Case Studies September 2014

Companies that have been in business for more than a century are few and far between, especially in light of the recent recession. There is a handful and one of which is New Jersey-based Dowling HVAC (Dowling). The family-owned and -operated company has managed to not only survive, but thrive for more than 119 years. […]

In 2002, Will McAteer founded Dominion Mechanical Contractors Inc. (DMC), a growing business dedicated to high quality performance in the commercial sector. Offering diverse specialty services, the company has grown steadily for the last 12 years, performing plumbing, mechanical construction, equipment replacement, retrofitting and maintenance work for a growing customer base. The company has added […]

According to data from the National Weather Service, when Hurricane Sandy (Sandy) ripped through the Mid-Atlantic with gusts reaching speeds of 89 miles per hour, homes, businesses and a range of other buildings were no match for the storm surge. What if there was a better building block at the base of it all; a […]

For many homeowners, the thought of interior redecorating and design is an overwhelming, time consuming and risky task. The task can become overwhelming when choosing window treatments, something most consumers, and even some interior decorators, are not familiar with. What if the wrong product is ordered or the wrong measurements are taken? What if the […]

Connor Concrete Cutting & Coring (CCCC) is a family-owned and -operated service contractor based in Norco, Calif. Built up from the ashes of a tragic family loss, the company’s history is unusual and heartbreaking. Bruce Penhall established the company in October 2012 to honor the memory of his son, Connor Penhall, who passed away unexpectedly […]

In 1975, Fred Martinez established a small electrical business in San Antonio. Originally launched from Fred’s garage, Central Electric Ent. & Co. (Central Electric) has grown from a seven-man operation into a full-scale regional electrical design-build operation with approximately 100 team members. The company’s founder has since retired and sold the family business to his […]

Jerry Abendroth, Amy Peevey and Dale Clark founded Building Exterior Solutions LLC (BES) in 2008 in response to a surge of demand in the wake of Hurricane Ike. With a small but experienced staff with diverse capabilities, BES began working with building owners and insurance companies to remediate storm damage, evaluate building envelope failures and […]

In 1984 Steve Greenawalt bought a lift truck dealership in metro Detroit that employed 40 people and represented the Yale Materials Handling product line on the eastside of Michigan. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Alta Equipment Company (Alta) expanded, covering the entire state of Michigan for Yale lift trucks, and eventually diversified into other industrial […]

In 1997, John Kirkenir and Ed Crowley formed an independent, single-family homebuilding business. “I have a background as a CPA,” John elaborates. “I was hired as a controller for a single-family homebuilder in 1985. I worked there for a number of years and eventually became CFO.” He and Ed Crowley met there, working together under […]

Since 1967, family-owned and -operated Agostini Construction and Bacon Construction Companies Inc. (Agostini/Bacon) have excelled in construction management and general contracting throughout Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Connecticut. Now entering the third generation of Agostini family ownership, the mission of both companies remains the same: “to provide the highest level of customer satisfaction through the abilities […]