From the ground up┬áMainline Contracting is an entrepreneurial company started by Randy Garrett, who developed it with financial director Gina Moore and director of estimating Doug Greenlee into North CarolinaÔÇÖs premier groundwork specialist. John OÔÇÖHanlon talks to the fourth shareholder, COO Les Basnight, about plans to expand. Mainline Contracting of Durham, North Carolina, was always the first contractor on the site, because that was its specialtyÔÇösite preparation and utilities, with a special fondness for storm drainage, sewer and water lines.

Building a better system together┬áA decision to merge what were once seven hospitals under two systems helped pave the way for London Health Sciences Centre and St. JosephÔÇÖs Health Care, London, to begin a wave of construction that continues today, Keith Regan learns.  Nearly a billion dollarsÔÇÖ worth of new construction and renovation is coming together on the London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) and St.

A bridge to the community┬áIn the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the campus of Dillard University was flooded along with most of the New Orleans area. The university presidentÔÇÖs ambitious rebuilding initiative includes using a new student union being built by a local contractor as a bridge to the surrounding neighborhood, as Keith Regan learns.  During its 50-year history, Landis Construction Company has grown into an $80 million company with an impressive portfolio of projects in the New Orleans area.

The mechanics of expansion┬áChris Durand explains to Gay Sutton how Kinetic Systems has expanded into new markets, paid down its debts and moved into profit, all during a year when most companies have contracted and retrenched. The turnaround at global mechanical solutions provider Kinetic Systems had its beginnings over five years ago, when the company developed a strategy to refine its project execution and arrive at a standard of excellence.

A family affair┬áAlready unique for being a family-run company 117 years after its founding, J. P. Cullen & Sons is pioneering the use of continuous process improvement and utilizing the latest technologies, president and CEO David Cullen tells Gay Sutton. At construction company J. P.

BIM,┬ábam, boom┬áEvery now and then new technology comes along that is worth its weight in gold and changes the way projects are managed, as Alan T Swaby learns. Visualize for a moment the Windows screen saver where a million tubes writhe around the screen like a basket of snakes, twisting and turning out of the path of their neighbors.

Getting results by any measure┬áThe Iredell-Statesville School District earned the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award by focusing on process improvements and breaking through resistance to change, Keith Regan learns. Not surprisingly, the Iredell-Statesville School District has been deluged with requests to share its secrets in recent months, especially since the North Carolina district won the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award for 2008.

More from less┬áKeith Regan learns how long-term partnerships and careful oversight have helped the Indianapolis Public Schools get more bang for the taxpayer buck. The Indianapolis Public School district knew it had long deferred investment in new school buildings and upgrades to its existing facilities. To fulfill part of a long-range strategic plan created in 1999, the district commissioned a facility study in 2000 to find out just how much it would take to create the educational environment it wanted.

The high road┬áEngineering consultancy Hatch Mott MacDonald is developing a thriving business in the Vancouver region. Vice president Tony Purdon talks to Gay Sutton about the projects spearheading that growth, and how developing leaders from within is driving its success. Hatch Mott MacDonald (HMM) was established in 1996 by two global consulting engineering companies, Canadian Hatch Associates and the UKÔÇÖs Mott MacDonald, which had been engaged on engineering projects across the continent.

Fine tuning┬áIconic guitar-maker Fender is introducing lean to the factory floor and creating a learning organization. Gay Sutton talks to senior vice president of global manufacturing Russell Espinosa and discovers how a disciple of Taiichi Ohno is sharing his knowledge to keep the company rocking. Think Fender and the name conjures up an image of mighty power chords, screaming guitar solos and sheer rock ÔÇÖn roll. The guitars themselves have achieved iconic status.