Get to know your co-op: Construction Management keeping projects moving

SOMEDAY, THE INTERSECTION of Fields Parkway and the Dallas North Tollway in Frisco will be a major intersection providing access to the PGA America headquarters, the Fields Development and the Universal Studios theme park. There will be homes, businesses and schools – all powered by CoServ electricity.

But CoServ has work to do first.

As the new Fields Parkway approaches the tollway, it passes under existing CoServ power lines. Because of the width of the new road, the poles need to be moved farther apart, which puts more tension on the poles.

The best way to accommodate increased tension is by installing concrete poles to replace the existing wooden poles.

It’s CoServ Construction Project Manager Slade Wright’s job to make sure the new concrete poles are installed correctly. Parking his truck alongside the southbound Dallas North Tollway frontage road, he monitors the contractors and crane lifting the poles into place.

The crews put up the four new concrete poles in one day, but the project was still at the mercy of the weather as the 100-degree August temperatures put too much demand on the system to adequately backfeed CoServ Members, even for a short time. So, to avoid interruptions to our Members, CoServ waited for cooler weather before connecting the lines.

While this project, with all its intricate complexities, is top of mind, the passenger seat in Slade’s truck is full of dozens of other work orders from throughout CoServ territory.

Slade and CoServ’s other project managers play a critical role in CoServ’s rapid expansion. The Construction Management Department typically has more than 400 work orders in progress. That doesn’t count the 900 or so underground gas and electric installations that need to be built from the curb to the home to keep up with the rapid residential construction.

There are big jobs, such as moving utility poles for the Interstate 35 widening project in Denton or running electric and gas lines to serve 1,600 new homes in the Mosaic subdivision in Celina. And there are smaller projects, like upgrading existing lines to higher capacity wires or replacing a gas line.

Gas Project Manager Felipe Puentes spent a hot August morning overseeing contractors working on a new six-inch natural gas line along Frontier Parkway.

“Like all projects that CoServ does, this new gas line will increase reliability for existing Customers while allowing us to add hundreds or even thousands of new Gas Customers in the future,” Felipe said.

This critical department is on the front lines of North Texas’ rapid growth.

“Providing our Members and Customers with reliable electricity and natural gas starts long before the houses and businesses are built,” said Cody Coulter, Director of Operations. “Our project managers are experienced electric linemen and natural gas technicians who work hand-in-hand with contractors to make the process as seamless as possible and ensure these projects are built to CoServ’s high standard.”