In business, change is inevitable. Navigating a fluctuating industry while staying ahead of trends and techniques is not an easy job. Sometimes this change can prove to be a struggle, as a company cannot adapt to the environment it finds itself in. However, sometimes change –and the recalibrating that comes from it—can lead to exciting new beginnings. Multi-disciplinary piping company Stainless Piping Systems is the leading high purity systems provider in Canada and its decades long journey is testament to the positive power that change can bring. SPS was formed in Toronto almost 35 years ago. The acquisition, and potential relocation of their employer to Wisconsin was the impetus for a team of highly talented employees to go out on their own. The group of seven, consisting of welders, engineers, and fabricators turned the turbulence of a take-over into Stainless Piping Systems. Now, thirty-four years of dedication and hard work later, SPS has firmly established itself as a reliable and successful company, all thanks to the leap of faith taken by the original team.

The company’s success is built on providing excellence across three main pillars: design, fabrication, and installation. The reason for this is a simple one. In a sector such as piping, accuracy and excellence is essential. By ensuring the details are adhered to, things move well from there. At SPS it is no different and for the company, the design element is a key component. Every other aspect of a quality project flows from it. In fact, design is the backbone of what it does. The company’s engineering team work collaboratively to produce accurate and detailed mechanical designs that incorporate fabrication and installation considerations. For Dave Damen, President and Senior Project Manager of Stainless Piping Systems, design is the aspect of the business that has adapted and developed most since the company’s inception in the late eighties. State of the art computer software has allowed SPS the ability to fully harness the power of design. With a strong design in place, fabrication can be executed in confidence. “The art of modern fabrication means that there is virtually no need for rework and no need for trim allowances either.” So, when it comes to installing the piping, Damen feels that the company is in a very good place. He believes that this comes down to the time, energy, and skill that SPS puts in up to that point. “With open communication and a well-integrated team, we can install successfully. This is because we have been working with the same game plan, the same information, and the same accuracy of fabrication.”

“Our work in design, fabrication, and installation, always contains pinpoint accuracy and that allows us to meet the needs of any project.”

For Stainless Piping Systems, meeting the highest standards across these three pillars are non-negotiable. In meeting the design, fabrication and installation needs of a client, the company is ensuring that its processes are maintained. Not only are they an essential part of the company’s promise to deliver an excellent service, but they also help to ensure that as a full-service pipe system provider, the company does not run into unnecessary delays or hitches. SPS can guarantee and trust the accuracy of its design, fabrication and installation and provide full-service pipe systems on every job, every time. As Damen explains, what benefits the current client also benefits future clients. “By ensuring that our systems run smoothly, we can maintain a seamless, headache-free transition from process to process. No rework is needed, and things just get done right the first time.”

Working across a number of sectors such as pharmaceutical, medical, automotive, and the food and beverage industry can bring challenges. Due to the variables and uniqueness of each industry, it is imperative that the company maintains strict and efficient internal processes. For SPS, adherence to the three pillars of its process give it the ability to adapt and serve all customers, regardless of the project. “Our business model remains consistent. Our work in design, fabrication, and installation, always contains pinpoint accuracy and that allows us to meet the needs of any project.” As Damen goes on to explain, the company has invested much time and effort into developing effective communication strategies between its departments. “We use cloud-based software to communicate designs, from concept right down to final install.” This involves the collaborating and sharing of fabrication drawings which eliminates the need for large hard copy drawings. “With the cloud-based software, every member of every team has access to the most up to date specifications and drawings, while also having previous revisions on file.”

With that in mind, it is no surprise to learn that the company has been involved in many high-profile projects, delivering some hugely impressive results along the way. One such project was a 150,000 sq ft vaccine production facility in Toronto, Ontario. The facility’s budget was half a billion dollars and involved an astonishing 27 kilometers of high purity piping. All piping on the project, which began in 2017 and finished in 2020 just as the COVID pandemic was beginning, was prefabricated, and held in storage until needed. At its peak, the piping was installed at the phenomenal rate of 650 ft per day. Damen believes that this speed and accuracy truly sets the company apart from its competitors. “It was virtually unheard of in the industry and the project stands as the benchmark of Canadian pharmaceutical construction projects. When executed properly at blistering rates, you can still maintain quality, timeliness, and efficiency.” Additionally for Damen, the company’s involvement in these structures felt hugely important and, while the success of the project was hugely positive in itself, the significance of the work being done was not lost on anyone. “This was at a moment when the call for vaccines became critical to protect the health of Canadian citizens. We eagerly did as much as we could to aid the implementation of vaccination infrastructure.”

Due to the timing of the project’s completion, and its track record of working successfully in the pharmaceutical sector, Stainless Piping System has subsequently worked in a number of new geolocations on similar projects. The company installed high purity systems in Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan among other provinces. Currently, it is working with a leading pharmaceutical company in Toronto. The major expansion project will ultimately provide flu vaccines, not just for Canadians, but the entire world.

While word of mouth and maintaining a stellar reputation are clearly an effective method of generating business for the company, Stainless Piping Systems ensures that its future is one that is built on its past successes. This is a company that develops lasting relationships with its clients and credits much of its ongoing success to repeat business. As Damen explains, it is vital that the clients it works with develop and enjoy a sense of trust. Without this, he says, customers simply wouldn’t return. “Quality, cost, and time are all equally important to our clients. By ensuring we stick to our rigorous processes, we can deliver the best possible quality in the most efficient manner, thus meeting timelines and budgets. By consistently delivering on this, we build trust. Our customers know that we can handle their project efficiently without fear of failure.”

In construction, nothing is guaranteed. Market fluctuations and industry trends mean that companies can never take things for granted. There are two things, however, that if done correctly, can give companies a fighting chance – hard work and good timing. Having grown and developed in the New York construction industry since 1997, Celtic Sheet Metal is clearly doing something right. The company, specialists in HVAC installation and its related equipment, initially worked primarily out of New York’s Lower Hudson Valley, and in the early 2000s expanded into New York City by bidding on and winning jobs in the city. Since then, it’s been a steady pattern of growth for Celtic, with each year bringing new successes and projects.

Celtic’s Safety Director, Daniel Von Dollen, believes that the success the company has experienced comes down to some very specific strengths. ‘Our success is down to dedicated people, long hours and persistence’. Ed Dinnegan, a Project Manager at Celtic, echoes this view, adding that strategic decisions and taking opportunities when they arose has played a crucial role. ‘I believe that it comes down to taking advantage of opportunities at the right time.’ Dinnegan also credits the ongoing collaboration with the Local 28 and Local 38 unions in New York with maintaining the high-quality workforce that has allowed the company to succeed.

While Celtic Sheet Metal has built its reputation providing a range of services in ductwork for large scale HVAC projects as well as sheet metal, the company has recently pushed itself furthering, venturing into airside projects such as fans and air-conditioning. With such a wealth of experience and industry knowledge, it is no surprise that this has resulted in some outstanding projects, such as the Jacob Javits Center and the Performing Arts Centre in New York. The Jacob Javits Center was a 1.2 million square foot expansion of the pre-existing New York City Convention Centre, handled by Project Manager, Conor Murphy. The project involved the addition of a four-story truck parking lot, which now allows for off-street loading and unloading. As Murphy shares, the result of this project has been a huge benefit to the surrounding area. “The number of deliveries that the convention center receives could block off traffic in the city for hours, but a multi-story parking lot allows for freedom of movement, both for deliveries and traffic’. There were aesthetic additions as part of the project as well, such as large ballrooms, meeting spaces, and the rooftop garden. For this project Celtic Sheet Metal provided the full HVAC installation, air-conditioning equipment, duct-work and worked with sub-contractors for the installation and piping.

“Celtic Sheet Metal provided the full HVAC installation, air-conditioning equipment, duct-work and worked with sub-contractors for the installation and piping.”

