Conway Corp recently surveyed customers and employees as a part of a brand analysis study. Using results, the company has launched an advertising campaign to share its history and vision with the community and introduce an updated logo.
Conway Corp was established in 1929 as the city faced the threat of losing Hendrix College and Central Baptist College. In June of that year, Conway Corp was given the lease to operate the city’s electric light plan and franchise. Bonds were issued in the amount of $215,000 and given to each of the three Conway colleges, along with the community’s public and parochial schools.
For more than 86 years, Conway Corp has served the city of Conway. The company prides itself on providing high-quality services at reasonable rates and is a recognized leader and award –winner in its industries.
“As we began looking at a brand campaign, we asked ourselves if it was time for a new logo. Our customer research led us to the conclusion that it was time to refresh the logo, but not have a wholesale change,” Conway Corp CEO Richard Arnold said. “Conway Corp is valued and trusted by its customers. They identify with our brand and we wanted something updated, but still familiar.”
The icon has been simplified but continues to represent electric and water – the two original services of the company.
The iconic blue water tower shape now has powerful supporting columns to reflect Conway Corp’s dedication to supporting the community, while the orange base of the tower suggests electric with the three prongs of a grounded plug. An interior prong also serves as a door to future services and technologies like cable, Internet, telephone and soon home security service. In addition to the new “Tower of Power” logo, Conway Corp will begin using a distinct icon for each service line.
In the coming weeks customers will begin seeing the new advertising campaign featuring commercials, print ads, posters, online ads and billboards. Click here for more information on Conway Corp, its services and its history.
The Conway Corp IT Department has promoted Zach Leach to SCADA and Network Systems Administrator beginning October 2015.
In his new role, Leach will be the administrator to the SCADA systems that control the utility system infrastructure while planning, deploying and maintaining the company’s network systems. In addition, he will be in charge of setting up and maintaining corporate monitoring and alerting as well as maintaining the company’s radio system.
Information Systems Manager Brad Sanders said Leach was the obvious choice for the promotion.
“Zach has already taken the lead in making sure our systems are healthy and functioning properly for our guys working in the field,” he said. “He was also recently certified for tower climbing and is ready to take on the challenges of this position.”
Leach was hired in May 2012 as an Information Systems Technician
“My number one goal is to keep the systems moving forward and to be as innovative as possible when it comes to managing the systems,” Leach said.
This October, Conway Corp celebrated Energy Awareness Month and Public Power Week by encouraging local students to show their energy smarts and participate in a poster and essay contest. Students in grades K-4 were asked to create a poster on the theme “Powering an Energy Smart Future” while students in 5-7 grade and 8-12 grade were asked to write an essay on the same theme. First, second and third place prizes were awarded in each age category.
Woodrow Cummins Elementary third grader Tori Worley won first place in the poster contest. Tori won a Conway Corp prize pack, an Energy Smart pizza party for her classroom and $100 donation for her classroom. Ty Freyaldenhoven, first grade at the Art School, won second place and Lily Mason, third place at Woodrow Cummins, won third place.
In the 5-7 grade category, Delia Baatz won first place for her essay “Powering an Energy Smart Future.” Allison Purtle won second place for her “An Energetic Future” essay, and Aiyla East won third place for her “Teach Them Well – Powering an Energy Efficient Future” essay. Baatz is a sixth grader at Bob Courtway Middle School. Purtle and East are seventh graders at Ruth Doyle Middle School.
“Saving our Future: Energy” by Elaina Taylor won first place in the 8-12 grade category. “Always with Celerity” by Meagan Carmack received second place, and “The Power of the Future Lies Within the Energy of Today” by Nicole Penn received third place. Taylor, Carmack and Penn are all seniors at Conway Senior High School.
Students in the essay contest won cash prizes. Below are excerpts from Taylor’s and Baatz’s winning essays.
