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When the Constant Convocation Center opens in October, perhaps no one will be happier and prouder than Dave Robichaud.
As project manager, he has worked behind the scenes from the beginning, ensuring that everything remained on schedule and orchestrating the various construction components to run like a fine-tuned engine.
With a management and engineering background, Robichaud joined Old Dominion in 1999 specifically for this project. He has since worked with the architects and university administrators to establish the design of the building, has overseen the design itself to ensure building codes and state agency requirements were met, and has hired and consulted with contractors to include specific university needs in the plans.
When construction commenced in summer 2000, Robichaud oversaw the bidding and hired inspection and testing firms to ensure the project is constructed per the plans and specifications.
"After we award a contract to the successful bidder, the real fun begins," he said.
The project manager is the "heavy," the guy who works with the construction company and the numerous other contractors and subcontractors throughout the duration of construction to keep the project on schedule. Not an easy job on a $56.5 million, 8,600-seat, state-of-the-art arena.
But in the end, Robichaud says his job is a rewarding one, "seeing and experiencing the end-product, a successfully completed project. One that is well-designed and of quality construction. The convocation center will be one of those projects."
- Jennifer Mullen
Birth date: Nov. 6, 1963
Hometown: A small town called Orange, Mass.
Education: Worcester Polytechnic Institute, B.S., management/industrial engineering, 1986; Averett College, M.B.A, 1996
Spouse's name and occupation: Marie "Katie" Robichaud, family practice physician
Children: Ryhan David, 5; Nicholas Paul, 2; and a son on the way, due next month
Pets: Worm farm
Pet peeve: I hate interruptions when trying to finish a small project
Most memorable campus experience: Seeing the convocation center design come to life and meeting Dick Vitale last year at the basketball tip-off luncheon
Most treasured possessions in your office: My family photos
Last book read: Currently in the middle of several: "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson; "Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller" by Ron Chernow; "Black Holes and Time Warps" by K.P. Thorne
Favorite movies: "Austin Powers," "Pulp Fiction," "Raiders of the Lost Ark," "The Shining," "Lord of the Rings" and "Toy Story"
Favorite quotation: "It's a great day to be alive" (my football coach used to say that before every brutal practice)
Greatest accomplishment: Marrying Katie and having children
Favorite song: "Valley Road" by Bruce Hornsby and the Range
Your idea of the perfect day off: Two cups of coffee while reading the newspaper early in the morning; a two-hour workout at Wareing's Gym; afternoon at the beach with the family; and fresh Atlantic tuna on the grill for dinner
Hobbies: Designed and built our beach house; currently trying to come up with a design for a mountain retreat home at Wintergreen
Favorite TV shows: "West Wing" and many of the shows on the History, Discovery and Travel channels
Favorite meal: Mexican food and almost any ocean fish if seasoned well
Favorite sport: Scuba diving and snow skiing
Favorite area restaurant: With the kids, Friendly's; without the kids, almost any restaurant on the oceanfront
Last smart thing you did: Took a three-day vacation with the family
Last dumb thing you did: Did not make it a weeklong vacation with the family
Worst job: Working on the back of a garbage truck one summer while in high school, although this experience helped motivate me to go to college
What would you want your epitaph to be? A great husband, great father and a great American
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