SUMMER - ISSUE 2 | 2020

In This Issue: We Are a “Yes, if” Organization Rolling Out the New Innovation Program Interstate Island Restoration Project Introducing a Mobile-Friendly Employee App Red Rock Hydroelectric Dam Project Retiree Highlight Ken Manning Dredging project at Massey’s Ditch Channel, located in Sussex County, DE

BRENNAN ,IF “pbIatpeoYppsdoesroioisnbnat,lecsehittfpooo”lamfwuiashasakdtibhteelenaethle.-eemdaskteor. i“osfNtahode,elaabnl-egkiucllaeagru.e se” The initial shock of COVID-19 subsides, the longer term, asking, “What are the lingering but what does the future hold? impacts to our economy and what uncertainties lie ahead of us?” Three months ago, in this column’s space, I wrote of the newly arrived COVID-19 pandemic A survey of media publications on the future and the ensuing national crisis. At that time, of our economy offers the general opinion we were beginning to understand an enemy that we are in for a recession and recovery that we couldn’t see and the hazard it posed period that may last several years, or even to our collective psyche. Today, as we continue up to a decade. The debt accumulated by to learn about COVID-19, debate our national federal and state governments will impact their response, and observe as death tolls rose flexibility as to how they may tender and secure then receded, we are in a different spot as a infrastructure improvements. Similarly, private country. Fear has subsided and we now look to clients have seen a historically negative impact

WE ARE A “YES, IF” ORGANIZATION. to their balance sheets that will impact their capital thinking of a solution to every problem in terms expenditures next year and potentially beyond. To of, yes it can be solved if these parameters are say the least, the table is set for challenges ahead in place. Alternatively, yes it can be solved if we and we should expect increased competition as remove these boundary conditions. The “yes, if” more contractors chase fewer projects. paradigm pervades the Disney organization to this day. By contrast, “no, because” encapsulates The good news is that we are coming to a shared a mindset that obstacles are immovable and understanding that we must adapt to COVID-19, boundary conditions must not be tested. appropriately protecting ourselves, so that we may resume our lives. Also, established trends toward We are a “yes, if” organization. I say that with cleaner environments and power, infrastructure full conviction as creativity and innovation are improvement, and climate change adaptation two fundamental qualities at the foundation of remain as pressing today as ever. Even in tough how Brennan reimagines problem-solving. In the times, opportunity will not disappear. As we months ahead, with their potential for contracting progress through the months and years ahead, opportunities and increasing competition, “yes, if” there will be companies and teams of people who ways of thinking will be more important than ever. will not only survive but thrive. Our challenges, though daunting, present opportunity and we will When I visit a project or walk through the shop or be an organization that seizes those opportunities. office, I never fail to think, “Wow, how did we get so We will thrive. many smart and skilled people here?” Even when times are tough, there will always be a need for We have made it past the initial shock and changes highly intelligent and immensely talented people to to our everyday lives forced upon us by COVID-19. execute sophisticated work and that’s exactly who Now is the time to position our thinking for the we are. Never have we had so much expertise longer journey ahead. Just like the changes we and so much ability to find, pursue, innovate on, made in the past three months, we will likewise and execute work. Looking ahead to the next need to be open to additional adjustments as we 18 months, there will be many times we may catch move forward, which brings me to “Yes, if” and ourselves saying “no, because.” However, there is “no, because.” not a doubt in my mind that 2021 will be the most successful year on record as long as we continue “Yes, if” and “no, because” are diametrically to say, yes we can reimagine our work if we rethink opposed paradigms—in other words, opposite our constraints and reinvent our boundaries. ways of thinking. “Yes, if” is a particularly powerful belief and formed the basis for the way of thinking Matt Binsfeld in companies such as the Walt Disney Corporation. President and Chief Executive Officer Walt Disney was the ultimate optimist, known for

SAFETY CHEALNP YOU ME...? The Safety team is always willing to help! But we also want to make sure you’re getting in touch with the proper person when calling the training center. We’d like to introduce Dianah and Megan to those of you who may not have had the opportunity to meet them! Please take a look at their duties, so you get the fastest and most help from our team. Dianah Colburn | Safety & Compliance Program Coordinator 608.519.5254 or [email protected] » Sets up and facilitates drug screens and physicals » In charge of our medical surveillance program (lead, hazardous materials, hearing,) » Distributes medical records when requested by employees » Handles charges from Occupational Health » Manages auto claims » Handles workers comp claims » Sets up eRail, BNSF, and other online rail training » Sets up online dive training for clients » Handles the safety side of different prequalification systems Compliance Coordinator | Megan Pronschinske 608.519.5263 or [email protected] » Gathers certifications for projects » Uploads all certifications into HCSS » In charge of boot reimbursements » Assists individuals with HCSS » Orders safety supplies » Assembles safety supplies for pick up from La Crosse

MONTHLY SAFETY AWARD WINNERS The monthly safety award is an award that goes to an individual that goes above and beyond when it comes to safety. Nominations can come from anyone in the company. All it takes to nominate someone is a short summary explaining how the individual went above and beyond which would be sent to Megan Pronschinske, Tim Butz, or Vic Buhr IV. Promoting a strong safety culture is all of our jobs as Brennan employees, but those who take that extra step deserve to be recognized. Nominees, if proven to have gone above and beyond per the summary (decided by the Safety committee), will automatically receive a new Carhartt ® Brennan hoodie. If multiple nominees are submitted in a month, the committee votes on which individual went further out of their way to promote a better safety culture than the others based off the nomination write-ups. The winner of the safety award gets a $25 cash gift card on top of the hoodie received by all nominees. So far in 2020, the winners of the safety award are: March February Bruce Vongroven Travis Schulte April May Jeremy Vic Kroll Buhr IV

Introducing We often refer to the concept of innovation synonymously with invention. When The Brennan we think of innovation, we think of new products that have caught our attention. Innovation Products like the Tesla® automobile and the iPhone® have captured our imaginations and pushed us to dream of a clean and comfortable future where Progr a m technology makes life so much better. The reality is that innovation is much more elemental. Innovation keeps us relevant in our market areas. Without it, we fade away behind our competition. With it, we continue to grow and succeed. It is so important to our success that we highlight it as one of our core values! Innovation We seek the opportunity for innovation in every task we perform, collectively understanding that innovative ideas arise from even routine or simple tasks. We are empowered to propose and implement innovations that challenge the status quo. AT BRENNAN, INNOVATION CAN TAKE MANY FORMS. It may come as technological advancement, like the VicVac™, the Broadcast Capping System (BCS™), or the robotic survey vessel. More likely for us, it will come in a process that helps us complete our work more safely or efficiently, such as creating a crew boat with a hinged bow. It could even be something that adds value to our projects and saves our clients money, such as using expandable grout on the piers at Island Lake dam. To emphasize the importance of creating a climate where we can Merrell “Cobb” Colsch showing off his foster change through new ideas, methods, tools, processes, work on the VicVac™ etc., we are introducing the Brennan Innovation Program. The Brennan Innovation program will guide and support individuals at Brennan who look for creative solutions to the challenges we face each and every day. This program is meant to create incentive for innovation and reward those who make an impact. We want to highlight your efforts for each new idea, tool, process, or value-engineered effort that has achieved or partially achieved its intended goal.

