Relentless Pursuit
of Excellence

David’s legacy in the Mid-Atlantic includes marquee projects such as the $1.4 billion, 2.2-million-square-foot National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Campus East Headquarters, which included a major embedded data center and supporting utility infrastructure. From pursuit to final close-out, our team rose to the magnitude of the challenge before them, delivering this integrated design-build project for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers six months ahead of schedule and on budget. David’s mark can also be found on the $222 million National Science Foundation, the iconic design-build Pentagon Memorial and numerous other security-driven facilities for federal clients. Though unique in scope, each of these projects required enhanced systems performance, redundancy and precision execution.

“At their core, data centers are highly focused on mechanical and electrical performance,” David explains. “Some of our federal projects with embedded data centers demand a superior level of system integration and building performance standards that often surpasses a typical data center.”

No contractor is more prepared to meet the rigor of modern mission critical projects than one like Balfour Beatty and industry leaders like David, who bring a multi-decade legacy of successful delivery for the federal government. With active data center projects and MV duct bank work underway, our Mid-Atlantic mission critical team under David’s leadership is proving our presence isn’t just established – it’s expanding every day.

Leading Through Preconstruction

No matter what the mission critical product type or scope, Balfour Beatty creates a strategic advantage for our clients and partners long before construction begins.

In a sector where speed-to-market drives decision making, David collaborates closely with clients, designers and trade partners to understand constraints, identify risks early and build schedules that hold up under pressure. During construction, small design changes to mechanical and electrical systems can have outsized impacts on performance and delivery.

This is where David adds tangible value our clients feel, working in real time to adeptly navigate evolving design requirements and ensuring facilities are built to accommodate future server expansions and high-performance computing (HPC) upgrades.

“It’s not just about what’s possible. It’s about what’s realistic,” David explains. “We’re helping clients understand how design decisions impact schedule, how resources affect sequencing and how to make adjustments without jeopardizing delivery.”

David prioritizes:

• Navigating long-lead equipment and supply chain constraints
• Aligning labor availability with aggressive delivery timelines
• Evaluating design changes in real time to minimize schedule impacts
• Bringing practical solutions that balance cost, performance and speed

For David, it’s this ability to “see around corners” during preconstruction that sets Balfour Beatty teams apart and positions our projects for success long before they break ground.

A Partner in a Changing Market

As the mission critical sector continues to scale, client expectations have shifted.

“Clients realize their success depends on having the right team,” David says. “It’s not about pushing risk down. It’s about working together to get the project done successfully.”

That shift plays directly to David’s strengths. Known for his collaborative, pragmatic approach, he works to build alignment across all stakeholders and ensure decisions are made with the project’s big picture in mind. He also brings a balanced perspective on growth, recognizing that long-term success in the mission critical sector requires a holistic understanding of future-proofing power grid and utility planning, site and regulatory strategy, contract structuring and more.

Building What Comes Next

With experience spanning data centers, federal infrastructure, complex mixed-use developments and more, David Chachu knows that mission critical is more than a sector. It’s a mindset. As Balfour Beatty continues to build the critical infrastructure powering our nation, David’s fundamentals remain the anchors for his teams: strong plans, effective collaboration, clear communication and the ability to adapt quickly and thoughtfully when conditions change.

It’s a belief that has guided every step of Jason’s career and one that continues to define how he shows up for his teammates, clients and partners on marquee, award-winning infrastructure projects including US 17 Maysville Bypass, Military Cutoff Road Extension, I-295 Fayetteville Outer Loop and more.

Built Through Experience

Jason built his career in construction the same way he builds projects to this day: by stepping in elbow-deep, learning quickly and taking on more than was expected. As a teenager, he got his start in landscaping until a fortuitously placed newspaper ad led to his first job driving a dump truck for The Six-M Company.

As Jason grew in the industry, his hand was always raised. Whether he was learning to operate heavy equipment when crews were short, running work when foremen were out or taking responsibility for scopes he hadn’t formally been assigned yet, Jason wasn’t one to shy away from the unknown or unfamiliar. In fact, he welcomed just such situations.

“I always wanted to do the job one or two levels ahead of me,” Jason recalls.

Nearly 30 years later, his instinct to learn and do more hasn’t changed.

That mindset, combined with his diverse experiences across grading, structures, utilities, signage and traffic control, give Jason a rare perspective that few in project management possess. It’s what allows him to holistically understand challenges of Balfour Beatty projects before they arise, support crews in real time and lead with credibility because he’s been the man behind the machine.

Safety Shaped by Experience

Jason’s views on safety aren’t theoretical. They’re deeply personal.

While Jason was working for a different contractor, a vehicle traveling at speed entered a closed lane on an I-95 work zone and missed him by less than two feet.  

It’s the kind of moment that stays with you. And for Jason, it fundamentally changed how he approaches risk.

“Even when you do everything right, things can still happen,” he acknowledges.

Today, Jason uses that experience to anchor his advocacy around live traffic safety, one of the industry’s most uniquely lethal and often underestimated risks. Unlike many hazards, the greatest variable isn’t our own work – it’s the traveling public moving through it.

Jason, a frequently invited guest lecturer on safety, often challenges teams and industry partners to change the way they view live traffic hazards.

“What we call a ‘near miss’ out here isn’t a near miss at all,” he explains. “It’s something that could be fatal immediately.”

Through stand downs, jobsite conversations and industry forums with the Carolinas Associated General Contractors (CAGC) and other associations, Jason is helping re-frame how teams prepare for and manage live traffic exposure by emphasizing discipline, awareness and accountability at every level.

Leading by Example

As Jason’s role has grown, his definition of leadership has evolved, but his foundation hasn’t changed.

“My job is to see the roadblocks ahead of the team and get them out of their way,” he says.

