Frank Renda, Tim Winn & Rudy Renda

We were all born into the business and can remember going out to jobsites as young as the age of three. We had the advantage of learning from some of the best and hardest working individuals in the business that were never afraid of a challenge. Due to these individual’s hard work and sacrifice we were able to go to college and lead a good life. While in school we realized construction is what we love to do and have all worked at Oscar Renda Contracting, since graduation, for the last 13 years and have been the principals of the company for the last 8. Over the last 8 years we have taken a successful Texas construction company predominately specializing in pipe work and turned it into a national company operating in 21 states. Average annual revenue has grown from $20 million a year to over $275 million a year. We have completed over 290 projects totaling over $1,300,000,000.00, including the largest public works jobs ever in the City of Houston, Southeast Water Purification Plant - $167 Million, and the City of Dallas, Eastside Water Treatment Plant - $101 Million. We have completed numerous large diameter water and sewer lines, treatment plants, marine work and tunnels. We could not have done any of this without the most dedicated team of employees in the country. We got involved with Southland about six years ago. We saw the ingenuity and potential Southland had and since then we have helped them grow into one of the largest tunneling companies around with a current backlog of $450 Million and projects across the nation, from California to New York.

Clay Griffith

I started at Southland in 1980. I trained under my father Charlie Griffith, the founder of Southland and a true mechanical genius. Not only are we a tunneling contractor but also a manufacturer of tunnel boring machines. We have completed over 500,000 linear feet of tunnel in my tenure. We have completed every job we have ever been awarded and have become one of the most established tunneling companies around. I remember when it was just my dad, brother and I and a dream. To see this dream become a reality has been amazing. After my father’s passing, I brought in three partners with similar beliefs and values and it has been a great fit. With their help and the continued dedication of employees that have been with Southland for over 20 years, we look to continue to grow and succeed for many years to come. Between us there is not much we have not seen in the tunneling industry. We now have over 30 TBMs and operating in 20 different states. We have done projects at depths greater than 400 feet and tunnels up to 18-ft in diameter in all types of ground imaginable.

Michael Cash

Michael graduated as a Mining Engineer in Australia and immediately entered the workforce as an underground miner earning practical experience to earn his Underground Mine Managers Certificate. Michael worked his way up through the mining industry gaining experience in all aspect of underground construction. At the age of 23, Michael was the Underground Shift Superintendent for the $2.5 billion Olympic Dam Mine Expansion Project, and was in charge of a crew of 36 personnel and a fleet of six underground jumbos, six underground loaders, ten underground dump, two shotcrete crews, two bull gang crews and two charge up crews with over 52 active tunnel headings at a time. Michael continued his progression in the underground industry working in Australia, Europe and North America on large underground civil engineering and mining projects excavating shafts in excess of 3,300 feet deep, tunnels exceeding 105,600 feet in length and underground chambers large enough to accommodate a football field. While working on these projects, he has gained an in depth knowledge of the use of drill-and-blast methods, hard rock and soft ground tunnel boring machines (including EPB and Slurry TBMs), micro-tunneling machines, segmental linings and road headers. To date, Michael has been directly involved in the construction of over 250,000 linear feet of tunnel and the excavation of over 300 shafts.

Travis Hartman

Travis is a regional manager and senior estimator with Southland Contracting. Travis brings more than 16 years of heavy construction and tunneling experience to Southland Contracting. While earning a degree in Civil Engineering at Iowa State University, he worked as a laborer on local infrastructure projects in southern Iowa. His engineering degree allowed him to work on some very challenging heavy civil projects including a multiple bridge project in Kentucky with 11 FT diameter drilled shafts in water depths up to 100 VF. Unsurprisingly, Travis followed his father into the tunneling industry and he has been involved with complex underground projects throughout the United States. Working alongside his father, who is a TBM operator, has allowed Travis to gain a fundamental understanding of today's TBM tunneling technologies including EPB, hard rock, and conventional open-mode TBMs. Travis has experience with tunneling projects ranging in value from $2,000,000 to $267,000,000. Since receiving his degree in Civil Engineering, Travis has earned a Masters in Mining Engineering from the University of Missouri-Rolla and an MBA from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Travis’ experience, education, and understanding of TBM methodologies are an invaluable asset to Southland Contracting.

Don Painter

Don has over 31 years of experience relating to the underground construction industry, having worked on major mining and civil infrastructure projects. His projects have varied from coal mine development to managing the construction of large mass transport projects, such as the Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District Subway Project in Portland, Oregon, which consisted of 6 miles of drill and blast and TBM tunnels, along with numerous ventilation and elevator shafts. He has completed shafts up to 1,400 foot deep and tunnels up to 22-ft in diameter. He is currently working on Southland’s Bi-County Tunnel Project which is 5.7 miles of 10-ft diameter tunnel. Don’s practical knowledge of tunneling operations has benefited the successful execution of all phases of numerous trenchless installation projects, design through construction.

Kent Vest

Upon graduating from college with a Bachelor’s in Business Management, Kent went to work for Oscar Renda Contracting. He immediately assumed a role in operations and was quickly promoted to field management. After several successful projects including large diameter pipelines, tunnels, and blasting, Kent joined Southland to assist Clay in managing the company’s growth. Kent has managed operations on multiple projects with stellar results, all on time, all on budget. Kent is currently based in Washington D.C. managing Southland's east coast projects.

John Aricszewski

John Aricszewski is a New Jersey native that attended the Stevens Institute of Technology. With a degree in Civil Engineering, John focused on structures and began his career working for a structural design firm in New Jersey. While pursuing a master's degree, John was introduced to the tunneling industry. Since that time, John has wokred on projects ranging from $3.8 Million to $1.2 Billion. Since that time, John has worked on projects ranging from $3.8 Million to $1.2 Billion. Some of his past projects include the Weehawken Tunnel in Weehawken, New Jersey – a $140 Million project consisting of 3,200-ft of 28-ft horseshoe tunnel with a 900-ft long 62-ft wide by 32-ft tall station, Bradshaw 8 Interceptor in Sacramento California – 7,700-ft of 10-ft EPB tunnel in soft ground and the East Side Access project in Queens, New York – a $1.2 Billion project that when complete will bring LIRR in Grand Central Station.

Teressa Logsdon

While completing a Bachelor’s in Accounting, Teressa began working on the project administration at Oscar Renda Contracting. She was able to work directly with the Project Managers and Superintendents thus being able to gain practical knowledge of both the administrative and technical side of the utility construction industry. Teressa transitioned into the financial side of the company and eventually joined the Southland team. She is responsible for managing the financial and administration aspects of the company.