Another of Celtic Sheet Metal’s standout projects is the Performing Arts Centre, which is located at the base of the Freedom Tower at the World Trade Centre. According to Dinnegan, it’s a huge transit area. Additionally, with multiple trains coming into the Oculus Centre every day, it is very much prime real estate. The building itself is hugely intricate with one of the largest machine rooms that Celtic Sheet Metal had ever worked with, as well as multiple theatres throughout the building which are both acoustically and light sensitive. Because of the history of the site, the project was a tremendous undertaking with an emphasis on structural integrity, safety, and consideration of its history. It was a ‘tremendous, tremendous undertaking’ for the company, and something that Celtic Sheet Metal takes immense pride in being a part of.

The consideration and effort that Celtic Sheet Metal puts into all of its projects does not go unnoticed by the local community. While credit is not its sole motivator, it is heartening to hear that Celtic Sheet Metal was awarded the High Wire Gold Safety Award last year. According to Von Dollen, this award is testament to the tweaks the company has made with regards to safety in recent years. While he agrees that the company has always valued safety highly, he feels that in the past, the company had work to do to ensure these strategies were executed successfully. “When I came onboard in 2018 as the Safety Director, there were great safety procedures in place but much of that workload fell in the hands of the project managers, while they were already in charge of projects and focusing on all the other tasks that being on a job site entail.” One of the first initiatives was to install a figurehead of sorts, someone that could not only take some of that burden off the project managers but work with other types of employees and their unique safety concerns at work. Van Dollen’s first concern was eradicating minor and avoidable injuries in the workplace, so when he came in, he was able to upgrade regular job site PPE such as gloves, sleeves, and safety glasses. This was achieved through creating open lines of communication throughout the staff. The result was immediate. By listening to its employees, the company was able to get an understanding for where minor injuries or inconveniences were stemming from.

Once the trials of new safety equipment had taken place, Celtic Sheet Metal brought in better fitting gloves, while adding helmets and individual safety harnesses into its repertoire. Von Dollen credits the company’s management team with giving him ‘total free rein’ to bring in or trial any type of safety equipment he felt was appropriate. Tellingly, he notes that, in the five years that he has been with Celtic Sheet Metal, not once has he been questioned on his decisions around procurement of safety gear or the addition of safety procedures.

Beyond just affording its employees total safety however, Celtic Sheet Metal also goes to great lengths to support its locality by partnering with its employees and local organizations to give back to families and communities in need. As a family-owned business, the importance of supports the local community is paramount. In addition to sizable charity donations during the holidays, Celtic Sheet Metal often reaches out to community organizations, putting together ticket packages, gift cards, family dinners and toys and clothing for kids. The reason for this is simple. Celtic Sheet Metal is acutely aware that without its community’s support it wouldn’t be where it is, so it reciprocates that support in kind.

This sense of community extends across various other platforms also. Celtic Sheet Metal prides itself on wonderful working relationships and building ongoing partnerships. This is most evident in its relationship with PowerPak, who provide safety and job site supplies to the company regularly. The relationship began a number of years ago, formed through its shared history having once worked from offices in the same complex. In addition to that, however, the speed and consistency with which PowerPak can to Celtic Sheet Metal is highly beneficial. Von Dollen, Murphy and Dinnegan confirm that they can always rely on Celtic’s PowerPak representative to process and deliver Celtic’s orders quickly, efficiently and with care.

With professional relationships like these, it’s no wonder that Celtic Sheet Metal has flourished as a company. However, it would be disingenuous to suggest that the company has reached this point through networking and relationship building. At the heart of this company is a strong belief in the value of work ethic. By maintaining its focus on provision and consistency, this company is excelling. Having recently reached a quarter of a century in business, the evidence is there for all to see. Celtic Sheet Metal works hard for its staff, its collaborators, and its clients. With these ideals front and center, the company is sure to continue growing in the coming years.

The Wisconsin Dells, the picturesque city found along the Wisconsin River, is most known for one thing: indoor water parks. When it comes to creating new attractions in those water parks, there is only one name that comes to mind and that is Friede. Currently known as Friede & Associates, the company has a rich and storied history. Starting out in the early 1900s as William A. Friede and Sons, the company operated under that title as a residential contractor and material supplier until World War Two. When the company returned to business in 1945 it became the Friede Brothers, which it would operate under until 1998. This era of Friede focused on projects within thirty minutes or so of the offices in Reedsburg, with a vast array of masons, concrete finishers, carpenters, and it operated as a true family-run business.

In the late nineties, Scott Truehl, current Executive Vice President of Friede, met Roger Friede, the fourth generation Friede to run the business, and together they established Friede & Associates as it is now known. According to Truehl the company transitioned at that time into more of a “professional services company,” which allowed it to offer more elements of the construction process to its clients and led to it being involved in projects early in the design process. With reference to the array of in-house skills and its ability to provide for anything the client may need, Truehl quotes an old adage that says, “carpenters see everything in wood, masons, everything made out of brick, steel erectors see every solution being metal.” He explains that this emphasizes how Friede & Associate’s wealth of combined experience allows it to work with clients through every part of the design and build process.

The early two-thousands were really when Friede’s full-service general contracting commitment came to fruition, not only growing in the diversity of its projects, but also from a geographical standpoint. Friede went from working on projects within thirty minutes of its office space to servicing the southern two-thirds of the state of Wisconsin. From this expansion came the influx of work in the Wisconsin Dells marketplace, an area that boasts some of the most varied and adventurous projects that a company could ever dream of. Friede & Associates’ ability to complete these projects was not about proximity however, but its ability to be there for every part of the process and become a true ‘full-service’ company. In amusement parks and themed projects, many parts of the process are totally unique and without precedent. With Friede & Associates working on a project, expectations can be exceeded. Through a combination of skill and experience, Friede & Associates commits to being a reliable full-service general contractor to its clients, regardless of how unusual or unprecedented any part of the process may be. Unsurprisingly, the quote on the company’s website,
‘We Do Weird Well,’ is as much a promise as it is a motto.

The kinds of projects that epitomize this outlook can all be found in the Wisconsin Dells area. Projects such as the Chula Vista Waterpark, an enormous space that also contains a golf course, and the Kalahari Resort, an African-themed resort featuring an indoor adventure park, a bowling alley and escape rooms. All of these kinds of projects fall squarely in Friede & Associates wheelhouse. As an example of the technical innovation available to its clients, the company recently built a swim-up bar that was both indoor and outdoor. This required work being completed around the simultaneous construction of an indoor go-kart track, something which Truehl described as “building a ship in a bottle.” Friede & Associates is one of the few companies that would actively seek out these kinds of challenging endeavors, which gives its team a competitive edge.

Projects in the Wisconsin Dells tourist area are guaranteed to be unique. That incentive, combined with the company’s drive to constantly innovate, fosters a wide array of niche capabilities. One of these is panelizing, also known as modular or offsite wall systems. Panelizing is a technique that became necessary for Friede & Associates on account of the incredibly low temperatures in the Wisconsin winter months. This poses as much a problem for the construction of wood frames as it does for the employees themselves. When a solution was needed, the team did not fail. In the early two-thousands, the company sought out a way to work on its usual projects during the winter tourist off season while still adhering to its usual time window for projects. The strategy is incredibly effective as, as the conception and design stage it allows the team to adapt the developed set of architectural plans to be able to build walls, wall systems and any other module pieces within a climate-controlled warehouse. This protects workers and physical components of the builds from cold-weather damage. Friede’s panelizing system allows the company to save almost half the time it would take the company to build the same projects on-site.

“Friede & Associates is one of the few companies that would actively seek out these kinds of challenging endeavors, which gives its team a competitive edge.”

Another area in which Friede & Associates has had to innovate is in the refurbishing of certain projects, something which has as much to with the weather conditions as it does the number of wooden attractions that have been built there over the years. Similarly, building waterparks indoors generates a specific type of chlorinated and humid environment where the structures decay at two or three times the speed that they normally would. With this in mind, many of Friede & Associates’ projects have come through repeat business, even on builds where the structures had not been constructed with the intention of going back in and renovating. While this can prove to be a challenge, Friede & Associates has started using plastic lumber alternatives in many of its structures to counter-act this kind of decay in future projects. This kind of innovating and problem-solving helps to ensure that the company’s customers can remain in business year-round with significantly less upkeep and is why so many attractions give Friede & Associates their business in the first place.