That approach was on full display during complex work on the progressive design-build Fayetteville Outer Loop project, where challenging conditions and tight timelines resulting from a major change order demanded more than a top-down solution. Instead of dictating a plan, Jason inclusively brought the entire team together including laborers and forepersons and asked everyone to co-create the plan. The result was a shared sense of ownership, a performance that exceeded expectations and an award-winning project.

Building a Better Industry

For Jason, the mission is simple: leave the industry better - and safer - than he found it.

Whether he’s advancing Zero Harm, mentoring the next generation or sharing lessons learned across the industry, his focus isn’t just on the project in front of him. It’s on what comes next.

Because for Jason, being a Relentless Ally isn’t about recognition or individual success. It’s about the people beside you in the field, instilling a sense of pride in the work they do and, above all else, ensuring they go some safely to their loved ones.

And for a leader who never left the field behind, that will always be the work that matters most.

Consistency, reliability and trust are just as important when it comes to other project logistics. And on projects like the award-winning Downtown Cary Park, leaders still find a way to make operational decisions all about the people.

“Municipal construction, especially parks, can feel so much more human than any other work we do,” Evan says. “You’re not just building an office that people will use for eight hours each day. You’re building a real community center for activity, play, birthday parties. It brings a community together.”

With that in mind, Evan sets out to coordinate parks projects like Cary Park with the client’s values and the end users in mind.

“Every aspect of the Downtown Cary Park required extensive and intensive up-front coordination, of soil engineering, water and utility raceways, unique building designs, everything,” Evan says. “Not because it was necessarily complex, but because it was all in service of our client’s mission to create a vibrant, natural-feeling community hub and one of the best city parks in the nation.”

To achieve that sense of a naturally flowing landscape, the Balfour Beatty team performed deep and extensive sitework. Every inch of the park not covered by pavement or buildings required up to 11 different types of engineered topsoil – all on top of 8 inches of sand – to create a beautiful landscape that will stand the test of time while complementing and sustaining the final landscaping.

Beneath the park, critical storm, sewer, electrical and water lines support daily operations, key amenities and its central pond feature. Coordination with key trade partners and designers was critical to ensuring safe digging practices.

It’s All About People

To hear Evan say it, he doesn’t do anything special as a superintendent.

“I’m just doing what is right by our client and serves our end users,” Evan says. “It should be normal in the construction industry and it’s just second nature to me.”

But that’s precisely why this mindset, shared by Balfour Beatty leaders around the U.S., is special in the industry. When leaders like Evan take the time and personal investment to understand a client’s needs and translate that to proactive solutions, intentional communication and genuine care for people, the results can be magical – award-winning parks, luxury high-rises and – most importantly – projects where everyone goes home safely at the end of the day.

Tyler’s client advocacy has supported some of our longest-running and most successful client relationships, including MiraCosta College, Southwestern College and Palomar Community College District. These clients, and more, value leaders like Tyler precisely because they can so clearly see the big picture, train future leaders to do the same, and accept only the safest, most collaborative path to achieve it.

From Carpentry to Collaborative Leader

Tyler was already bound for the industry in his San Diego State University (SDSU) construction engineering program, but he took an additional step that few do: he completed most of his undergraduate degree at night while working as a residential framer and carpenter by day. Sure, it put a little extra folding money in his pocket, but he wanted even more to gain a deep understanding of the craft he was pursuing in class.

After school, Tyler quickly found his way to a San Diego-area general contractor where he cut his teeth on the kinds of projects that would soon become a specialty at Balfour Beatty – fast-paced, “summer sprint” K-12 and higher education facility renovations. Every second counted, and the client’s hard and fast deadline of “students in seats by August” counted even more.

“I quickly became an assistant superintendent, and it was very much a trial by fire,” Tyler recalls. “But I enjoyed the work. I could see a clear through-line from my craft experience as a carpenter to understanding the commitment to daily service required of a superintendent.”

Tyler soon joined the Balfour Beatty team and continued to hone that sense for project management and client service – particularly under immense schedule and logistical pressure – as a superintendent and later project manager on higher education projects.

In the midst of all that, he still found time to continue his personal education (again at night) with a Masters of Business Administration, also from SDSU.

High Standards for Higher Education

While the transition from K-12 summer sprints to massive higher education jobs was certainly a change of scale, Tyler had already created a firm foundation of collaborative leadership. The process and principles were the same. In a more material sense, he even found that many of the trade partners he engaged in his new position were also the same.

“I had already been running work autonomously, creating schedules on my own and approaching my work as a superintendent as instrumental to client success, not just task completion,” Tyler said. “Our higher education clients especially understand how consequential the superintendent role is. We treat it that way and provide opportunities for our project leaders to grow in their ‘big picture’ understanding of day-to-day operations and client service.”

Tyler’s career has been a tour de force of Balfour Beatty’s best higher education work in California. Over countless projects for southern California’s leading community college districts, Tyler and our teams have repeatedly defined what it means to provide safe, budget-conscious and high-quality work for educational institutions.

“Safety and site logistics are integral parts of what we do as allies for our higher education clients,” Tyler adds. “We’re often working on occupied campuses, high-traffic from both pedestrians and vehicles, and our clients value project leaders who deeply understand our Zero Harm® values and prioritize keeping everybody safe.”

Building Leaders, Building Relationships

It’s Tyler’s commitment, big-picture thinking, relentless collaboration and safety emphasis that have made him such a successful superintendent and an invaluable ally for our clients – and sharing those values with new client partners and new generations of project leaders.

Whether they’re swinging a hammer on a project, crafting a safety-minded project schedule with an unbelievably fast turnaround or laying the groundwork for new client relationships, Balfour Beatty leaders like Tyler are our clients’ Relentless Allies through and through. 