Taylor: “Envision the future: holographic telephone calls, hovercrafts and climate controlled cities. We all agree the future involves more and more technology and with this, more energy is demanded. Energy is defined by the Miriam-Webster dictionary as ‘usable power (as heat/electricity).’ It is incredibly valuable in everyday life due to everything we do needing or generating energy which is why powering an energy smart future is essential to maintain life. There are a myriad of ways to do this, including in the home, community and utilizing more renewable energy.
The first step toward powering an intelligent energy suture is starting at the grass roots level, the individual home. Simple options can drastically improve energy cost savings. Utilizing a programmed thermostat to set times to cool a house, while the temperature is warmer while you’re gone can actually save up to $150 a year. Think of all the potential energy saving during those eight hours the average citizen isn’t home; and that way there isn’t a single day that energy is wasted because of someone forgetting to adjust their thermostat.
The community at large is the next place to look when improving energy efficiency. The first step in this process is awareness. Many Americans understand the harms in using too much energy and the accompany substantial costs, but other than these two disadvantages, over 60 percent that were polled in a Harris Interactive survey were unaware of energy savings incentives available to them. There are usually tax rebates and incentives for making energy efficient upgrades. However, Arkansas is not one of those fortunate states that benefit from a government program currently; although many small business organizations have other programs that are offering incentives in Arkansas until those governmental agencies have means to order them here as well.
An example of one of these programs is the Small Business Energy Solutions Program that incentivizes technical supports if the consumer has a peak demand of less than 100kWh and also offers a $0.18/kWh for those taking energy efficient steps their first year for lighting control and covers the cost of direct installation projects for their customers. Also, more opportunities are readily available to a converted residence. By taking the initiative and making everyone in the community aware of the importance of energy efficiency and how many incentives are available, this will momentously help the cause.
Another key factor in improving community smart energy efficiency is to realize that all the household benefits can be applicable to offices too. For example, certain companies in Conway keep the bathroom light off and allow the customer to turn it on as need because allowing so much energy to generate throughout an eight-hour work day is truly both a waste of energy and neglecting the company’s fiscal responsibility. The money and energy saved in the home and community through one year would be tremendous if everyone would just practice these simple suggestions.”
Baatz: “For years people lived in darkness then Thomas Edison provided us with the ability to see through that darkness with electricity. For the people of Conway, this life-changing service is provided by Conway Corp. Not only for homes, but for businesses as well. Ideas for the future are able to become reality because they provide the energy needed to meet dreams.
Conway Corp also shows a concern for their customers and the environment by providing tips for conserving energy. At my home we use natural sunlight instead of using our lights during the day. When we brush our teeth we keep the water turned off until it’s time to rinse the brush instead of leaving in running.
A lot of people don’t realize that leaving your electronics plugged in uses electricity even if the items are not in use. For instance, we always make sure to unplug chargers for our phones and computers when they are not needed. My mother also recently had a family meeting on how to properly load the dishwasher to ensure that the most amount of dishes can be cleaned while cutting down on the number of loads we have to run. We turned off the heat drying on the dishwasher and allow them to air dry.
I have a two year old brother named Genesis and an eight month old sister named Marley Jade. My wish for the future is that they have a green planet and clean air to breathe as they grow. The changes that I have listed for energy use are just some of the ways that my family makes a difference to make my wish come true. With the growing population, more people need to join the cause and reduce their own carbon footprint. I think everyone could come together to make our world a better place.”
Congratulations to all the winners of the 2015 Energy Smart Essay and Poster Contest, and thank you to all students who submitted an entry. Conway Corp is proud of these students who continue to encourage us all to conserve energy in our everyday lives.
Conway Corp is celebrating Public Power Week, October 4-10, along with more than 2,000 other community-owned, not-for-profit electric utilities that collectively provide electricity to 48 million Americans.
“Public Power Week celebrates the reliable, affordable electricity Conway Corp provides to our community,” Conway Corp CEO Richard Arnold said. “Public power puts the people of Conway first, and Public Power Week gives us the chance to emphasize the advantages of locally grown, locally owned power to our citizens.”
