These concrete bar tops are certainly a focal point of the establishment and were painstakingly poured, coated, stained, and sealed by the four-man Genesis Concrete Concepts crew.

All of this combined intelligence, academic prestige, and venerable history was not going to help one Ivy League campus, which wishes to remain unnamed, when one of its cooling tower systems started leaking

Is there ever a good use of the word “leak”? No one enjoys a car window, a sink pipe, or even a water glass that leaks. Certainly roofs can be added to that category of things you don’t want to leak in the night.

Your crew is preparing for the day’s job. You have all the necessary tools and machinery for the coating you will apply. You have your protective eyewear and clothing to guard against physical hazards as well as respirators to protect against fumes. These are all important safety measures, but you are still not fully protected.

All teams are groups, but not all groups are teams. Calling a group a team doesn’t make it one. That’s the team myth. Too many business owners and executives think of “team” as a label. But it’s not.

A water-tight roof deck is one of the most important aspects of facility maintenance, so when Grubb Ventures, owner of an upscale office building in Raleigh, N.C., noticed that the roof was in need of some TLC, they were quick to act.

After offering ridiculous portions of turkey to hungry fair-goers for almost six decades, the stand was in need of an update. The flooring was cracked and damaged, in addition to being greasy and dangerous to work on.

They had an issue whereby their manufacturing plant created a lot of moisture as part of the process itself, and they have a condensation issue in that the moisture in the air would hit the cold steel above, condense, and then droplets of condensed water — mixed with whatever yuck happened to be on the ceiling — would drip down on their manufacturing process.

American industry continues to come to grips with hitting zero injuries in the workplace. More than 10 years ago, I began a campaign for this, continually running headlong at the windmills of the zero injury safety culture.

In business today, leaders and organizations have to be more aware than ever of how their employees balance their work and personal demands. Organizations are constantly focusing on how to improve production, profits, and performance, while at the same time maintaining a high level of morale. The issue is the search for personal and professional balance.