Friede & Associates has more than just positive reviews and repeat business to its name, however. The company has also won an incredible sixty-three awards for its work since 2015. One of these was awarded to the company for using the most sub-contractors and members from the Associated Builders & Contractors, Wisconsin. While its continued relationship with other contractors and clients clearly takes time and effort, just as much consideration goes into valuing its employees. Truehl tells me that ‘We Do Weird Well’ serves to ‘make all the employees smile’ as they implement it, and Friede & Associates still endeavors to maintain the family-run business mindset that it was built on. The result of this is that its employees feel like family with many of its staff having worked for the company for decades. Truehl points to a general superintendent who worked his way up from laborer, to superintendent, to general superintendent, before retiring after forty-six years while a pair of brothers have worked for Friede & Associates for forty and thirty-seven respectively.

Friede & Associates is growing still. In 2021, it opened an office in Madison which allowed it to break into new marketplaces and the company has added seventeen staff members to its team in the last year alone. The plan for Friede & Associates is to continue this trend of growth while bringing new talented professionals into an office culture that is as unconventional as its field projects. This is evident in its decision to close its offices on Friday afternoons in order to give staff the opportunity to make weekday appointments or simply have that time to themselves. As Truehl himself says, “My business partner and I have both raised our own families while we’ve been in leadership positions, so we’ve tried to be very accommodating to our staff in terms of realizing that they also need to be with their families.”

In terms of continued future growth, Friede & Associates is having “a great deal of success in the Madison marketplace.” While this welcomed expansion will continue to develop and strengthen the Friede & Associates name, there is clearly no slowing down in the Wisconsin Dells area. And the challenging projects continue with Friede & Associates currently working on the development of a Dungeons and Dragons style theme-park with a fantasy concept that will even have a formal event space on-site to satisfy the massive demand for themed weddings. As ever, for a company that has built a reputation on doing weird well, Friede & Associates is happy to deliver both the weird, and the wonderful.

While Highbury Concrete (founded 2013) could be considered a relatively young company it is far from being rookie. In fact, quite the opposite is true. With a wealth of experience on-board, the company has a rich background to rely on when it comes to all things concrete. Highbury is made up of self-described ‘career professionals’ combining their expertise to provide an elevated service to Highbury’s clients. As Daniel Oswald, Health and Safety Manager at Highbury explains, this culture of building employees up from within the company is a core feature. It generates loyalty and trust in the business with Oswald himself starting out as a laborer before working up to the role of Safety Foreman and then to become Health & Safety Manager, over the course of just six or seven years.  

This example lies at the core of Highbury Concrete, a company with education and training being central to its ethos. Highbury values providing new opportunities for its employees, especially upskilling them, which generates the career professionals that Highbury takes immense pride in employing. Highbury even has programs to upskill and ensure the safety of inexperienced workers. This initiative, called the ‘white vest program’ restricts workers from certain tasks until they can be guaranteed to do safely and correctly. Safety is paramount to Highbury and having a fully and properly trained team is just one of a wealth of safety measures. Another new program Highbury has introduced to maintain its workers’ safety is the optional ‘Red Wing’ boots program. Highbury has pre-approved boots selected for its construction sites that workers can pay for discounted boots by payroll deduction over the course of two to eight weeks. This ensures that Highbury workers are using boots that the company knows for certain will protect them from anything that could happen on a construction site, including penetration hazards or slippery terrain. The Highbury approved Red Wing boots are also waterproof, with a safety-toe, and electrical hazard resistant.

The company has experienced ongoing success, as evidenced by the numerous projects taking place around the country. For example, on the Upper West Side at 4650 Broadway, NYC, Highbury is working on a 272-unit building that totals 440,000 square feet. 40,000 square feet of that is for commercial use and thirty percent of it is designated for affordable housing. While this project boasts an impressive twenty storeys, another of Highbury’s projects is an enormous sixty-eight stories high. This building, in Long Island City, is 820 feet tall and over 1 million square feet. Incredibly, once completed it will be the tallest building in Long Island City. However, as Oswald explains, given that the previous record is also held by Highbury Concrete, the company is only competing with itself.

“On the Upper West Side at 4650 Broadway, NYC, Highbury is working on a 272-unit building that totals 440,000 square feet.”

When the conversation around competition does arise, it is obviously a very nuanced subject. Highbury specializes mainly in superstructures rather than in foundations, so the nature of its competition is different to those typically found in the concrete sector. When Highbury expands into Florida though, Oswald does suggest that the company will be exploring more work in foundations as well as superstructures. Furthermore, about competing or bidding against other subcontractors for jobs, all Oswald says is that according to Highbury’s estimators, there is more work out there than can be estimated. 

In terms of the professional partners that Highbury collaborates with, Oswald is keen to point out that the relationships the company build are vitally important. For Highbury, their business partners carry huge importance as this is about upholding its brand image and being consistent. Relationships with the likes of general contractors are handled with utmost care so that outside parties can witness first-hand the meticulous and efficient way in which Highbury gets the job done. If every site that Highbury works on upholds the exact same safety standards and guarantees the same work ethic, then these kinds of professional relationships with repeat customers are forged naturally. For Oswald, this happens quite simply; by showing up, staying safe, and delivering on promises.

While success and relationships are valuable, for Highbury it is just as important to foster a sense of safety in its company culture. Oswald credits Darren Timmons, who is predominantly responsible for Healthy and Safety out ‘on the field’ while Oswald himself manages it more from an office setting. It is this balance and understanding between the two of them that contributes to the sense of safety across the board. On the field, Timmons can deal with the Concrete Safety Managers face to face, while from the office Oswald can access the reports that the Concrete Safety Managers submit from any given day. With this combination of safety data and safety precautions on site, the company adopts a streamlined and efficient network of communication that makes Highbury’s team feel supported and informed.

This speaks to a significant core value of Highbury’s that came up time and time again over the course of our interview, teamwork. It is evident that Highbury is inherently a collaborative company. With collaboration and relationships embedded in the company ethos, it benefits massively. Not only this, but it is also a company that invests in training to just a large scale because it trusts its staff to be able to upskill and constantly improve. When I asked Oswald about how much Highbury values its staff, he cited this Richard Branson quote ‘Train your employees well enough so they can leave. Treat them well enough so they don’t want to.’

Finally, regarding what the future holds for Highbury, Oswald is less forthcoming. As all good business minds will attest to; aside from concrete itself, nothing is ever set in stone. Oswald simply believes that the future is bright for the company. “We’ve done forty buildings in the boroughs here, and we look forward to doing forty more.” For Highbury, the goal is a modest one. “Being part of the skyline is what we do, and every building we do is a standing work of art.” So, while expansion into Florida, and possibly even the East Coast, forms most Highbury’s plans for the next ten years, it is clear that the buildings themselves will always be Highbury Concrete’s true priority.

In 2023, Mid State Construction Company – first founded in 1958 by H.T Ware and T.S Weems, will celebrate its sixty-fifth anniversary. Integrity was a paramount principle of the founders and was unbroken for the last thirty years by the next generation of leadership – Billy Ware and P.G. Bernheim. Over this time, the company has grown into “one of the largest locally owned construction service firms in Mississippi.” To have achieved continuous and steady growth in this industry over so many such a span of time is admirable. While the industry is cyclical by nature, achieving success and longevity is only achieved by a select few and it speaks to the value of Mid State’s company motto, “We Build Trust.” It is evident that the company’s endeavors to build and maintain trust with its clients are responsible for Mid State’s success and positive reputation.

In my conversation with Austin Hudson, Vice President of Mid State, he credits this sixty-five-year growth to three main factors: customer service, honesty, and good relationships with its sub and vendor partners. In Hudson’s own words, Mid State is made up of “honest, hard-working people” which allows the company to make contacts and develop good relationships with customers predicated on honesty and efficiency. By ensuring that clients receive a consistently high level of service and professionalism, Mid State is able to maintain these relationships over time. This ability, according to Hudson, is evidenced by the company’s repeat business and its positive reputation in the locality.