Conway Corp was recently named one of the most reliable public utilities in the nation by the American Public Power Association and has been recognized with the Reliable Public Power Provider (RP3) designation for the proficiency in the reliability, safety, workforce development and system improvement.
Conway Corp was recognized largely in part because frequency and duration of power outages in the service area is exceptionally low. The length of power outages for Conway Corp service area averages 40.7 minutes compared to the industry average of more than 90 minutes. Over the entire year, Conway Corporation customers were without power for an average of 92.1 minutes compared to the industry average of 1,366 to 1,998 minutes, meaning that lights were on 99.99 percent of the time.
Reliable, safe, affordable electricity is what public power is all about, and it’s what Conway Corp delivers year round. Public power works because employees care about the community and take pride in serving their friends and neighbors. Helpu us thank our electric department for their 24/7 commitment to keeping the lights on.
Conway Corp Cable Installers John Davis and Andrew Nelson have earned the Broadband Premises Installer certification from the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers (SCTE) after completing an eight-week course and final exam.
The BPI certification is the foundation and one of three stand-alone Broadband Premises certifications that Conway Corp started using in 2015 as part of the core curriculum for all its cable department employees. It is the first of six career path certifications in the department.
“John and Andrew are great assets to Conway Corp and work to continually exceed customer expectations.” CATV Training Coordinator Tommy Nolen said.
Davis and Nelson are certified to perform routine installations, disconnects, pre-wires, change of service and multiple dwelling unit wiring for cable television video, voice and data residential customers by showing proficiency in six main competencies: Technology, Systems and Requirements; Premises Devices; Installation; Troubleshooting & Maintenance; Standards and Safety.
The SCTE is a global leader for telecommunication education and training programs that meet the ever-changing cable industry. The Broadband Premises Installation and Service course was developed in collaboration with the industry’s top technical professionals and cable operators. The training is nationally recognized by the cable telecommunications industry and helps individuals interested in working for a cable provider.
Davis and Nelson will now work next toward earning the other stand-alone premise certifications including the Broadband Premises Technician and the Broadband Premises Expert.
Conway Corporation Cable Installer Jason Fleming has earned the Broadband Premises Expert certification from the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers after an eight-week course and final exam.
The BPE certification qualifies him as a Level 3 technician and is the foundation and one of three stand-alone Broadband Premises certifications that Conway Corp started using in 2015 as part of the core curriculum for all cable department employees. It is the first of six career path certifications in the department.
“The time and energy put into earning these certifications is a direct reflection of who Jason is,” CATV Training Coordinator Tommy Nolen said. “These certifications are essential as technicians advance in their career, and through our training efforts with the national and local SCTE (Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers) Razorback Chapter, we reinforce them with class theory, hands-on testing and field application.”
Certifications include training for customer service, troubleshooting, test equipment, measurements, service restoration related to industry-wide standards and practices, instruction in the latest technologies and digital home technology.
Fleming is now certified to perform routine installations, disconnects, pre-wires, change of service and multiple dwelling unit wiring for cable television video, voice and data residential customers by showing proficiency in six main competencies: Technology, Systems & Requirements; Premises Devices; Installation; Troubleshooting & Maintenance; Standards and Safety as well as coach, teach and mentor other technicians.
Conway Corporation has announced the recent promotion of Andrew Goodwin from Systems Analyst to Mobile Solutions Architect in the Internet Technology Department.
In his new role, Goodwin will provide design, development, oversight and training on mobile web and native implementations of iOS, Android and cross platform offerings for both tablet and handheld form factors.
“Andrew will be working to train to employees on mobile technologies, facilitate mobile design and help direct our mobile first strategy,” Chief Technology Officer Jason Hansen said. “I’m very excited about this move and the possibilities it presents for Conway, Conway Corp and our customers.”
Goodwin began working for Conway Corp in 2008 and was instrumental in the development of the company’s myConwayCorp mobile app.
