June 15, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 15, 2015
For more information, contact:
Scott Bird, vice president
Moxley Carmichael
865-544-0088
Jessie Folmar, senior public relations manager
Messer Construction Co.
866-478-3600
Local companies invited to interest meeting June 26
Team registration is now open for the third annual Knoxville Holiday Canstruction presented by Messer Construction Co.
Local teams of architects, engineers, construction companies, contractors, designers and other organizations are invited to a general interest meeting Friday, June 26, at 4 p.m. at Messer’s West Knoxville office at 120 Perimeter Park Road to learn more about the competition and how to participate.
“A CANtastic Peanuts Christmas,” designed and built by the team of Johnson Architecture, Partners Development and Moxley Carmichael, won the Jurors’ Choice and Kids’ Choice awards at Holiday Canstruction presented by Messer Construction Co. in 2014. Team registration is now open for the third annual event, and Messer is hosting an interest meeting on June 26. To RSVP for the meeting, email [email protected] or call 865-474-6704.
“We are calling on our building industry partners to join us again to help fight hunger this holiday season,” said Randy Fields, business development executive for Messer. “Investing in and building our local community where we live and work is what Messer is all about. We look forward to Canstruction all year as a team-building exercise and a way to give back during the holidays.”
Canstruction is a fun art exhibition with a serious purpose – fighting hunger. Teams from local companies design and construct large holiday-themed art sculptures made of canned food items, which are placed on public display at the Knoxville Convention Center in late November. In two years, Knoxville Holiday Canstruction has donated more than 29,000 canned food items to Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee.
“We accept teams of all skill levels,” Fields said. “Messer makes available consultants to help with the design process. For companies who want to be involved but might not have the technical experience to design the structure, we also will help to identify partnerships with companies with engineering or building expertise.”
Registration is open, and teams will be accepted through July 24. Teams can register at the June 26 interest meeting or by contacting Fields, the event chair, at 865-474-6704 or [email protected].
Each Canstruction sculpture typically includes between 900 and 3,500 cans, with only one-quarter-inch plywood or Plexiglas between the rows of cans and one-quarter-inch cardboard tubing for support. The color of the structures is determined by the colors of the selected cans.
“Many families are struggling to make the holidays special for their families and still put food on the table,” said Elaine Streno, executive director of Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee. “The donation from Holiday Canstruction helps raise our inventory and ensure we are able to provide holiday meals to hungry families in our 18-county service area in East Tennessee.”
Second Harvest targets the working poor – those who are employed but might not receive benefits or earn sufficient wages. In East Tennessee, 200,000 people fall within the income level to be at-risk of going hungry.
Second Harvest secures and distributes more than 16 million pounds of food and grocery products annually and is a partner with Feeding America, a national network of food banks.
For more information about Holiday Canstruction, visit http://www.facebook.com/knoxcan. To RSVP for the June 26 interest meeting, email [email protected] or call Randy Fields at 865-474-6704.
About Messer Construction Co.
Messer Construction Co. is a construction manager and general contractor providing leadership for complex commercial building projects. An employee-owned company, Messer builds better lives for its customers, communities and each other, and delivers value through quality construction and client experiences. Founded in 1932, Messer’s footprint has grown to nine regional offices located across the Midwest and Southeast. The company is consistently ranked among the country’s 100 largest contractors by Engineering News-Record, and this year rose to No. 58, after putting in place more than $1.03 billion in commercial construction in 2014.The company is consistently ranked among the country’s 100 largest contractors by Engineering News-Record, and in fiscal 2014, Messer put in place $1.03 billion in commercial construction. Messer now stands as one of the nation’s leading health care and higher education builders, and also boasts extensive, award-winning work in the life sciences and industrial market segments. Messer employees live where they work, resulting in the company’s sustained commitment to building better communities. That commitment has remained paramount throughout Messer’s growth, and it is achieved annually through the company’s own foundation and through the time, service and dollars invested by its employee-owners in community organizations and causes.
