Hayden Homes hosted its 8th Annual Subcontractor Appreciation Breakfast and Hayden Quality Awards at the Columns Banquet Center in St. Charles on Nov. 22 to recognize and appreciate those who contribute to the quality of its homes. About 200 trades people and executives and managers from the subcontractors and suppliers that work and provide materials for Hayden Homes attended.

“We hold our appreciation breakfast every year in order to thank everyone for doing such a good job, recognize the team effort, instill pride in our subcontractors, and hopefully have some relaxed time together,” said Dennis Hayden, president of Hayden Homes.

At the breakfast, Hayden also presented its annual quality awards. Ten winners were recognized in four categories: Outstanding Job Performance, Outstanding Subcontractor, Outstanding Supplier and Special Recognition – Outstanding Performance & Service.

Five trades people were honored in the category of Oustanding Job Performance in 2005: Matt Brumagin from Behlman Builders, Inc. for his work at The Manors at Heritage Trails; Chuck Bertani from West Park Painting Co. for his work at The Manors at Magnolia; Mike Bone from Builder’s Bloc, Inc. for his work at August Hill, Conway on the Grove and Belle Monte Road; Chris Rossetto from Builder’s Bloc for his work at The Landings at Far Oaks; and Andy Jansen for Behlman Builders, Inc. for his work with Hayden Custom Homes. Mike Williamson of R. L. Just & Associates received the Special Recognition Award for Outstanding Performance and Service.

Three companies were presented awards in the category for Outstanding Subcontractor: H & A Plumbing Co., Ron Woods Excavating Co., and Broadview Screen. Glen Alspaugh Company received the award for Outstanding Supplier.

The Hayden Quality Awards program is part of Hayden Homes’ overall evaluation process for subcontractors, suppliers, trades people and, ultimately, itself. All Hayden Homes’ departments, including production, sales, customer service and purchasing, contribute evaluations for the judging process, which is based on Hayden Homes’ standards of performance that appear in every subcontractor contract. Standards deal with matters, such as job site safety, cleanliness, courtesy, professionalism, mistake-free and high-quality work, promptness, teamwork and work ethic.

“We evaluate our subcontractors, suppliers and crafts people in more than 18 aspects of job performance. These aspects of job performance impact the quality of the homes we build, as well as the quality of the buying, planning and building process experienced by the families who purchase Hayden homes,” said Hayden.

Hayden Homes also surveys its homebuyers after they have closed and moved into their homes to evaluate their experiences compared with their expectations.

“In these ways we measure our performance, the performance of our subcontractors, suppliers and craftsmen and the overall quality of our products and service – all part of our philosophy of continuous improvement,” Hayden said.

Recently, Hayden Homes has had good news to share about its customers’ satisfaction. According to the Woodland O’Brien surveys for the first three quarters of 2005, 100 percent of Hayden’s closing customers have been willing to refer the home building company to family, friends and associates. In 2004, the company was awarded the “World-Class Customer Satisfaction Award” by the Better Business Bureau of Eastern Missouri and Southern Illinois.

Hayden Homes is currently building several neighborhoods in the metro area. Belle Monte Road, August Hill and Conway on the Grove are three gated villa enclaves on Conway Road in Chesterfield. The Manors at Heritage Trails and The Manors at Magnolia are two communities of affordable luxury homes in St. Charles County. Vandiver Place is a Hayden Custom Home enclave in Town and Country that features one inventory home priced at $2,787,900 and two other 1.3-acre estates. The Landings at Far Oaks is a luxury home community on Far Oaks Golf Course in St. Clair County, Illinois. Hayden Custom Homes also works with homebuyers wanting to build custom homes on scattered sites in eastern Missouri or southwest Illinois.