Organized in response to the Sago Mine disaster, the West Virginia Mine Safety Technology Consortium assists companies with the development of technology and products that improve mine safety, protecting one of West Virginia’s most valuable resources—the miner. Financed by government and private sources, the consortium was defunded at the end of its 4-year grant cycle. MSTC remains hopeful that resources can be found to continue its vital role in West Virginia’s mining industry.
MSTC recognized the importance of expanding research, development and economic opportunities in the mining industry in order to improve miner safety. When Dennis Jarvis, former director of MSTC, wanted someone to help sell its vision, a mutual business associate recommended Bricks Without Straw. Owner Jamie Summers-Brown had a background in economic development and the coal industry, making him a perfect fit for MSTC. “I was familiar with his work without knowing him,” Jarvis said, and he liked what he saw. Impressed by his youthfulness and entrepreneurial spirit, Jarvis chose Jamie to help MSTC.
Website
Jamie sat down with MSTC’s staff and helped create what Jarvis calls, “. . .a relatively seamless transition to do the hard part of moving the website over.” The site’s prior manager seemed hesitant to relinquish control of technical aspects of MSTC’s website; Jarvis never experienced that with Jamie. And Jamie listened. “He was intensive; I told him this is what I envision, these are some suggestions that I have. . .he gave me exactly what we could do within the price range. And I mean, exactly.” When Jarvis wanted a resource center with information and marketing tools promoting the companies MSTC assisted, Jamie delivered. He created an easy-to-navigate site, impressing users with their ease in finding specific information. When MSTC wanted an active presence on Facebook and Twitter, Bricks Without Straw delivered. “Both do huge feeds to our website.”
The fact that the site was user-friendly from its inception impressed Jarvis. “Sometimes. . . people that do sites, they're constantly redoing it.” But with Jamie, MSTC had a quality product from the beginning, and after 36 months, it remains highly effective.
Jamie’s commitment to site maintenance also pleased Jarvis. “You pay for the service of having them provide the accountability you need and the professionalism you need because if a website is static, it's no good. Jamie still works with me on our MSTC site, providing updates and changes to it almost three years later.”
Future of MSTC and Bricks Without Straw
Bricks Without Straw is committed to helping MSTC remain an active resource for those concerned with miner safety in West Virginia, despite MSTC’s uncertain future. Summers-Brown said, “We continue to support and maintain our project with MSTC because of the importance of the organization to the state of West Virginia. The project continues to draw a global audience and in our opinion will continue to do so. Just because the project was defunded doesn't mean we can't continue to promote its values and contributions to an important and vital industry.” Jarvis appreciates that commitment, especially if funding becomes available. “We'll still have a presence because of Jamie.”
As for Dennis Jarvis, he continues to have a strong relationship with Bricks Without Straw, recommending Jamie to his own clients. Noting Jamie’s commitment to West Virginia and the drive for quality that defines Jamie and his staff, Jarvis said, “I'm real high on Jamie. What you see is what you get, and I love that.”
