Why did Minnesota become home to many of the nation's largest commercial builders? And can they stay upright in an uncertain period for the building industry?
Clockwise from top
left: Ron Fagen, CEO and founder of Fagen, Inc.; Collin
Barr, president of the Minnesota region for Ryan Companies US; M.A. Mortenson
CEO Tom Gunkel; Todd Shilling, vice president
and general manager of Knutson’s Minneapolis office; Al Gerhardt,
COO of Kraus-Anderson; Tom McGough, Jr.,
president and CEO, McGough Companies; and
Mark Rauenhorst, CEO and chairman of Opus
Corporation.
Photography by John Mowers
The
current group of Minnesota construction-company leaders see themselves building
on their founders. “Leaders from the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s were visionaries,
entrepreneurs,” Ryan’s Barr says. “They established a steep curve for the people
who were to follow.” Kraus-Anderson’s Gerhardt agrees that the level of
competition, both past and present, has helped keep the companies sharp in the
marketplace: “This is a very competitive market, without a lot of room for
error.”
ADC Telecommunications headquarters in Eden Prairie
Adolfson & Peterson
6
72
$662 million
NA
Stillwater Carnegie Library, Skyscape condo project in Minneapolis
Ames
7
103
$517 million
$635 million
Target Center, Metrodome, Xcel Energy Center
McGough
8
105
$511 million
$520 million
Federal Reserve headquarters, new Guthrie Theater, Ordway Center for the Performing Arts
Weis
9
123
$447 million
$467 million
Interior renovation of Ridgedale Mall, C.W. Lofts
Knutson
10
197
$305 million
$320 million
Minnesota History Center in St. Paul and the Treasure Island Resort and Casino near Red Wing
* Ranks are based on revenues; ** Source: Engineering News Record; *** Source: Company estimates and final numbers; **** Based on 2006 revenues; NA= not available
2007 National Rankings of Other Construction Firms with a Significant Presence in Minnesota
