2018 was a year marked by expansion and growth. Our company broke into new markets, acquired a business, and were selected for projects that will define our reputation for years to come. Here are our top five news stories from 2018.
1. Nabholz Restructures
We made a lot of changes in 2018 that reflect a new era at Nabholz.
Brad Hegeman and Greg Fogle are now Nabholz’ joint chief operating officers and were recently added to the company’s board of directors. While Greg and Brad will have distinct areas of responsibility, they will work together to promote growth, corporate unity, and the sharing of resources across all operations.
Jake Nabholz has been selected as president of our south region. Steve Clouten is now president of our central region. Our Kansas City office became its own regional operation, with Jon Pahl as president.
Due to tremendous growth, our civil group has broken out as its own operation, with Jim Spotts as president. Jim has worked at Nabholz for 40 years and his innovative thinking has transformed the civil group to meet the demands of the economy throughout that time.
2. Industrial Acquires American Transfer Co.
In May of 2018, Nabholz’ industrial branch acquired American Transfer & Storage Co. of Tulsa, Oklahoma. This acquisition gives Nabholz a significantly expanded client base for the region’s industrial and manufacturing facilities and will enhance our current offering of services, including machinery rigging, equipment installation, industrial transportation, and other turn-key industrial projects.
In the acquisition, Nabholz gained American Transfer & Storage’s campus at 110 S. 129th E Ave, highly visible from I-44 traveling west into Tulsa. Nabholz also took possession of the company’s fleet of cranes, rigging lifts, and transportation trucks and trailers. But most importantly, Nabholz gained a team of highly skilled operators, riggers, mechanics, and industrial craftsmen, who have served the region’s manufacturing industry for decades through their tenure at American Transfer & Storage Co.
3. Nabholz Starts Large K-12 projects in Missouri
Nabholz expanded its commercial construction presence in Missouri. Several key projects have primed the market for Nabholz to make a full push into the state—the Wonders of Wildlife Museum and Aquarium, the Bass Pro Shop, Ozark Mill project, and Big Cedar Lodge.
Two years ago, legislation in Missouri was passed that allowed for the implementation of a new construction delivery method, Construction Manager At-Risk (CMAR). The new legislation allows public owners to engage a construction manager advisor through a process focused on firm’s qualifications rather than automatically choosing the lowest bidder.
This legislation opened the door for Nabholz to pursue work in sectors we excel in—K-12 education facilities, healthcare and medical facilities, and higher education facilities. We’ve made gains in this market already and are currently working on three large K-12 projects in Missouri at Independence School District, Jefferson City Public Schools, and the School of the Osage.
4. Nabholz opens new office in Kansas
Nabholz has new digs in the Kansas City area. We recently moved into a new 20,000-square-foot office in Lenexa.
We built the office from the ground up to accommodate our recent growth. We are now located at 17300 W. 116th St., less than two miles north of our previous location in Olathe.
The project took about nine months from start to finish, and the company moved into the space on November 12th. Nabholz craftsmen performed the excavation and building pads, plus all electrical wiring for the new building. We also previously held a contest for employees to submit designs for some of the accent walls and welding projects throughout.
There are now 100 employees in the new space. That’s up from about 40 five years ago.
5. Nabholz selected for OKPOP
The Oklahoma Historical Society selected Nabholz to manage construction of Oklahoma Museum of Popular Culture. Nabholz will construct OKPOP in Tulsa, across the street from the historic Cain’s Ballroom, known as “The Home of Bob Wills.”
Tulsa-based Lilly Architects and Overland Partners of San Antonio, Texas designed the facility. The OKPOP Museum will be dedicated to telling the story of the creativity of Oklahoma’s people and their influence on popular culture around the world. The OKPOP staff is actively collecting artifacts, photographs, archival materials, film, video and audio recordings that represent Oklahoma’s creative history.
OKPOP will break ground soon and is scheduled to open in 2020.