Being a part of the local community is something that those at Mid State hold dear. To celebrate the company’s recent success, the company has planned an anniversary celebration. This event is not just for current employees, however. As Hudson explains, the plan is to include as many past employees and involved partners as possible. For a collaborative team such as Mid State, it makes perfect sense that it celebrates and congratulates everyone that has contributed to this success over time – past, present, and future.

Aside from the team itself, Mid State’s success can also be credited to the quality of its services. As part of Mid State’s construction services, it offers general contracting, design/build, construction management and team approach services, all of which combine to provide a well-rounded and one-stop-shop experience for the client. Hudson believes that the true strength of Mid State is not establishing a hard and fast “niche”, rather, focusing on being able to assist its clients every step of the way. As he puts it, “our niche is whatever our client’s needs are.” From historical restoration to industrial spaces, healthcare to commercial, Mid State is there to address its client’s needs. While the company has demonstrated an ability to manage multiple tasks for its clients, Hudson does believe that when it comes to pre-construction consultation, the company truly excels. This, he explains, is thanks to the architects and engineers that Mid State works with in the design process. “At Mid State, we know our assignment, but we are part of a team.”

The high level of communication that Mid State provides its clients is also part of the success of the business, as skilled and knowledgeable staff cannot be utilized to their full potential without consistent clear communication from every party. In modern business, it is vital that stakeholders feel they will be listened to and that their opinions will be valued. This is something that Mid State is keenly aware of. As Hudson says, “our client will be a lot happier if they are being kept aware of developments on a project.’

Working in the construction industry, it is vital that a company perfects the skill of multi-tasking while maintaining high standards. For Mid State, this is key. When I ask Hudson what, aside from communication, the company’s strengths in business are, he credits Mid State’s incredible team. He mentions the deep well of experience the company has at its disposal as being of huge value. “At Mid State, there is a plethora of knowledgeable superintendents and project managers with years of experience. We are talking thirty- and forty-year veterans of the industry.’ Speaking to Hudson, it is clear that Mid State takes immense pride in the abilities of its team, while also trusting the team to be self-sufficient thanks to their successful track record. Beyond its internal team, Mid State has excellent professional relationships with outside parties such as architects, engineers, subcontractors, and material suppliers.

“Beyond its internal team, Mid State has excellent professional relationships with outside parties such as architects, engineers, subcontractors, and material suppliers.”

The cold hard proof of Mid State’s work ethic and values are the many successful and large-scale projects that it’s had in recent years. One large project Mid State has in progress is the 190,000 square feet cool-storage facility for Southern Beverage. This project encompasses insulated concrete tilt-wall panels over 50 feet tall. In Hudson’s own words, “the project is massive, designed to maintain a constant temperature.”
Another current future Madison landmark for Mid State is the Bridal Path – an “11,000 square foot wedding dress and accessory store with elegant fashions,” it was vital that the end result reflected this. Hudson believes that the polished, high-end finish on the entire project is testament to the lengths that Mid State will go to ensuring the end result meets the client’s vision.

When Mid State started out, it was a small, family-owned business. While growth and expansion have necessitated a change of ownership, this community feel remains one of the pillars at Mid State. Hudson believes that the spirit of family ownership continues to this day and he assures me that this concept of a “family” defines the culture at Mid State. “We realize that work is not the only thing that we do in life, but it is where you spend the majority of your daylight hours. It doesn’t have to be the most important aspect of your life, either. Mid-State has a God, Family, then Work, culture.” It is evident from this conversation that the work-life balance established at Mid State, and close relationships between employees is part of what it means to be a family business.

In construction, it is important to remain adaptable. At Mid State, this is at the core of its success and is something the company is well aware of. Simply put, experience allows diverse perspective. The varied projects Mid State has been involved in recently have the added value of opening it up to even more varied projects in the future. When I asked Hudson if there are any types of projects in particular that Mid State would be pursuing or venturing into, his answer was simple. “Mid State will try to do whatever is in our client’s best interest.” While he acknowledges that in recent times Mid State has been doing many varied project types, the general consensus is that for Mid State, the work is entirely about the client and not about the kudos or scale associated with a project.

To round out my interview with Hudson, I ask if, as Mid State begins its sixty-fifth year, the team has any specific goals for the future. The answer is very much in keeping with the gradual, sensible, and carefully considered approach that has got the company this far. “We don’t know what the economy is going to do in 2023 or 2024, so we’re not trying to reinvent the wheel. We just want to maintain a slow and steady growth, regardless of the circumstances.” Clearly, Mid State’s calm and practical approach to working hard, and always balancing professional workload with personal life, is a winning formula and one that it intends to continue.

At CH+N SITE Construction, its priority is its customers. As company President Matt Eshelman says, it is about ‘solving problems’. The variety of services that CH+N SITE Construction provides is of course its main attraction, but it’s the CH+N SITE Construction promise, “Count on Us”, that really sets this company apart from its competitors. According to Eshelman, the company promise is a huge factor in creating ongoing relationships with its customers. “Our customers choose to work with us because meeting a schedule, doing work right, managing cost, and keeping people safe matters. When we consistency deliver our promise, we build long lasting relationships with our customers.”

Its physical services include, crushing/recycling, mass earth moving, utility installation, storm and sanitary sewer, water main installation, clearing, demolition, emergency repairs, concrete walks/curb, erosion control, and there’s a special projects team tasked with answering the call for last minute jobs. As a company, CH + N SITE Construction has learned that the wider its capabilities, and the more it is able to do, the more problems it can solve for its customers.

Amongst its many offerings, CH+N SITE Construction provides full-service site development and construction services. This means that the company can accept a job and “take care of it all’. As a result of having such a high level of in-house skill, the company unsurprisingly has a large customer base to work with. Evidently, this is something it revels in. As Eshelman mentions at the beginning of our interview, CH+N SITE Construction’s goal is to solve problems for its customers as easily and as cost-effective as possible. “We want the jobs that no one else wants.”

The CH+N SITE Construction promise is not, however, merely lip service. The company has been recognized as being the fourth largest site-work business in its local region. When comparing the size of CH+N SITE Construction’s team, relative to its volume of work, the evidence is clear. This is a company that maximizes its capabilities and brings the most to its customers. For their team, the goals are evident; projects are always more than just accomplishing the job at hand. For CH+N SITE Construction, equal importance is given to keeping people safe, completing the job on time, and always getting the work done right. Managing costs are a major part of keeping the business efficient as well, and as Eshelman assures me, the goal is to be the first customer’s choice and best value, not the low-cost provider. For CH+N SITE Construction it is about cost-efficiency for both client and company, which is positively reflected in the statistic that ninety percent of its business is from repeat customers.

Being positively represented locally is also very important to CH+N SITE Construction, which is why it is part of the Associated Builders and Contractors Keystone in its locality. The ABC Keystone offers local businesses training and teaching opportunities, as well as the option to network with other businesses in the same industry. The safety committee program offered by ABC Keystone is also a highly valued benefit. The ABC Keystone will often speak for private companies like CH+N SITE Construction, representing it at a national level on the company’s behalf. CH+N SITE Construction prides itself in being a part of something so beneficial.

“It’s the CH+N SITE Construction promise, ‘Count on Us’, that really sets this company apart from its competitors.”

One project that the company is particularly proud of is its work on the Messick’s warehouse and store. With 100,000 cy of dirt to move, lots of rock to be drilled and shot, a very aggressive schedule, and starting the job in the dead of winter, the company was given lots of problems to solve. The company worked closely with the owner and General Contractor to come up with cost effective solutions that kept the job on schedule through the tough winter months. For Eshelman, the project showcased the problem-solving skills that are inherent in the company. “One solution was lime stabilization. This allowed it to place and compact fill that would have otherwise been too wet to support the future building and infrastructure. Another was bringing in our crushers to turn the oversized blasted rock into stone that could be used for access roads and staging areas to keep the job and all the other subcontractors out of the mud through the winter. Our team showed up every day and delivered results. Making sure that things happened because of them, not to them.” The Messick’s project was a success for all involved.

