther schedule visits or host meetings

between our process teams and

other districts, counties and work

teams in an effort to bench-

mark and identify any best

practices that we can incorporate

into our processes or provide

them with best practices to

incorporate into theirs.

Stay safe!

Butch

Traffic Team Q&A What Is an RCUT?

An RCUT is an intersection where

minor road traffic must turn right

and make a U-turn to complete a

left turn or crossing movement. Left

turns are permitted from the major

road at some locations.

Where Does an RCUT Make

Sense?

RCUTs are used along rural, high-

speed, four-lane divided highways

to maintain the integrity of the ma-

jor highway as a through route. They are also effective as a corridor treatment along

signalized routes.

What Are the Benefits of an RCUT?

RCUTs improve safety and overall roadway operations. A typical four-leg intersection has 32 conflict

points and an RCUT reduces this number to 16. Because RCUTs eliminate all crossing conflict points,

they greatly reduce all crashes and in some locations eliminate fatal and injury crashes.

Are We Implementing RCUTs in District 3?

District 3 currently has two RCUTs planned, including:

US Route 30 & State Route 603 in Ashland County

US Route 224 & Westfield Road in Medina County

For more information on RCUTs, please contact Jared Feller, District 3 Traffic Engineer, at

419.207.7058 or jared.feller@dot.ohio.gov.

Bridge Collaboration Cont...

Once this schedule was confirmed, Dis-

trict 3 worked with Burnham’s Orchard to

schedule the work during a window of

time in September that would minimize

the impact on their operations. Luke

Wysocki, District 3 Area Engineer, added,

“I have to give Burnham’s a great deal of

credit for accommodating our construc-

tion during their harvest time.”

Simonson started the work as scheduled

on September 7. The box culvert was ac-

tually delivered a day early on September

14. The contractor also utilized pre-cast

wingwalls to expedite the remaining con-

struction once the box culvert was set. The

weather was favorable throughout construc-

tion, which allowed the work to be completed on time and the road re-opened within 21 days as

promised to Burnham’s and the public.

“This is a good example of teamwork between ODOT, the contractor and local property owners

on the coordination and construction of one of our projects,” explained Mike Fair, District 3

Construction Administrator.

Kudos to Richland County Employees for Lending a Helping Hand

On October 7, employees from the

Lexington Outpost and Richland County

Garage gathered at Keith and Melissa

Brokaw’s home to cut trees, split and stack

wood for them for the winter. Keith, an

HT2 in Richland County, was injured on

the job this summer. After filling his out-

door wood burner and shed with wood

for the winter, everyone enjoyed a deli-

cious picnic. Many thanks to you all!

Left to right: Ben Rayl, Craig Brokaw, Colton Acevski,

Keith Brokaw, Matt Dailey, Dave Shaffer, Melissa

Brokaw, Ted Stone, Steve Haip, Brett Wirick and up

front, Boone Mayes. (not pictured: Jeanie Burows,

Denny Vanhouten and Brenda Mayes)

Approach View of New Structure on State Route 113 in Erie County

4 The Legend—November 2016

District 3 Employee News

November 2016

What’s Inside…

DDD Corner

What’s an R-Cut

Richland County Employ-

ees Lend a Helping Hand

Employee News

Get to Know...

Get to

Know… Jim Prussak

Jim, an HT2 in

Medina County,

has been with

ODOT since

2010 when he

started as a

seasonal. Medi-

na County Man-

ger, Matt Si-

mon, says, “He

is one of the

hardest working

employees in

Medina County.

An interesting

fact about Jim-

my is that he lived in San Diego for 17 years

and now works for ODOT. He is an asset to

the Medina team because he is a versa-

tile employee. He can do anything and is al-

ways willing to lend a hand when necessary.

In 2014, he received his herbicidal spraying

license. Jimmy has been a mentor for many of

the new hires and is a great role model. He is

an all-around great guy and we are grateful

to have him in Medina County.”

FAMILY: Wife, Judy and daughter, Kelcie (16)

PETS: Daisy (black lab) and Moe (guinnea pig)

HOBBIES: Gardening and hunting

BOOK LAST READ: Lonigan by Louis

L’Amour

FAVORITE MOVIE: An Officer and a Gentle-

man

FAVORITE TV SHOW: Survivor

FAVORITE RESTAURANT: Red Lobster

FAVORITE WEBSITE: MSNBC

FAVORITE PLACE TO VISIT: San Diego, Cali-

fornia

MY PET PEEVE IS: Red tape

FAVORITE CD ALBUM/WHAT TUNES ARE

YOU LISTENING TO: Classic Rock

THE TALENT OR SUPERPOWER I WISH I

HAD IS: To read minds

LEAST FAVORITE CHORE: Cleaning up after

the dog

IF I COULD CHANGE ONE THING ABOUT

MYSELF IT WOULD BE: To be taller

FAVORITE SPORTS TEAM: Browns, Cavs,

Indians and Ohio State

FIRST JOB: Wallee Fees Poured Walls

BEST ADVICE EVER RECEIVED: Don’t mort-

gage your future.

NOBODY KNOWS I: Worked in Dutch Har-

bor, Alaska

WHO, LIVING OR DEAD, WOULD YOU

MOST LIKE TO HAVE DINNER WITH: Dad

New Hires

James Wyatt – HT1 - Lorain

Dana Smith – HT1 – Lorain

Hershel Ricker – HT1 – Medina

Donald Rostofer – Env. Specialist 2 – P&E

Reclassifications

Aaron Martin – HT2 to HT3C/M – Ashland

Promotions

Jerry Schlett – Trans Tech 1 – P&E

Craig Van Horn – Trans Tech 1 – P&E

Retirements

Dale Bullocks – HT1 – Lorain – 29 years

John R. Kasich

Governor

Jerry Wray

Director

Howard Huebner

District Deputy Director

Dates to Remember

11/6 Daylight Saving Time

Ends

11/11 Veterans Day (ODOT

Closed)

11/24 Thanksgiving (ODOT

Closed)

In August, when District 3 personnel discovered the replacement of an aging

10 ton bridge on State Route 113 in Erie County could possibly be delayed

this fall due to property owner restrictions, a team made up of construction

and P&E employees worked together to come up with a solution. According

to District 3 Bridge Engi-

neer, Marlin Wengerd, “I

did not want to take the

old bridge through an-

other winter.” However,

the old wooden struc-

ture provided the only

access for trucks to and

from a local orchard, so

avoiding a closure dur-

ing their harvest time

was crucial.

Construction staff reviewed

the situation with the contractor, Simonson Construction, requesting the box culvert

be moved up in the schedule with their supplier since they had originally scheduled

the work for

2017. Their

supplier was

able to accom-

modate this

request and

have the cul-

vert available

for delivery on

September 15.

(Continued on

page 2)

D3 Collaborates With Contractor and Property Owner to Replace Bridge in Record Time

The Legend District 3 Employee Newsletter

Old 10 Ton Wooden Bridge on State Route 113 in Erie County

Newly Constructed Box Culvert With Pre-cast Wingwalls