Kansas
I
Union Engineer-man on the go
By Glenn Phillips
It's only a small office, and, of the hundreds of people who daily pass it on their way out the side door of the Kansas Union, few ever give it a second thought. Yet, the small cubicle with the sign "Building Engineer" on the door is the heart of the machinery that makes the Kansas Union "go."
Officially, of course, all the information concerning the mechanical or sanitation maintenance, custodians, maids or maintenance personnel is supposed to be brought to McCabe's office in the basement. However, as he points out, it would be inconvenient for some to do so and, besides, to spend the whole day in the office would not agree with McCabe.
PERHAPS IT WOULD be more accurate to say that the control comes more from the man inside, Derwood McCabe, than from the room itself. And, it's probably not quite correct to describe him as the man inside. For McCabe, or "Mac" as he is known, spends most of his time during the day going from one department to another keeping a close, first-hand check on the building.
The little room is cluttered with blueprints, key cabinets, hundreds of scraps of paper and old drapes taken from "I don't know where." Yet, from this room come many of the items, ideas and insights so important in keeping the Kansas Union operating.
"If they told me I would have to sit behind that desk all day, I'm afraid I would have to tell them to get another man," he said.
McCABE AND HIS STAFF, numbering only about 20, handle the massive task of what he described as the mechanical and sanitation maintenance for the Kansas Union and the security of
the building and its contents. He has an assistant engineer, Emmett Smith, and a supervisor of custodians, Burt Vogler. McCabe is directly responsible to Frank Burge, director of the Union.
The days start about 8 a.m. for "Mac" when he arrives at the building. Supposedly his first task of the morning is to check the schedule of events for the day and make sure that each room is properly arranged for the function scheduled. However, someone usually meets him at the door with a problem so the schedule seldom comes first.
Although he doesn't spend very much time repairing machinery, McCabe is as capable as his staff at making the minor repairs necessary to keep the building running smoothly. The maintenance staff numbers only four—McCabe, Smith and two utility men. "We don't have a plumber or an electrician," he explains. "We have men who can do a little carpentry, a little electrical work, a little plumbing and a little steam-fitting. I don't have enough work of one kind to keep a man busy but I can sure keep the all-around men busy."
MUCH OF THE TIME he spends covering the six levels of the Kansas Union building on the lookout for trouble. Occasionally he returns to his office for a conference with administrators on operations or for a meeting with a salesman. Sometimes, when the situation demands it, McCabe is the one who "gets out and gets under" to make repairs on some equipment.
Sometime during the early hours of the morning, McCabe checks with the supervisors of various divisions to see who, if any, of his people have not reported for work. After finishing these regular duties, the daily procedure for "Mac" is seldom the same.
Pinnings and Engagements
PINNINGS
Ann Barrett, Sewell, N.J., sophomore in Liberal Arts, to Dave Wentz. Leavenworth junior in Political Science, Beta Theta Pi.
Betsy Brazee, St. Louis, Mo., sophomore in Liberal Arts, Sigma Kappa, to Phil Shoemaker, Overland Park sophomore in Business, Lambda Chi Alpha.
Linda French, Leawood junior in Art Education, Gamma Phi Beta, to Monti Wilson, Leawood junior in Engineering and Physics. Alpha Tau Omega.
Cheryl Lasley, Mission sophomore in English, Kappa Alpha Theta, to Jim Renier, Overland Park sophomore in Engineering and Business, Delta Chi.
Susan Sheldon, Kansas City, Mo., junior in Spanish Education, to Mark Retonde, Kansas City, Mo., freshman, Alpha KappaLambda.
ENGAGEMENTS
Lynette Ault, Esbon junior in Education, Sigma Kappa, to Judd Scott, Kansas City, Mo., senior in Commercial Art, Phi Kappa Tau.
Patricia Healy, Washington sophomore in Elementary Education, to Pete Stebbins, Prairie Village senior in Civil Engineering and Business Administration.
Jill Eaton, Erie junior in Elementary Education, to Richard Thompson, Chanute junior in Business Administration, Phi Kappa Psi.
For any major task, the Kansas Union goes to Buildings and Grounds on the campus. McCabe said he has very happy relations with the organization but thinks of them mainly as a specialized group that can be called in to handle an emergency too big for his own crew.
Carole Calano, Herington junior, to Robin Huggins, Olathe junior.
"WE CAN CALL ON Buildings and Grounds in an emergency just like any other campus group and we can draw goods from their store room," he explained. "But, the Kansas Union pays for all the labor and materials it receives from them. Likewise, McCabe noted, the Kansas Union gets its steam, water and high-tension electrical supplies from the University and pays a standard rate for the services.
Nancy Jacobs, Independence junior in Art Education, to Dan Rowe, Lee's Summit, Mo., sophomore in Industrial Arts at Northeastern State College of Oklahoma.
Ruth Hutcheson, Kirkwood, Mo., sophomore in Microbiology, to Paul Mayer, Brewster junior in Aerospace Engineering.
Linda Price, Kansas City, Mo., senior in Biology Education, to Joe Casebolt, Kansas City, Mo., graduate student in Chemical Engineering.
Janet Schwartzkopf, Larned senior in Speech Pathology, to Tom Kuntz, Larned junior in Architecture at Kansas State University.
Suzann White, Hutchinson senior in Pharmacy, to Jim Wheatley. Garden City senior in Pharmacy, Tau Kappa Epsilon.
McCabe is not only a wandering troubleshooter for the Kansas Union; he handles a good many managerial tasks in the course of his day.
Francis Zortman, Fowler junior in Zoology, to Joe Sigley, Newton.
About everything in the way of material purchased for the Kansas Union must be approved by him. McCabe's responsibilities run from kitchen pots to floor wax.
In addition, he is the obvious consultant on physical plant matters when Kansas Union administrators meet to discuss future operations.
McCABE IS ALSO IN charge of the operation phase of the Kansas Union budget. He must consult with each of the departments ahead of the time the budget is due and determine what kind of services from his staff are going to require for the coming year. With this information, McCabe prepares an estimate of his budget, checks allocations with the departments, and finally turns in his budget for the year. The costs for maintenance and custodial work are charged proportionally to each department.
The day ends for McCabe at 5 p.m.—or at least that's the time he locks his office and heads home. But he is never really detached from the building.
At night, from 10:30 p.m. to 7 a.m., there are at least two and usually three of McCabe's staff members in the building. He emphasized that the men were custodians in charge of taking care of the building and not janitors charged with cleaning it.
BUT THE JOB IS not all mending broken pipes and splicing wires. McCabe chuckled softly as he turned over many stories in his mind and carefully sorted out those best for retelling. He settled on one which occurred soon after his arrival at KU:
One day an elevator was not working properly and McCabe went into the car to try to locate the trouble. He pushed the button to go to another floor and, as he expected, the elevator stalled between floors. A few minutes later, while he was working on the controls, a Kansas Union employee not yet familiar with the new engineer yelled down the shaft to assure him that everything was fine because Mr. McCabe would be there soon to get him out.
Daily Kansan Tuesday, March 8, 1966
7
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SUA Presents:
Featuring Comedian Biff Rose & the Stanyon Street Quartet. Saturday, March 19 at Hoch Auditorium
Tickets On Sale at 8 a.m. every day at the Kansas Union, Information Booth and Hawklet. Also at The Sound and Bell's Music $1.50,$1.75,$2
Tickets are going fast, get your's soon.