Murray Taylor tells a story about the summer his son worked for Haskell.

John Thomas Taylor was 21 and knew nothing about construction, but Project Superintendent Joe Kaiser took him under his wing.

The elder Taylor, a Haskell Director of Project Development, said he saw his son driving an excavator.

“I asked Joe what he was doing in an excavator,” Taylor said.

Project Superintendent Joe Kaiser responded, “I told him if I don’t let him do the fun stuff, he won’t enjoy the hard stuff.”

By the end of summer, John Thomas was surprised at how much he had learned.

“He told me he felt like a man with a real job and paycheck,” the father said.

Kaiser says a big part of his job is mentoring.

“That’s what someone did for me when I got in the business, taught me pipe fitting and welding. That was my trade craft for most of my career,” Kaiser said.

“Joe is very experienced in mechanical processes, equipment and piping,” Murray Taylor said. “He takes pride in quality work and maintaining a strong relationship with plant staff and ownership. He loves taking care of people, having a good time and creating a fun work environment.”

Kaiser is currently working in Columbus, Georgia, on the South Columbus Water Resource Facility Solids Handling and Secondary Fine Screening project. As Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) on the $25.9 million project, Haskell is replacing and expanding the thickening and dewatering systems, upgrading the headworks screening system and improving the solids handling process to support a peak flow of 42 million gallons a day at this combined sewer and stormwater reclamation facility. The project is expected to be completed by September.

Michael Hoisington, Senior Project Director – Water, said part of the secret to Kaiser’s success with employees, subcontractors and clients is his ability to build a community.

“People want to get engaged,” Hoisington said. “He’s got a positive outlook, always happy and joking, but he always gets things done.”

And he’s always looking for a reason to celebrate – usually a barbecue.

“We usually have a cookout in the evenings so they get to know each other outside of work,” Kaiser said. “It helps them bond. We have anything I can grill—steaks, hot dogs, burgers. Whatever the guys want.”

One recent barbecue celebrated laying 5,000 feet of pipe without striking underground utilities. Kaiser said the property was built in the 1960s, and the underground infrastructure was poorly mapped.

“We found an old road under one of the roads with a culvert and everything,” Kaiser says.

Hoisington said some people attributed it to luck, but he said Kaiser’s crew dug, probed and worked around pipes.

“They never struck or broke a single utility. That’s a big deal,” Hoisington said.

Kaiser grew up in Camden County, Georgia, and still has family there. He got into construction in North Carolina. For eight years, he and his wife, Leslie, and two children traveled around the country to jobs in a 43-foot RV.

They traveled throughout the South and ended up in Florida, where Kaiser got acquainted with Haskell.

“We were looking to settle down, and Chris York told me that Haskell was a great place to work,” Kaiser said.

He started work in February 2020, the start of the pandemic.

“We didn’t slow down much at all,” Kaiser says.

Working for Haskell was different than what he was used to.

“I had been working on mega projects — $3 billion with 3,000 to 4,000 people. It was high stress, seven days a week. You didn’t get to know people,” Kaiser said.

“The others were go, go, go, get it done. This one is go slow, do your due diligence. I feel connected with Haskell. The people are great. Everybody seems to be out to help you. Other places I’ve worked, if something went wrong, there was finger-pointing. At Haskell, if something goes wrong, someone comes out to help you.”

Kaiser and his family live in Crystal River, Florida, but he still lives in the RV at job sites. In his off time, he likes to golf, fish and spend time with his wife. And he likes tinkering with a 1941 Ford tractor.

“I still use it,” Kaiser says. “It’s an old Ford. You can’t beat it.”