Builder of the Year

Marquette's team approach nets big success

By Janine Anderson

Marquette Constructors LLC A joint venture of Edward Kraemer & Sons Inc., Lunda Construction Co. and Zenith Tech Inc. based in Waukesha

Marquette Constructors LLC wasn’t named Builder of the Year because it has a long, rich history.

The company, formed to bid on the Marquette Interchange reconstruction in Milwaukee, has been around for a relatively short time.

But the three companies that came together to form Marquette Constructors — Edward Kraemer & Sons Inc. of Plain, Lunda Construction Co. of Black River Falls and Zenith Tech Inc. of Waukesha — have made the most of their time together.

The joint effort between the state’s three largest bridge-building contractors was a success. On Aug. 23, the new company won Marquette’s South Leg and Core contracts, worth nearly $360 million of the estimated $810 million job.

Frank Busalacchi, secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, said the coalition of contractors that makes up Marquette Constructors made it a good fit for the job. The approach of contractors with different areas of expertise joining together for a large project is not as common in Wisconsin as in other areas, Busalacchi said, but it works.

Projects like the Marquette Interchange are “mega projects approaching $1 billion in value,” Busalacchi said. “It only makes sense to have these companies team up like this.”

The team approach gives the companies better access to experience and knowledge that will be needed on the project, something that has been happening all along with Marquette Constructors, said Brian Manthey, communications officer for the Marquette Interchange project.

“This situation is one where they have a lot of coordination within their group, and they’ve obviously taken great pains to make sure they have that coordination and can work together as a team,” he said. “They need to be able to come together before they come onto the project. With that there’s no question.

“At times you feel like you’re dealing with one company and not three different ones because they’re able to work together so very well.”

Having the project go to a Wisconsin company has made things even better, Busalacchi and Manthey said.

“You always have a certain amount of pride in anything that’s got the label of Wisconsin on it,” Manthey said. “It’s pretty obvious Wisconsin companies can be very competitive in a competitive business. As they gain more experience in future projects here and maybe in other states, they’ll be able to become players on those projects.”

Marquette Constructors has also shown a commitment to some of the nonconstruction sides of state transportation projects, Manthey said. It has committed to working with disadvantaged businesses, giving them new economic opportunities when possible.

It also exceeded the federal goal for employing minority workers. The goal is 8.9 percent, Manthey said, and at times the Marquette Interchange project has been almost three times that.

“They’ve been a big part of that in helping us not just reach those goals but surpass them,” he said.

Throughout the process, Marquette Constructors has done an excellent job, Busalacchi said, noting that the largest highway construction project in state history is on time and on budget.

“It’s an all-star team, a construction all-star team,” Busalacchi said.