A MessageFrom OurPresident

The Newsletter of Koga Engineering & Construction, Inc.Volume 16, Number 3, August 2005

Project Highlight

n September 11,1992, Hurricane

Iniki, the third most dam-aging hurricane in U.S.history and the mostdestructive to hit theHawaiian Islands in the20th century, scoured theisland of Kaua‘i, destroy-ing luxury beachfronthotels and modest inlandhomes without prejudice.

The heavy waves thataccompanied HurricaneIniki battered the coastalareas of Southern Kaua‘i,essentially “remodeling”the South Shore beachescollectively known as Po‘ipu. Three majorPo‘ipu hotels — the Sheraton, the Po‘ipu BeachHotel and the Stouffer Waiohai — took the fullbrunt of Iniki’s savage winds estimated at 130mph with gusts up to 160 mph. The Sheratontook nearly five years to reopen and the othertwo were completely written off.

Today, intrepid surfers and snorkelers plythe shoreline while sun worshippers line thesands of the rebuilt Po‘ipu Beach Park. Fromthe park, one can see new low-rise buildingson the site of the old Waiohai. These are partof Marriott’s new Waiohai Beach Club, a time-share resort that opened in January 2003, andthe highlighted project in this issue of theKoga Report.

Sitework construction commenced in theSummer of 2001 for Koga Engineering’s JobNo. 0123 following the demolition of the oldWaiohai by general contractor Unlimited MarylJV. The self-proclaimed “Easy as 1-2-3” KogaTeam led by Honolulu transplants and perenni-al jet-setters Russell Inouye (Project Manager),Garett Ichimura (Project Engineer) and Bob

Connolly (Project Foreman) diligently took onthe challenge of preparing the foundation tothe rebirth of the Waiohai.

When the dust (no pun intended) settlednearly two years later, more than 25,000 cubicyards of dirt and rock had been excavated,foundations for eight four-story buildings andan underground parking structure had beenprepared, and nearly two miles (10,000+ lf) ofunderground drain, sewer and water pipeswere installed by the Koga crews. Under nor-mal circumstances, these numbers would beconsidered “drop-in-the-bucket” by Koga stan-dards. But when you factor in the conditionsthat the crew was up against, rock digging anddewatering, not to mention the owner’saggressive construction schedule, we must tipour hats to the boys!

How ironic that just as one September 11thdisaster became the seed for this project,another tragedy on the same date nine yearslater tested the resiliency of the Koga Team.The 9/11 terrorist attacks on the U.S. literally

by Glenn Nohara

e are happy to report that Mal and Carol

Koga are back home and Mal is making

excellent progress in recovering from an opera-

tion to remove a brain blood clot three months

ago. He has already set a goal to be back on the

golf course by May of next year.

We would like to thank and congratulate all of

our employees for helping us achieve several

safety awards for the 2004 year. The specific

awards are listed in Dennis Okazaki’s Safety arti-

cle on page 2. A good safety record is a direct

result of all of us taking personal responsibility

and making the commitment to fully participate

in our teams. This includes making each one of

our team meetings productive, understanding the

details as well as the big picture of each of our

projects and activities, and identifying and

addressing safety concerns for us and others who

will be impacted by our work. Again, congratula-

tions and thank you to all our employees for

these excellent safety awards.

Our team spotlight on page 4 is our

“Lifesavers Team.” We greatly appreciate this

team taking care of the administrative side of our

business. This includes human resource issues,

labor law compliance, safety and health law com-

pliance, payroll, job costing and accounting to

name a few. After reading about this team, we

can see why this is truly our “Lifesavers” team.

Until the next Koga Report, keep working

safely.…continues on page 2

Marriott Waiohaiby Andy Ragasa

Think Sitework…Say Koga!

Newly renovated entrance to resort

OW

Page 2 We Dig…Hawaii!

August 2005 Think Sitework…Say Koga!

Keeping Up With MalA Time for EverythingECCLESIASTES 3:22

There is a time for everything,and a season for every activity under heaven:

a time to be born and a time to die,a time to plant and a time to uproot,a time to kill and a time to heal,a time to tear down and a time to build,a time to weep and a time to laugh,a time to mourn and a time to dance,a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,a time to embrace and a time to refrain,a time to search and a time to give up,a time to keep and a time to throw away,a time to tear and a time to mend,a time to be silent and a time to speak,a time to love and a time to hate,a time for war and a time for peace.

