Joe Cotten - Director of Procurement
Where it All Started:
Joe grew up ranching on his family’s land in East Texas. Running equipment and working with his hands naturally steered him towards a career in the construction industry. He received his degree in Construction Science from A&M and then worked for five years in DFW as a General Contractor. Joe’s wife Alison wanted to move back to her hometown Houston, so he began a job search which then connected him with a specialty contractor who he was currently working with. They said that Chamberlin had a great reputation in the business, so Joe then started working at Chamberlin and the rest is history.
A Day in the Life:
A typical day of work for Joe is being tasked with creating, developing and implementing a new procurement department, which can take him in several different directions every single day. Joe’s days at work consist of reviewing purchase orders, receiving tickets, warehouse purchases and reviewing pricing in general. His team is also buying out consumables, equipment, organizing the warehouses and tracking/ordering field vehicles. These processes have been created and the market has stabilized to the point that group buying is now front and center for the Procurement Team. Joe said that with the help of Chamberlin’s project management teams, the group buying will be a real game-changer when it is fully implemented.
Outlook:
In Joe’s opinion, Chamberlin is a service company first and foremost. Clients will only use our company when we do what we say we’re going to do, while doing it with a spirit of cooperation and teamwork. Our success is built on quality work along with relationships both with our clients and teammates on a foundation of integrity. Every single job and task we work on starts with safety and ends with a quality installation. It is the only way we stay in business and as successful as we have been over the years. All these things are accomplished with the best team in the business. Starting with Jorge and the safety team, through JB and QA/QC to the guys leading our field, to our unmatched team of installers in the field, there are no challenges that Chamberlin can’t meet with this awesome team.
Notable Projects:
Joe has contributed to several projects but there are a few that stand out to him most. One of which is UT MD Anderson ACB and CPB which were two design-build hospitals started in 2004 and completed simultaneously in the Houston Medical Center. These were Joe’s first big jobs when he was a project manager and the learning curve was very steep. Next would-be Houston Discovery Green where Joe was the project manager. This project is special to Joe because it was almost abandoned by the city because of budget issues. Lyle Coston came in with a value engineering idea that saved the job from the axe and Chamberlin was given a lot of credit for the project happening. The park has become a Houston landmark and Chamberlin won an ABC eagle award to boot! The third project that stands out to Joe is the 1600 W Loop Project which was a hotel, convention center and garage, now known as The Post Oak Hotel at Uptown Houston. This project had an unusually difficult and demanding owner. Chamberlin was relied on again and again to design and install solutions for gaps in the construction drawings. These helped the team manage the difficult owner expectations and come to the aid of valued client. The relationships built on this project helped bring Chamberlin a lot of work in the subsequent years due to our commitment to safety, quality, teamwork, and the tenacity of our field team lead by Gerard Bailey to see a tough job through.
Greatest Personal Accomplishment:
Joe’s greatest personal accomplishment in life is his family by a mile. He states that his family may not have come together as planned, but he wouldn’t have it any other way. Joe’s family vacations and road trips are epic and definitely worth asking him about if you get the chance.
Life Without Chamberlin:
If Joe didn’t have Chamberlin in his life, he would strive to own his own restaurant. Joe loves to cook for large crowds and people on multiple occasions have asked him if he would consider it. Joe said that once he retires from Chamberlin one day, he may end up pursuing this big dream of his.
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