The knock-on effect of this work was that, through its excellent reputation, an opportunity arose “at a project right next door.” Amazon purchased an existing warehouse and CH+N SITE Construction was asked to bid the sitework package to the GC managing the job for them. The project included the addition of 29,000 sy of paving. A large amount of storm sewer and water system upgrades. Again, this project presented its fair share of problems to solve such as rock removal, an aggressive schedule, and existing utility conflicts not shown on the plans. According to Eshelman, the project is an example of how CH+N SITE Construction can use its deep knowledge and experience to lower costs for its clients. “We worked closely with the general contractor and engineer to come up with cost effective solutions which avoided costly relocation of the existing utilities, we used our crushers to size the oversized rock and create subbase for the new paving. Avoiding hauling the unusable material off site. All while doing whatever it took to deliver on time and keep our people safe.”

CH+N SITE Construction is proud of is its work and the services it offers to the local market. In particular, the company has excelled in recent time working on new schools, building new athletic fields, and working on local housing developments. In the past few years housing development in CH+N SITE Construction’s market has been growing exponentially and so there is an influx of work in the area. By way of example, Eshelman points to the ARCONA project, which the company has been working on since 2014. Because it has consistently delivered its promise, the company has worked its way into phase eight of the project. CH+N SITE Construction has guaranteed itself repeat customers and continued work on large scale projects because they pride themselves on delivering every time.

It also continues to innovate, not only in terms of its planning but also its technologies. In CH+N SITE Construction’s line of business, technologies like GPS are integral as they contribute to productivity and efficiency, but Eshelman also assures me that they are able to deliver even when the technology doesn’t or isn’t able perform, ‘never forgetting where we came from, having an educated, experienced, and trained team is the key to delivering consistently no matter what problem is thrown at us’. This adaptability ensures that CH+N SITE Construction can guarantee that its team will get the work done on time.

Recently, CH+N SITE Construction has given more attention to the materials it uses on site. This commitment stems from the company’s inherent problem-solving ethos. It was finding that tons of rock and excess topsoil were being uprooted on its projects. In a display of critical thinking and problem-solving, CH+N SITE Construction now recycles these materials to use on site or for other projects it has, reducing waste, trucking, and materials purchased from quarries. This niche aspect of its work offers an innovative byproduct for its customers; the knowledge that anything unearthed in their projects will not go to waste, but be re-used in another environmentally friendly context.

This kind of problem solving has led to many glowing reviews from CH+N SITE Construction’s customers, many of which are displayed proudly on its website. Positive feedback is invaluable to the team and business. Eshelman says with every job comes new variables, new challenges, and lots of opportunity to tackle and solve them. “For the team on the ground, when they receive recognition for the effort they expand and the problems they solve it is incredibly rewarding.”

Looking into the future, CH+N SITE Construction is seeking further growth. Eshelman tells me that growth isn’t all about revenue, it is about providing opportunities for team members to grow in their careers. “We need to make sure that our staff who show up every day and always give their best can move up financially and in the organization.” For a company that keeps its promise, it is clear that this continued diversity and the ability to solve even more problems is key. As Eshelman says, “if you’re not growing, you’re dying.”

Established in 1989, Walton & Company has grown steadily in size and depth of services during the last thirty-plus years. Walton offers mechanical engineering for design-build projects, plumbing and HVAC installation, metal fabrication, and mechanical building service solutions to its customers. Walton can be part of a project for its entire lifespan from start to finish.

As a mechanical contractor with its own metal fabrication department, Walton & Company can make the ductwork and custom metal fabrication for its own projects. Walton & Company’s 36,600 sq shop also allows the company to service stand-alone customers as well as its competitors. From constructing a broad range of customized platforms and curbs to stainless steel HVAC and source capture systems for food processing clients, the company always ensures that customers get quality fabrication with the parts that best fit the task at hand.

Another demonstration of Walton’s flexibility is the 24/7 building services that it offers to its clients. The reason for this is simple; problems rarely happen eight to five. Many of Walton’s customers operate 24/7 themselves, especially within the pharmaceutical industry. Walton’s nighttime answering service is specifically designed to cater to these types of clients and can dispatch an employee to assist a client within an hour or two. Walton offers a 4-hour guarantee, however, it’s rare that a call takes that long. This option serves not only to keep Walton & Company diverse, but it demonstrates to its clients that they are Walton’s number one priority.

On Walton & Company’s website, the saying ‘Safety at Walton & Company is the responsibility of each and every Walton & Company employee every day’ is displayed proudly. Andy Volovar, President of Walton & Company, says the company shortens that down to ‘Stop, Think, Work Safe,’ a slogan to remind employees that safety comes before anything else, and that to work safely is to work efficiently. Employees are not only encouraged to look out for themselves but for their co-workers as well. With a work environment that at times prioritizes speed over accuracy, it is refreshing to hear that Walton’s employees are given reassurances that safety comes before anything else. “It is safer to stop and reassess, rather than power through at any given moment and run any kind of safety risk,” says Andy Volovar, this serves to protect Walton’s employees as well as foster a sense of concern and well-being within the company.

“Walton & Company’s competitive edge is its ability to return to a project and maintain the high standard to which it was originally completed, from maintenance to replacements, to updates.”

In addition to promoting the safety of its workers, Walton & Company also ensures that opportunities for growth and development are built into the company ethos. To this end, Walton & Company is part of the Associated Builders and Contractors Keystone Chapter, a local chapter of a national association. The association itself advocates for Walton and other contractors as a group for legislative issues in D.C as well as Pennsylvania, in addition to providing training opportunities to its members. This support gives Walton & Company employees the option to continue learning and upgrading skills such as estimation, management, foreman training, and journeyman training.

Links to ABC Keystone Chapter assist the company in many ways but, challenges still remain. One of these is the omnipresent labor shortage. Walton & Company has adapted to technological advances over the years and is using these skills to encourage younger generations to consider a career in the trades. On its website, there is a link to Walton’s social media channels which is in place to reach the new generation raised in the social media world. Since Walton’s burgeoning future workforce will come from that generation it’s important for the company to have visibility on the social platforms that young people frequent.

With an ever-changing market and unprecedented market conditions in a post-pandemic world, Walton’s endeavors to stay thriving go beyond its social media presence. Walton’s ability to offer ‘a little bit of everything’ is what Mr. Volovar owes Walton’s success to. From mechanical fit-out of warehouses, office buildings, food processing, and custom stainless-steel work; the list is endless. Volovar also stated that a big part of our ability to ride out the ups and downs of the economy is because forty percent of the company’s revenue comes from its service and preventative maintenance department. Walton & Company’s competitive edge is its ability to return to a project and maintain the high standard to which it was originally completed, from maintenance to replacements, to updates.

A recent Walton project that speaks to this competitive edge was a large distribution hub for a national parcel delivery company in Middletown, Pennsylvania. It began for Walton & Company as a design-build project, and then became a total design-build and construction project including the HVAC system and plumbing. The complete design for the 775,000 square foot facility was no minor undertaking for Walton, becoming its largest single contract at eight million dollars. Similarly, Walton worked on another local project, just fifteen miles away, for a food processor that needed its processing equipment moved from New Jersey to Lancaster, near Walton’s base of operations. For Walton, this project entailed nine months of disconnecting the equipment for transit, then setting it back in the new location, all the while configuring it and making the new set-up in Lancaster County as efficient as possible for the food processor.

For Walton employees, education is both encouraged and supplied. For those on board, there is an option to pursue the apprenticeship programs offered, company-paid, which affords its staff opportunities to upskill in the likes of plumbing or HVAC. It entails classroom training as well as field experience, all while remaining at Walton & Company. It greatly benefits Walton’s employees to be able to work, learn and earn money simultaneously, which fosters a growing opportunity for its employees and the company.

In the next few years, Walton & Company’s goals are to continue expanding. The company identifies its automation and digital control business as a market with huge potential for growth. With a growing list of products, services, and skills that it can offer its clients, it is of no surprise that the company is seeking to develop its range further. With a growing history of excellence and diversity, you wouldn’t bet against Walton & Company making a success of anything it puts its hand to.

