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The John Folse Culinary Institute at Nicholls State University is getting a major facelift, and Byron E. Talbot Contractor, Inc. is doing the first part of that work. Talbot won the bid to provide site prep and underground utilities installation on the campus in Thibodaux.

The project called for an extensive list of drainage and sewer materials, and Talbot called QSM’s Schriever office to facilitate ordering and delivery.

“We went straight to QSM,” says Jared Fanguy, a supervisor with Byron Talbot. “I know our company has been working with them for years. It’s great because they’re local, and we can easily coordinate deliveries, and we can talk with them face-to-face if we need to make any changes while the job is in progress.”

Design was finalized in October, construction began this winter, and despite a bout of harsh winter weather and many rainy days, Talbot is on schedule to complete its portion of project. Construction is scheduled to be completed by mid-to-late 2014.

The centerpiece of the project is a new 33,000 square-foot building that will feature four teaching kitchens, a demonstration kitchen for outreach and broadcast learning, a bistro style restaurant with two dining rooms and a full service kitchen. It also will feature a research center, student services, administration and faculty offices, a commissary, and classrooms.

Fanguy says he’s proud of all jobs that he and Talbot take on, but he’s particularly proud to be working on this one. After all, he’s a graduate of Nicholls and a former football player.

“It’s great to return to campus and be able to bring something back to my school,” he says.

Fanguy worked under Project Manager TJ Lee. Both men relied on advice and logistics support from QSM’s Schriever office.

“Steven and Ben at QSM are great guys to work with,” says Fanguy. “They know the products very well, and they get us materials in a very fast time frame. You can’t say enough about ordering these products from a local company. It makes all the difference.”

According to state records, the full cost of the project is $12.6 million, of which $8.1 million was committed by the state. The remaining money was provided by Nicholls State University.

The culinary program at Nicholls was established in 1995. It currently has more than 300 students enrolled, and it attracts students from across Louisiana as well as the nation, and the world.

QSM provided the following materials to this job:

  • Precast Catch Basins and Manholes
  • Asphalt Coated Ultra Flo CMP
  • Reinforced Concrete Pipe
  • SDR-35 Sewer Pipe
  • Precast Sewer Manholes
  • A-2000 PVC
  • Precast Wet Wells