To which I add:A time to step in and a time to step aside,a time for hello and a time to say goodbye.

I have decided that in light of my present condition, it would be inthe best interest of our Company for me to step aside while recoveringfrom my injury. This will allow the new management group to move for-ward with their future plans. It has been a “wild ride” for the past 32years and I will always be proud of being part of our accomplishments.

Aloha and God Speed to our new Koga Leadership Team.

OSHA (Occupational Safety & HealthAdministration) is concentrating their efforts…theyare taking a hard look at violations.

Definitions of Violations:• Willful — Intentional disregard of, or plain

indifference to, OSHA rules.• Repeat — Previous citations for substantially

similar violations in other worksites owned by the same company.• Failure to abate — Previous citations for similar violations at the

same worksite.• Serious — Substantial possibility for death or serious harm.• Other than serious — Unlikely to cause death or serious harm, but

directly related to job safety and health.The cited companies have 15 days to contest this violation. These vio-

lations can range anywhere from $11,000.00 to $100,000.00 per occur-rence. So remember, “Safety” is a state of mind. Hold your tool boxmeetings and work and think safety.

At our last GCA Safety Awards Banquet Koga was awarded the fol-lowing.

• No lost time, Best in category, Municipal Utilities• Zero Incidence Rate, 50,000 work hour and over, Municipal

Utilities• 25% Below Division Incidence Rate, Municipal UtilitiesCongratulations to Koga Engineering & Construction, Inc. and all

those who also received awards for a job well done.

Areas that Koga Engineering will be working on in the comingmonths are :

• Application into HIOSH “SHARP” Program • Recertification 40 hour Hazwoper Training• Rough Terrain Forklift certification

“Obstacles are things people see when they take their eyes of the goal.”

Safety by Dennis Okazaki

Koga Bits & PiecesCongratulations to the following Koga Ohana members!

New ParentsTosh and Bernie Hamada (Project Engineer)Baby Girl — Alana Ka‘iulani Mailei Hideko HamadaJuly 2, 2005 19”, 6 lbs

grounded the project’s com-muting team on O‘ahu. But,thanks to rigorous adjustmentsmade by Koga’s Kaua‘i IslandManager (yours truly), theproject was able to continuewithout skipping a beat! Theflawless transition can beattributed to the many hoursof training our crews have

been exposed to utilizing the Deming Theory of Total QualityManagement (TQM).

That said, kudos to Russell, Garett and Bob along with the entireKoga Ohana, from the Big Island to O‘ahu to our beloved Garden Islandof Kaua‘i, who were involved in one way or another with this successfulproject. Congratulations to Marriott Vacation Club International and bestwishes to the success of your resort. Last, but not least, congratulationsto Unlimited Maryl JV and the many subcontractors who played a handin constructing this lovely resort and displacing the scars left byHurricane Iniki.

Until next time, ‘a hui hou malama pono…

Project Highlight…continued from page 1

Marriott Building 6000 under construction

Alana Ka‘iulani Mailei Hideko Hamada

We Dig…Hawaii! Page 3

Think Sitework…Say Koga! August 2005

Koga JobsOahu Current Projects . . . . . . . . . General Contractor / ClientRepair Alpha Wharf I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hawaiian DredgingMATOC-03 & 04 C-17

Beddown Facility, North Sector . . . Kiewit PacificSchofield Commissary Phase II. . . . . . Bodell ConstructionManoa Stream Bank Repairs. . . . . . . . C & C of HonoluluBest Buy Aiea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ledcor ConstructionMoanalua Shopping Center . . . . . . . . Nordic ConstructionWahiawa Whitmore Interconnect . . . . Board of Water SupplyHokua . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A.C. KobayashiMilitary Training Complex

Building 117 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . JHL ConstructionSchofield Whole Barracks

Renewal PH 2C1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dick PacificBishop Museum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A.C. Kobayashi

Ground blessing ceremony for Queen Emma’s Greens SubdivisionL–R: Mike Loo (Princeville), Randy Koss (Princeville), Jeff Stone (Princeville), Andy Ragasa(Koga), Jay Furfaro (Princeville) and Dennis Okazaki (Koga)

William Azevedo, Cheston Loa, & Blane Ahsing- footing backfill at Hilo Judiciary Complex

Kaua‘i Current Projects . . . . . . . . General Contractor / ClientKapa‘a Bypass Road Extension . . . . . . State of Hawai‘i, DOTQueen Emma’s Greens Subdivision . . Princeville Greens, LLCReplacement of Olohena Bridge. . . . . Unlimited Construction Services, Inc.