Thrash Commercial Contractors Inc. began in 1977 by building small residential additions, and has over the years progressed to having four main sectors of business; Preconstruction, General Contracting, Design-Build and Construction Management. Mississippi has much going for it; the birthplace of the Blues, an abundance of historical sites and cacti being just a few. The economy, however, is not the largest or most fruitful. It was in this context that those at Thrash made a conscious decision to expand into a wider range of services and offer a broad spectrum of skills to the market. By bringing a broad scope to the work it can perform, it quickly became a growing success in the region. While the company is primarily a General Contractor, this growth has resulted in an increase in preconstruction services. Due to this, the company has identified a need to ensure it has a variety of skills in-house, thus ensuring that it can accommodate for anything that a client may need.

However, as any company can attest to, diversity can bring challenges of its own. With these core services, and a history of having worked in ten different industry sectors, it’s imperative for its team and the company itself to be able to balance its workload. According to Business Development Manager at Thrash, Luke Walker, the way that the company facilitates this is by hiring great people. The team that Thrash has is both experienced in many arenas, as well as adaptable. Walker described Thrash’s team as having a ‘figure it out’ mentality. This problem-solving approach is a vital component in the services that Thrash provide. When its team is presented with jobs that aren’t cookie cutter, it benefits the company hugely to have a team that is both adaptable and willing to learn since, as Walker puts it, “no job is ever quite the same.”

The rate at which Thrash Co. has developed and grown in the past five years has been of no surprise. However, this growth has meant that the company has had to expand its physical footprint in the region. Recently, Thrash opened a new location in Huntsville, Alabama, in order to keep up with its own rate of expansion. This choice of location serves a number of purposes for the company. As Walker acknowledges, competition is tight in Mississippi and expanding across state lines is a necessary step. “There are only so many fifty-million-dollar jobs in Mississippi. The competition is much tighter because of this.” While searching for jobs outside of Mississippi state, Thrash Co. felt that in order to give itself the best possible chance of success in a new city, it needed a physical presence there. A number of locations were considered and considered including Dallas, San Antonio and Huntsville. Ultimately, Huntsville was the chosen location as it offered a growing market with achievable goals.

With an entire team working side by side for years, the growth experienced by the company has not been limited to professional. Indeed, with growing working relationships and camaraderie, Thrash has also experienced a lot of personal growth over this time. The team often goes on hunting excursions together to solidify these relationships and just recently they went on a team dove hunt to celebrate Thrash’s forty-fifth anniversary. Those at Thrash quite rightly feel that this recipe for success, a close-knit and dedicated team, is the key to ongoing growth.

Among some of Thrash’s recent standout projects are the likes of The Civil Rights and History Museum in Mississippi, which was a sixty-nine million dollar project and also its largest project to date. Prior to this, its largest project was only a fraction of that, at eleven million. It was a hard bid project in the public sector which Thrash was determined to be a part of. As a relatively young company handling a project of significantly more value than any of its prior work, Walker tells me that city officials were somewhat nervous about it. Thrash Co. was certain of its own capabilities however, and delivered everything that the project needed. Similarly, in another example of the scale at which Thrash Co. is now comfortable operating at, an ongoing project is the Humphrey Coliseum, a high-profile project in Mississippi. This dedication to the local built environment is something that sets the company apart from its competitors. In fact, being part of, and supporting, the local community is an integral part of what the company does. This can be seen in the work it completed for the Northwest Rankin High School in Flowood, Mississippi. This job was an important one for the team. Not only was the location close to the company HQ, but it is also the high school where many of the staff’s children attend.

A key element of Thrash’s local involvement is its involvement with the Associated General Contractors in Mississippi. This is something that the company values hugely because of the networking and connections it provides. Networking with subcontractors is particularly important to Thrash because as Walker puts it, ‘they’re really the ones swinging the hammers.’ By providing opportunities to connect companies, the AGC gives Thrash the ability to get to know these subcontractors on both a personal and professional level. In addition to that, by providing resources and advice, the Association offers support with one of the most consistently challenging aspects of the construction industry; sourcing skilled staff.

“Those at Thrash quite rightly feel that this recipe for success, a close-knit and dedicated team, is the key to ongoing growth.”

As the Southeast’s premier commercial construction builder, it’s clear that Thrash has needed a plan in order to grow with the success and style that that it has. Originally, the company wanted to grow in the private sector because the opportunity to grow at scale in the sector can be straight forward. However, as a new company, it was difficult for Thrash to compete for many jobs on account of its limited portfolio. By pivoting to the public sector, the company was able to establish a wealth of experience and a growing portfolio. In doing so, Thrash also built up excellent client relationships and established itself as skilled and reliable, furthering its bid opportunities in both sectors.

The need to dig deep and persevere when faced with challenges can be suffocating for a small company. For those at Thrash, there was never a doubt that it would be able to show up and work hard. Walker credits this kind of work ethic and success to the core values at the company. At Thrash, he explains, there are seven core values with the most important of these being “Exceeding Expectations, Building Relationships and Taking Extreme Ownership”. With a growing portfolio and developing skills, Walker considers these values in relation to the success the company is experiencing. For him, Taking Ownership, stands apart as being a non-negotiable. “It is taking ownership that guarantees a job will get done and buildings will get built, come rain or shine.” By demonstrating these values, he says, both the company and the individual team members are rewarded.

Similarly, the relationships that Thrash has with other businesses outside of its own team are held in very high regard by the company. Thrash has good professional relationships with large companies such as UPS and Starbucks, but also with other local companies, like the Morgan White group. While Thrash was working on the renovation of an office for this company, it advised the group that they didn’t need to build a new parking garage on site when there was already enough room on site for what the Morgan White group had planned. The goodwill that Thrash generated by advising its client to spend less on what was unnecessary, rather than simply taking the money and doing the job ultimately saved that company five or six million dollars. While others may baulk at this anecdote, confused why a company would turn down such a sum, for those at Thrash, it is simple. Relationships are built on trust and the results of positive relationships are mutually beneficial. As it happens, the Morgan White group now calls on Thrash often. As Walker puts it, “you can trust Thrash Co. to spend your money the way we would spend our own.”

Trinity Logistics, founded in 1979, is a self-described “people-centric freight solution company.” With over forty years in the industry, it has made quite the name for itself in the freight distribution industry, by constantly improving and generating creative freight solutions that service both its shippers and carriers equally.

What sets Trinity Logistics apart as a freight distribution company is its non-asset-based business model. With this model, Trinity can offer a full suite of services to their shipping customers, from shipping one pallet of product all the way to freight movement even outside of the domestic US. Trinity also has a Managed Services team to assist in the management of a company’s entire transportation needs, from software as a service to fully outsourced management of a construction company’s transportation. Trinity values understanding its shipping customers and coming up with creative solutions with the technological resources and years of experience that everyone on its team has amassed.

Trinity has found its niche as a company where ‘People are our biggest resource’ as said by Greg Massey, Senior V.P of Agent Development in Trinity Logistics. The team at Trinity Logistics is not limited by a particular carrier or any group of carriers, they are able to utilize a vast network of carrier partners, from owner operators to multi-truck fleets. This style of distribution network allows the company to find just the right equipment for the unique needs of its shipping partners. Since quite a few of its shipping customers require specialized equipment, Trinity Logistics has established great professional relationships with these customers by satisfying these needs throughout its rich and successful history in the industry.

For Trinity Logistics, the three pillars of efficiency in distribution are data, communication, and people. The company has invested in data gathering and modelling tools and as such, it has access to real time information on transit times, equipment requirements and available stock, all of which aids the efficiency of its business. Communication, the second pillar, means that Trinity is laser-focused on its customers and their needs, shippers, and carriers alike. Trinity’s ability to maintain good relationships allows the company to keep its networks stable and respond quickly to any disruptions or changes in the market dynamics. Finally, their ‘secret sauce’ as Mark Peterson, Senior V.P of Business Development puts it, is the people onboard. With a team that they trust and who are constantly improving, Trinity takes great care to keep its team educated and informed when launching new tools or concepts.

