INTRODUCTION OF COO ROLES TO DRIVE OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE AND SEAMLESS CLIENT EXPERIENCE
July 14, 2020
Bothell, WA, —Cascade Environmental (“Cascade”), a leading field services contractor of drilling, site investigation, and remediation services, is pleased to announce the promotion of Ron Thalacker to Chief Operating Officer, Cascade Drilling Services and Peter Palko to Chief Operating Officer, Cascade Remediation Services.
Cascade provides full-service, single-source solutions across each step of the environmental lifecycle of a site. The company participates in the stable and growing $10 billion environmental drilling & remediation and geotechnical drilling industries, performing 6,000 jobs per year across the United States.
“Cascade is uniquely positioned to apply comprehensive, multi-faceted solutions to every issue our clients face,” explains CEO John Cowdery. “The new COO structure brings an elevated level of collaboration across the organization utilizing scale, reputation, and our integrated services portfolio to accelerate growth and improve profitability.”
In Feb 2019, Thalacker and Palko were appointed to roles of Executive Vice President of their respective business lines. “Since that time, the company has achieved operational alignment resulting in a steady increase in profitability and efficiency,” said Cowdery. “Under their leadership, we have consolidated five lines of business to two, improved tracking of equipment and labor to boost utilization, standardized back office practices and procedures, optimized our fleet and workforce, and adopted lean and structured training practices.”
There will be no business interruption as Ron and Pete transition into their new roles. “We remain focused on providing our clients an unparalleled experience regardless of location or type of service delivered,” said Thalacker.
Both industry veterans have more than 30 years of business leadership experience. “Our clients will continue to benefit from our experience, which ensures their drilling and technical service needs are executed safely, professionally, and with their objectives in mind,” said Palko. “Our operational model provides clients a value-added experience through consistent project execution across the country with a focus on service, technical excellence, client advocacy, attention to safety, and overall implementation of client initiatives. Lessons learned on project sites nationwide are shared internally to help local client decision makers achieve similar success on every remediation project performed by Cascade.”
“Now that we’ve achieved operational alignment with process, people, and assets, we are focused on continuing to improve our margins and growing the business,” explains Thalacker.
“Our vision is continued growth of our individual service offerings and position as an industry leader in all areas of remediation, including our in situ thermal desorption (ISTD) practice, injection and fracturing programs, direct push sampling and high resolution site characterization (HRSC) programs, as well as continued implementation of engineered solutions using innovative technology solutions such as in situ stabilization, in situ chemical oxidization, and in situ chemical reduction to solve complex soil and groundwater problems across the country,” said Palko.
Thalacker joined Cascade in 2016 as Senior Vice President of Drilling Operations with regional responsibilities. He holds a Bachelor of Administration and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.
Palko joined Cascade through the acquisition of Medford, New Jersey-based Panther Technologies in 2016. He is a registered Professional Engineer, Certified Hazardous Materials Manager, and Licensed Site Remediation Professional. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce and Engineering/Operations Management from Drexel University.
“Our C-suite team is stronger than ever and ready to lead the company through its next stage of growth,” said Cowdery. “They outperformed expectations and displayed exemplary leadership during the uncertain and dynamic times of the COVID pandemic. I look forward to our continued success.”
