Colt Structures Kingman, USA

AN AFFILIATE COMPANY OF COLT BUILDERS

KINGMAN, ARIZONA

About an hour and a half outside of Las Vegas, the city of Kingman, Arizona, sits at the crossroads for routes heading west. A town of 30,000, it’s small—usually considered a short stop in a longer journey. It’s also the newest location for a wall manufacturing plant run by Colt Structures.

For outsiders, the choice to settle in Kingman may seem strange, but for the team who runs the business, it was a perfect fit.

“Kingman’s a neat little town,” says Shane Broughton, one of Colt Builders’ vice presidents. “The people are great, and we’re excited to see how it will continue to grow thanks to our presence there.”

Janusz Sakowicz, executive vice president of Colt Builders, agrees.

“Kingman is centrally located alongside major routes leading to Southern and Northern California, Nevada, and Utah. This gives us the ability to service a pretty large footprint and provide manufacturing support to our key markets.”

desiGned tO l ast

For the larger swaths of the markets they serve, Colt relies on traditional stick framing for their structures. They bring raw lumber to construction sites and build the walls on site. There are advantages to building this way—most clients and general contractors are familiar with the process. But in recent years, Colt has been turning to an alternative way of building, thereby controlling cost and quality, by introducing more customers and markets to manufactured wall panels.

“When you are able to design a project in-house and coordinate with other trades ahead of time, you can solve problems prior to the framers showing up on the site. This allows for a much quicker and more efficient build,” explains Jamie Howard, head of Technical Framing Solutions, the design arm of Colt Builders. “It means we don’t have to rebuild framing components or waste materials. We have more control over what we make, and by making better use of the materials, the quality of our product is better.”

Manufactured wall panels are designed in advance of a project being constructed on site, cut with high-end equipment and then shipped to a job site ready for quick and easy installation. And Colt has taken the advantages a step further by doing all of their design in-house.

“Vertical integration is always great for our business,” says Shane Broughton, one of Colt Builders’ vice presidents. “We often would buy manufactured products from other vendors, but there’s an element of control when you get to design it yourself.”

Dual-beam sheathing station

usinG the railrOad

Opening up a plant in Kingman provides Colt Builders with the opportunity to keep costs low and production timelines shorter, and the company plans to use the Kingman plant to service markets in the Southwest. The location for the plant was selected for a variety of reasons, but one of the biggest is access to rail lines.

At their sister plant in New Brunswick, Canada, Colt Structures relies on trucks to drive materials in and out of the plant. This can be tough with harsh weather conditions and capacity limits for semis. By utilizing the rail system that runs through Kingman, the plant can instead get much larger shipments to the site without having to deal with traditional logistics.

The Kingman plant is also much larger than the New Brunswick location, which has lots of advantages all on its own.

“The Kingman plant is going to be three to four times the size of our Canada branch,” says Shane. “Freight trains are very helpful factors, and thanks to the location, we can begin to support multiple other markets.”

“Quality companies like Colt Builders choosing to locate here means more jobs for our residents. It also translates into additional revenue to support our schools, recreational amenities, public safety, and improvements to our infrastructure. We are very excited to see Colt Builders set up shop in our community and look forward to their future success and growth here.”

—BENNETT BRATLEY, KINGMAN INDUSTRIAL PARK MANAGER

Janusz is also looking even further ahead.

“We have the ability to ramp up our production by adding a few additional buildings with more production lines, which was definitely part of our master planning. Current real estate allows us to expand beyond one-production building, and we have made sure we can scale up quickly.”

The extra space also means the plant can store materials for multiple job sites at once, lessening the burden on general contractors working with Colt on certain projects and keeping the actual building areas clear for work.

The Kingman executive team

a desiGn-led future

Opening up a wall manufacturing plant in Kingman is exciting, of course, but it is also helping Colt Structures and the other associated organizations move toward an overarching vision focused on in-house design and engineering.

“This plant means we get to continue looking for people who are more technical- and engineering-focused,” says Janusz. “Because of the plant, our preconstruction departments will continue to grow, and we’ll keep creating opportunities for manufacturing, design, and preconstruction roles.”

And thanks to the vertical integration system that ensures Colt’s people-first business model transforms communities while building structures designed to last, that growth isn’t stopping anytime soon.

“Vertical integration is always great for our business,” says Shane. “We’ll be expanding without a problem.”

Meridian Retirement Living

THE POINTE

RETIREMENT COMMUNITIES

When it comes to retirement communities, John Robertson, one of the founders of Colt Builders, has done the math. “In 2030, there will be 71 million people over the age of 65 living in the United States,” John explained. “If only 10 percent of those 71 million people want to live in a retirement community, you’ll need housing for 7 million people.”