Trinity’s 8 Guiding Values as displayed on their website, are Teamwork, Integrity, Legacy, Leaders, Fun, Determination, Excellence and Continuous Improvement. The ways in which these values have contributed to Trinity’s success are numerous, as Sarah Ruffcorn, President at Trinity Logistics assures me, these values are not just something that ‘they hang on the wall’. For those at Trinity, these values are so important that they reward the individuals who represent them, daily, monthly, and annually. By rewarding the team members who represent these values, the company has been rewarded, with multiple workplace awards over the years. These awards have then allowed Trinity to take on even more talented individuals who then go on to serve their shippers and carriers and sustain the cycle of excellence.

Just some of the awards that have allowed it to do this are being among the Top 20 Freight Brokerages in Transport Topics Top 100 Freight Brokerages, a Top 3PL and Cold Storage Provider by Food Logistics, and a Certified Great Place to Work ®. To Trinity, these awards mean a lot, both to its internal and external audience. Internally, they provide a source of pride and motivation for the team. Externally, it provides well-deserved recognition and an endorsement to potential future partners.

“Trinity’s 8 Guiding Values as displayed on their website, are Teamwork, Integrity, Legacy, Leaders, Fun, Determination, Excellence and Continuous Improvement.”

Furthermore, Trinity Logistics has been recognized as one of the Healthiest 100 Workplaces in America, a high accolade that the company goes to great lengths to maintain. It endeavors to serve both the team’s personal and professional needs. This is evident throughout the company, from its wellness programs and quarterly wellness challenges that team members are encouraged to take full advantage of, as well as providing annual lab-work programs, on-site gyms, and a brand-new initiative called the Healthy Mind Healthy Body initiative. Trinity also has the SmartDollar program for their employees to aid financial wellness, and a robust EAP program that includes mental health counselling and partnerships with marketplace chaplains from the spiritual wellbeing perspective.

Amongst the companies with which Trinity Logistics has great professional relationships, a third of its business coming from the construction sector stands out. The reason why so much of their business is with the construction sector is because of the teams’ extensive knowledge in that area, specifically the flatbed type of freight movement that this sector favors. As Greg Massey puts it, “it’s not the kind of knowledge that just anyone can come into the industry and have, so employing the right team and then putting them in contact with the right customers makes all the difference.” Consistent delivery of the services that these companies need is also what keeps these clients, many of which are independent businesses, working closely with Trinity. Trinity’s relationship with small businesses, as well as successful ongoing relationships with its carrier partners, makes the entire extended netowrk one of massive opportunity and mutual support. This system, which Greg Massey refers to as a ‘3-legged stool’ in which all parties are equally reliant on each other and uplift each other, keeps their businesses thriving.

Thanks to the kinds of relationships that Trinity has forged over many years in business, they’ve experienced between 120% and 130% volume growth. This remarkable feat is something which they credit, not only to their relationships, but to serving well and consistently. Between its range of mode services as well as its technology services offerings, the company aims to always support its shippers’ goals, with low, quick-pay fees. All of this is what Trinity credits to its significant success, especially in recent years.

When asked more specifically what aspects of the business model they felt contributed most heavily to their success, those at Trinity ultimately believe it comes down to a sense of purpose in its business. As a company consistently striving to improve people’s lives with its services, there is an undeniable efficiency and sense of urgency in achieving these goals. Within that, the company has a drive for service excellence and continuous improvement, and in their own words, they never stand still. This is a company that is self-confessed in constantly looking for ways to help its shippers’ businesses succeed, as well as their carriers. This is achieved by striving to put them first, always connecting them with the right people, and meeting their goals and needs in the most efficient way it can. As Mark Peterson puts it, they’re never just in business ‘for today or tomorrow’ but for the long haul.

In terms of their future, in short, Trinity Logistics sees its future as ‘super bright’. Having been acquired just a few years ago by Burris Logistics, the team and its abilities have expanded and will continue to do so in the years that follow. For them, the goal is to maintain consistency, flexibility, and their incredible professional relationships.

Proform is a company with many capabilities, demonstrated by their two divisions: Proform Concrete Services and Proform Construction Products. Proform Concrete Services is a concrete contractor that provides solutions for curbs and gutters, sidewalks, slip-form barriers, foundations and slabs, decorative concrete and a recently added residential concrete division. This is just some of the services from this division, which has an even more extensive complete services list. Proform Construction Products is a precast manufacturer that offers general, commercial, underground, and residential precast. Both divisions combine to offer a fully equipped suite of services to their clients.

Proform’s ability to offer both services and products to their clients allows them to provide what Marketing Coordinator, Alicia Demchuk, calls their “one-stop shop” for certain projects that require both the contracting and precast elements. For Proform, it’s an opportunity to help their clients every step of the way, which solidifies the relationship between company and client. Proform’s idea of a full package is encapsulated by their position in Alberta, where Proform Construction Products has two precast manufacturing plants that are CPCQA certified and offer full in-house engineering. Proform’s goal is for their clients to be able to come to the company from the beginning and be with Proform through until the end of a project, whether it’s for design, delivery, installation, or all of the above.

Never the type to rest on previous success, the company continues to grow. The effectiveness of its expansion and flexibility can be seen in a significant percentage increase from its 2021 sales, in both divisions. Increased spending on infrastructure has benefitted for both Proform Construction Products and Proform Concrete Services. Demchuk mentioned that the federal government infrastructure program allocated $3.65 billion for infrastructure projects in Alberta, which Proform credits as helping increase the amount of work that was going out for bids. New infrastructures such as buildings and parkades also aided in increasing the number of projects that were coming in to Proform.

In terms of the increase in sales on the Residential Precast side, there were record sales in new home construction in Alberta, and as a result of the pandemic, many homeowners dedicated more time and money to renovating and improving their existing homes. These two factors combined contributed to the sales increase, specifically with the likes of precast steps and window wells. From Business Development Manager for Proform Construction Products, John Third’s perspective, the sales increase was more than just the circumstances, it was also due to Proform’s diverse approach to projects, its policy of calling back and its close contacts with repeat clients.

This year Proform Concrete Services was awarded the 2022 ACI Award in Excellence in Concrete – Advanced Concrete Construction category. The award recognition was for the Cummins Fort McMurray Yard Reconstruction and Bonded Concrete Overlay project. This was the first time that this particular construction technology had ever been applied in an industrial application in Alberta. Proform credits the success of this new technological venture to having a team of people who think and work outside of the box. Understandably, Proform was incredibly excited to be recognized for this innovative solution because of the effort it expended into new and different solutions. 

“The award recognition was for the Cummins Fort McMurray Yard Reconstruction and Bonded Concrete Overlay project.”

In terms of other standout projects that Proform Construction Products has undertaken, a recent Food Processing Plant project is Proform’s first precast structure that was specifically designed for food handling. While the company has experience working with warehouses that deal with food-handling, this was the first project that entailed housing raw food in this manner. This project was an expansion for a meat packing plant into raw product handling, which entailed building what it colloquially referred to as a ‘hot box’, but it is in fact a freezer box. The reason this plant selected precast concrete and Proform, is because precast is the best choice for food-handling; it is clean, doesn’t rust or corrode. Additionally and crucially, it is also a finished project as soon as it’s installed. Companies that use precast concrete, as Third explains, are able to mitigate any kind of bacteria or contamination that might arise. For food-handling, the ability to simply hose down precast concrete without any concern of corrosion leaves precast and Proform as the best choice. Another benefit of the precast system for this project is the thermal control it afforded the structure, as well as its insulation capabilities. By using a very thick wall with concrete on the inside face, in this case eight inches of concrete, then four inches of insulation and another three inches of concrete, it created a thermal mass. For a food-handling space, this unconventionally thick wall offered incredible control and reliability on keeping the space exactly as cold as it needed to be.

In order to compete effectively in the Alberta market, Proform is also working towards diversifying their portfolio in other areas. Proform recently worked on a project on which there was only one other precast manufacturer in Alberta bidding on it. For this project, Proform used a ‘Double-T’ beam form for the roof structure, a form that can also be used for slab structures or parkades. Proform also uses an ‘Inverted-T’ structure, which efficiently aids the company in diversifying further.

It’s very important to the company as a whole to give back to local communities and charities across Western Canada. Proform earnestly strives to support as many of the communities that it works with as it can. For Proform that could mean supporting community centers that it has helped develop so that the community continues to thrive, and sometimes it means supporting other causes that are still very close to the heart of the business, such as the United Way and the Make a Wish Foundation. It aligns with the ‘helping build communities’ aspect of Proform’s vision and is an integral part to how the company is structured and how it does business.

