Back to His Roots

Project Manager Brings Field Experience to His Grandfather’s Business 

By Jessica Porter

Construction is in Allyn Brice’s genes. He was drawn to the industry as a young boy and began running blueprints in the early 1970s. After high school graduation, he started working as a laborer for R.C. Stevens Construction Company, Winter Garden, Fla., a firm started by his grandfather in 1926.

“As a kid, I knew I wanted to work in construction,” he says. “It just appealed to me and I couldn’t wait to get into the field and go to work.” 

Read the entire story in Construction Executive.

Family-Owned Company with an Industry-Wide Focus

American Infrastructure Is ABC’s Contractor Of the Year   

By Jessica Porter

American Infrastructure, Worcester, Pa., has a three-part vision: compete with the best, fastest and safest companies in the world; build a great place to work that incorporates the values of the merit shop; and leave footprints in the construction industry by becoming a leader. That vision plays out every day in the company’s operations—making American Infrastructure a perfect fit to receive Associated Builders and Contractors’ (ABC) Contractor of the Year award.

“The harder we work to make ourselves better and to make ABC stronger, the better we can make the industry,” says CEO Ross Myers. “If we can get better at something and share it with others, the whole industry benefits.”  

Read the entire story in Construction Executive.

Finding the Right Fit

Craft Professionals Excel Once They Discover Their Niche in the Construction Industry

By Jessica Porter

Though Harold Harris, a millwright, and Kyle Kliebert, a welder, work in different crafts, they share much in common. Both made a career change to the construction industry after feeling dissatisfied with their original jobs, attended Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) Pelican Chapter’s Training Center, work for Turner Industries Group, Baton Rouge, La., and are a part of ABC’s National Craft Championships. The craft competition, which has been testing the skills of construction apprentices for more than two decades, will take place next month in San Antonio.

The Beginner 

A positive attitude, dedication and a desire to learn led Harris to the millwright industry, where his eight short months of experience have already resulted in great achievements. Harris is heading to San Antonio in April to compete in the ABC National Craft Championships after winning first place in the millwright competition at the Pelican Chapter’s craft championship.  

Read the entire story in Construction Executive.

The Skills to Succeed

Craft Competitions Give Construction Apprentices Confidence, Career Advancement

By Jessica Porter

Last December, the San Diego Chapter of Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) held its 10th annual Apprenticeship Craft Champions Competition, which determines the best electrical, plumbing and sheet metal students from the ABC San Diego apprenticeship program. In addition, apprentices and trainees compete for a chance to go to the 2012 ABC National Craft Championships, which will be held April 24–27 during ABC’s EdCon & Expo in San Antonio, Texas. Participants in the National Craft Championships must perform a written exam and a practicum designed specifically for their trade, with judges and other industry members and competitors just a few feet away.

During the past nine years, students from the ABC San Diego Chapter have won nine medals at the national competition. This year, the chapter will send three people to the competition; among them is Jorge Sevilla, who won the local electrical competition. 

Read the entire story in Construction Executive.

Boom on the Bakken

Demand for Construction Exceeds Supply in North Dakota     

By Jessica Porter

Life in western North Dakota is unlike anywhere else in the country. Despite extreme weather conditions, the state managed to escape any kind of economic recession and boasts an unemployment rate of just 1 percent. Since August 2008, the workforce has increased by almost 10,000 people, resulting in towns that developed minimally during the past 30 years almost doubling in size. It’s safe to say business is booming in North Dakota, thanks to the Bakken Shale.

The Bakken Shale, an underground rock formation estimated to contain billions of barrels of oil, predominately falls in North Dakota, but also covers parts of Montana and Saskatchewan, Canada. Drilling has been going on in the area in phases since the 1950s, but the current boom is expected to produce the largest amount of oil.

Read the entire story in Construction Executive. 

The Sky’s the Limit

Area Energy & Electric Employees Rise From Apprenticeship to Management Positions   

By Jessica Porter

Be on time, watch your attendance, absorb all the training you can get, apply yourself with a good work ethic and the sky’s the limit. That’s the advice Ken Schlater, founder and CEO of Ohio-based Area Energy & Electric, Inc., gives to every person who comes to him with an interest in becoming an electrical contractor. A former high school business teacher and basketball coach, Schlater is a pro at giving talented young people the push they need to be successful.

After years of being mentored by his father, also an electrical contractor, Schlater left his teaching career and worked in the electrical contracting industry for 10 years until starting a company of his own. 

Read the entire story in Construction Executive.

Safety Is No Accident

Programs Hold All Employees Responsible for Keeping Workers Safe  

By Jessica Porter

Keeping employees safe on the job requires extensive training programs and a culture of safety that applies to everyone in the company—from the CEO to field workers. Brea, Calif.-based NCM Demolition and Remediation found this out as it sought to create a top-notch safety program based on the tenets of three companies merging together.

Nuprecon, CST Environmental and MARCOR Environmental began the merger in 2006 and officially became NCM Demolition and Remediation in July, boasting more than 2,000 employees, 23 offices and $220 million in annual sales. 

Read the entire story in Construction Executive.

Conquering New Territory

Companies Step Outside Their Typical Markets to Drum up Business  

By Jessica Porter

If someone asked Derrick Wallace five years ago where he would be today, he never would have guessed the answer would be leading Construct Two Group into Africa to build a new city. But being based in hard-hit Orlando, Fla., this was the best way he found to keep the company afloat.

“This was my effort to keep my people working and to provide a future for them,” says Wallace, who is chairman of Construct Two Group. “I’ve been through tough times, but never to this extent.” 

Read the entire story in Construction Executive.