Converse moves from Moscow/Potlatch shed
to TSEA in Operations

Bud Converse, who has been Moscow/Potlatch maintenance foreman since 1998, moved into a new position in October, taking the reins as the district’s new Transportation Staff Engineering Assistant (TSEA). Converse will focus on winter operations, traffic services crew responsibilities, overseeing the vegetation program, and “other duties as assigned” by D2 Operations Manager Bob Schumacher.

He also will be taking care of all aspects of the district’s stockpiles, district summer work plans, and training such as Storm 101 and Storm 102.

“I think the biggest challenges for a while will be learning the other side of maintenance: budgets, working with all the crews, and learning the traffic services and vegetation crew operations,” Converse explained. The opportunities are working with other districts, learning new tasks, and trying to make things easier for our workers to complete their tasks.”

Rod Parsells retired as Traffic Services Foreman in June, and that job was never filled.

The new TSEA position incorporates some of Parsell’s old responsibilities, some winter operations functions, and replicates what some of the other districts’ operations structures.

The TSEA position is new to District 2. D2 has had one TSEA, Roy Hill, for several years, but now joins the growing list of districts with two of them.

Converse began as a transportation tech apprentice in February 1989 in the Weippe shed, and has been the Moscow foreman since Oct. 1998. “It was really hard leaving the Moscow/Potlatch crew,” Bud said.
 
With the promotion of Converse, 15-year ITD veteran Ty Winther was selected Moscow/Potlatch maintenance foreman Dec. 21. 

Published 01-04-19