3 Ways to get Started Innovation distinguishes 1 THE EASIEST WAY: between a leader Scan the Innovation and a follower Program QR code with your cell phone camera and fill out the Innovation Program Form. 2 SUBMIT ON THE BRENNAN VIEW APP: Open your Brennan View App and click into the Innovation Program, and fill out the form. For access from your desktop, go to www.jfbrennan.com/innovationprogram 3 SEND IN YOUR INFO: Submit all of the following information to [email protected] 1. Names of the individual(s) responsible for the innovation 2. Main point of contact (phone and email address) 3. Detailed description of the innovation 4. Detailed description of how it adds value to the project, operation, or company 5. Pictures of the innovation J.F. Brennan Version# Swiss Force Meister Multi-Tool 1 Actual Imprint Area Dashed Line Does NOT Print INNOVATION Be an innovator, not an imitator. REAP THE REWARDS! Virtual Mockup - NOT FOR PROOFING NOT to exact size or proportion 1. A feature in the next issue of the Scuttlebutt quarterly ROUGH idea of placement newsletter, potential shout-outs on social media, and acknowledgment in company presentations. nBoIetNaannNiimnOnitoaVvtaAotro.Tr,ION 2. A gift box containing awesome Brennan Innovation gear. PO: 77844 Imprint: Size: 1.25”w x 0.32”h Colors: Lasered Art Approval Location: Side 3. Recognition at the annual Brennan celebration, as well as entry into the running for the Brennan Reply to this email to approve proof. Innovation Award! Who knows, maybe your idea will lead to a patent!

CIVIL Interstate Island By Nick Patterson Wildlife Management Area Avian Bird Habitat – Duluth, MN Brennan’s recent Interstate Island project is listed as one of the many Areas of Concern (AOC) projects within the Great Lakes. Interstate Island is a small 5 AC parcel of land located within the Duluth-Superior Harbor along the St. Louis River Estuary. Due to rising water levels, the island has been disappearing, along with important wildlife habitat. The need to restore the rare avian habitat on Interstate Island has been a priority for years, and it came to fruition in 2020. SAVING THE ENDANGERED TERN Cory Swanson Our work on Interstate Island consisted of beneficial use impairment (BUI) and re-establishing lost habitat. The project’s primary concern was to maintain viability for the largest nesting colony of terns in the Lake Superior region—approximately ⅔ of endangered terns found along Lake Superior nest here. It was of particular importance to our client and stakeholders: the Minnesota Land Trust, US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 5, the Great Lakes National Program Office, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, Natural Resources Research Institute, and design engineers Short Elliott Hendrickson Inc. I’ve always referred to “gulls” as seagulls —thinking this is accurate and everyone knows what I mean, having fed them some fries at one point. But I was corrected every time by a half-dozen people in the wildlife industry and instructed to use the term “gulls”—the more proper terminology. With that said, gulls and geese use the island as their nesting habitat as well and have taken it over due to increased water elevation and shoreline erosion. The island is more commonly known as “Gull Island” in Duluth, because when you cross the bridge, all you can see are thousands of gulls nesting there.

Steve Pfiester WORKING ON THE ISLAND Brennan was awarded 2 phases of work for the Interstate Island project in spring 2020. First, we cleared the brush and trees from the island to eliminate perches that hawks, eagles, or any other predator to occupy. We imported 12,000 TON of sand to our dock, barging the material to the project site for use in raising the elevation and total footprint of the island. Again, which was eroding due to higher-than-normal water elevations and increased storm damage. We stockpiled a large amount of driftwood prior to construction and re-placed it along the new shoreline after grading the sand to elevation. This new beach habitat is ideal for piping plover and other shoreline birds like the tern. We built a large temporary swale to manage water runoff around the nesting habitat, which could not be disturbed with nesting season soon approaching. We had a tight construction window. It was a cold spring in Duluth and the ice finally opened up in the harbor in early April. So, we mobilized, prepared the site, imported and placed material, completed temporary erosion control, and finished the job—all prior to the tern nesting season which started on May 1. Our crew even got everything finished with a few days to spare! After the nesting season concludes, Phase 2 begins in September where we will bury existing 30,000 SF of tern habitat itself with another 12,000 TON of sand to raise the island elevation even higher for the next season. We’ll place riprap for stability and erosion control, and disperse small rock for the nesting pad. We will also confine the area with 2 stages of wire fencing to discourage larger bird species from entering the terns nesting area. Phase 1 for this project received extremely positive feedback from all stakeholders who were happy just to see the project work start in the first place. We plan to keep our momentum and stakeholder enthusiasm going by having the same success this fall. Thank you to John Aase, Steve Pfiester, Jesse Christianson, Brandon Hilsen, Cory Swanson, Luke Fuchsel, and Zach Karsten for your great work!

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT Prior to COVID-19, our team participated in conversations regarding the necessity of a mobile resource for Brennan Another Resource employees. The discussions always centered around finding for Brennan: an easy-to-operate mobile app for employees to use while on the road, on-site, or at any time in general. Introducing a Mobile-friendly Employee App Seems reasonable. Give us time, we’ll come up with a solution, right? By Kimberly Walters Well…as the COVID-19 threat became reality, so came ever-changing safety requirements and company-wide announcements. The urgent need for an easily accessible resource for ALL of Team Brennan (not just those with a laptop handy) became abundantly clear. So here we are 3 months later, ready to take our first stab at launching a mobile (and tablet) friendly web-based employee app. Dubbed Brennan View for the moment, the Business Development team wants to introduce you to our first phase of mobile app development. WHAT’S BRENNAN VIEW, AND WHY DO WE WANT IT? I say that the Brennan View employee app is in its first phase, because as of now, only 25 or so Brennan employees have seen it and tested it. We’ve received initial recommendations and feedback from a focus group, and have improved upon the initial draft, but rolling this out to the entire company is certainly a different animal. As we move forward with Brennan View (name suggestions welcome), we’re looking for your feedback—the good, the bad, and the hopefully fixable. Your feedback will bring us into the second phase of mobile app development. This phase of Brennan’s employee app launch is to evaluate usage, monitor your suggestions, and to ensure that information is updated in a timely and accurate manner. Like all websites, the work is never finished, and we’re committed to evaluating ideas on how to better develop our employee app. It is for EVERYONE, after all!

Launch Date July 6th WHAT CAN WE EXPECT? What you can expect is a singular hub for all Brennan employees. You can access it anytime on your device, and find up to date policies, safety info, Scuttlebutts, team news, and resources for you and your team. On launch day, July 6, 2020, you can expect to find: » Safety award winners » NEW Brennan Innovation Program » Current employee handbook » Brennan Brand Book » Employee hotline numbers » Safety meeting agendas » Site safety posters » Scuttlebutts­—past and current » Matt’s CEO blog » Culture topics FOR NERDS LIKE ME: PROS OF A WEB APP VS NATIVE APPS The Brennan View web app is an internet-based application that runs through a web browser like Safari®, Google Chrome™, or your default internet app. It’s designed and developed for many device types, regardless of the operating system. So, we don’t need a 2–3 separate apps for Apple® devices, versus Android™ devices, versus Microsoft® Windows® tablets or computers. This saves us time, money, and allows us full control over our content as we iron out the wrinkles. » Easy access: via a URL or QR code, plus a simple password in our case » We don’t need to submit our app for approval through Apple® App Store or Google Play™, saving money and time on maintenance speed bumps » Compatible with a range of devices, including older phones and tablets, and computers More than » Inexpensive: for the features we need now, there’s no cost involved 55% As we analyze usage and suggestions, a more in-depth app may be necessary. We’re keeping our options open, but a web-based app is certainly a cost-efficient way to start this process. of Brennan employees read the Scuttlebutt In the coming weeks, you’ll receive instructions on downloading the app to your phone, along with the password, and information on the features of Brennan View. on their phones It’s our hope that everyone will give it a chance and that we can work together to further develop its content and functionality. Based on the successes and failures of this initial web app, we’ll create a timeline, budget, and development plan to ensure this app works for all of us.

