Employees Celebrate 50 Years at Ergon’s Newell Refinery

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As we celebrate the 25th anniversary of Ergon – West Virginia, we are honored to commemorate a special milestone for three employees who have been with the refinery since its beginning in 1972. Doug Burdick, who retired July 1 as Vice President – Refining at EWV and worked with these men for many years, had the following to say in recognition of Steve Murray, Dan Foltz and Nick Kalinski’s 50 years of service:

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“Steve Murray (or Sugar Bear, as he is affectionately known) has been a staple in the conversion area for over 50 years. Kind, soft spoken and always looking out for those he works with, Sugar Bear is admired for the patient and kind way he takes new unit employees under his wing to impart some of his vast knowledge. He is dependable, dedicated and a pleasure to be around … and he keeps his fellow employees supplied with donuts.

“Dan Foltz’s knowledge of the crude separation area is second to none. Over the last 50 years, he has been the one everyone turns to when the need to learn and understand something in the crude area arises. Dan’s dependability is unmatched. If he is on the schedule, you can be sure he will show up. He is also the first person to arrive in a crisis or when extra help is needed.

“Nick Kalinski has been a leader as an Outside Operator for as long as anyone can remember. Operators breathe a sigh of relief when they see Nick scheduled for shutdowns and startups. Every B & C Operator in the crude separation area can say they learned from Nick. He has been a wealth of knowledge and experience and has always been willing to share those attributes with up-and-coming operators.”

Steve, Dan and Nick get the occasional “Man, you’ve been doing this since before I was born” comments from coworkers. They have actually worked alongside multiple generations of families from the Newell area.

“We’ve been through a lot of changes over the years, especially after Ergon took over,” Steve said. They went from working for a union for 25 years to working for a privately owned company, which all agree has been a positive experience. They also helped with changes Ergon made at the refinery, including increased capacity and the addition of important safety features. “The biggest thing probably was changing from pneumatic instruments over to DCS, which allows us to open and close valves from inside in the control room,” Steve added. “Before, everything was manual.”

One thing that hasn’t changed is their appreciation for their coworkers. All agree that the Ergon family is what makes the job something they would want to do for so many years, from bosses who treat employees well to coworkers who are “amazing.“

Thank you, gentlemen, for your dedication and service to Ergon!

Supporting Professional Development at Ergon

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The idea of purposeful growth has been driving change within Ergon for decades. Whether attracting the right talent or developing our talent within, both are focused on meeting needs for future growth.

Ergon management has always been passionate about creating opportunities to further develop our talented workforce. In this blog post, Blaine Totty, Vice President –Organizational Development, highlights a few of these opportunities Ergon provides to support the professional growth of our workforce.

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I have wondered many times why Ergon is a place that naturally retains its employees. Even if employees leave for greener pastures, many find their way back. That’s because at Ergon, we care for our people and want the best for them. Not only that, but we demonstrate it by providing resources to help strengthen skillsets and support advancement. This aspect of our culture is important when we recruit candidates to work at Ergon; we want the people that we hire to become future leaders who will care for their employees and develop them the same way they were developed. Hiring people who embody the values Ergon holds dear — Empowered Service, Selfless Leadership, Respectful Relationships and Purposeful Growth — and honing those values through training and development sets us up for a sustainable future. That’s why we often say that company growth and employee growth go hand in hand.

How We Encourage Growth
Ergon has a myriad of ways we help develop employees once they become part of the family. Leaders throughout the organization are constantly providing resources to help with this development. Such resources include free access to courses through LinkedIn Learning, Dale Carnegie Training and the Rapid Learning Institute. We have also implemented a Learning Management System complete with various training opportunities on a variety of topics related to various fields and Ergon operations, and we host Lunch and Learns and webinars in which employees are able to increase their industry knowledge and know-how. These are just a few of many ways Ergon is intentionally investing in the advancement of our people.

A Learning Culture
Continuing to develop a learning culture is possibly the best way that we can continue to prepare for future challenges. Our leaders are constantly looking for new ways to strengthen our employee’s abilities and to challenge them. One way we do this is through a monthly LinkedIn Learning challenge created to encourage employees across the Ergon organization to complete as many courses as possible on the platform within the month. Courses can be filtered according to employees’ specific interests. I am personally encouraged by reports I receive from employees about lessons learned through the challenge.

Currently, we are developing a management training program to ensure we give managers the right tools to succeed in their jobs. Part of this program is a curriculum on coaching and the development of people. Additionally, a new performance management system is rolling out so employees can have clear expectations in their roles and set goals for professional and personal development. We are increasing transparency in job opportunities so that internal candidates are given chances to challenge themselves in a new role and gain valuable experience. All of these ways are just the start of our continued effort to embody the value of purposeful growth across our organization.

If you’re interested in working for a company that invests in your professional growth and challenges you to reach your potential, visit our careers page and find out how you can join the Ergon family. We’d love to have you.

 

Ergon Asphalt is Developing the Next Generation of Leaders

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Purposeful Growth is a core value we hold dear at Ergon. We are dedicated to providing resources and opportunities for employees to reach their full professional potential because we understand employee success and organizational success go hand in hand.(You can read more about our organization-wide commitment to Purposeful Growth value here.)

