When Rafael Ortega, a member of the Mid-States Fab Shop Team, realized his family was spending $300 per year on honey, he decided to take matters in to his own hands… literally.
Ortega, who has been on the Mid-States team for 6.5 years, turned to the man he had been purchasing all his honey from to learn. Denny Dodge of Double D’s Bees has become a mentor of sorts to Ortega.
He began his journey as a bee keeper last year, starting with just two hives. This year, he has six. Each of Ortega’s bee hives is composed of two brood boxes, where the queen lives and lays eggs; and a queen extractor, which keeps the bees from traveling to the honey supers, where the honey is stored. Currently, Ortega has somewhere between 30,000 and 40,000 bees. There are three types of bees that are common to this area: Russian, Italian and Carniolian. Ortega has a mix of Italian and Carniolian.
To care for the bees, Ortega dons leather gloves, a heavy duty sweatshirt and protective vest. He utilizes a smoker, filled with pine needles which calms the bees down and gives him time to work. Ortega checks on his hives at least weekly.
”They fly around me, but if I work calmly, they leave me to work,” Ortega said.
To extract the honey, Ortega uses a blower to gently remove the bees from the frames. He then puts the frames on a honey extractor, breaks the capping open with a hot knife and then the honey extractor spins them so the honey collects in a bucket. The honey is ready to eat right from extraction.
The hives are located on conservation land and produce 100% pure honey. Depending on the time of year, the honey has a bit of a different taste. Ortega said the taste they get in July is more clover, whereas the taste they get in August is more Goldenrod.
It is important to note that Ortega tests the honey to make sure it is safe for consumption before extracting it. Ortega completes two harvests per year, and harvested about 17 gallons of honey this year.
He must leave enough honey in the hives to sustain the bees through the winter, and he also makes sugar cakes to help them get through the cold months. During winter, the bees will all huddle around the queen to keep her warm in the center. The rest of the hive will rotate between being on the inner part of the circle, or outer part of the circle so everyone survives.
While Ortega’s bee keeping first stemmed from the idea of saving money on honey, it has turned in to so much more. Contributing to the environment is an immensely rewarding part of what Ortega does.
Studies have shown a significant decline in the honeybee population in the U.S. Honey bees are essential for the pollination of flowers, fruits and vegetables, and support about $20 billion worth of crop production in the U.S. annually, according to ABC News.
Caring for the bees has also provided endless learning opportunities for Ortega and his four children - boys ages 9, 12 & 17 and a girl aged 15. He said the boys are particularly fascinated by the process. And his family has enough honey to get through the year, with a little extra to share.
Meet Our Team: Al Harrington & Tim Kyser
Al Harrington has been with Mid-States Concrete for 20 years and has been a field foreman for almost eight years. He started as third man on the road crew and worked his way up.
What Al enjoys most about his work is seeing the end product when installing a job, and the challenge of the work. The most important thing he has learned working at Mid-States is that you have good days and bad days and “we do what we can to get the job finished.” Al continues to do the work he does to take care of his family.
Tim Kyser has been with Mid-States Concrete for 18 years and has been a field foreman for 10 of those years. He started as a member of the road crew and attributes hard work to helping him achieve foreman.
What Tim enjoys most about his work is the challenge of putting a building together and he continues to do the work he does to provide for his family. The most important thing Tim has learned is to work hard, fast and safe.
Visit us at AIA - Iowa
Learn about new products and services from representatives of the region’s leading manufacturers and suppliers of design and construction industry products and services at the 2019 AIA Iowa Convention.
The Expo will be held Thursday, September 26 and Friday, September 27 at the Iowa Events Center, 833 5th Avenue, in Des Moines.
You can find Mid-States at Booth 36 giving away some reusable shopping bags, flashlight/bottle opener key chains, and plenty of precast concrete knowledge.
Design teams are such an important part of the success of any project. It is a privilege to get to partner with some of the best around. We look forward to seeing you there and learning about your latest projects!
Meet Our Team: Andy Windsor
Andy Windsor, Yard Foreman
Andy Windsor has been with Mid-States Concrete Industries for a total of 16 years and has been a foreman for almost five years. His career with Mid-States started when he was still in high school and served on the cleaning crew of the office as a part-time job.
One day, he got asked if he’d like to work out in the plant and joined the Elematic team for two years. After a short break from Mid-States, Andy came back and has now spent 13 years in the Yard. He attributes his knowledge of the job and safety for helping him achieve foreman.
Andy is a third generation Windsor at Mid-States Concrete and what he enjoys most about his work is building important buildings within the community - like the Hononegah High School Field House and Nature at the Confluence. He also enjoys being able to show off the company’s work to his family and friends.
The most important thing Andy has learned at Mid-States is how fast things can change, but he said we have good people on our team who are able to handle changes well, problem solve and keep the job site moving. What Andy enjoys least about his work is a rainy day. Once your feet get wet, it makes for a long day, he said. However, Andy continues to do the work he does because he likes to be part of building meaningful buildings in the community. As a yard foreman, Andy takes pride in the work he does and enjoys teaching others and sharing his expertise.
Meet Our Team: Rob Champlin
Rob Champlin, Lead Yard Foreman
Rob Champlin has been with Mid-States Concrete Industries for a total of 23 years and has worked for all three generations of Harkers. He has been a foreman for 11 years total.
Rob’s career path through Mid-States is somewhat of a history lesson. He started in PermaBand doing screeded rails before moving to beams and columns, when they were still cast outside. After that he transferred to Flexicore, but left the company for a bit after that. When he returned, Rob spent one year in Wet Cast before transferring to the yard where it took him only one-and-a-half years to become foreman. Rob even had the opportunity to train current President Hagen Harker when he was starting out, as well as the third generation of Harkers - both Charles and William.
What Rob enjoys most about his work is the team he works with, as well as the tasks and challenges of the work. He finds it satisfying to face the challenge of completing all the work that needs to be done every day.
While the cold days outside can be a challenge for Rob, he still wouldn’t want to do anything else. He truly loves his work. He is also very proud of working for the same company his father, Bob Champlin, worked for. Rob credits Bob with teaching him much of what he knows, and helping put Mid-States on the map.
And family means so much to Rob. Every day after work he spends the afternoons with his five grandchildren.