BRENNAN MARINE Brennan Marine UPDATE Notwithstanding COVID-19, the 2020 navigation season has been a somewhat typical year, a welcomed departure from the high-water challenges of the past two years. La Crosse and Lansing started the season in early April with the usual start of season rush, while volumes have remained strong at Ste. Genevieve, Brickeys, and Three Rivers. The shipyard crew in La Crosse was awarded three consecutive contracts from the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). The first contract was to drydock the M/V Warioto for repairs to the vessel’s Kort nozzles and structural repairs to the steering systems. The second contract was to drydock the M/V Butler to repair a broken propeller shaft and damaged rudders, then repaint the hull. The final contract was for a US Coast Guard (USCG) inspection and hull painting of the USACE 9511 fuel transfer barge. The repairs crew worked hard for quick turnaround times on all items for the start of the shipping season.

CONGRATULATIONS TO BRANDON RASK, our newest boat pilot! Brandon has been with Brennan since 2011. He quickly became a leader on the deck and an essential part of the crew. Brandon has since earned American Welding Society (AWS) D1.1 welding certification, has become a Certified Crane Operator, and now is a licensed Master of Towing Vessels Upon Western Rivers. Congratulations, Brandon, and thank you for all you do at Brennan!

We would like to take a minute and introduce the newest member of our payroll team, Erin Elder. Erin had to work remotely for the first 11 weeks of her employment, with a majority of her training taking place via Microsoft® Teams. We can’t thank her enough for her determination to continue moving forward with her new position despite all the added challenges. Please help us welcome Erin to the Brennan team! Of course, changes to the payroll team mean changes in responsibilities; please take a moment to review your points of contact. Beth Troke | Payroll Supervisor 608.519.5253 or [email protected] » Generating wage determination spreadsheets » Certified Payroll Reports–determining wages/classifications » Union relations regarding payroll » Review/Approve all payroll checks » Company payroll audits Payroll Coordinator | Jim Dahl 608.519.5292 or [email protected] » Processing salary payroll checks • JFB & BMI–Monday/Tuesday » Point of contact for all salary payroll-related questions/inquiries » Processing subsistence • Point of contact with any questions/inquiries » State Unemployment Insurance • Scheduling payments, point of contact for employees Erin Elder | Payroll Assistant 608.519.5338 or [email protected] » Processing weekly/hourly payroll checks • JFB–Tuesday (all day) • BMI–Wednesday (morning) » Point of contact for all weekly payroll-related questions/inquiries » Scheduling tax payments » GL account reconciliations » Processing equipment usage

Milestone Reached! Final Dredge Verification Approval on Fox River By Dustin Bauman On June 4th, we received the final dredge verification approval for the Fox River Sediment Remediation project. This is a monumental accomplishment by all involved and is one step closer to completing the work at the Fox River. Below is a picture with the 5 operators who were onsite the first and last day of dredging: Stacey Schroeder, Zack Meyers, Jeff Abraham, Chad Defoe, and Matt Wagner. Also, Josh Podjaski was on-site representing the survey team on both days. Nearly 400 different individuals contributed to more than 1.1 million hours of work, in Green Bay. Everyone who has participated in this effort over the years should feel a huge sense of pride as this was a project people said could not be completed! By the next issue of the Scuttlebutt, we’ll complete remaining capping and then fully demobilizing from the Fox River site. Expect more on the Fox River project later in 2020 as we commemorate our time and efforts over the past 12 years. Left to right: Stacey Schroeder, Zack Meyers, Jeff Abraham, Chad Defoe, and Matt Wagner

ENVIRONMENTAL After 17 Years, Dredging was Long Overdue By David Horne BRENNAN OPENS UP THE MASSEY’S DITCH NAVIGATION CHANNEL Brennan was contracted to conduct a maintenance this channel was dredged was in 2002 and the amount dredging project at Massey’s Ditch Channel, located of shoaling was so extreme that several portions of the in Sussex County, DE, adjacent to the Indian River channel were navigable only at high tide. Inlet and Indian River Bay. Managed by the State of Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Brennan transported and staged pipe on-site during Environmental Control (DNREC), Division of Watershed November 2019 to ensure sufficient work for a larger Stewardship, the project scope originally included fusing and mobilization crew, who arrived in December dredging 100,000 CY of sand from several shoaled 2019. We placed 16,400 FT of pipe to the beach areas along the channel to allow for local navigation, nourishment area after the holiday season. Dredging and to hydraulically transport the material to a beach operations began on January 8, 2020, running nourishment area located at the Delaware Seashore 24 hours per day, 7 days per week for the duration State Park on the Atlantic Ocean. This was the first of the project. A pre-dredge survey showed another maintenance dredging project conducted solely by 46,586 CY of shoaling in the project area to the over- DNREC and the State, and if successful, they wanted dredge depth of 7.5 FT MLLW, with some areas having to use it as a model for similar future work. The project more than 8 FT of accumulated material—considerably was considered a beneficial use project, since the increasing the scope of work and lengthening material was used to re-nourish a beach that incurred the duration of the project. So, the project quickly significant erosion due to sea-level rise. The last time expanded from a 100,000 CY scope to potentially 146,000 CY.

Dredge material was placed directly in the surf zone at the nourishment area to allow for its littoral transport along the beach via naturally occurring waves and tides. This placement method significantly lowered costs by requiring reduced crew and equipment, and permitting the material to deposit in areas as natural conditions encouraged instead of attempting to fill to an engineered level and template. At the completion of the project, there was a noticeable accretion of material in the area, as anticipated, increasing both the beach elevation and width. During operations, Brennan’s main challenge became the extremely strong currents in the area. These currents resulted from a restricted channel at the entrance of the bay, the large size of the bay (~20,000 AC), and an average of 3 FT of tide over 2 daily tide cycles (up to 5 FT of tide during the full moon). A calculation showed that up to approximately 19.5 billion gallons of water flowed the entrance inlet to the surrounding bay during the two tide cycles daily. Anchors were ineffective at securing the pipe, so we mobilized additional spud barges and a jet boat, and send additional crew to assist. Pipe placement also proved to be extremely difficult due to the necessity of placing the pipe in the strong currents, in shallow water conditions where shoals were visible at low tides, through existing culverts, and over an existing pedestrian boardwalk. In the end, our team dredged 138,489 CY from the Massey’s Ditch Channel. Brennan completed dredging operations on February 26, 2020, and demobilization of the entire site on March 7, 2020. The project was considered a success, with project staff interviewed multiple times during the course of the project and the DNREC requesting that Brennan conduct a presentation detailing this project at an upcoming seminar to assist with future dredging projects. Everyone involved was glad to successfully complete another project but after struggling in the current for several months, they were also happy that it was over! Jet Boat pushing the fuel barge to the dredge Dredging the main shoal area near Middle Island Matt Wagner and Tim Tolvstad Matt Wagner Moving the discharge at the beach nourishment area

