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CONSTRUCTION
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The Industry’s Newspaper www.constructionnews.net H (210) 308-5800 H Volume 17 H Number 4 H APRIL 2019
K&S family values
Creating a great culture
Owner, Junior Kruger
The Trinity Commercial Construction team at One Main Place in Dallas, TX. L-R: Shelley Travell, Bill Schnoor, Richard Gartner and Patrick Doak.
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arland, TX has and will always be called home for Jan Kruger Jr. (known as “Junior”). So of course, it is the location of his business K&S Heating & Air where he is the president/owner. Kruger started his own HVAC company in March of 2008; he was able to do so because of his family roots. Grandpa Kruger had his own HVAC company out of his personal truck in the 1970s. This business became successful with the help of Kruger’s father who eventually took over to own and operate. The company expanded and grew out of just the work truck. In the warehouse is where Kruger learned all about the HVAC industry. He even had a desire to follow in his family’s footsteps and continue the family business. Eventually his father’s business was
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sold to a larger company. At that point in time, Kruger had the knowledge and drive to open up K&S Heating & Air where he can call his very own. The “K” stands for Kruger, and the “S” stands for son. This is a passed-down family trade, and it is likely that Kruger’s children will follow the family path. K&S Heating & Air caters to the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex. If it is within a two-hour drive, they will make it happen. In some cases, they go out further for specific projects. There are about 43 employees, most of who have worked there for over five years. Kruger provides HVAC repair, replacement or installation services. In his early years when he was able to attend continued on Page 14
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uthentic, people, fearless, spirited, stewardship. These are the words that identify Trinity Commercial Construction and the company’s core values. Richard Gartner was working for a general contractor based outside of Texas, when work started to slow down about seven years ago. Interested in pursuing a new path, Gartner found an opportunity in a relationship from his past. The two joined to form what was then known as Trinity Transcon. In the beginning, Gartner and his associate began work at DFW Airport, which was the inspiration behind the original company name, a mesh between transportation and construction. The two did everything from sweeping floors to
paying the bills as the company grew. The young company began developing and producing more and more work outside the airport and the desire to define the company and the type of work they performed became necessary to distinguish itself in the industry. In 2018, the company rebranded to Trinity Commercial Construction. Over the past two years the company has grown significantly and has developed beyond just the rebranding from personnel growth, to defining departments, to identifying the company’s core values. “When you are small company with just a handful of people, everybody wears a lot of hats and we all help each other out. Over the last few years, we have taken the steps to continued on Page 14
Fire stations times two
homas Sneed Byrne wrote personal notes to each his longtime friends and associates, promising that if given a construction job, he would surpass their expectations. He did this upon starting his construction company, Byrne Construction Services in 1923. Today, Byrne Construction Services still stands behind that promise. Byrne’s small company completed it first milestone project in 1928 and the rest, they say, is history. Having weathered the great depression, the company continued to grow. Today, the company is 105 employees strong with two locations, San Antonio and Fort Worth, where it all began. Byrne Construction Services proudly constructed the new Lewisville Fire Station Nos. 3 & 8. The projects took 12 months to complete at a cost of $10,052,000.
The project consisted of two new ground up three-bay fire stations including a community/training rooms, common rooms, living quarters, exercise rooms, lockers rooms, admin areas, storage and full-service kitchens. The exterior construction consisted of stone and brick masonry, wood cladding, store fronts and punched window glazing. Both fire stations utilize 4-fold doors for the quickest available opening. The bay doors open in six seconds compared to the usual 19 seconds. In the Fire Fighting community, 13 seconds saves lives. The biggest challenge the team overcame during construction was the unearthing and subsequent mitigation of an unknown abandoned gas line. The location of the 15-mile long gas line conflicted with the grade beam locations along the perimeter of the building. Once Fire Station No. 3, Lewisville, TX
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