JULY SPOTLIGHT
Trevor McMaster

Trevor is an accomplished project manager and has been with JRM for six years. He joined the company a week after graduating from Oregon State University with a degree in Construction Engineering Management. “I knew Troy Haslem from school; he had been an intern for JR Merit and told me about them. I interviewed four months before graduating and was offered a position, so that took a little stress off my last term at school.”

Trevor started out as an electrical engineering major and switched to construction engineering management after a couple terms. “I grew up around construction; a handful of my family members are in the industry. I enjoy the challenge of it, the problem-solving aspect of what we do. Especially with JR Merit, there’s always something new, something interesting, something to look forward to.”

During college, Trevor worked as an event manager for the school. “We did dances, dinners, and other ballroom-type events, and I managed the logistics of getting things set up and torn down. There are some indirect correlations with what I do now, in terms of planning project logistics and schedules. It was helpful experience.”

Trevor’s favorite part about his role at JR Merit is getting to see projects from start to finish and the value of problem-solving in the kind of work he gets to do. “I’m involved from estimating through closeout. A lot of contractors aren’t involved in all that, from project concept to estimating to planning and execution. I like seeing that process all the way through. It’s tangible; I can see it happening with my own eyes.

“I enjoy problem solving in the field, working with our field team members as a whole project team. We recently completed a decommissioning project where we spent months in the preconstruction planning phase, which involved daily review for the rigging systems we planned to use to move these big components. We were working together with our superintendent, project engineer, and the crew to vet out all the configurations, determine which made the most sense logistically, and the safest way to go about it. Many of these rigging plans were critical, as some single parts weighed 265,000lbs. In many aspects of our work, we’re presented with a problem like this. We have a large, critical components we need to move and there’s only so many ways you can do it. You have to make sure you have enough headroom, the right capacity in the rigging, and figure out the logistics. It’s a math problem. That was fun to do.”

With the complex and challenging nature of industrial construction, it can be challenging when the client’s main concern is cost. “Sometimes the contracting can be tough when clients aren’t taking into consideration other important aspects, especially the quality of the product they’re expecting, and the safety of those with boots on the ground along the way. I appreciate when owners emphasize the value of safety on the project and the quality of the overall product. There’s a lot of logistics that goes into what we do. This is a precision industry, and you have to pay attention to the details to get it right the first time. It’s easy to miss something that costs time and money; attention to detail from the project team and the Owners is key to success.”

Trevor sees the next five years of his career as a time of growth for him personally and for the company. “I’m going to keep trying to improve what I’m currently doing. My next step is into the higher levels of project management, continuing to be part of growing the business by providing mentorship and getting new staff trained up, all the while trying to improve myself.

“I think the work we do, the industry, that can be taught. We’re looking for people that fit our culture—people who are driven, who want to be better, who strive for growth and chase it. Again, it’s that attention to detail, appreciating all the logistics that goes into a construction project like the kind we do. I learned early how important the small details are, that you have to be in the weeds to account for all the things that go into the big picture.”

Outside of work, Trevor is an avid skydiver and races go-karts with his dad. “Getting my skydiving license was a bucket list item for me, so when I was on one of my first projects in Idaho with Merit, I took the opportunity to make it a reality. The next goal was to skydive out of the country, so last Fall I packed all my stuff across the world to New Zealand. That was fun. You would think it isn’t difficult to fall, but it is. You must treat your body like a wing, moving precisely to achieve the desired outcome.

“With the go-karts, I’ve been doing that since I was about 10 years old. My dad had always been interested in it, and fortunately I got pulled along. We’ve been going consistently for the last six years. We’re part of the Portland Karting Association and do races every year from Spring through Fall. We have a good time—we break stuff, fix it, and race again.”