COVID-19's IMPACT ON I.T. – WORKING FROM HOME OVERVIEW NEED HELP FROM OUR TEAM? As the talk of COVID-19 increased in La Crosse County Follow the steps below to access the Brennan I.T. Service and around the world, it became more and more evident Desk (Ticket system) leading up to the March 25th Safer at Home Order that we as a company would soon be working from home. 1. Go to https://support.jfbrennan.com When Tina Klinger announced on March 12th that the company needed the ability to work remotely, Jeremiah and Tyler did a great job working with everyone to get 2. Select single sign on them the equipment and tools they needed to make it happen. Our team issued over a dozen laptops to 3. Select your account employees across many departments and groups who previously only had desktop computers. Monitors, 4. Enter your domain user docking stations, keyboards, and other peripherals were password also hot ticket items. (same password you use to log into Reliable virtual private network (VPN) access was a huge your computer every day) factor in allowing us to work remotely, so teams could still connect to our sever and network resources. We recently 5. Check the box as deployed two-factor authentication (2FA) for all VPN shown below, then users, which requires an RSA token and PIN generator click “Yes” app on company cell phones. Typically, the RSA PIN changes every time someone logs in. For individuals who 6. You can then use the banner on the top to navigate needed VPN access but did not have company-issued the system (highlighted with red box below) cell phones, we had to issue “emergency tokens” which a. “My Tasks” is used for approvals; supervisors allowed them sign-in rights via a static PIN that could be may have to approve requests used over and over again. As of now, we have 155 VPN b. “My Requests” is used to find any requests users with 18 in emergency-token mode. Our firewall you have submitted currently supports up to 250 simultaneous connections, c. “New Service” is used to create a new request so we are fortunate that we had the capacity to support all employees during this time. With all the remote connections, another potential issue we faced was how our network infrastructure would handle our increased bandwidth needs, and how our software would react to processing data via our VPN tunnels. Everything worked very well, and at any given time, we were using only about 50% of our available bandwidth. We currently have a Spectrum Fiber Internet service at the main headquarters that allows for 200Mbps upload and 200Mbps download speeds. This can be increased at any time if needed, but we found it adequate during Safer at Home requirements.

TOOLS CHALLENGES Another general concern we had was how we would all be able to collaborate and As we reflect on all the good things that have meetings. A saving grace for us was the fact that we were already on the cusp of utilizing happened and what made the work-from- Microsoft® Teams. With some departments like Business Development already using it, Teams was home experience a positive one, we also wanted to invaluable; it allowed them to continue collaborating as a high-performing team. With Microsoft capture some of the challenges that some of us faced. Teams, we can host and attend online meetings, screen share, make audio and video calls, instant Below is list of things we will be addressing to try to be message, store documents in channels and co-author files in real time, plus so many other more prepared in the future. things. We worked with several employees and » Onboarding new hires was a bit of a challenge departments to make sure everyone who needed » Some employees do not have high speed internet Teams had access and the ability to use it. I see Teams being widely used and adopted moving at their homes forward. » Some employees do not have the greatest cell Tip: Turn on your camera when using Teams. reception at their homes » Printing/Scanning construction plans Cisco Jabber was another tool we utilized during » Sourcing equipment in a hurry the Safer at Home order. Even though it has some » Higher than normal cellular data usage overlap with functionality with Teams, it has one » Workspace ergonomics feature that Teams doesn’t—Cisco desk phone » Distractions integration. Utilizing Jabber, we can do some things » Monotonous—lack of in-person collaboration that Teams does, and it also gives us the ability » Becomes a long day being in one place to answer our desk phone and make calls directly » Meeting deadlines for competent bids from the Jabber app using computer audio. » Inability to do pre-bid site surveys » Deliveries—missing or misplaced packages » Connecting with people—not having visibility into everyone’s schedule in Outlook » Difficult to balance home life and work » Materials left at work » Some software doesn’t run efficiently via VPN » No personal camaraderie FUTURE INITIATIVES WORK-FROM-HOME POSITIVES » Ready-to-deploy laptops » Saving money on gas/cut down on » Have cellular routers and hot-spots ready » Integrate company cell phones with Teams commute time » Have a stock of web cams, phones, iPad® » More accessible in-home space » More flexible schedule devices, and monitors » Easier to get ready for work » Microsoft Outlook® calendar training » Can define work hours » Exchange Online to integrate Outlook in Teams » Convert users to laptops from desktops, if possible » Noise-canceling microphones Tip: Take laptops home to be better prepared. Thank you to the rest of the I.T. department for adjusting to continual changes over the past few months. We also would like to thank those who continued work as usual on jobsites, in our training and safety offices, our shop, yard, and all those who kept our projects on track. Thank you for your dedication!

UNDERWATER SERVICES Red Rock Hydro Dam Years in the Making By Chase Slabaugh The Red Rock Hydro project Dive crews started the project in 2015 with several short duration dives (RRHP) originally kicked off which included cofferdam sealing, underwater welding, caisson drill bit in 2014 with Ames winning recovery, and removing 35,000 LB of formwork from a caisson. the bid (or losing the bid depending on how you look 2015 Original Ames project 2015 View of Red Rock at it!) to install a 36 MW hydroelectric plant on Lake Fast forward to 2019 when Brennan divers were called again to assist. A Red Rock near Pella, IA. The large section of sheet pile wall ripped away in a high flow area, eventually dam, reservoir, and adjacent causing the collapse of a smaller rough-terrain crane being used to remove land are all owned by the US the sheeting. During the initial inspection, the dive crew found that the Army Corps of Engineers sheeting had torn apart due to the high flow in the dam spillway area. We (USACE). Rock Island formulated a new plan to remove all the sheeting and debris found during our District. Pro-Dive—after inspection. The crew successfully removed all missing sheeting as well as the merger, Brennan—was several tons of cable and random debris. chosen shortly thereafter to perform all diving work on In April 2020, we finally got the call to remobilize for the last and largest the project. While initial dive part of the project: the intake demolition. The first crew, led by long-time work included inspection dive supervisor Tom Kennedy, began removing over 350,000 LB of massive and emergency services, steel walers, struts, and bracketry. Initially, burning was a challenge due the main portion of the work came at the end of the project along with dismantling the intake structure.

to the murkiness of the water, bar to break up and remove all but Brennan and Ames worked overpour concrete. together and developed a plan to add flocculant to the pool of water The initial crew had been within the cofferdam. This helped removing all the structural steel clear up the water, achieving 3 to from the cofferdam eventually 5 FT of visibility, which increased finished, immediately moving on production tenfold. During the to installing trash racks. Divers steel demolition, Ames wanted to installed sixteen 21,000 LB screen try using a diamond wire saw to assemblies! This operation also cut through the huge steel walers included drilling and anchoring all to potentially improve production. mounting hardware to extremely The divers assisted with the close tolerances. cutting system setup. Everyone quickly found out that Brennan’s After placement of all racks, divers were as fast or faster at the final phase of cutting and cutting the steel than the wire removing of the secant piles saws, so sawing operations were began. The process involved canceled. core-drilling through the secant piles to install the diamond wire Ames requested second crew so the saw cutters could run cuts to start removing a section for removing large sections of of overpoured concrete secant pile clusters. This process approximately 4 FT x 5 FT x continued in strategic areas to 13 FT located on the downstream ensure properly sized cuts for side of the dam. The crew began the crane. As of this writing, the jackhammering the concrete and secant removal is approximately discovered that it was extremely 30% complete and we expect that hard and would take significant the work will take several more time to remove. The crew, led weeks using 24 HR shifts. by Blake Rocque, looked to the option of using Dexpan® non- The dive crews have experienced explosive demolition agent to many challenges with the RRHP expedite the concrete removal. throughout the years, including The crew concentrated on drilling shortened bottom times due twenty-one 1¾ IN holes, each to deeper depths, underwater 12 FT deep. After drilling all holes, burning hazards, rigging in limited the crew injected Dexpan into the visibility, precise measurements holes and waited overnight. The for fabrication, hazardous weather, next day, the crew used a pry and 2 dive crews working in close proximity to each other. We commend the ingenuity and dedication of everyone involved in this project for a continued job well done! A SPECIAL THANKS goes out to Randy Jacobs for initially securing the job, Adam Thorson for submitting multiple dive plans at a moment’s notice, Tom Kennedy, Bryan Rich, and Blake Rocque for safely leading all on-site divers, and finally, all the divers involved in this long and complex project—our crews worked over 7,500 hours!