Kaua‘i Upcoming Projects . . . . . . General Contractor / ClientKapa‘a Homesteads Well No. 3 . . . . . State of Hawai‘i, DLNRWilcox Employee Parking Lot . . . . . . . Wilcox Memorial HospitalThe Westin Princeville Resort Villas

Wyllie Road Reconstruction . . . . . . Unlimited Construction Services, Inc.Installation of 16-inch Waterline

Along Kuhio Highway, North LehoRoad to North Papaloa Road . . . . . County of Kaua‘i, DOW

Big Island Current Projects . . . . . General Contractor / ClientHilo Judiciary Bldg. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Swinerton PacificHualalai Hainoa Villas . . . . . . . . . . . . . Maryl PacificVilla Linden. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tinguely DevelopmentHali‘i Kai at Waikoloa . . . . . . . . . . . . . Centex

Schofield Shopping Center Expansion

Manoa Stream Bank Repairs

The Newsletter ofKoga Engineering & Construction, Inc.

Volume 16, Number 3 • August 2005Phone (808) 845-7829 • Fax (808) 845-3742

www.KogaEngineering.com • info@kogaeng.comLic.#ABC6826

An Equal Opportunity Employer

P.O. Box 31289Honolulu, Hawaii 96820

KOGA REPORT

Page 4 We Dig…Hawaii!

August 2005 Think Sitework…Say Koga!

LIFESAVERS

So you’ve heard about TEAMs (Together Everyone Achieves More)…wellthe Koga accounting gang is much more than the mundane. These LIFE-SAVERS are a truly unique TEAM.

T — “Tenacious” — not easily pulled apart, cohesiveThis is a team that has worked together for many years. Carol Koga

has been at Koga Engineering since the dawn of time. She has been thesolid core for the accounting gang, keeping a watchful eye over the KogaOffice. Then there is Lori Isara, Koga’s CFO, who started back in 1985 asan Accounting Manager. Accountant Vanessa Suganuma, another long-timer, has been at Koga for 16 years. Rounding out the group is YolandaAnderson with 5 years in Payroll and Jan Wuerfel with 5 years as anAccounting Clerk. With that many years under their belts, these ladies area cohesive force that helps to keep Koga running smoothly.

E — “Efficient” — productive without wasteThe LIFESAVERS have embarked on a project to help refine and

reduce waste within their system. They are currently taking a step-by-step look at each process area to define and streamline what they do.Cross-training is also important so that when one of the girls take a welldeserved break, they can carry on without skipping a beat. Always look-ing for continuous improvement, the LIFESAVERS continue to work onreducing waste and improving the quality of their work.

Efficiency also applies to the current recycling program that the LIFE-SAVERS Team enforces at the Koga office. The recycling of cans, paper andbottles are managed by this group to help efficiently reduce and reuse.

A — “Amiable” — being friendly, sociable, and congenialThe LIFESAVER Ladies are the pleasant and friendly faces that greet

callers and visitors. These gals dazzle and bring on a “softer side” to the

very structured construction environment. Many times you will see theEngineers coming upstairs to have a cup of coffee and socialize with theladies to help break up the monotony of their day. The LIFESAVERS alsohelp to organize many of the Koga social events, ensuring that a goodtime is had by all.

M — “Meticulous” — marked by extreme or excessive care in theconsideration or treatment of details

Last but not least, they watch the money, pay the bills, keep adminis-trative records and cut the paychecks. Meticulous has GOT to be part ofwhat these girls do. They have an eagle eye on the money and not apenny goes out that shouldn’t.

Koga Engineering certainly relies on this Tenacious, Efficient, Amiableand Meticulous TEAM. And just as their name implies, and as many of theengineers will vouch for, these ladies are many times truly LIFESAVERS.

Team Spotlight by Andy Ragasa

Back Row (L–R): Lori Isara, Vanessa Suganuma, Yolanda AndersonFront Row (L–R): Carol Koga, Jan Wuerfel