Despite the recession and lack of easy
financing that stalled new development
throughout northern Nevada, Craig Willcut,
president and chief executive officer of Renobased
United Construction, predicts a 36 percent
growth in revenues for his company in
2009.
Not bad considering the large loss of construction
employment throughout Reno and
Sparks. Construction companies in the region
employed about 17,000 in October down
4,200 jobs from the same period in 2007, a
change of nearly 20 percent, according to the
Department of Employment, Training and
Rehabilitation.
Willcut says United stands to increase its
revenues this year mainly because it didn't
muscle up during boom years. He says controlled
growth is the key to United's longevity
and its ability to weather economic storms.
"It is the way we run our business in good
years as well as bad,"Willcut says."When
things were booming we didn't go out and
chase everything under the sun and try to be
this big company.We didn't have to hire a
bunch of new people and buy a bunch of new
equipment. By having controlled growth we
maintained a level we were comfortable
with."
But the number of jobs chased by United
and other contractors continues to be small.
PENTA Building Group Area Manager Lou
Primak says competition among northern
Nevada's large general contractors is tougher
than ever.
"We have quite a few qualified firms
vying for a very small market," Primak says.
"The pie has gotten very small, and when you
cut the pie up the pieces are even smaller.
Until the credit market thaws out, a lot of the
developers we had projects in the works with
have shelved those projects for an indefinite
amount of time."
BJ Sullivan, who co-founded Clark and
Sullivan in 1980, says this period is the
toughest he's seen.
"Bar none," Sullivan says of the downturn.
"It is just a crazy time."
Sullivan notes that 2009 will see very
competitive bidding among the region's general
contractors for school district work and municipal projects.
"Competition across the construction
market is tight as there are more contractors
and subs than there are jobs," Sullivan says.
"Everybody is pulling out all the stops to be
as competitive as they can. It is really a tough
market."
United will keep busy in 2009 finishing
up a new middle school in South Meadows,
as well as on ongoing project at the Air
National Guard facility.
Although the company cut its teeth on
building tilt-up distribution and warehouse
projects, United shifted focus as development
of new spec warehouses ground to a halt.
Willcut says the company isn't planning to
build a single warehouse this year based on
current vacancy rates.
"Whether it is distribution, office or
retail, I think spec building will be very minimal
this year and possibly into the following
years," he says.
United does, however, have contracts for
four build-to-suit warehouse buildings starting
in the first or second quarters."These are
all projects that have tenants ready to go," he
says.
United currently employs 55 non-field
employees, such as supervisors and office
support staff, and has 25 field workers. The
company has had minimal layoffs.
"We have had the same crew now for a
number of years,"Willcut says. By maintaining
growth and controlling it, we keep
staffing levels consistent both in the office
and in the field."
The PENTA Building Group also has a fair
share of work on the horizon with the $47
million Davidson Math and Science Center at
the University of Nevada, Reno, under way
and a pending job for the $26 million Washoe
County Justice Court in Spanish Springs.
Primak says PENTA looks at the coming
year as a glass half-full.
"We are fortunate that in early '08 we
took on a $47 million job on the south end of
the campus, of which the lion's share of work
will be executed through 2009, and several
other sizeable projects will ground us in
northern Nevada for the next few years,"
Primak says. "It's still on the light side for us
in northern Nevada, but considering the circumstances
we are very happy to be in the
position we are in."
PENTA employs 11 field workers at the
math and sciences center job, and has 15
salaried project managers, estimators, superintendents
and project engineers.More than
100 other tradesmen from subcontractors
also are on the UNR job.
"We are still very bullish about the economy
in northern Nevada and around Lake
Tahoe and look forward to being in the area
for many years to come," Primak says.
Clark and Sullivan will stay busy in 2009
with the $54 million UNR Center for
Molecular Medicine. Work just started, and
the project is expected to be completed in
2010.
At its peak the job will employ 400
tradesmen, Sullivan says.
Clark and Sullivan has employed between
100 and 400 construction workers during its
history, but Sullivan says the company currently
is at the low end of that scale.
"If you don't have a place for people to
work, you have to reduce staff," he says.