As a general contractor estimator, Jorge learned to understand every trade well enough to connect the dots, effectively balancing scope, cost, risk and value in a way that allows project teams and clients to make confident, informed decisions. Jorge seeks out best-in-class tools like the Join project delivery platform, which he recently helped operationalize in California, to mitigate the impacts of cost escalation and supply‑chain uncertainty.

"Part of our job is helping teams prioritize the decisions that are going to have the most impact on the job and identify outliers," explains Jorge.

Specialized for K-12 Schools

Schools, he says, are among the most complex projects to estimate. While they may not always carry the largest price tags, they require far more than the cookie-cutter, big-box approach that many assume. With specialty spaces such as science labs, performance spaces, classrooms, kitchens, playgrounds, athletic facilities and unique site constraints, schools and their associated costs can vary dramatically from one community to the next.

“No two schools are ever truly the same,” affirms Jorge.

But that complexity is precisely what draws him in.

For Jorge, estimating schools isn’t just about numbers. It’s about listening first to understand what matters most to each district, each campus and each community. One project may prioritize outdoor learning spaces. Another may require extensive acoustical solutions or specialized facilities. On the Paul Ecke Elementary School project in Encinitas, California, for example, the owner even leveraged mass timber, a progressive and sustainable design solution—becoming the first to do so in the state.

As a father to two young daughters, Jorge’s work on educational facilities isn’t just meaningful. It’s deeply personal.

The Power of the Preconstruction Team

While Jorge is often the face of a project's budget, he is quick to credit the diverse talent surrounding him. "I’ve had the privilege of working with an amazing group of estimators, each bringing different backgrounds and decades of experience to the table," says Jorge.

He notes that while the role of an estimator can sometimes be overlooked, the "behind-the-scenes" work produced by this team is what provides the foundation for every successful build. By learning from his peers' varied perspectives, Jorge continues to refine his own craft, ensuring that the precision he learned in the military is matched by the collective wisdom of his colleagues.

The Road Less Traveled

Jorge is living proof that there is no single “right” path into construction, and that some of the strongest leaders carry with them lessons and transferrable skills from vastly different backgrounds and experiences. Construction estimating allows Jorge’s perspectives and purpose come together, serving his communities in ways that will stand for generations to come.

And run big work he certainly did. In the decades following, he would go on to provide exceptional client service and precision field management on monumental projects such as the Orlando Magic's AdventHealth Training Center, the Lake Nona Wave Center Hotel, the Gaylord Texan, the Loews Sapphire Falls Resort at Universal Orlando, the Cabana Bay Beach Resort and countless other projects for our most prestigious hospitality and entertainment clients in Orlando.

The Cabana Bay Beach Resort at Universal Orlando

At every step, Neal says he was surrounded by leaders who provided him with three keys to success and strategies he still implements to help project teams accomplish great things: opportunity, empowerment and accountability. Those leaders recognized Neal’s dual-threat talents as a field leader and strategic business visionary and gave him every opportunity to take on new challenges, gracefully correct mistakes and learn how to be the best possible client advocate.

Taking on Big Projects

Those opportunities to step out and lead through challenging situations started right away. On Neal’s very first project as an assistant superintendent – a landmark hospitality project that is all but a household name – he was invited to step up when the lead superintendent required emergency surgery just months before substantial completion.

“All of a sudden, I became an area superintendent. I’m sitting in all the owner’s meetings, and I was still young enough to think I could easily handle it,” Neal recalls. “It was a highly complex job on an incredibly accelerated schedule, but we successfully completed a project with thousands of workers, 24/7 operations and world-class finishes, theming and quality control.”

With a clear knack for mega project management and a talent for hospitality in particular, Neal later joined the team for the ambitious Gaylord Texan Hotel and Resort in the Dallas, Texas suburbs. When the project was put on temporary hold following the events of September 11, 2001, Neal was again able to step up and develop his project expertise and client advocacy under the tutelage of several of our strongest Texas leaders and hospitality experts like Michael Hite and Chad Brewer.

The Gaylord Texan, one of Neal's first opportunities to learn every square foot of a mega hospitality project

“With the project on hold for 10 months, I took on a quasi-preconstruction role preparing for it to restart,” Neal says. “By the time it did, I knew every bit of that 2.8-million-square-foot complex and can proudly say we helped create a successful job through value engineering, schedule accelerations and proactive procurement even in a tumultuous market.”

Leading With Lean

Neal’s operations expertise also includes an extensive background in lean construction principles and a proven track record of lean successes, including early involvement with the Lean Construction Institute (LCI). While lean, as Neal sees it, seeks to address some of the inherent inefficiencies in the construction process and general contracting model, he believes its greatest potential for industry change stems from increased collaboration.

“From my involvement with LCI and lean experience on our many projects, I’ve experienced firsthand the power of getting more people involved in project decision-making,” Neal says. “More involvement at all levels paradoxically creates more efficient projects than top-down directives, but making it work requires first-rate communication, a collaborative spirit and the leadership skills to educate and empower your staff, partners and stakeholders.”

Of course, where the lean rubber meets the project challenge road can become exceptionally complex. Even so, the principles by which Neal has always led his projects still apply: set clear and immovable goals, give your teammates and clients the tools to succeed and hold every party accountable for success. “Communication” is less an element of the formula and more the substrate in which it exists, undergirding and enhancing every step of the project.

On Phase II of the Broward County Convention Center and Hotel mega project, for example, unforeseen design challenges with 160-foot structural steel trusses created a complex challenge for our team and trade partners. After disassembling some six weeks’ worth of steel work, the team had to recover—and quickly.

“Once you identify a problem or potential problem, you first have to communicate to the team that there is a problem, collaborate on a solution and continue to hold the team accountable through implementation,” Neal says. “On BCCCH, we knew our next milestone date was permanent power. Missing that date was not an option.”

