October 29,
2007
News You Can Use
Atlas Foundry president thanks Tacoma Power
Steve
Craig, account executive in Energy Services, passes along these words of
gratitude: “Duane Britschgi, Atlas president and CEO, asked that I thank the
management and staff of Tacoma Power for the timely and effective electrical
restoration of their foundry following the catastrophic explosion on October
6. He and his 300 employees sincerely appreciate the resources that were
committed and teamwork displayed toward the goal of restoring their power,
employment and production. Crews completed the substation the afternoon of
Tuesday, October 23, just 9½ days after we gained access to the site, and
restored power to the rest of the facility two days later. Supervisors,
foremen and crews of T&D line, wire, substations and meter/relay groups made
this exceptional customer service response a reality. The transformer,
safety, dispatch and welding sections also contributed valuable assistance
to the group effort. Special thanks to Clif Graves, Transmission &
Distribution, for his impeccable project coordination that helped me
communicate daily with Atlas. Again, thanks from Atlas and me for a job very
well done.”
Wear something really ghoul this Wednesday
Paris . . . Milan . . . Tacoma!?!?
It’s the annual fashion show that is not to be missed! Put the Utilities
People Halloween Costume Contest on your calendar for this Wednesday,
October 31. Contestants should be in the Cafeteria at 9:45 a.m. to register,
and judging will begin at 10 a.m. The scariest, funniest, best disguise and
people’s choice winners each will receive $25; the best group (three or more
people) will win $100. Spectators can enjoy the costumes, try to guess who’s
who and enjoy free coffee and cookies compliments of Utilities People.
Get on the bus for Leavenworth tree lighting December 8
The Utilities People bus trip to Leavenworth for the Christmas tree-lighting
ceremony will be Saturday, December 8. The bus leaves from the
Administration Building by the fountain at 7 a.m. and returns at about 9
p.m. The cost of $25 for members and $30 for non-members includes the bus
trip and refreshments. To reserve your seat, contact
Rick Herrmann, Generation, 502-8226. Ken
Severe, Transmission & Distribution, and his wife Debbie return as
coordinators this year. |
What's Cookin'
the Week of Oct. 29
Cup of Soup & Sandwich — $2.63
Cup of Chili or Chowder & Sandwich —
$2.81
Salad — $2.76
Hot Special — $3.03
Share the news
The deadline to submit items for Newsline is
10
a.m. Fridays. E-mail Newsline, or call editor Laurel Willoughby,
502-8754, if you don't have e-mail access.
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SAP down this weekend starting at 6 p.m. Friday, November 2
Each year
during September and October IT/EASD applies “patches” to the SAP system to
ensure critical year-end processes such as tax reporting for forms W2 and
1099R remains current. With testing nearly complete, IT/EASD plans to move
the patches into the production system with an
outage
that starts Friday, November 2, at 6 p.m., leaving the
SAP production system unavailable over the weekend. Users will receive
notice when the system is available for use again — IT/EASD anticipates this
to be Monday, November 5. If you have questions, contact Network Support,
591-2057.
Governor Gregoire town
hall meeting at Stadium November 5
Share your thoughts on the issues most important to you, your community and
Washington state at Governor Chris Gregoire’s town hall meeting on Monday,
November 5, at the Stadium High School cafeteria/commons, 111 N. E Street.
Doors open at 6:30 p.m., and the event begins at 7 p.m. Walk-up participants
are welcome, but the governor’s office asks that people preregister either
online or by calling 360-902-4111 so they can prepare for the size of
the audience. For general information, visit the governor’s
Web site at
www.governor.wa.gov.
TV Tacoma show helps voters decide
Tune in to
TV Tacoma to learn more about local candidates with the Video Voters’
Pamphlet. Candidates who are on the general election ballot for the offices
of Tacoma City Council, Port of Tacoma Commission and Tacoma School Board
were invited to participate. The show is available online at
www.tvtacoma.com; it also plays several times every day through November
6 on TV Tacoma. Check your cable provider’s listings for broadcast times and
channels. For more programming information, visit
www.tvtacoma.com.
Cable 101 gave Click! a full house
On Tuesday, October 16, Click! Network staff helped educate 275 customers
about the upcoming digital transition in two workshops titled “Cable 101:
Preparing for Digital TV.” Carrie Harding, Click! sales and marketing
manager, coordinated a team of 20-some staff who planned, directed traffic,
greeted customers and presented to the Auditorium crowds. “The workshops
were a very effective retention tool,” said Diane Lachel, Click! government
and community relations manager. “Besides learning something valuable, most
customers walked away from the sessions feeling well taken care of and
fussed over. Thanks to everyone who made it happen.”
Another nudge on
submitting Incentive Program information
Timekeepers
will have incentive completion reports soon, so employees can check whether
they have completed their hours.
Eighty percent of TPU
employees must submit at least eight hours of volunteer activity by December
31 for all eligible employees to meet their community involvement goal.
