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Earl Beal and Larry Murray joined WithersRavenel on the same day in January 2016, and it was fitting if bittersweet for the two men to retire together.
Beal and Murray came to WithersRavenel from Performance Fibers, a polyester manufacturing company. They worked at Performance Fibers’ Moncure, NC facility, a 500,000 SF, 150-million-pound-capacity continuously operating polyester plant. Beal served in various roles at the manufacturing facility itself, including production, maintenance, engineering, and management. Murray acted as the Operator in Responsible Charge for the plant’s on-site wastewater treatment plant (WWTP).
When Performance Fibers decided to move their operations to Salisbury, they chose to demolish the manufacturing facilities and sell the site. The new owner requested to keep the WWTP, which they intended to operate as a standalone facility to handle wastewater from other nearby industrial sites.
Beal and Murray impressed WithersRavenel Vice President Chan Bryant with their knowledge of and experience with operating a WWTP. Bryant offered the two professionals a position in the firm’s Environmental Department. For the last five years, Beal and Murray were responsible for overseeing the WWTP’s daily operations and observing the demolition of the manufacturing facility to make sure the demolition contractor and Performance Fibers were following environmental guidelines.
For Ben Whitley, a Senior Project Manager in the Environmental Department, Beal and Murray set excellent examples as co-workers and as people.
Both Larry and Earl have provided WithersRavenel with an unbelievably reliable presence at the Performance Fibers site,he said. They both are incredibly trustworthy, and they have always maintained a high level of quality and detail to their work. They have been two of the best partners I could have asked for on the Performance Fibers project.”
However, most importantly, Larry and Earl are incredible human beings above and beyond what they provide WR on a professional level. I only wish our time together could have been longer, and I personally will miss them both in their retirement and wish them all the best.”
Other members of WithersRavenel’s Environmental Department echoed those sentiments during their time with Beal and Murray.
I was always so blown away by how sweet and kind both Larry and Earl were to me and everyone else they interacted with,Environmental Staff Professional Austin Pote said. I really appreciate having been able to know them and work with them!”
From the retirees’ perspective, working with WithersRavenel served as a satisfying capstone to their career.
WithersRavenel’s kindness and respect for its employees and the client make one feel that they are an asset and of value,Earl said, while expressing his gratitude for the opportunity to work for WithersRavenel and meet many talented, friendly people.”