Through aggressive and intentional collaboration between our team, our steel trade partner and design partners, Neal and the BCCCH project team carved a clear pathway to success. Schedules were greatly accelerated, site logistics became even more complex, but the collaborative effort paid off as the team brought the project back on track.

Loews Sapphire Falls Resort at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida

“On every project large or small, empowerment and accountability are just two sides of the same coin. The one cannot exist without the other,” Neal says. “These are foundational principles that leaders once instilled in me and that I now pass on to all of our teammates – stand in the gaps for our people and our clients, learn from mistakes and commit to a people-first, collaborative and communicative approach that always creates success.”

Looking Ahead

As Balfour Beatty looks ahead to extending our Central Florida legacy, building on the success of projects like Manor West River in Tampa and now new opportunities at the University of Florida, operational leaders like Neal prove the strength of our relationship-driven business.

Balfour Beatty’s greater Florida portfolio is dominated by repeat business for precisely this reason: after just one project, clients come to understand that Balfour Beatty’s leaders like Neal don’t make unilateral, top-down decisions and pass the consequences on to clients. Instead, they create inclusive and rewarding environments where every stakeholder is equally empowered to share our clients’ values, equally empowered to implement creative and lean solutions and equally empowered to create success.

As luck or perhaps destiny would have it, Tom was introduced to the East Valley Water District while working on a plant upgrade project with another contractor. Tom left a distinct impression on the client, and the client on Tom. After joining Balfour Beatty a few short years later in 2014, Tom was reunited with the East Valley Water District on what would become a signature, career-defining project for all stakeholders: the progressive design-build Sterling Natural Resource Center (SNRC).

The owner began the project with the intention of planning, designing, constructing and operating the water treatment plant to a standard-setting level of excellence. Tom’s leadership and vision were instrumental in realizing that goal at every stage of project delivery. Together, design-build manager Balfour Beatty, lead designer and engineer-of-record Arcadis and architect-of-record Ruhnau Clark Architects (collectively “Team Sterling”), delivered the net-zero project on time, on budget and with zero claims or litigation—a feat nearly unheard of in infrastructure construction.

An Infrastructure Icon

These achievements are even more impressive considering the challenges that arose during the five-year project. From a global pandemic and resulting supply chain shocks to a mega, $33 million change order executed at 60-80% design completion that upended the schedule, procurement, site design and major utilities, SNRC was a one-of-a-kind project for a one-of-a-kind team. In a testament to the power of Zero Harm, Team Sterling also navigated a gubernatorial stay-at-home order and distancing mandates while logging 800,745 total hours worked with only one lost-time incident.

Although any one of these challenges alone could have easily derailed the project, Team Sterling’s ultimate success was no surprise to Tom, who says they cultivated a strong foundation from the start through their formalized partnering process that culminated in a team Charter.

“I think trust is the biggest thing,” affirms Tom. “Developing trust amongst yourselves and having respect for one another are the best things you can do for a project to be successful.”

Today, SNRC stands as a living landmark to the realization of the East Valley Water District’s aspiration, a beacon of meaning and purpose for the local community and a signal to architecture, engineering and construction industry that the success of our work hinges not just on technical prowess but on the strength of partnerships forged. Having won over 20 industry awards to date, SNRC is one of the most highly decorated projects in Balfour Beatty history. It is also a project that echoes of Tom’s unwavering, Relentless Ally commitment to the clients and communities in his care.

“Tom’s leadership was instrumental in the construction of the Sterling Natural Resource Center. He embraced the District’s vision to make every source a resource and helped turn that dream into reality,” says Michael Moore P.E., general manager/CEO East Valley Water District. “Today, the facility is fully operational, recycling millions of gallons of water each day and generating clean energy, creating an award-winning, net-zero facility.”

A Tried-and-True Collaborator

AT SNRC and on his most recent project, the $60 million Bassett High School Stormwater Capture in La Puente, California, Tom leads our operations teams by example, modeling what it means live out Balfour Beatty’s Relentless Ally mindsets. In fact, Tom is usually the first one in the door and often the last one out. He wouldn’t have it any other way, because he takes pride in exemplifying the work ethic and commitment his parents instilled in him.

One of the reasons Tom has been an ardent proponent of collaborative contracting models is the relational foundation they cultivate that reaps decision-making efficiencies and a more enjoyable building experience for everyone. Tom’s experiences led him to pursue a formal certification through the Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA) in 2017.

“Traditional bid-build work is always a fight,” reflects Tom. “I enjoy the process of coming together as a team under a common goal. You can disagree, but the client’s end goal and making it the best it can be is the ultimate prize that everyone is working towards.”

Although Tom has four decades under his toolbelt, he’s still excited to learn new aspects of the industry, especially as it relates to sustainability which is a core tenet of Balfour Beatty’s global build to last strategy.

“When I look back over my career, I didn’t really put it together, but water resources, environmental cleanup – it’s all sustainability,” reflects Tom. “I think if there’s one thing I’m most proud of, it’s the resources I have created through building for my neighbors.”

As Tom Murray has built infrastructure icons, he has become something of an infrastructure icon himself, evolving with the needs of his communities as both a steward and trailblazer for the systems that underpin our wellbeing, opportunity and prosperity.

Ernesto Jaimes-Aguilar perfectly exemplifies that passion in his role as project safety supervisor at the new Lady Bird Lake project in Austin, Texas. For Ernesto, our Zero Harm culture isn’t just about traffic cones and neon vests—it’s about living out his purpose.

“I think my purpose is helping other people, and making sure everyone gets home safely is the way I do that,” Ernesto says. “I get to help the workers, but I also help their families and friends, as well as the company.”

The Lady Bird Lake project is still in early stages but will ultimately include rebuilding a 2.5-mile section of Interstate 35 (I-35) on the south side of downtown Austin. As he works to build a safety culture on this new venture, Ernesto is prioritizing training, communication and strong relationships to set the foundation for a safe and successful project.

Safe Beginnings

Preparing a project like Lady Bird Lake is a complicated process, with safety being considered every step of the way. Many teammates and partners on the project are transferring from Oak Hill Parkway, another major infrastructure project located in the Austin area.

Despite having worked with these individuals before, Ernesto is far from complacent. Training has been top of mind for him since breaking ground on the project, ensuring that everyone who steps onto the jobsite is making safety their number one priority.

“Training is a non-negotiable, whether a teammate is fresh off another one of our projects or not,” he explains. “We want to make sure that our Zero Harm culture, our procedures and our jobsite rules are fresh in their minds.”

This training also serves another purpose: allowing Ernesto to spend time with each and every member of the team. Though he has an established rapport with many from working on the Oak Hill Parkway project, strengthening those relationships is extremely important to Ernesto in establishing a culture of safety.

“Building a friendship as well as a working relationship establishes a level of trust,” he explains. “Everyone knows they can come to me with concerns or ideas and trust that I will provide for them and make sure they have everything they need to get the job done safely.”

Safey Amid High Traffic

Another consideration of getting the Lady Bird Lake project up and running is the proximity to live traffic. Earlier this year, Balfour Beatty announced a groundbreaking safety initiative expanding OSHA’s long-established Fatal Four to include the fifth fatal risk of Live Traffic. The Federal Highway Administration estimates there are more than 100,000 vehicle crashes in work zones each year, making vehicle traffic a significant threat, especially on a project like Lady Bird Lake.

The jobsite is located in the heart of downtown Austin, along the Colorado River just south of the Texas state capital. An estimated 200,000 drivers use this segment of I-35 daily, and Ernesto is committed to getting every one of them through the jobsite without incident.

“Working in live traffic is one of the most dangerous jobs there is,” he says. “There are all types of drivers out there—some are distracted, others are speeding, others may just be confused because of a traffic switch. It’s vital that we have every precaution in place on our jobsite to get everyone home safely.”

One such precaution includes small, portable lights on workers’ personal protective equipment (PPE). These lights, manufactured by Guardian Angel, are equipped with high-powered LEDs on all sides, enabling drivers to see workers from as far away as five miles. Innovative technologies like these are growing more common on jobsites across the U.S., and making great strides in safety.  

In addition to outfitting crews beyond the standard PPE, Ernesto also trains every member of the team to always remain alert on the jobsite.

“We prepare our jobsite and our crews as much as we possibly can, but we also have to be prepared for the unexpected,” Ernesto explains. “The training we provide is crucial, as well as the relationships we’ve built, which remind us to look out for each other.”

Breaking Down Communication Barriers

These strong relationships keep the lines of communication open, something that is vitally important to maintain a safe jobsite according to Ernesto.

“There’s the saying that you’re either falling together, or you’re falling apart,” he says. “When teams don’t communicate, they won’t be on the same page about the operations of the day, and something could get missed or overlooked. That’s how things fall apart.”

Maintaining communication isn’t always as simple as making sure teams are speaking to each other. There are logistical barriers that Ernesto is passionate about overcoming.

One such barrier is that of language. Ernesto is fluent in both English and Spanish, allowing for better communication with many members of the team.

“For many of our teammates, English is not their first language. Communicating exclusively in English can lead to misunderstandings on the jobsite,” he says. “When any member of our team doesn’t understand exactly what’s being asked of them, that presents a safety concern.”

There are also logistical barriers to communication due to the nature of jobsites. A member of the night crew at Lady Bird Lake identified one such barrier: noise.

The team working overnight on the project is often operating alongside trucks that are bringing in or hauling off materials. These trucks make it difficult for members of the team to get each other’s attention, forcing them to shout at each other in a way that was often ineffective. The crew approached Ernesto with an easy solution.

“They suggested outfitting the crew with air horns to make it easy to get each other’s attention,” he says. “It’s a simple, inexpensive solution that will make their jobs safer and easier and I’m grateful that my teammates trust me enough to come to me with feedback, especially when it makes the jobsite safer for everyone.”

Called to Safety

As Lady Bird Lake continues to take shape in the heart of Austin, Ernesto’s approach to Zero Harm serves as a powerful reminder that protecting our teammates goes beyond compliance and checklists. By prioritizing meaningful connections, fostering open communication and remaining receptive to his team’s innovative safety solutions, Ernesto has established a culture where everyone feels valued, heard and empowered to speak up.

In an industry where the stakes are literally life and death, Ernesto’s dedication stands as an example of how genuine care for people transforms safety from a responsibility into a calling.

Balfour Beatty’s industry-leading commitment to safety was the primary factor that drew Alex to pursue a career with Balfour Beatty. Before joining our team, he worked for a safety consulting firm, but Balfour Beatty’s steadfast dedication to Zero Harm stood out from the pack and led him to join the business in 2017.

Today, Alex travels throughout the Southeast conducting safety audits, offering safety management guidance and providing ongoing training for our teammates and trade partners. Whether he is at our Harkers Island Bridge Replacement project in Harkers Island, North Carolina, the Effingham Parkway project in Rincon, Georgia, or any of the large-scale infrastructure projects on which he oversees safety, Alex can always be found with his sleeves rolled up, working tirelessly to ensure our teams and surrounding communities stay safe.

On any given day, Alex is responsible for managing safety across 10 or more jobsites in multiple states. Unlike a high-rise development in which workers remain within a relatively small geographic radius, crews on civil infrastructure projects are often spread out across many miles. This might make the task of managing safety daunting to some, but Alex has honed his training and audit practices to ensure no safety issue is overlooked. Many of Balfour Beatty’s safety requirements exceed those of the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA), and Alex believes in his teammates’ leadership to maintain safe jobsites.

“Safety is more than just an aspect of what we do, it’s deeply woven into the culture at Balfour Beatty,” says Alex. “When it comes to keeping our jobsites safe, the key is teamwork. Just as it takes a team to complete a construction project, it takes a team to make sure each and every person on our jobsite and in the surrounding community stays safe.”

Alex is a firm believer that communication is the foundation to safety. Although Alex regularly visits the jobsites he manages, he can’t be everywhere at once. Because of this, he relies heavily on personal touchpoints with his teammates. Alex ensures that everyone on-site is empowered to contact him with questions or concerns but also trusts project engineers, project managers, superintendents and forepeople to effectively monitor safety.

While it is easy to get caught up in the minutiae of day-to-day operations, Alex encourages his teammates to regularly step back and look at the bigger picture of safety. Through a three-question call-and-response at the beginning of every meeting, Alex helps keep his teammates focused on safety fundamentals.

Question: Whose job is safety?
Answer: Mine.

Question: Are you committed to “Zero Harm”?
Answer: Yes.

Question: Who has the authority to stop work because of a safety concern?
Answer: I do.

“Keeping those three questions at the forefront of everyone’s mind ensures that we are all on the same page,” says Alex. “Whether I am on-site or not, our teams make sure that safety is always effectively communicated.”

Making Safety Inclusive

One of the most important steps to getting on the same page is ensuring everyone on our jobsites understands safety materials. According to the National Association of Home Builders, nearly one in three construction workers identify as Hispanic/Latinx, and approximately half of construction laborers identify as Hispanic/Latinx. Translations of these essential materials allow our teams and partners to make informed, safe choices when faced with split-second decisions.

Alex, who is fluent in Spanish, has also gone above and beyond his day-to-day responsibilities by helping translate company-wide safety materials such as Toolbox Talks, training materials, jobsite signage and more. His efforts ensure we communicate with precision and accuracy to our diverse project teams and trade partners across our entire U.S. operations.

“These materials are vital to the success and safety of our projects. We can’t afford for anyone to miss this information,” Alex says. “Our teams need to be able to read and understand the information. Translating them is one way to make sure that’s possible.”

The Spanish translations of safety materials have been successful in maintaining greater cohesion and consistency for Balfour Beatty teams across the nation. Alex’s previous role as a safety consultant gave him an understanding of unique demographic and dialect needs across different regions, and he hopes to see safety materials translated into more languages in the future.

Continuing Safety Education

Alex’s passion for safety and desire to continue learning have inspired him to advance his education. Most recently, Alex earned his Associate Safety Professional (ASP) certification, a prerequisite of which was earning his associate degree in construction. The degree and certification processes were not easy; Alex studied and took classes on his own time, learning valuable lessons he brings with him each day to our jobsites.

“Ongoing safety training is crucial to our goal of achieving Zero Harm,” says Eric Yates, regional safety, environmental and health manager. “Alex’s initiative in pursuing and achieving the ASP certification demonstrates his continued commitment to improving both himself and our overall safety performance.”

Though proud to have achieved his ASP certification, Alex is far from finished. “I never dreamed I would get my degree or certification, but now that I know I can do it, why would I stop here?” He is excited to tackle his next endeavor: earning his Certified Safety Professional (CSP) certification. The first step? Completing his bachelor’s degree.

An inclusive safety leader who is continuously raising the bar in our pursuit of Zero Harm, Alex Ramos knows first-hand that choices made in a split-second can save a life. And on his watch, those choices are sure to be safe ones.

Keith put those skills to the test as design-build manager on the I-295 Fayetteville Outer Loop project in Fayetteville, North Carolina. From the outset, the project faced significant delays due the North Carolina Map Act, which required the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) to compensate landowners for properties included on future transportation maps. As the NCDOT addressed Map Act-related settlements and budget adjustments, the project was effectively suspended.

Compounding these issues, Hurricane Florence made landfall in September 2018, resulting in a catastrophic, 500-year flood event to the corridor connecting I-95 and Fayetteville Outer Loop. At the time, the Fayetteville Outer Loop project design was only planned to withstand a 50-year flood event. In the wake of the devastation, former North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper emphasized the importance of resilient infrastructure to the state’s rebuilding efforts. 

In response, Keith partnered with the owner to proactively propose improvements bringing that segment of highway to a 100-year design standard. His initiative sparked broader conversations about the project’s untapped potential, ultimately leading to the inclusion of additional segments of I-95. Over the next 18 months, the project team successfully negotiated and integrated the expanded scope through a progressive design-build approach. The project grew from $129 million to $240 million in what became the largest change order and the first use of progressive design-build in NCDOT history.

“It was a win-win,” Keith recalls. “Balfour Beatty received critical time extension, and the owner was able to accelerate construction of I-95 by 15 years and bring it up to required standards. It was a truly collaborative effort.”

Moreover, the change order also reduced risk for both Balfour Beatty and the client. Because the change order was processed as a lump sum, it reduced our risk of incurring quantity overruns and the client’s risk of cost overruns.

Balancing Risk, Research and Reason

Balfour Beatty has gone on to procure additional collaborative contracts with NCDOT, including our largest regional project to date, U.S. 70 James City. Although Keith estimates that approximately sixty percent of infrastructure opportunities will soon be procured under collaborative models, many hard-bid and other traditional delivery opportunities still abound.

No matter what the delivery model, Keith has his eye fixed firmly five to seven years into the future, assessing every opportunity through a disciplined lens of risk tolerance, margin health and other critical decision factors that ensure Balfour Beatty achieves sustainable business growth.