“People are Ergon,” said Patrick Nation, Ergon A&E’s Senior VP – Sales & Marketing. “They make the place what it is today. We have to encourage our employees and provide opportunities for them to grow, not only technically but personally, with leadership development pathways. These pathways will lead to a consistent culture and continued success of this great company we work for.”

Ergon has long embraced the value of Purposeful Growth from within the organization as a way to nurture future leaders of the company. Our COO Kris Patrick began his career with Ergon as a young Co-Op at Ergon Refining Inc. And many who started out with entry-level positions as Ergon’s asphalt operations took shape in the early ’80s have gone on to hold various management positions within the company, even the President of Ergon Asphalt & Emulsions (Ergon A&E), Baxter Burns.

Purposeful Growth Series

Throughout the month of July, we will be highlighting ways we exemplify the Ergon core value of Purposeful Growth.

In today’s post, we introduce you to three individuals from Ergon’s Asphalt & Emulsions unit who have taken advantage of our career advancement opportunities and demonstrated high competencies in key areas along their paths from entry level to management positions.

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Charles Taylor

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Charles Taylor was named Ergon A&E Regional Technical Operations Manager (RTOM) for facilities in the North Mid-Continent Region in January 2022. In this role, Taylor serves as the liaison between the Ergon A&E facilities and Paragon Technical Services. He assists with technical issues, helps implement new product formulations and ensures current product formulations and specifications are updated to reflect the most accurate information.

Taylor attended Mississippi State University, where he earned a civil engineering degree. One of the classes required to complete his program piqued his interest. “We had to take a pavement class in order to graduate,” he said. “I became very interested in the subject, and the professor and I began to talk a lot; we just had a connection.” That professor was Dr. Isaac Howard, Director of the Richard A. Rula School of Civil & Environmental Engineering and friend of Ergon. Over the past several years, Dr. Howard has worked with Ergon to help educate, mentor and even employ the next generation of leaders in the asphalt industry. In fact, it was Dr. Howard who introduced Taylor to the Ergon family.

Taylor joined Ergon in 2017 as an Emulsion Chemist at Paragon Technical Services, the research and development arm of Ergon Asphalt & Emulsions. He noted one thing he appreciates about his former managers at Paragon is they encourage growth among employees from day one. “That was one thing we did talk about when I first started — that they want to see employees grow and move up in the company in order to be an even greater resource.” When the opportunity presented itself for Taylor to apply for the RTOM position, he took full advantage with the blessing and backing from his then managers, Shelly Cowley and Scott Watson, Senior VP – Technical Operations. Taylor has fully embraced the opportunity to challenge himself, grow professionally and build new intercompany relationships.

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Sean Robbins

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Sean Robbins was promoted to Facility Manager for EA&E’s Lawton, Oklahoma, facility in November 2021, after seven-and-a-half years serving as an Operator at EA&E’s Saginaw, Texas, facility. Robbins and his wife, Stacia, had begun to expand their family right around the time he started at Saginaw, which motivated him to seek opportunities to grow within the company — an aspiration he shared with his Manager, Nathan Swearingen.

When a Facility Manager position came available within the EA&E network, there were many factors that led to Robbins being selected for the job. “Sean came to us from a different background, not related to asphalt, but that did not stop him from putting his best foot forward on the job,” said Swearingen. “He is always hungry to learn and always willing to help. I wish him good luck in his new and well-deserved position.”

So far, Robbins has settled into his position nicely, attributing this to the training he received in Saginaw from Swearingen and Assistant Manager Jordan Haith, as well as the group of people he currently oversees who, in his own words, make his job easier because of their drive.

“Until joining Ergon, I didn’t really have a specific job I wanted to do,” said Robbins. “I just wanted to do what my father did — he provided for us.”

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John Hallford

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John Hallford was promoted to Facility Manager of EA&E’s Mount Pleasant, Texas, facility in 2019. Prior to accepting this position, he worked at Ergon’s Halstead, Kansas, facility (formerly SEM Materials). He began working at Halstead in 2007 and quickly became known for his drive and persistence. “I probably called Tim Weatherman, the Facility Manager at that time, once a week and bugged him until he gave me a chance,” he said.

Drive and persistence have continued to be determining factors as Hallford has climbed the ladder to leadership. He had been in regular talks with his manager about wanting to move to a higher position in the company, which was met with on-site training and development to put him on the path to advancement. Since 2007, he was promoted from Operator to Production Leader and eventually amassed skills needed to qualify for the Facility Manager position that had come available in Mount Pleasant.

Like Sean Robbins, Hallford also did not have a background working with asphalt and emulsions prior to joining the Halstead Team. However, that didn’t stop him from doing what he needed to do to make an honest living, which has earned him much respect within Ergon. “I think it is important to understand that our leaders come from all walks of life,” said Greg Hilton, Regional Manager – North Texas. “If someone has the fortitude to put in the hard work and dedication, anything is possible.”

Greg noted that Hallford sets a positive example in the workplace and does a good job of encouraging and teaching his crew — all good qualities Ergon looks for in future leaders.

“As soon as they know you have an aspiration to advance within the company, Ergon tries to provide opportunities to develop or improve your skills to prepare you for what you want to do,” said Hallford. “The only thing that limits you here is the drive that you have.”