QUALITY By Michael Cannell Quantifying Quality Reaping the Rewards of Our Quality Management System In 2014, Brennan was well into a period of rapid and Long story short, in July 2019, we decided to formally sustained growth. While desirable and a goal for nearly adopt the ISO-14001 (environmental management) and every company, growth brings with it many challenges ISO-45001 (safety management) standards as part of and we had our share. an integrated Brennan quality management system. Two questions burned: What tools did we need to A bit about terms, specifically “quality management effectively manage the company, especially during system.” Yes, technically, it is a standards-based a period of fast growth? How could we retain and system for managing quality, but it encompasses the enhance our industry-leading reputation for high quality total management system across the company. services? Brennan designed our quality management system After significant thought, many discussions, and a (QMS) to incorporate our 3 chosen ISO standards review of different management systems in use across within its unifying framework. ISO-9001 relates to industries, Brennan decided that standards from the overall quality of services, ISO-14001 relates to our International Organization for Standardization (ISO), management of potential impacts to the environment, specifically, the ISO-9001 standard, provided the and ISO-45001 covers management processes that best framework to suit our operations. We began the affect the safety of our employees. implementation process in 2014 … until we had to park it in 2016 due to a period of even more rapid growth. While thousands of companies across the world hold one or more of these same certifications, many have During the latter part of 2018, Brennan refocused created separate management functions for each area. efforts and resources on the ISO certification process This is especially true in companies of Brennan’s size and set a January 2020 goal for our certification. or larger, where it is common to have one group that manages quality, another addressing safety, and yet Ambitious? Yes, but we’re a company who sets a high another, environmental compliance. Brennan’s decision bar for ourselves every single day. So, not really out of to integrate all our requirements into one system character for us! avoids creating management silos, which tend to have overlap that can lead to inefficiencies and difficulty As implementation proceeded, we began to look at communicating. management processes across the company and how they would be impacted, especially in the areas of An integrated management system also benefits us environmental and safety management. Spoiler alert: by reducing the effort required to examine our entire ISO designed standards for those programs that work organization during audits. Companies certified to ISO hand in glove with ISO-9001 Quality Management. standards are audited annually for each

certification they hold, internally AND externally, so » Operational planning and control that takes into 3 standards would typically mean 3 internal audits account client and regulatory requirements for and 3 external audits. Our internal and external audits products and services, as well as changes to are more comprehensive but overall, having a unified requirements and control of externally provided system means we can expect about 40% of the audit processes, products, and services. disruption that we might otherwise face. » Management performance evaluation processes The Big Question is that involve monitoring, measurement, analysis, and evaluation, internal and external audits, and What are we getting for our time and effort? formal management review of all aspects of the system. Although this isn’t a comprehensive list, the following identifies a few benefits that Brennan has already » A system focused on improvement. We track realized from our QMS. opportunities for improvement to help set goals and » Carefully identified the needs and expectations of objectives; we track nonconformity and corrective action to identify and correct root cause issues and not only our clients, but government regulators and drive continual improvement. importantly, our employees. » Clearly documented management procedures None of these programs or processes existed at the and work instructions to specify those responsible beginning of 2019—Brennan’s QMS has come a long and accountable for executing the tasks. These way in the last 18 months and the final portion of our are supported by processes to keep documents certification audit is scheduled for July 2020! centralized and constantly current. » Annual or more frequent reviews of the legal Our decision to implement an independently audited requirements impacting the business. and certified management system was not made » Well-documented and world-class safety lightly. Because of the comprehensive planning and management program that meets and—in preparation involved, executives and managers at many cases—exceeds client and regulatory every level have to learn, understand, and support requirements. these processes. At every level, employees have » Documented methods for taking action to address assisted in creating this system and it will continue to risks and opportunities with respect to service bear fruit. quality, the environment, our employees, project partners, and subcontractors. Adopting an integrated quality management system » Written objectives and written, verified processes that addresses the mandates of regulators, the for planning to achieve them. requirements of our clients, and the needs of our » Ability to measure our progress and current status employees allows us to measure ourselves against against defined metrics, enabling transparent the extremely high bar that we, and our clients, set for accountability across the Brennan organization. us. Our QMS very plainly shows that quality, across all » Dynamic corrective action process that focuses on facets of the organization, is paramount for Brennan. root cause analysis and elimination of those root causes so that problems do not reoccur. In a resource- and equipment-intensive industry, » Supercharged training program with readily most companies, will invest in equipment if given available materials which produces traceable, the opportunity. In addition to the capital invested in documented evidence of training. our hard assets, Brennan has committed significant » Inspection program that results in timely and resources to improving business processes and enhanced visibility of equipment conditions and our people. We know that in the long run, we are issues. This allows Brennan’s Asset Management more than the equipment—we are a group of people group to effectively and efficiently allocate dedicated to a common cause, working together in resources to the field for equipment maintenance the most efficient and effective manner. Our ability and repair. to execute our services in this manner is what differentiates us. At Brennan, we honor our commitments, so we are “walking the walk,” not just talking a big game. That’s the Brennan way. Quality doesn’t come from a project—it comes from a process.

ASSET MANAGEMENT Brennan’s New LR 1300 gets to work! ByKenPeterson Our new LR 1300 replaced the Liebherr HS895. The 895 was a good crane. One of the many advantages of getting into the new crane is the hourly operating cost. The new crane will give Brennan a high percentage of cost saving which will make that lifting rig far more competitive for the company. “At La Grange, our new LR 1300 is vital to bulkhead and cofferdam installation. The crane specializes in heavy lift work and work requiring a long reach. These are very important on our lock jobs, as it allows us to complete work while being outside of the lock chamber.” - Brady Wateland, project manager Max. load capacity 331 TON Max. hoist height 554 FT Max. radius 370 FT

