Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 News
    
        Photos

    Week in Photos

    Air Force TV

    Commentaries

    Features

    Art

    About Us
    
        Air Force Senior Leaders
    
        SECAF

    CSAF

    CMSAF

    Biographies

    Fact Sheets

    SECAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library
    
        CSAF Leadership Library 2022

    CSAF Leadership Library 2021

    CSAF Reading List Pre-2020 Archive
    
        2018 CSAF Reading List

    2017 CSAF Reading List

    2016 CSAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library 2023

    CMSAF Leadership Library

    50 Years of the CMSAF

    Adjunct Professors

    Air Force Strategic Documents

    Arctic Strategy

    Empowered Airmen

    State Licensure Portability

    Careers

    AF Federal Advisory Committees

    AF 75th Anniversary

    Policy Updates

    AF Content Management

    Contact Us

    AF Sites
    
        Site RegistrationU.S. Air Force LogoAir Force

        Policy UpdatesNewsroomReoptimizationBIOGRAPHIESAF Senior Leaders      Capt. Nassem Ghandour poses beside double-tee beams Jan. 16, 2015, in Yigo, Guam. Ghandour was recognized through the Every Dollar Counts program after he saved the Air Force more than $235,000. Ghandour is the 554th RED HORSE Squadron Engineering Flight deputy commander. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Robert Hicks)Capt. Nassem Ghandour poses beside double-tee beams Jan. 16, 2015, in Yigo, Guam. Ghandour was recognized through the Every Dollar Counts program after he saved the Air Force more than $235,000. Ghandour is the 554th RED HORSE Squadron Engineering Flight deputy commander. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Robert Hicks)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res

Andersen AFB Airman makes every dollar countPublished Jan. 20, 2015
                    
                    By Staff Sgt. Robert Hicks
                    
                    
                    36th Wing Public Affairs
            **ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam (AFNS) --**An Airman from the 554th RED HORSE Squadron put his innovative thinking to the test, stepping up to the challenge put forth by Air Force leaders under a service wide cost saving initiative.
Capt. Nassem Ghandour, the 554th RHS engineering flight deputy commander, was recognized through the Every Dollar Counts program after he saved the Air Force more than $235,000. 
His idea involved redesigning six roof systems to use prestressed concrete double-tee beams, a product made on the island, instead of using steel trusses that are shipped in.  These rebooted roof systems would be utilized during new building construction operations at the new Silver Flag campus.
Ghandour explained the lead time for shipping structural steel from the mainland posed the biggest schedule challenge by adding an additional 10 to 16 weeks to a project's schedule.
Tasked to build the Pacific Air Force’s Regional Training Center support infrastructure on a compressed timeline, the 554th RHS went outside the box and came up with a solution that is faster, uses less manpower and meets all engineering requirements.  This effort was considered pivotal to achieving the project's timeline and mission success.
The 554th RHS turned to pre-cast/pre-stressed double-tee beams, in which the reinforcing steel is placed under stress prior to casting in concrete. This allows the beams to span longer distances and carry a greater load. They can also be delivered within three weeks from on-island sources, cutting the estimated time of completion down by seven weeks per project.
"The double-tee beams are very durable and can withstand the elements of Guam," Ghandour said. "Also, it only takes three days of labor to install the beams instead of the three weeks it would have taken if we used steel truss beams."
Ghandour's initiative to develop a new roof system design has been bench marked and has become the 554th RHS's method of choice for roof systems for all future facility construction projects.
"Across PACAF we are changing the way people are starting to build," Ghandour said. "We are encouraging people to get away from the tunnel vision mindset and look for better ways to engineer instead of defaulting to whatever their predecessors have done. Doing it the way it has previously been done is not always the best and cheapest way to do it."RED HORSE 



cost saving 



Guam 



Andersen Air Force Base Featured News
        Senior Leader Priorities
                SecAF, CSAF, CMSAF begin Indo-Pacific trip focused on ACE
                    
                    DAF leaders talk budget, reoptimizing the force
                    
                    DAF leaders speak at National Character and Leadership Symposium
                    
                    DAF members recognized during BEYA STEM awards
                    
                    DAF senior enlisted advisors discuss Airmen, Guardians in the fightInnovation
                F-16s arrive to be modified for autonomous testing
                    
                    AFWERX director discusses role of tech startups, quick innovation in Great Power Competition
                    
                    DAF delivers lethality at the speed of data during Project Convergence Capstone 4
                    
                    DAF welcomes industry partners to HQ development program
                    
                    DAF announces Spark Tank 2024 finalistsMAJCOM News
                Safety enterprise announces new mission, vision, goals in 2024 strategic plan
                    
                    Air Combat Command welcomes new commander
                    
                    USAFE-AFAFRICA commander discusses Integrated Air, Missile Defense during Munich Security Conference
                    
                    Flosi to AFMC family: Embrace change, make every day count
                    
                    AMC rises to increasing global tension
 Quick Links
AccessibilityContact UsEqual OpportunityFOIA | Privacy | Section 508Information QualityInspector GeneralJAG Court-Martial DocketLink DisclaimerNo FEAR ActOpen GovernmentOSI Tip LinePlain LanguageQuestionsResilienceRSSSite MapVeterans Crisis LineCareers
Join the Air ForceAir Force BenefitsAir Force CareersAir Force ReserveAir National GuardCivilian ServiceConnect
            Get Social with Us
            
            Official United States Air Force Website
    Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil