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Houston
CONSTRUCTION
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The Industry’s Newspaper See Page 10
www.constructionnews.net H (210) 308-5800 H Volume 14 H Number 10 H OCTOBER 2017
Spreading the knowledge
Staying in the game
Russell Construction Company family and staff
George Parker (middle) with two of his employees
T
he old saying of “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” can be witnessed by a 30- year-old company which continues to use the same business model it began with. Russell Construction Company was founded in 1987 by John Russell, Sr. He was the sole originator of the company and worked hard to provide great service. While doing so, he taught his four children all about the business. “My father built the bicycle, he taught us how to ride it, and when we took over ownership of the company, we didn’t change anything. Things are still done the exact same way they were done in 1987,” explains Vice President Matt Russell. Matt and his two other brothers, Ty and John, Jr., along with their sister
Rosanna, took over the company after their father retired in 2000. Matt explains that the design of operations his father set up is what has made the company so successful. “This business model is what has kept us out of debt, even during the downturn in the industry.” Although they have no plans to open any other locations, they are working on spreading education about the construction industry to schools. “We are working on putting together a small program to visit high schools in the area to show them a different avenue for their future. It would be like a school mentor program to expose kids to a different field of construction and something they might not think is available to them,” Matt shares. continued on Page 13
A
t 84 years young, George Parker has paved the way for the emerging generation who want to be a part of the construction industry. His business, Specialized Building Systems, Inc. (SBS) has been selling wall and ceiling protection products for 41 years. Parker got started in this business when he was living in Pittsburg. After graduating from Temple University, he moved to Houston in order to expand his knowledge of the trade. “Houston had the largest insulation market in the world so I knew I could come down here and get a job.” Parker became very successful and says that reason, and the fact that he enjoys the people he gets to work with, are what have kept him in the industry. When he first started SBS, there were
many other companies of the same type that were already established. “I knew they questioned whether I was going to be able to make it. Of course they were all gone a little later on. We still have a lot of competition, though.” All of the competition is what keeps him in the game. “I like what I do and I’m good at it. I was 84 in July and I haven’t slowed down since.” There used to be other SBS locations: Atlanta, Fort Worth, and New Orleans, but odd situations happened causing Parker to close them. “In the Fort Worth office, the manager died. The managers in New Orleans and Atlanta wanted to retire, and I just couldn’t find anyone to replace them.” He’s okay with having just the Houston location now because they continued on Page 13
What was old is new
K
Austin & Associates was the contractor for the new VCA Spring Branch location. VCA Antech, Inc., which is a veterinary service company, had their new building constructed on the same site as their existing location. Shane Johnson, contractor for KAustin & Associates, says they did run into some challenges because they were using a current structure. “The existing building was in poor shape. We had to continuously make repairs to the existing building to keep the client operational.” The client remained operational during the entire project. Johnson also shares that building the new clinic in the parking lot was also a challenge. “There was no room to stage materials and very little access to the site. We had to keep employees, subcontractors, customers, and VCA’s clients safe during all phases of construction.” The new VCA clinic in Spring Branch
The $1.6 million project took approximately two years to complete and was done in two phases. The owner of the clinic wanted to continue working, which is why Johnson and his team had to work in segments. “We constructed Phase 1 of the new building in the parking lot of the old building. We tore down the old building and partially built the parking lot. We then constructed Phase 2, which included finalizing the site work and parking lot. The client had zero downtime other than moving in over a weekend.” The exterior of the clinic features a brick and stucco finish with multiple windows and a glass door entrance. The VCA Spring Branch sign is located along the side of the building where it is visible to people driving by. The interior qualities include a neutral color palette throughout, with dark wood cabinetry. The waiting room is spacious and offers ample seating and showcontinued on Page 13