Options New to the Model Many parts are common to both of our LR 1300s, this was taken into consideration. But our newest LR 1300 has some unique options new to this model: » Wind-speed indicator that will not only measure the wind speed, but it will alarm at 4 levels of wind to alert the operator to increasing or gusting winds. » Vertical fine finder: that will align the boom angle and the swing angle to ensure the item that is being picked raises off the ground perfectly vertical. This will increase safety when a “blind pick” must be performed. » The cab of the crane has been constructed to reduce the noise to which the operator will be exposed by 5 decibels. BONUS: THE LR 1300 IS MADE FOR EASY TRANSPORT When disassembled the crawler crane has a compact transport width of maximum 3 meters, which allows for transport with standard low loaders. The connecting pieces of the luffing jib can also be transported in the connecting pieces of the main boom to save space. The crane came into the Seneca yard on 19 trucks. The delivery was a little drawn out due to COVID-19 but overall, the assembling of the crane went extremely smooth. Max. load capacity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .331 TON At radius. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 FT Main boom, lightweight/heavyweight from. . . .65 FT Main boom, lightweight/heavyweight up to . . . 301 FT Max. load torque. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22,940,226 LB-FT Lattice jib from. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 FT Lattice jib up to . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 370 FT Derrick boom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .98 FT Central ballast. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125,663 LB Counterweight at superstructure. . . . . . . . . . . 272,000 LB Derrick ballast. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264,500 LB Engine power. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .523 HP Driving speed. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0.76 MPH Total ballast. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 399,037 LB

OVERCOMING WRITER'S BLOCK IN THE WORKPLACE By Gayle C. Edlin The business world requires everyone to write. Along with an increase in written demands comes the interruption—or abject absence—of flowing words called “writer’s block.” Time and productivity lost to the struggles of writer’s block escalate with neglected, rushed, or omitted review of written work. THEN COME THE QUESTIONS … Do we have to edit? Definitely. Can we get over writer’s block? Yes. Editing is critical in the writing process. Your designated audience can read your work, as can Except for delayed responses to requests for anyone with whom they share your message. What’s information, little would seem to deter good workplace more, all of these people can reread the information. writing. But hoarding knowledge is only one block by The potential reach of every written missive always which business writing is stymied. Conflicting or short exceeds its intent, so concentrate on clarity and deadlines, diverse teams, and multitasking demands accuracy. Part of your editing process should include plague both dedicated and occasional writers. The reading the material—just as carefully as you hope same dilemmas that frustrate creative writers also every message recipient will do. strike those laboring over technical narratives. We may have trouble seeing a clear path to begin, struggle with Ideally, step away from your document for at least a how much detail to provide, or wonder how to illustrate few hours before editing. It’s common to develop “blind key points. We might even question the words we use. spots” as you write where you overlook words and phrases. This makes it hard to identify typographical When you think about it, it’s a wonder that anything errors, omitted words, and other common blunders. gets written. Ever. A simple editing fix involves reading your document aloud. The act of speaking or forming words silently Since businesses do produce a lot of writing every draws your attention to each individual word. This day, we know that we can overcome writer’s block. As process helps you identify errors, awkward phrasing, with most issues, a focused approach can help: or inadvertent repetition. » If you’re having trouble beginning the piece, try Trade editing services with another employee to obtain writing the conclusion/summary first instead. a fresh perspective. Use the comments you receive to improve the document and better represent your » If you can’t outline your way out of a paper bag, employer—and yourself. As with most processes, give freewriting a shot. writing and editing become easier with practice. » If you struggled with the topic, ask an expert to Does editor’s block exist, too? Certainly. review your draft; be sure to allow adequate time Just as we may find it grueling to extract words from for revising your material based on their input. our minds, editing can also seem like a major chore. But look at it this way: you can’t get editor’s block » If you face an exacting audience or your document without writing something first. That means you’re has strategic importance, enlist coworkers to making progress. check for easily overlooked mistakes. Struggling with or avoiding written projects points to underlying concerns. Addressing the symptoms usually dissolves the “block.”

The same caveats about writer’s block apply to editor’s block. Try to identify what’s stopping you and devise a plan to get started again. You can also use any of the following general options: » Go for old-school editing. Print your document, pick up a red pen, and “mark your words,” so to speak. After writing on-screen, going offline mixes things up so you can start editing. » Some people find a change of scene helpful. Simply moving from one side of your workspace to the other can set the tone for more constructive editing. » When you work on a piece for a long time, obtaining comments from someone else is an excellent idea. » If your workplace employs writers and/or editors, take advantage. You might even break them out of a block of their own in the process. Can we avoid these blocks? Absolutely. Self-help books and exercises for resolving writer’s block abound, suggesting its widespread nature. However, procrastination may pose the greatest threat to good writing. As with other business ventures, when we put off the work, we end up with less time to complete our tasks. As motivational as deadlines may seem, writing improves most significantly when you take time to plan and put dedicated effort into your work. In the end, the best means of preventing writer’s block involves writing early and editing often. FREEWRITING Popular among creative writers, freewriting is a tool for getting words on a page that also works in business settings. The idea behind freewriting is to remove any sense of judgment about what you’re working on—simply write. In other words, don’t worry about getting it right—just get it started. Identify your topic and write as much as you can within whatever time you have available. Avoid crossing out words, backtracking, or any other sort of improvement you might normally make; just write. After you run out of time or words, then you can review and refine your work.

STRUCTURAL Brennan Responds to Adversity at LaGrange in 2020 By Bill Simons The LaGrange Major Rehabilitation project involves the major restoration PROJECT SCOPE of a US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) wicket dam and lock structure located near Versailles, IL. Brennan is the major subcontractor to Shimmick » Bull-nose concrete Construction (part of AECOM), supplying marine construction services resurfacing and armor and equipment support for this $117M contract with the USACE. Shimmick replacement Construction is leveraging Brennan’s experience on old infrastructure and equipment assets to complete the entire project. This project is the » Outer lock chamber Structural group’s largest single project to date and, in fact, we installed the vertical resurfacing and lower bulkhead slots at LaGrange in 2016. armor replacement The overall goal of the project is to restore the lock chamber and regulating » Tainter valve weir structure, as well as replacing major appurtenances and machinery. rehabilitation and Mobilization and construction activities began in 2019 and we anticipate machinery update completion of work in late 2020. » Miter gate anchorage replacement and machinery update » Regulating weir restoration » Marine equipment support » Bulkhead sealing » Lead paint abatement Roadway to LaGrange lock and dam Greg Nickerson and Kevin McKeown

