Case Studies June 2020

Jim Giuliano says his entire career has been about making the most of opportunities. It started at an early age, as he grew up around his family’s masonry business and found himself helping his brothers and father during summer vacations, taking advantage of the opportunity to learn about construction. After college at Central Connecticut State […]

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted every industry, from sports and entertainment to health care and hospitality. It’s had a profound impact on education and construction, the two areas where Erik Backus makes his mark. Backus is the head of the construction engineering management program at Clarkson University—his alma mater—where he’s responsible for planning all coursework […]

What do digging holes, world travel, stuffing envelopes, women’s rights and mentoring all have in common? That would be Jill Soderholm—and all the things she loves to do and promote. Connecticut-born, Soderholm has traveled the world applying her skills in real estate, finance, planning and architecture to high-end projects. Returning to her New England roots […]

Working on projects across the country for 30 years, Charles Smoot knows what it takes to get the job done—no matter what the circumstances might be. As for completing construction projects during the COVID-19 crisis? North American Properties—with its team of essential workers—is forging ahead with a Class A apartment community in Texas that should […]

The corner of 12th Avenue and Marion Street in Seattle is not what it used to be. Once at the heart of an industrial district that was also known for its auto dealerships, the intersection is part of a gentrifying neighborhood where single-story buildings are being replaced with condos, high-end retail—and, since it’s Seattle, more […]

With most Subaru of America personnel working remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic, the headquarters were less hustle and bustle when Keith Metzger spoke with Blueprint in May. Senior executives and people deemed essential to the operation, however, still come by daily to the gleaming 250,000-square-foot facility in Camden, New Jersey, as does Metzger, director of […]

What do a football stadium in San Diego, Tesla batteries in Long Beach and a science building in Sacramento have in common? All are projects recently completed—or currently underway—within the California State University system, where Director of Construction Management Kevin Laut says the variety of work and the collaboration with contractors has made his shift […]

Sometimes inspiration just walks through the door. For Ben Gates, then a branch president at a bank in Fort Collins, Colorado, his first visit from NG Cos. founder and CEO Camron Lente introduced him to someone with vision and drive he found extraordinary. Though Lente and NG were struggling through hard times, Gates says he […]

It’s a squeak or a wobble and it’s disrupting your rest in a hospital bed. The housekeeping staff is friendly—they smile when they empty wastebaskets and clean surfaces. But you always know when they’re coming because of that squeak or wobble. Part of Kenneth Bower’s job is making sure the carts are quieter. If nothing […]

It’s a job taking you so deep into the Alaskan interior that you passed the middle of nowhere miles ago. It’s you and your excavator, digging, hauling—working. Then comes the text or call, a rep from the dealer who sold you the excavator has a reminder about service, or even an alert the equipment’s telematic […]