_____________________________________________________________________________________ Clarkson
Construction
As a sixth generation, familyowned construction company, Clarkson Construction( Clarkson) has been shaping communities in Kansas City for 145 years – a legacy that looks set to continue. Since forming in 1880 as a grading contractor digging basements in the Riverside area, the business has steadily evolved, adding bridges, paving, and underground utilities to its repertoire.
President, Billy Clarkson, tells Construction Today about its design-build delivery and explains how self-performing has been integral to the company’ s expansion:“ We’ ve grown organically from our roots as a basement and grading contractor; today, our specialty area is constructing highways and bridges. Large site development is another area we’ ve had a lot of success in, including the Kansas City, Kansas, entertainment district known as Village West. We’ re heavily invested in the data center market, which is rapidly expanding all over the Midwest, with Project Velvet marking our first entry into the sector several years ago. We enjoy working for technology companies and there are huge opportunities over the next ten to 15 years between Kansas, Missouri and some of the adjacent states building multiple data centers. That’ s our primary focus outside of the standard heavy highways, roads and bridges.
“ The main benefit of self-performing the majority of our work is the amount of control it gives us,” he continues.“ We have historical knowledge of project costs and time frames for building a project, in-house expertise, and the ability to understand our crews, their availability and their production capabilities. If we’ re successful on a bid, it gives us control over the schedule, safety and cost. The subsequent quality, value and consistency of work is also beneficial for the owner.”
Enhancing efficiencies
Clarkson was contracted for the Kansas Department of Transportation’ s( KDOT’ s) first ever design-build project in 2014 – the Johnson County Gateway project, involving
▼ Clarkson crews working on the Kansas City International Airport New Terminal Project’ s splitlevel arrivals and departures roadway system
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