While Keith bases his proposals on many known quantities, he also contends with much that is unknown. Due to market and supply chain volatility, a project priced two years ago at $100 million could easily have swelled to $200 million today. Keith’s longstanding relationships in the design and engineering communities as well as with industry associations such as the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) empower him to better anticipate these uncertainties in an industry that is becoming ever-more dynamic by the day.

Keith’s precision proposals are a powerful advantage in procuring work across every delivery type, but he is quick to credit Balfour Beatty’s integrated capabilities as the driver of success in his final bid numbers.

“You win with shorter schedules. You get shorter schedules by understanding the scope of work better than the competition, maintaining stronger relationships with the subcontractors who have solid production histories and then pricing the job correctly,” affirms Keith. “It’s about having the right leaders on the ground with the right blend of skills.”

An Architect of Change

A respected visionary within Balfour Beatty and the construction industry at large, Keith Nixon is an architect of change and an advocate for progress. His career – and the projects he has touched – are a testament to value of cultivating diverse skillsets, establishing trusted partnerships and leading with clarity and consistency. 

Jason first encountered Balfour Beatty’s operations while he worked as a temporary laborer on the sprawling Buckhead Atlanta family of projects, a mixed-use development district where our teams have maintained a near-constant presence as a construction partner since its 2005 inception.

Jason initially reported to a former safety, health and environment (SE) director and Brian Whetstone, now a senior superintendent on the LAX Automated People Mover project in California. Brian and other leaders took note of Jason’s enthusiasm for construction (a fact that surprised him as much as anyone) and soon brought him onto the team as a safety-focused understudy. Just a foot into the construction door, to be sure, but one that proved formative.

“I spent those four years working in safety asking constant questions, growing in my understanding of construction management, safety principles and the day-to-day responsibilities of project superintendents,” Jason recalls. “Eventually, I was acting enough like a superintendent that I set on the path to becoming one.”

In the years since, rising from assistant to now senior superintendent, Jason’s SHE foundations have given him a keen understanding of the Zero Harm principles that underpin Balfour Beatty’s Georgia operations. In fact, Jason sees a strict adherence to our Zero Harm ethic as a cornerstone of our service to clients, a core value never more evident than when building a K-12 campus like his current project, the Pulaski K-8 School Conversion for Savannah-Chatham County Public School System (SCCPSS).

“Especially with students on an active campus, our team must create a service-minded, Zero Harm jobsite culture among all trade partners, laborers and visitors,” Jason says. “We base that on our relationships with administration and staff. They know our safety plan because they’re an integral part of it. They know us by name and know exactly where our fences are. As servants and partners, we could do no less.”

Leading in Excellence

 Jason is quick to add that relationships don’t just matter in the dynamic between contractor and client, but also between contractor and trade partner, superintendent and day laborer. By creating a healthy jobsite culture, where open communication is encouraged and mental health and wellness are prioritized, Jason and Balfour Beatty superintendents like him empower everyone to seek excellence, ask for help when it’s needed and ultimately continue our reputation as a top builder in Savannah.

Ultimately, relationships are not one-time events. Just as our client relationships require cultivation and maintenance over time, so do the most fruitful trade partner relationships. And with project leaders like Jason at the helm and Balfour Beatty’s people-first values on- and off-site, those trade partners seem to come back again and again.

“Especially in a market with specific safety needs like K-12 education, it’s important that we build trust and camaraderie with trade partners who really understand those needs and can meet our standards of excellent service,” Jason says. “We build those relationships to last, and as much as one half of our partners on the Pulaski K-8 project will be joining us on two future SCCPSS projects.”

Still, in a fast-paced market with a diverse range of project types, Balfour Beatty is always looking to expand our network of trusted trade partners and build lasting relationships. But that can sometimes lead to trade partners taking on new or more advanced scopes of work. For Jason, centering people, relationships and servant leadership is key to helping everyone succeed.

“Everybody on a jobsite wants to succeed, and as a leader I want to do everything I can to empower success as a standard of service to our clients,” Jason says. “If I’ve built a strong relational foundation with a trade partner, it’s easy to see when they’re struggling, address the issue head-on and find out how we can work together to improve together.”

Culture Creators

Culture. Servant leadership. Relationships. While these are certainly the foundations for client service and project success, Balfour Beatty teams and leaders like Jason also know how to leverage these principles into community fun.

On the Pulaski project, Jason and the team took time out of their busy schedules to have the 2024-2025 class of fifth graders sign a steel beam destined for the entry vestibule – a mark that will hopefully last in the students’ memories for as many years as the campus serves students.

Jason’s marks on his projects, clients and partners are just as lasting: projects built right and with pride and excellence, clients that know their values are understood and shared and partners that know we care about their development and success.

Operations Manager Pete Distefano, a 20-year Balfour Beatty veteran, may be quick to share his accolades among an equally incredible team, but his leadership on Southeast infrastructure projects produces results that speak for themselves in accelerated schedules and cost savings. Through relentless client advocacy, creative preconstruction and operations solutions and more, Pete accepts nothing less than excellence for the projects that keep our economies and communities moving like Effingham Parkway, Maysville Bypass and Surf City Bridge Replacement.

Conjuring Time Out of Thin Marl

On all these projects and, more recently, the Harkers Island Bridge Replacement in Harkers Island, North Carolina, Pete cultivates high-performing teams for whom collaboration is the central driver of innovation, all in the name of reducing risk for the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT).

Protracted delays on infrastructure projects are so common that they have virtually become a pop culture trope. But Pete’s leadership on Harkers Island – a monumental project replacing a 3,200-foot, fixed-span intracoastal bridge – led to substantial completion a year ahead of schedule. This warp-speed finish is a nearly unheard-of feat in highway and bridge construction.

