Sept. 9, 2024

Employee Spotlight: Bill McCormick

As Black & Veatch’s Quality Assurance Manager, Bill McCormick oversees 10 quality assurance inspectors and the third-party materials testing labs for the Chimney Hollow Reservoir Project. His 35 years of experience net him 12 years with Black & Veatch over three different periods, as well as 10 years as the Chief of Dam Safety for the State of Colorado. While with the state, his design review team worked with the Project Review Board, Northern Water and Stantec (project engineer) to review the Chimney Hollow design before signing off on the final design in 2020.  

McCormick came to work on the Chimney Hollow Project in May 2022. Black & Veatch is the third-party construction manager contracted directly by Northern Water serving three essential functions: quality assurance, change management and pay request processing. They work alongside General Contractor Barnard Construction’s quality control program to ensure all work going into the project meets the quality requirements of the contract. Among all the contractors, there are approximately 40 people on-site associated with quality.  

Bill McCormick with view of main dam behind him

Each day begins with a review of the previous day’s inspection reports. McCormick uses the information to determine any corrections or adjustments needed to meet quality standards. His other tasks include managing communication regarding quality assurance, participating in regular staff meetings and accompanying his quality assurance staff during on-site inspections.  

“When you actually see what’s on the design getting built, that’s the exciting part: to see it all come together to make a dam,” McCormick said. 

He has enjoyed watching all the different processes unfold on the construction site and the materials in the valley being used to construct the tallest asphalt-core dam in North America. He said the most challenging part of the project for him has been managing a large and diverse group of people while learning to work together to set consistent expectations on quality.  

McCormick and his wife have been living in Loveland during the construction of Chimney Hollow and plan to stay after the project is complete. They have lived in Salida, Colorado Springs and Denver, but enjoy what Northern Colorado has to offer.