The crew scanned and cut more than 800 cores at the AT&T Park stadium in downtown San Francisco for the installation of Wi-Fi antennas.

Safe2core, Inc. performed concrete scanning in the Central Terminal area of the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).

Do you need help locating post-tension cables, conduits, rebar or any other embedded target beneath a concrete slab or wall? Do you need to locate a gas, telephone, sewer or water line? Do you need to inspect an underground pipe? Who do you call? Safe2core, Inc. (Safe2core)—if you are in Southern and Northern California or in South Florida.

Under the leadership of President Cristina Posada and her business partner, Vice President Antonio Guzman, this specialized concrete scanning and utility locating firm solves many complex cases encountered by customers across all project types, from small residential renovations to multimillion-dollar projects.

Building the Business

In 2010, Posada and Guzman bought the assets and the client list of Safe2core and started a new corporation under the same name. “We basically started from zero, or you could say below zero, since previously the company’s relationships with vendors and some clients were not the best,” says Posada. “Keeping the name meant working hard to gain the trust of vendors and clients alike, something that we are proud to say we were able to accomplish.”

Safe2core specializes in ground-penetrating radar (GPR), concrete scanning, concrete cutting (slab sawing, wall sawing and core drilling), underground utility locating/mapping and closed-circuit television (CCTV) pipeline inspection. “To provide the best service possible, we keep up with the latest technology that’s available to locate embedded targets,” Posada says.

As evidence of how far they have gotten since taking over the firm, most business comes to them through referrals and repeat customers with a minimum of advertising. Clients attest to Safe2core’s quality of work and the customer service provided by the team.

Teamwork

“We have built a team that thinks of the company as their own,” Posada says. “That is really important to bringing the corporation to the level that we have achieved.” Safe2core has 20 employees in California and six in Florida.

“They’re all good people but one of the biggest things is that they take pride in their work,” Guzman says. “Everyone feels that it is not only the company’s name and reputation on the line but theirs as well.”

According to Guzman, customer service is almost nonexistent in the concrete-cutting industry. Nearly everyone expects construction guys to be big, tough men with a huge attitude. “People are taken by surprise when dealing with our men, because we prioritize teamwork and customer service,” he says. “Often they will comment on the professional demeanor and respectful attitude of our guys.”

“Through Safe2core’s TEAM (Together Everyone Achieves More) culture, we work together to ensure that all of our involvement from start to finish exceeds the client’s expectations,” Posada says.

Safe2core Family

“We have created an atmosphere where everyone gets along with each other. We have a group chat called the Safe2core family where the technicians share pictures of the jobs they are doing and where everyone else cheers for them telling them how great of a job they did. It is very gratifying to see these texts where everyone is helping and encouraging each other,” Posada says.

Once a month, everyone gets together at the office so they can get to know each other better. Posada buys food and tells them to stop by after the job for hamburgers, tacos or whatever dish they all agree on. “We celebrate everyone’s birthday,” she says. “We get them a cake, sing happy birthday, make them feel special and buy them lunch that day. We try to keep a good environment here, emphasizing relationships.”

Serving the Clients

The relationship theme expands to the customers as Safe2core focuses on finding a solution to any problem the customer may encounter at their projects. The company goes the extra mile to get the results the client is seeking at an early stage to prevent any damage to the structure.

Safe2core lets consumers know it won’t take advantage of them. If the team feels that the firm’s services will not help a customer, they are honest and explain other possibilities. “Clients have confidence in our honesty and know that we go with a problem-solving attitude to any jobsite. We expend all of our resources to find a solution for them,” says Posada.

Safe2core often gets called out to do concrete scanning because someone missed a sleeve and the customer needs to run a pipe through the concrete floor. Before they do any drilling, they have to scan for cables so they don’t cause more damage. Sometimes the planned location can’t be used because a cable, a utility or other obstacle is in the way. The crew will scan another area and try to give them an alternate placement.

The Safe2core team has been doing this for a while—it has over 40 years of combined experience—so they know that, for example, a vent pipe can move in any direction as long as it’s 5 feet from the main line. If the first location doesn’t work, the scanners will take the initiative to find the next best place.

“We always strive to give the customer a solution,” Guzman says. “That’s our goal—to make them happier, make their life easier and hopefully to take a little bit of stress away from them.”

High-Profile Projects

The group has worked on some hard-to-get-into, high-profile projects for clients, such as NASA Ames Research Center, Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), Tesla and Apple Inc. “At these high-profile sites, it is important to triple check our work. If a mistake occurs, the whole system could go down. They are very particular about who they allow to work on-site and maintaining a relationship of trust with our clients is something to be proud of,” Guzman says.

Health care projects that Safe2core has worked on, such as Good Samaritan Hospital in San Jose, California, and Stanford Hospital and Clinics in Stanford, California, provide another source of pride. The workers have to be aware of infection controls and keeping the entire area clean. “We make sure that the only thing that changes, from the time the project begins and ends, is that now they have an opening or trench for the pipe—no mess stays behind,” says Guzman.

The Importance of Maintaining Relationships

“Each project represents a relationship, and meeting customer expectations builds a connection that will last—that’s invaluable,” Posada says. The next time a cable needs to be located or a placement cavity caves in, those who have experienced the professionalism, effectual workmanship and respectfulness of the Safe2core team will know who to call.