Eric Hanson Jeff Wamsley Dave Bahl Brady Wateland PROJECT CHALLENGES concrete forms, and equipment such as Oliver Shimp (engineer), Zach Lucas High water is a continuous challenge Mid-City Steel, Altorfer CAT, Budrovich and Brady Wateland (project managers), to the project schedule necessitating Marine, Southwest Steel, MEVA Bill Simons (senior project manager), good partnering practices with the Formwork Systems, Inc., Airgas, and and a warm welcome to recent project USACE, Shimmick Construction, and Fastenal Company. Barr Engineering Co. manager hires Farhan Kaleem Khan and the numerous supporting subcontractors and Geotechnology, Inc. are providing Ryan Curtis. Mr. Khan is an experienced and suppliers. The project had engineering support services. construction manager tasked with significant high-water delays in 2019 and helping implement realistic solutions unfortunately, 2020 is similarly delayed. Advance Concrete Sawing and the to the USACE design. Mr. Curtis Brennan saw-cutting team lead by Steve brings his 20 years of construction and The COVID-19 pandemic is also Chaffin will simultaneously conduct management background to help the supplying its share of challenges as all demolition for numerous features of team execute efficiently. stakeholders develop new approaches work across the site. Mr. Chaffin has to implement the rehabilitation activities over 10 years of experience in concrete At LaGrange, we are employing under the “new normal” conditions we demolition and saw-cutting. Concrete lean management practices (“post- face. Kudos to the crew members for saw-cutting is a new service Brennan is it note planning”) and virtual design implementing Brennan’s newly developed providing at LaGrange to help address construction (3-dimensional modeling) practices which are minimizing disruption the aforementioned challenges and to plan, execute, and help evaluate how to an already challenging schedule. develop our new service line. Brennan can leverage these practices going forward to enhance efficiency, Conducting a rehabilitation on a structure We will utilize the Underwater Services identify and reduce risk, and increase that is almost 100 years old and in group’s experienced divers and dive team communication among all stakeholders. extremely poor condition poses another managers to conduct a suite of tasks challenge to all stakeholders. At times, necessary to complete our scope of We are using both owned and rented portions of the project team may have to work. Divers will help the team document equipment assets to support our and work 2 shifts, 7 days per week, to meet conditions, plan, and implement the Shimmick Construction’s scopes of work. the USACE’s desired schedule. underwater portions of the project scope Assets include our brand new Liebherr® in the project’s challenging, minimal LR 1300 crawler crane, existing LR 1300 RESPONDING TO CHALLENGES visibility conditions. crane, 70x150 and 70x200 spud barges, Brennan is utilizing our highly experienced RT cranes, hydraulic crawler cranes, staff and project partners to address both The project team includes approximately and 2 large tugboats. There will be up new and old challenges at LaGrange. As 50 tradesmen, 2 site safety and health to 8 cranes of various sizes and styles usual, we will overcome these challenges officers (SSHOs), upwards of 10 operating nearly simultaneously to and develop new practices to become foremen—including Paul Lamb, Dave achieve the project schedule. more efficient under adversity. Bahl, and Amos Hynek—Travis Schulte (superintendent), Ken Bebar (SSHO), We are using suppliers of materials,

Brennan Gives Back— Food Bank Match Initiative We Reached Our Goal! 1,038 Food Items $955 Matching Funds in Cash Donated Donations $1,993 Food banks across the country have been running dangerously low on non-perishable food items, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. In May, we launched a Food Bank Match Initiative at Brennan. Through June 5th, employees and their families were encouraged to contribute food items (or a few dollars, if able) to a food pantry in their community. Brennan agreed to match donations by contributing a lump sum at the end of the month—matching monetary donations dollar-for-dollar and contributing one additional dollar for every donated food item. Our goal was to provide an additional 1,000 food items to our local food banks, and we reached our goal! Brennan employees made 36 separate donations, providing 1,038 food items and $955 dollars in contributions across 5 states. Brennan matched, providing another $1,993 dollars to the Hunger Task Force. In all, Brennan families donated 1,038 food items and an additional $2,948 to lessen hunger across our communities. Thank you to all those who donated, thank you to your families, and thank you for being a part of the Brennan team.



MILESTONES & DATES TO REMEMBER Years of Service Anniversaries 5 Years 06/01/2015 15 Years 05/17/2005 Ryan Sands 06/29/2015 Travis Benda 05/27/2005 Jake England 06/29/2015 Andy Remen 06/13/2005 Scott Leatherberry 06/29/2015 Zack Meyers Dave Majeski 06/29/2015 05/01/2000 Rick Soland 20 Years 05/10/2010 Steve Feenstra 10 Years 05/17/2010 Dustin Bauman 05/18/2010 Casey Evenson 06/02/2010 Aaron Ronnenberg Kevin Hendershott New Hires MAY MARCH HR ADMIN STEPHEN GRANT OPERATOR TYLER HENRY LABORER LELAND PILKINGTON OPERATOR DAVID ODENDAHL OPERATOR TRENTON FONDEROLI SUPERINTENDENT AMOS HYNEK PAYROLL ASST BRITTANY MURPHY MED TECH ERIN ELDER DECKHAND JESUS MENDEZ LABORER JARED NEWTON OPERATOR S JOSHUA RAMIREZ d ADAM RAYNER OPERATOR M I CODY WILZ OPERATOR l o BRENNON STAVES PR ENGINEER INTERN l F APRIL GABRIEL HOGLE OPERATOR I JOHN BOYD l COREY BLAIR OPERATOR JAMES TODD OPERATOR o JUSTIN DAY OPERATOR l VICTOR HASTINGS OPERATOR LEVI HANSON PR ENGINEER INTERN F MATTHEW BURK OPERATOR I GARRET OSSOLA OPERATOR DAKOTA BELLING PR ENGINEER CO-OP l ANGELO ZUCCOLO OPERATOR o RYAN CURTIS OPERATOR SHANE BUCHANAN DECKHAND COLTON WILBUR SR PROJECT MNR REEGAN MEEKER DECKHAND DEREK RICHARD DECKHAND RUSSELL REES OPERATOR JASON RODENBURG OPERATOR MICHAEL LAFFIN OPERATOR ROBERT BOWMAN OPERATOR MICHAEL SLATER CARPENTER ROBERT REED OPERATOR JOSEPH MYERS SITE SAFETY MNR DECKHAND JAMES ROBERTS OPERATOR JOSEPH WELLS OPERATOR COLE KINTZELE INTERN TERRANCE SNYDER OPERATOR JOSEPH WELLS OPERATOR CHRISTOPHER CHOATE DECKHAND MADDY MAILHOT PR ENGINEER INTERN

Introducing the 2020 Brennan 2020 Walkabout Step Challenge Series Need more reasons to join? Challenge 1: The Walkabout “In It to Win It” Team Challenge 5 Have Fun » This is a 4-week team challenge competition for the most steps. 5 Challenge Yourself » The “In It to Win It” Challenge launches on July 12th. 5 Receive Free Fitness Tracker » Challenge includes weekly prizes and the overall team prizes 5 Win Prizes 5 Compete with Coworkers for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place. 5 Receive a Walkabout » 1st Place Team will get their names added to the Walkabout Challenge Brennan Shirt Challenge trophy. Contact Mary Davis at mdavis@ Challenge 2: The Walkabout “Walk Along” Individual Challenge jfbrennan.com or call 608.784.7173 » This is a 6-week individual challenge of self-improvement. » The “Walk Along” Challenge launches on August 23rd. MORE INFO TO COME! » Set your target at the bronze, silver, or gold level—whichever level STAY TUNED! will keep you moving. » Steps will be measured and entered for weekly prize drawings. » Meet your overall target to receive a bronze, silver, or gold prize pack at the end of the challenge. Safety Quality Efficiency Innovation Professionalism pride loyalty development teamwork Respect leadership no blame dedication Financia » If and when Brennan becomes certified, then it’s time to celebrate and promote our status! Results From July 15 – 26th this year Brennan employees Management Family fun focus on clients Safety Quality Efficiencyparticipated in our annual Great Place to Work® (GPTW) Trust Index Survey. Innovation Professionalism pride loyalty development teamwork RespecWHAT DOES THAT MEAN? » Each year, whether Brennan is granted certification leadership no blame dedication Financial Management Family fun focusby GPTW or not, survey results and data are analyzed and shared throughout the company. on clients Safety Quality Efficiency Innovation Professionalism prideThe Brennan GPTW Task Force dives into our and our certification profile become available to share on Facebook, LinkedIn, our website, in press releases, and more. Not only does this survey give us valuable information and insights to the company, but it is also a great recruitment tool to show potential employees the best aspects of Brennan. Certification Report and reviews the actionable loyalty development teamwork Respect leadership no blame dedicationinsights about Brennan’s strengths and growth SO, HOW DID WE DO THIS YEAR? WE ARE OFFICIALLY CERTIFICED THROUGH 2021 AS A GREAT PLACE opportunities. We also find out how our results Financial Management Family fun focus on clients Safety Quality Efficiencycompare to the other best workplaces in the country. TO WORK® IN THE UNITED STATES! Congratulations everyone! » After our Trust Index Survey and Culture Brief Innovation Professionalism pride loyalty development teamwork Respecare complete, GPTW determines if we hit the survey requirements (at least focus pride leadership no blame dedication Financial Management Family funa 65% average of all GPTW model statements, and a survey on clients Safety Quality Efficiency Innovation Professionalismparticipation threshold to qualify THANK YOU TO EVERY TEAM MEMBER WHO TOOK THEIR TIME TO SUBMIT A SURVEY!! for GPTW certification). If we meet loyalty development teamwork Respect leadership no blame dedicationour goal, we can celebrate being We could not continue to grow as an organization without your valuable certified! Our profile gets published Financial Management Family fun focus on clients Safety Quality Efficiencyon the GPTW website for everyone feedback, and we look forward to using this data to continuously improve within Innovationto viPewr. ofessionalism pride loyalty detvheeolrgoapnimzateionn.t teamwork Respec leadership no blame dedication Financial Management Family fun focus on clients Safety Quality Efficiency Innovation Professionalism pride

