SPECIALTY CONTRACTORS MARKET FOCUS Specialty Contractor (continued from page 9)


revenue projections for 2015. “Business has been good for us, with


two years of steady growth in double digit numbers,” said Cowan. “We see private work coming back very strong, which is exciting. Plus that takes a lot of the com- petitors out of the public market as they go back to the private market, so I see it as a very positive area.” Mancini agreed. “We are back to the


levels we were at prior to the recession hit- ting,” he commented. “2014 was a really good year, and we anticipate 2015 being just as good, at least in the Bay Area. How- ever, our margins are not coming up as rapidly as we hoped.” Jim Hawk said certain regions are defi-


nitely leading their growth in California, primarily the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles. Their work is spread out across a variety of sectors including pri- vate, public, institutional, education, and more. “Having construction teams with a diversity of experience gives us flexibility to actively participate in these markets,” he said. Boncher noted that while Cupertino


Electric has seen revenue increase more than 30 percent in a number of segments, they are being selective in their pursuit of projects and looking for “smart growth” opportunities. Royal Electric‘s Kimble said her compa-


ny is experiencing its “largest volume ever” after enduring declining revenue during the great recession. “This year looks to be similar, especially in the multifamily and some transportation markets,” she added. Giroux Glass is extremely optimistic


about the year ahead. “We are operating at our highest margins in the past 10 years, and are projecting a 25 percent increase in revenue for 2015,” Lomedico commented. The company is focused on a mix of pri- vate and public projects in industries in- cluding healthcare, education, municipal, hospitality, gaming, entertainment, high- end retail, and residential projects.


Secret to Success for Today’s Specialties? Although there may be no universal


“secret” to success when it comes to not just surviving but thriving as a specialty contractor today, many contractors that


www.AGC-CA.org Associated General Contractors of California 11


California Constructor spoke with offered similar advice. Stay competitive in price and service, strive to be flexible, nimble, and above all, customer-centric, and al- ways be willing to adapt as a company to meet market needs. “The key to a specialty contractor’s suc-


cess has always been the company’s flex- ibility and ability to perform any client requests, to meet challenging schedules


and changing demands at a fast pace,” said Lomedico. And a contractor’s ability – and will-


ingness – to innovate is more critical now than ever before, Boncher emphasized. “Today’s specialty contractor has to be tech savvy, focused on innovation as it relates to productivity gains, and focused on an- ticipating – not just meeting – customer needs.” 


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24