On Proform’s website, it credits much of the company’s success to its relationships with other businesses and industry associations. This is a reflection of more than just its contacts in the industry, as it speaks to Proform’s desire to expand beyond being just a concrete contractor and precast manufacturer. Proform employs multiple general contractors that come from a general contracting background. This affords the company many contacts and associates from outside its own team, with a myriad of skills and experts at its disposal. As Third puts it, it’s often the conversations that “aren’t necessarily billable” between old friends or colleagues that will lead to innovation or a solution. As relationships and approachability are things which are part of the fabric of Proform, it quite rightly views itself as a company that is there “to build their buildings, not just supply them with precast.”

In terms of Proform’s diversity and continued diversification, its different bases of operation in Red Deer, Calgary and Edmonton allow Proform to offer more availability to an even broader client base. Demchuk explains that this diversity invariably adds more support to the client. “It is really important that we are able to operate a little differently in every location depending on the needs of the customers.” Proform always strives to go the extra mile and to offer that more personal call or consult, to give its customers the most it can every single step of the way. Finally, Proform expects their growth to continue throughout 2022 and into 2023.  The road to success for Proform Concrete Services comes from working on high profile projects like the Grande Prairie Highway 40 PCCP paving construction, Anthony Henday concrete pavement improvements and the Erik Nielsen Whitehorse International Airport main apron replacement. While Proform Construction Products recently acquired their certification to build bridges and bridge girders further expanding their precast product line. With this wealth of experience and rich history, it would appear that Proform’s overarching plan for the future is to build bridges, literally and metaphorically.

Twenty-eight years is a long time in business. For Integricon, a company that once dealt solely in restoration, this longevity is down to two things: its impressive team and company culture. The culture at Integricon is built on a work hard, play hard mindset, which contributes to the vibrant and inclusive nature of the team. It’s a performance-based company, and Integricon rewards and celebrates their employees with company-wide trivia games, philanthropic events and social events. This is a company that considers its employees to be its best recruiters, and while Integricon is not a family-owned company, it is comprised of many families and friends, from years of good ‘word of mouth’ hires. The aim is always to grow and promote from within, which materializes from the annual ‘Individual Development Plan’ process. At these meetings between the employees and their managers they have the opportunity to talk about how they want to grow within the company, and what their individual career plan looks like. The company also has roughly 50% women employees, potentially more over the past year, which it considers a key part of its inclusive nature as a team. A testament to the strength of its communication and management is that during the pandemic, Integricon communicated to its employees very early on that there would categorically be no one laid off because of the unforeseen circumstances. This alone demonstrates how much it values the team of people it has.

Integricon’s specialty is restoration. As the company started out offering property restoration services many years ago, this is something the company has a wealth of experience in and it remains one of their primary services to this day. For the company, this involves dealing with water losses, fire losses, windstorms through a combination of both private and insurance work. This type of work also includes a lot of emergency work which require fast response times; something that Integricon is always prepared to deliver. Over the years, Integricon has also expanded its business to include construction. The rationale for this is that, for those within the business, the logical next step when restoring damage losses to a building is being able to rebuild and reconstruct. Its goal is to be a one-stop solution for its customers, and this involves providing assistance every step of the way. For those at Integricon, this dual service approach sets the company apart from its competitors. According to Victoria D’Silva, Director of Brand Development and Digital Marketing, it is unique within the industry to have both services and internal subject matter expertise available from the same company.

Integricon as a company was established on the principles of Reliability, Integrity and Caring. Those at the company believe so strongly in these principles that they have integrated them into the fabric of the company, Integrity being quite literally in their name. Those with a keen eye will also notice that these principles, RIC, are also at the very center of the name and business. While first established in 1994, the company rebrand in 2019 is what defines it most in its recent ventures. The company mascot, the Bernese Mountain Dog, was even chosen to reflect its values in an accessible way. The reasoning for this is that those at Integricon feel that this breed, known for its drive to help people, encapsulates the brand and team.

A key part of its expansion from being a restoration company into both restoration and construction are its recent large, multimillion dollar construction projects such as the York Memorial and Jones Avenue. In a nutshell, these projects showcase the company’s ability to “come in to do restoration and continue to work on the construction side. The Jones Avenue project was a school in downtown Toronto that underwent a fire that caused significant amount of damage, and Integricon went in to do the restoration and the mitigation piece.” The damage was so significant that the project has since become a twenty-million-dollar project for the company, encapsulating both restoration and construction. Due to its status as a heritage building, it comes with its own unique factors in being a heritage restoration project. Over the years, Integricon has become the general contractor for them, showcasing an ability to build from the emergency restoration aspect of the project to be on hand throughout the construction piece and project management. For those at Integricon, it’s a prime example of the company’s flexibility in business. The plan now is to continue with these kinds of projects; ones that speak to the flexibility and expansion that the company is capable of.

The driving force behind this expansion has been a combination of Integricon’s clients, and the company’s desire to be more than just a regional solution for them. Beyond being able to offer more services to their current client base, plans are afoot for it to expand into larger markets with an overall bigger client base. This is not a flash in the pan endeavor though. Over the past few years, the company has experienced significant growth as a result of its foray into construction and a geographical expansion most recently into Barrie in the Ottawa region. The company has found that by expanding in this manner, it has developed in its ability to be a one-stop shop for clients. As Victoria explains, the company is excited to expand even further but its current focus is providing for the clients it is working with currently and being totally available to them.

“Beyond being able to offer more services to their current client base, plans are afoot for it to expand into larger markets with an overall bigger client base.”

Another contributor to its growth over the years is the vast array of services that the company can provide for its clients. General Contracting and Project Management, Content Restoration, Cleaning, Environmental Solutions, Infectious Control and Containment, Emergency Response and Restoration and even a concierge service. In terms of meeting its client’s needs, there is little that Integricon cannot do. Interestingly, and as an example of the extra mile that the company goes to for its clients, the concierge service is a platform that provides clients with communication about their needs every step of the way, from renovation of one aspect or a complete refresh. There is also a design team on hand at all times to support clients with any of these services, across a variety of sectors.

The Emergency Response and Restoration service in particular is something that the company offers on a 24/7 basis. Given the nature of the restoration industry it’s key for Integricon to provide reliability to its customers, especially when restoration work can often be completely unpredictable. For Integricon, this gives its customers confidence and trust in the company. It also provides both company and client with peace of mind that there will always be someone on hand to help and call, in case of emergency.

One of the topics of conversation, both for Integricon’s Executive Leadership team and the industry at large is, of course, sustainability. As usual, Integricon is doing this its own way. For them, the goal is to implement small changes and gradually reduce its carbon footprint. This is achieved by transitioning into a paperless system, moving whatever it can onto an online system and decreasing its paper trail. The company has also invested in their sister company, Connected Sensors, a developer of green technology and leader in the water monitoring and conservation space. Their suite of products also helps Integricon’s clients, particularly in the commercial and multi-family sectors, with monitoring their water consumption, decreasing their water expenses and reducing water waste. Furthermore, the company endeavors to use fuel-efficient vehicles with plans to potentially move to a hybrid or electric fleet for its team.

Integricon also values charitable work, which derives from the Caring principle in its core values. In a move that is very much in keeping with a company that values community and integrity, it chooses to align with many charitable organizations and foundations that share similar values and missions to the company. This charitable work has had an unexpected benefit also. “It has had a very positive effect on our company morale. We view our people as our brand. Their work is both a reflection of themselves as people as well as the company as a whole.” With long running partnerships with organizations such as the Special Olympics or the Women’s College Hospital, it is easy to see that Integricon is a company that practices what it preaches. The employees at the company get the opportunity to attend many charitable events, which again contributes to the company’s excellent culture and employee morale. This combination of valuing both clients and employees coupled with a desire to holding its team in such high regard goes some way to explaining the success of the company both recently and throughout its illustrious twenty-eight history. Surely, by keeping integrity at the heart of what it does, this will continue for many more years to come.