Case Studies March 2017

Nate Mendel likes to joke that less than five years ago he knew nothing about marijuana, not even which part of the plant people smoked. Granted, Mendel never had a reason to learn much about marijuana before 2011—he was too busy running a commercial construction firm. Mendel’s first job for the marijuana industry involved building […]

In psychology, there is a German term, “gestalt,” that has no direct translation. It refers to the idea that, often, objects or systems are perceived as greater than the sum of their parts—for instance, an image made from paint strokes isn’t just a blob of many colors, it’s a portrait. Urban infrastructure has long been […]

After stumbling across an article about modular homes, third-generation homebuilder, Anthony Zarrilli, recalls showing it to his father. The elder Zarrilli scoffed, labeling modular houses cheap and flimsy. Zarrilli grew up learning the finer points of traditional building from his dad and remembers scouring the job site for loose nails as a five year-old. However, […]

“The first good part about my story is that my father taught me how to work from a young age,” says Brandon Jett, owner of Jett Builders, a custom-home building and remodeling company in Tallahassee, Florida. When Jett was a kid, his father bought a piece of property outside of Tallahassee with two large tobacco […]

While pursuing industrial engineering at Rutgers University, William Amann worked for a mechanical contractor and couldn’t believe how little attention was paid to energy. In one instance, he found a huge two-inch gap between the walls and roof that went completely around a large commercial building. But it wasn’t until March 28, 1979, when the […]

There’s a kind of “all or nothing” mentality when it comes to green building. Many people think they need LEED certification in order for a building to be green, but because LEED certification is expensive, builders often opt for the conventional route and forego all green building technology. Cole Vickers, founder of Metro Green Construction, […]

“People are our biggest asset.” As the founder and managing partner of OPX PLLC, a design consultancy in Washington D.C., Steve Polo has heard his clients say that sentence countless times. “If that’s true,” Polo says, “then as a company you need to make sure you show it.” Ten years ago, while designing and renovating […]

In 2011, when Michael J. Parnell decided to start his general contracting company, MP Consulting Services LLC, he was all too aware of the challenges his industry was facing. After spending 10 years as a project engineer and senior project manager for Skanska and Hunter Roberts Construction Group, two of the largest general construction companies […]

In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, a new developer has just come to town. Milhaus Development, one of the largest developers in the Midwest, began scouting the City of Bridges in 2014, and almost immediately set its sights on Lawrenceville, a neighborhood on the east side of the city. “Here was a neighborhood that has some of the […]

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