Hours can be submitted by completing the Employee Incentive Program
worksheet available in Human Resources or on CityWeb under
Departments/TPU/TPU Incentive Program, and select “Submit your 2007
community involvement goal online.” For specific information and eligibility
rules, see the Employee Incentive Program guidelines in Human Resources or
online. Contact
Erika Tucci, 502-8225, with questions.
Have you competed in the Cafeteria football contest
yet?
There was a harmonic
convergence of sports prognosticators in
week seven of the Cafeteria football contest
—
seven, count'em seven, employees
correctly chose all but two winning teams! And of those, three people
— Joe Fugle, Field Operations; Duc Vuong, Water Supply; and Pat Yomes,
Click! Network —
all won the first tiebreaker by
guessing the total points scored during the week's Seahawks game. So chef
Bill Rankin had the trio pick numbers for another tiebreaker, and Joe won
the Cafeteria gift card for the week. The winner for week
eight will be
posted Tuesday morning. Ballots for week nine are in the Cafeteria and must
be turned in by Friday, November 2, at 4 p.m. One entry per person per
week. The person who picks the most winners each week earns a $10 Cafeteria
food card and an entry in the Super Bowl contest at the end of the year. The
winner of the Super Bowl contest takes home a $50 gift card to the Outback
Steakhouse.
Get Smart
October 31 is last
chance for required procurement software training; November 5 is cut-off for
new data
The City of Tacoma has implemented XiBuy, a procurement software, to help
capture transaction data, improve reporting abilities and allow for future
expansion of procurement card use.
Watch
for notice of the actual XiBuy go-live date, currently targeted for late
November. Here are some important deadlines before go-live:
-
Wednesday, October
31:
One remaining policy session and two hands-on training classes.
Pre-registration
is required; contact
Theresa Niemi, Purchasing, 502-8468.
Procurement card
approvers and their back-ups must attend
this training
before receiving access to
XiBuy.
Approving managers and others involved in procurement card oversight are
encouraged to attend the policy session if space is available.
XiBuy does not affect cardholders, because the purchase process and
documentation requirements have not changed.
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Monday, November
5:
Last day to submit critical card and user profile changes to procurement
card administrator
Kim Kerner,
Purchasing,
502-8889. Anything
affecting XiBuy master data will be frozen temporarily after November 5
to allow staff to enter data and check it for accuracy before go-live.
SharePoint implementation and basic training session Tuesday, November 13
In collaboration with cross-departmental teams, the Infrastructure Support
division of Information Technology has begun a long-term project to
implement Microsoft SharePoint software. This effort is two-pronged: using
SharePoint to redesign the intranet, and implementing a Microsoft Office
SharePoint server internally so small projects and work groups can
collaborate and share information. To learn more about this effort, get your
supervisor’s approval and attend the training session on Tuesday, November
13, from 8:30 to 11 a.m. in the City Council Chambers at the Tacoma
Municipal Building, 747 Market Street. For information about the training,
contact
Rick Clark, Network Support,
591-2057.
Read
more about the City’s use of SharePoint in a
memo from Rey Arellano, chief information officer, or contact his office
at 591-5375.
Green Scene
Energy Services
workshops coming up
— appliances on November 3 and generators on November 15
The
holiday season is almost here. You might be thinking of updating your
appliances to be ready for family and friends. Get some great pointers on
how to choose your new appliances wisely when you attend the Appliance
Workshop in the Auditorium on Saturday, November 3, 10 to 11:30 a.m. And if
you’re considering a getting a generator, consider this: we made it through
the first wind storm of the season, but more wind and storms are on the way.
Learn about generators and generator safety at the Generator Workshop at Ron
Jones Power Equipment,
14423 Pacific Avenue S.
in Spanaway on Thursday, November 15, 7 to 8:30 p.m. Register for these
workshops by calling 502-8377.
Giving Back
Early Adopt-a-Family request — two twin beds needed
This one has sneaked in before the formal program begins in November.
Greater Lakes Mental Health has a family of four with only two beds. They
need two twin beds so that everyone can sleep comfortably. Coordinator Debbie Tainer, EASD, will provide the bedding. If
you have one or two twin beds to donate, contact
Debbie, 382-2656.
PB&J drive finds
appreciative stomachs
Consider what 550 pounds of peanut butter and jelly look like, and how long
it might last at the local FISH Food Bank. Months? Weeks? Try just a few
days. When Community Connection collected that quarter-ton of lunchables
recently, staff at one location said they were completely out of peanut
butter and rarely if ever get jelly. The location serves from 150 to 200
families daily, and ninety percent of them request peanut butter and jelly.
At that rate, TPU’s contribution — which took two weeks to amass — would
last just two days. While the supply vanished quickly, TPU’s efforts deeply
touched FISH staff and customers. Beth Elliott, FISH executive director,
wrote to express her “sincere appreciation to the employees of Tacoma Public
Utilities! People will be thrilled when they see the jelly! Your gift will
go a long way as we continue to provide for more and more individuals.”
