Contractor uses PipelineRFQ for Hurricane Katrina Assistance

by | Dec 30, 2005

Quarryville, PA- December 2005- The employees at Paul Risk Associates, Inc. (PRA), a General Contractor in Quarryville, Pennsylvania were touched by the devastation of hurricane Katrina and wanted to do something about it. After Mr. Paul Risk contacted numerous agencies to find a place where they could volunteer and make a difference, he decided the location would be Gulfport, Mississippi. Paul and his wife Shirley traveled to Gulfport to see firsthand the community’s needs and to verify what they could do to help.
The challenge: how to get the word out to quickly and ask for help from its database of over 1200 subcontractors and suppliers in the massive effort to repair and rebuild the numerous homes and businesses that were damaged or destroyed. The solution: Steve Risk, President of PRA used their bid invitation software program PipelineRFQ™ to fax and email the notice to all their subcontractors and vendors, and then to track their responses. What would have taken days using conventional methods took only a few minutes. “Our Pipeline program worked very well”, explains Project Assistant Laura Beard. “We received a huge response, especially donations of building materials and supplies. We would not have been able to get that kind of response without our PipelineRFQ program.”
PipelineRFQ is on-demand bid invitation software used mainly by commercial General Contractors to create bid invitations and addenda, and fax and/or email to their subcontractors and suppliers in just a few clicks. Its ease of use combined with the fact that there is no software or server to install, and no fax modem and phone line to maintain, is proving to be more and more efficient to Contractors. Faxes are sent through fax servers and multiple fax lines managed by PipelineRFQ’s parent technology company PipelineSuite of Newport Beach, CA.
The time and effort put forth by Paul Risk is entirely donated. The first phase has been mostly clean-up work and roof repairs. Currently they preparing for the next phase – rebuilding – by training volunteers in the area to do carpentry work. They are sending crews of 5-6 men at a time on a 2-week rotation.
“Our technology team at PipelineRFQ was happy to see our program used for such a tremendous cause, to help people and really make a difference in the world” said Rick Dill, chairman and CEO of PipelineSuite.  “More importantly, it is people like Paul Risk and his team that have the heart to step up and donate months of their time and money toward the reconstruction efforts.”
To join Paul Risk Associates’ Gulfport team, contact Steve Risk at their Quarryville office.

About PipelineRFQ™ and PipelineSuite.

Founded in 1998, Online Building Products, Inc. dba. PipelineSuite developed PipelineSuite®, a group of web-based software programs for the building industry. One of its most popular programs is PipelineRFQ™, which debuted at the Building Industry Association (BIA) show in Long Beach, California in 2002. PipelineRFQ allows General Contractors to send bid invitations and addenda via fax and/or email to their subcontractors with just a few mouse clicks, without any hardware or software to install or maintain. Its other popular product is PipelineBTS™ bid tracking software, which allows subcontractors to send their bid proposals to their list of General Contractors via fax and/or email, and then track them. PipelineSuite

is headquartered in Newport Beach, California, and has a branch sales office in Powell, Ohio and a technology and sales office in Garner, North Carolina.

About Paul Risk Associates, Inc.

Paul Risk Associates, Inc. (PRA) is a family business founded by Donald C. Risk in 1933. From 1969 to the mid 90’s, Paul Risk with his wife Shirley and son Steve grew the company from 3 to 70 employees and continued to build our reputation for quality, cost effective construction. PRA is now a third generation company led by Steven P. Risk, President, since 1995. The mission of Paul Risk Associates, Inc. is to provide quality construction services for commercial, industrial and institutional clients in southeastern and south-central Pennsylvania and northern Maryland. PRA is headquartered in Quarryville, Pennsylvania, and has an office in Port Deposit, Maryland.