But as of right now, the country only has housing available for 3 million of those seniors, which means there’s a lot of work cut out for builders who want to meet the demand with adequate supply.

suPPlY meets demand

Jim Petersen, a partner for The Pointe Retirement Communities is in the process of developing several senior living projects designed for modern life, all while maintaining high standards in building and construction. With Colt Builders’ extensive experience building so many senior living projects, The Pointe values its partnership with Colt for both design ideas and construction.

Jim began framing commercial buildings in the mid-1990s. He got involved with Colt in the 2000s, but in the last decade has expanded to real estate development, especially in senior living.

With his experience in the industry, Jim knew partnering with Colt to provide construction knowledge for developing senior living communities was an obvious choice.

the POWer Of the POinte’s aPPrOaCh

“The Pointe provides a really unique approach by vertically integrating and value engineering each project,” said Jim. “We do everything from land sourcing, market studies, and entitlements to actually designing and building the facility from the ground up.”

“This method means we’re not overspending in any areas,” explained Jim. “It reduces cost and construction risk. If anything happens in construction—because things don’t always go as

planned—we’re able to work through the problems and then create solutions much easier,” said Jim.

Working with Colt we value engineer the buildings; during this process we ensure the ultimate design and functionality for the most competitive price.

the COlt Culture

The building prowess typical of Colt is only one reason why Jim partnered with them for The Pointe project—their culture was just as important.

“It really feels like a working team,” said Jim. “It’s a great group of people. When people feel like a team and are connected you get a better outcome. The whole culture pays off.”

And that payoff is what matters to Jim. After spending over three decades working on all sorts of projects, Jim knows what to look for.

PersOnal GOal

“I really like developing projects—taking a vacant piece of land and coming up with a concept for a project that gets developed into a great real estate development for people to enjoy for years to come,” said Jim. “When we build something that fills a need and adds great value to the community. That’s my favorite part of my job.”

Snow Canyon Retirement Community—independent housing Cave Creek Assisted Living

“Value engineering means we’re not overspending in any areas. For example, on a lot of projects, you’ll typically get an architect who designs the build, but they haven’t really been on site. They don’t understand all the different aspects of what the final build will contain.” —JIM PETERSEN

GIVING BACK

Colt Builders is grateful for opportunities to give back to the communities in which it operates. Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Intermountain Area is a meaningful example.

Carrie Romano, Chief Executive Officer of the Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Intermountain Area, believes whole-heartedly in her organization’s mission. She centers on the organization’s goal to provide care and support for families with children receiving serious medical care in everything she does.

helPinG families in need

“We’re a mission-driven business,” Carrie says. “Everything we do is focused around families and providing the support they need to be near and care for their hospitalized children. We’re a soft landing spot for folks who are going through a really tough time.”

In particular, the Ronald McDonald charity provides a variety of services. These include long-term stay facilities, where families can live for several months while their loved ones undergo medical treatment, as well as overnight rooms in select hospitals for families to get some much-needed rest while remaining close to their child. They also staff a fully stocked kitchen to provide hot meals as well as “respite carts,” which can move throughout medical facilities to provide the necessities to the people they serve.

hOme aWaY frOm hOme

In providing a “home away from home” for families, the Ronald McDonald charity relies solely on donations from individuals and corporations.

“Sponsorships and donations entirely fund and fuel our mission,” explains Carrie. “In our charity, volunteers are really core to our mission, and corporate sponsorships are part of that.”

Donations to the organization provide everything from cooking and serving hot meals to undercutting operation costs for the homes in which families stay while their loved ones are undergoing treatment.

steadfast suPPOrt

Colt Builders has provided “steadfast support” for the Ronald McDonald House Charities as a corporate partner for nearly a decade.

“I appreciate donors like Colt because they willingly offer their support for our mission. We don’t have to knock down the door begging; they ask first, ‘How can we help?’” says Carrie.

The COVID-19 pandemic was an especially complicated time for the organization, and Colt Builders was there during that, too. “We spent over half a million dollars in emergency off-site lodging during the pandemic so families could quarantine safely. Colt was there as a real emergency lifesaver for the families we serve.” “Colt Builders has been a long-time supporter of Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Intermountain Area. We are proud and thankful for their commitment to help further this most important mission. Not only do they support by annual giving but also by ‘showing up’ personally! We look forward to continuing this valued partnership.”

—LYNNIE ZIMMERLI, RMHC PAST BOARD CHAIR, BOARD EMERITUS

PeOPle first

As the Ronald McDonald House Charities begins to return to their routine operations, Carrie is looking forward to furthering the nonprofit’s relationship with Colt. Colt’s people-first mission makes a partnership between the two a natural pairing, and she knows how fruitful that can be.

“We love Colt Builders,” she says. “They step up proactively. They show up and step up, and we couldn’t be more grateful.”