K en Manning 50 Years a Riverman In a 100-year-old company, you can imagine the large number of milestones surpassed by the people who work here. However, there is a milestone that is so exclusive, that only 1 person has ever achieved it: finishing a career that spans 50 years at Brennan. The only person in Brennan at the time, so he “had to take civil engineering” instead. history to reach this milestone is After graduating, he returned to Brennan and began Ken Manning. Kenny began at to work under Ralph Brennan on the infamous Prairie Brennan back in 1965—right du Chien bridge project in 1970. On this job, Kenny after he graduated from high designed his first cofferdam and learned the importance school. By that time Kenny of calculated safety factors during times of flooding and was extremely familiar with ice buildup. In the course of his career, he designed many J.F. Brennan Company. Jim cofferdams for nearly every imaginable scenario. Brennan was his great uncle, he grew up on the Brennan During the mid-70s and into the 80s, Ken was immersed in bidding and managing several multi-year floodwall family farm, his brother, Mike projects in Clinton, IA, Dubuque, IA, and Winona, MN. Manning, worked here, and he was That is also the timeframe when Brennan built several the son of long-time superintendent John (Joe) Manning. islands along the Upper Mississippi River. Back then, we only did mechanical dredging, digging material via His career at Brennan began on a job at the old Bob clamshell or dragline for transport by barge. In 1977 and Johnson Mobil Oil tank farm located along the causeway 1978, Brennan had a large job at the Dairyland Power near downtown La Crosse. Joe was the superintendent Plant in Alma that required extensive pile driving. During on a job where Brennan was building new foundations this job, Kenny overcame a unique challenge with some under the oil tanks after they sustained damage during ingenious thinking. the record-breaking flood of 1965. To move the tanks, the crew built berms and flooded the surrounding area to “We had to put a cofferdam out for the intake structure, float the tanks off their old foundations. Roger Binsfeld and when we were trying to put the dewatering system was doing the surveying and needed someone to hold in and get it dewatered, there were big boils out in the the level rod. “So, I was drug along to hold a level rod for middle of it. So then the dewatering contractor thought we him,” Kenny recounted. Kenny was so impressed with the didn’t have enough wells, so we went and put in another concept of moving the massive tanks using water, as well 50 percent more wells. We were still getting a bunch as the survey aspect of the job, that he decided to pursue of boiling, and couldn’t get it pumped down. It turns out a career in surveying. they had done a soil boring in where our cofferdam was, and they never plugged the hole, and there was a layer Unfortunately, the school Kenny picked, the University of of clay. So, it acted like an artesian well where this big Wisconsin—Platteville, didn’t offer a degree in surveying 2014 Xcel Energy CapX2020 Power line Mississippi 2010, Tyco Marinette, Ken Manning Jeff Steiber & Ken Manning River Crossing project, Alma WI with Nick Vetsch reviewing plans with crew

Jim O’Neill & Ken Manning 1993 Missouri Flood project­ Early 1980s, Ken Manning Roger Mohn, Vic Buhr, Ken Manning huge boil was coming right up through River for Dow Chemical in Midland, When asked about which projects he the middle of the cofferdam under MI. Kenny led our efforts on the 2007 is most proud, Kenny answered, “All of pressure. We took a 16 IN stand with Grasse River pilot project for Alcoa them. They were all good jobs. You’re a pipe, made a little bracket on the (Arconic) in Massena, NY, where we proud to go up and down the river, bottom and drove it in because it was experimented with several inventive and basically, you could say I worked bigger than what the hole was. Sealed remedial devices designed and built on here, I worked on there. From St. it up, water went inside the pipe. It all in our shop. And he oversaw the 2010 Paul to St. Louis, I’ve worked on a lot stabilized, and we finished driving our vertical barrier wall project around the of different things.” And what about piling and pouring our concrete.” Tyco chemical plant in Marinette, WI. challenges? Kenny responded, “I would say that job at Prairie, putting in all Throughout the next 2 decades, Kenny Throughout his career, Kenny the cofferdams and piers down there. Right out of school, there was a lot of was involved in just about every bid developed a reputation as one of the responsibility, and it was risky work.” that went out Brennan’s door. Whether foremost experts on marine structures Ken Manning retired in 2015, but one does not have to look far to see we were placing rock, driving piling, or located along inland waterways. his impact on this company. He was instrumental in establishing Brennan as dredging, Kenny remained a key figure Most terminal owners knew him by a go-to resource for clients who own and operate barge terminals along the in reviewing the bid and assembling name and often sought his advice on Mississippi River. During his tenure, we expanded into several new markets and the work plan. As Brennan expanded, damage or deterioration. Though he’s services. Kenny’s expertise, courage to innovate, and ability to systematically Kenny often faced new challenges and been retired for five years, we still attack a challenge head-on were influential to Brennan’s success as was tasked with delivering innovative get phone calls from barge terminal we grew. These traits were passed to many who worked with Kenny and are solutions. He was instrumental in managers asking for Kenny by name. integral to the fundamental tenets of our Brennan culture. helping the Dredge division get During pre-bid meetings, it is never a off the ground in 1990 when we surprise when an owner approaches bought the assets of the F.J. Robers and asks, “Say, does that white-haired Company. Here, Kenny and Vic Buhr fella still work at Brennan?” When it spent many days walking levees and came to marine work, Kenny knew the bidding projects that paved the way risks; when we bid projects, he made for Brennan’s environmental work. sure that we strategically considered Kenny also worked closely with Pat each step to identify those risks. Vickman in the 1990s when we began Moreover, Kenny educated clients pursuing construction projects on lock about risks and possible solutions. and dam structures. After Pat left and Steve Becker took over the Lock and Dam division, Kenny was always a reliable resource for bid review and engineering advice. As Brennan’s groups formed, Kenny became the leader of the Construction division (now the Civil group). Into the 2000s and 2010s, he continued to focus on barge terminals, mechanical dredging projects, and even environmental projects. He was instrumental in building the river bypass during the cleanup of the Grand Calumet River for US Steel in Gary, IN. He oversaw the installation of a sizable sheet pile enclosure for the remediation of the Tittabawassee