STP Online

Rick W. Cherf is a design & construction industry trainer and educator. As principal of Total Construction Services Incorporated, he also provides consulting services to owners, architects, engineers and contractors. His area of expertise is in pre-construction services, program management, project management, leadership and field execution.

Cherf has more than 40 years of experience in the design, construction, maintenance, and commissioning phases of major facilities throughout World. From pipe-layer to carpenter; heavy equipment operator to project manager; and program manager to executive vice-president of a publicly-held service company, Cherf has extensive experience in the development, management and construction of major public and private projects in the commercial, residential, industrial, infrastructure and heavy/civil arenas.

Dr. Lantz Holtzhower completed his Ph.D. in Construction Management at the M.E. Rinker, Sr. School of Building Construction in Gainesville, Florida at the University of Florida under the direction of Dr. Robert Ries and Dr. Charles Kibert. He is currently an Assistant Professor in the Construction Management department at the Kennesaw State University in the Metro Atlanta, Georgia area. He has taught at the University level for 8 years and is heavily involved in student competitions, industry events with the AGC of Georgia, and student success. Courses taught include Construction Scheduling, Estimating and Project Management. He also holds a Master’s degree in Building Construction and a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture, both from the University of Florida. Dr. Holtzhower has 9 years of professional construction experience including commercial construction management, electrical contracting, and management experience with a fire protection contractor. The wide variety of projects includes a flagship institutional project, several municipal projects, K12 projects, office buildings, residential amenities, and agricultural storage warehouses. He is a licensed Certified Building Contractor in the State of Florida and a member of the AGC of Georgia.

Matthew is an Associate Professor at the University of Oklahoma, teaching in the Construction Science division. He completed his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Texas A&M University and his PhD at the University of Oklahoma. He spent several years working in the construction industry as a laborer, crew foreman, assistant superintendent, project engineer, and project manager. He still gets to spend time on construction sites pretty frequently in his role as a safety consultant. Matthew loves the time he gets to spend with his wife and three kids and has fun coaching a youth baseball team and teaching a 5th grade Sunday School class.