One employee eligible
for donated PTO or sick leave
Dennis
Johnson, Building Maintenance, is
eligible to receive donated PTO or sick leave. To donate, contact your
timekeeper or Public Utilities Human Resources, 502‑8158, for a PTO/sick
leave donation form. You also can download the form from the Human Resources
section of CityWeb.
What's Happening & When
-
October 28 to November 3:
Some
people could experience a glitch in Outlook calendaring for appointments
scheduled this week. Contact your area’s computer support
representative with questions.
-
Through October 29: Donate clean blankets — new store-bought, gently
used or new homemade — for Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital and Lakewood Area
Shelter Association. Donation boxes are in the Cafeteria and at the Click!
Southwest Annex, or bring them to
Holly Irvin, 502-8247, Water Permit
Counter on the second floor.
-
October 31:
SAP sales and distribution questions answered during two-hour class.
10 a.m. to noon in the TPU Computer
Training Room. For more information, contact
Dayna Barkley, 382-2602.
-
Throughout
October: TV Tacoma’s October CityScape program looks at Tacoma
Water’s automated meter reading trials in the Wapato Park area. Check local listings for replay times
inside and outside of Tacoma.
-
Through the end of October: 2008 Entertainment Book sales benefit Utilities People.
The book costs $20 and is valid through November 1, 2008; the 2007 book is
still valid until November 1 this year. To purchase your Entertainment Book,
contact Rick Herrmann, 502-8226;
Liz Larson,
502-8769; or
Jan Pieper, 502-8452.
-
November 1 and 2:
Community Connection Holiday Craft Sale. There is a $5 per day business license charge for vendors; 10 percent of sales will help purchase grocery cards for low-income seniors.
Contact Julie Arnestad,
Energy Services, 502-8538.
-
November
13:
Employees located at TPU can receive free flu shots during the health fair on Tuesday,
November 13.
(Shots also available at the Tacoma Municipal Building on November 6.)
-
November 30:
Last
day to complete a confidential Mayo
Clinic health risk assessment. Receive a personalized report
plus a $25 gift card good at more than
300 merchants.
Register or log on at
www.cityoftacomawellness.org. Click the Health Risk
Assessment link, complete the assessment and follow the directions
to receive your gift card.
(It will take about 48 hours before you receive the
e-mail link that allows you to redeem your gift card.)
For more information, contact
Becky Lee, 591-5116.
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December 8: Utilities People bus trip to Leavenworth for
the Christmas tree lighting ceremony. Watch Newsline for more information.
-
December 12 and 13:
Mammogram vans from Swedish
Medical Center will be at TPU giving free mammograms to
any female City
employee age 40 or older who is symptom-free and not pregnant, or who is
35 or older with her primary care provider's referral.
Make appointments with
Swedish at 206-320-2500 or
breastcareexpress@swedish.org. Contact
Shannon Hoffman,
591-5823, with questions. (Vans also will be
in the Market Street
parking lot across from the Tacoma Municipal Building December 3, 4 and
5.)
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January 30 to February 4:
Annual excursion to Big Mountain (now Whitefish
Mountain) in Montana. $525 or less per person includes train to and from
Whitefish, Montana; bus to the mountain; and hotel accommodations. Discounts
available for kids. Contact
Josh Newman, Click! Network,
502-8442.
Bargain Shopping
Submit
your ad to Newsline
Ads run in two issues of Newsline.
The deadline to submit ads is 10 a.m. Fridays. E-mail
Newsline, or call editor Laurel Willoughby, 502-8754,
if you don't have e-mail access.
Please include at least your first name,
and phone number or e-mail in your ad. Ads
for business activities, online auction ads and calls for charity
sponsorship are not allowed. About once a month, ads
will be borrowed from the Cafeteria bulletin board and included in
Newsline.
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House for rent: Nicely maintained 3 bedroom 1¾ bath rambler on extra
large lot in Heather Hills subdivision, close to South Hill Mall in
Puyallup. Two-car garage, large fenced backyard, fireplace insert,
$1,200/month plus deposit. Includes washer/dryer, stove, dishwasher and
refrigerator. Available November 1. Marsha,
973-4322, or Eric, 298-1344.
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Really REALLY need to get rid of these items
—
flexible on price and pictures available of all: 42x24-inch big screen
TV w/matching glass table, $550 or best offer; 27-inch (diagonal) TV,
$125 obo; 42x24-inch framed mirror for over mantle, etc., $20 obo; comfy
computer chair with great padding and arm rests, $25 obo; Shucks go-kart
like new, $200 obo; auto maintenance creeper, $15 obo; 12-gallon
Craftsman shop vac, $15 obo (missing one wheel but gets around just
fine); vacuum cleaner for the house, $25 obo.
Laurel, 502-8754.
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For sale: 1998 Elkhorn Camper (9T).
Excellent condition w/generator.
$7,500. Mark, 566-8541, 206-375-2044.
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