The secret, according to Pete: leaning on the expertise of his team, top to bottom, and a willingness to identify innovative solutions, especially during preconstruction with ample lead time to make them happen. Using traditional methods to prepare for and place the bridge-supporting piles, for example, would have required significant excavation work.

“Operations Vice President Jay Boyd had the idea to save significant time by using a probe to punch through the hard subsurface layer of marl that necessitated excavation,” recalls Pete. “The idea was fairly simple but also ambitious and required NCDOT approval with assurance that the idea was feasible.”

Our team worked to negotiate a change order and project credit, but that financial incentive was contingent upon the idea succeeding. With now universal stakes – financial, schedule and Balfour Beatty’s reputation for operational excellence – Pete rallied the team to make this innovative idea a successful reality.

Achieving substantial completion a year ahead of schedule is a staggering accomplishment on its own, but the time saved can reap further dividends. From savings on labor to minimizing community impact and the intangible benefits of opening an arterial roadway far earlier than expected, our team delivered critical goals for NCDOT.

“As a team, we understand how critical these projects are to the communities where we live and work,” Pete says. “Our roadways and bridges move goods across the state, people to work and students to schools. Our work matters, and any effort to accelerate that work is never effort wasted.”

Through it all, Pete kept the entire project team united around the mission, maintaining a collaborative spirit as they worked through the challenges at hand and identified the best and most efficient path forward.

From Operations to Industry Leadership

As the Harkers Island project neared its ambitious early completion, the construction industry at large took notice – both of the project’s constructability merits and of Pete’s stellar leadership. In addition to the punch-driven piles, Pete and the team identified an opportunity to pursue other avenues of innovation, including testing state-of-the-art industrial exoskeleton systems for increased safety during formwork.

Pete was invited to the JEC Summit on Building and Infrastructure in Paris, France, to present on the project’s successes. In addition to the punch-driven support piles, the new Harkers Island Bridge is one of the first of its kind in the U.S. to eschew traditional steel-reinforced concrete in favor of glass and carbon fiber reinforced polymer fiber throughout its concrete structures. As steel-less, non-metal materials, GFRP and CFRP are far less prone to corrosion over time, an especially critical consideration for maximizing the lifespan of a coastal bridge structure.

Harkers Island also represented a significant accomplishment in terms of environmental protection and safety considerations. Federal and state regulations prohibit pile-driving activities in coastal waterways after a certain date each year to protect fish spawning grounds.

“Through months of team grit and overtime work, careful coordination with our environmental and safety teammates and state representatives, we kept the project moving while still protecting a vital coastal economy and ecosystem,” praises Pete.

Industry organizations also duly recognized the incredible successes of the entire Harkers Island project team, and this time with hardware. The Carolinas Associated General Contractors (CAGC) honored the team with a 2024 Pinnacle Award for exceptional delivery of the $60 million project, presented during CAGC’s 104^th Annual Conference in Charleston, South Carolina.

“I’m incredibly proud of the feat our team has accomplished at Harkers Island, and especially because I know it was such a team effort,” Pete adds. “We understood the mission, understood the value of acceleration to our client and we pulled out every stop to make it happen safely, environmentally consciously and affordably.”

A True Construction Professional

Even as Pete’s project leadership and Balfour Beatty’s expertise garner accolades, awards and conference appearances, Pete maintains that he loves his job not for the recognition, but love of the construction process itself. Indeed, even for the excitement of using heavy civils machinery and state-of-the-art aerial videography drones.

“Our Buildings teammates build incredible projects, but on the infrastructure side, the machines are bigger,” Pete says with a wry smile. “That still excites me, but I enjoy even more that we get to build the infrastructure that will connect people, places and business for decades to come.”

During his days as an assistant project manager, Eric was assigned to the National Museum of the Marine Corps, primarily supervising field crews during the fit-out phase of the project. The 120,000-square-foot facility was nearing completion when Eric joined the team, working the night shift and finalizing the lighting in the main gallery.

Over ten years later, Eric found himself once again at the museum, this time as a project executive. For the phase 2 expansion project, the team more than doubled the space, adding new exhibit galleries, a large screen theater and a student education center.

“It was a really full-circle project for me,” explains Eric. “I was engaged in the initial project from a young age and felt like I was just finding my way in the industry. Being able to come back so many years later and lead the team that put the expansion on has been a highlight of my career.”

The museum has received extensive recognition, with the original project earning more than a dozen recognitions and the expansion project earning recognitions from Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) of Metropolitan Washington and Virginia and NAIOP Northern Virginia. It is one of Balfour Beatty’s signature projects in the Mid-Atlantic, and a testament to our team’s emphasis on collaboration and commitment to bringing our clients’ visions to life.

Stepping Fearlessly in the Future

As the team charts a new course in Central Virginia, careful planning and preparation set the foundation for building to last. New challenges and unexpected obstacles are sure to come, but with a strong, collaborative culture as their guidepost, Eric and his teammates are ready to meet them head-on.

Balfour Beatty’s  Arizona operations have established a well-earned reputation as the contractor of choice for large-scale hospitality projects, including the ongoing Grand Hyatt Scottsdale Resort at Gainey Ranch and past work like Mountain Shadows Resort and The Fairmont Scottsdale. While Balfour Beatty’s hospitality market leadership continues building on this momentum, Allison also sees Arizona as a strategic growth market for many other sectors and is committed to finding new avenues for opportunity.

“Like in other parts of the country, many Arizona developers are diversifying portfolios and adjusting to our status as a hub of commercial mixed-use developments, retail and entertainment destinations and other rapid growth markets like data centers,” Allison adds. “Balfour Beatty is well-positioned to take on these growth areas and more.”

Allison is originally from Northern California east of the Bay Area, but became an Arizona State University Sun Devil and  received her bachelor’s degree in communications and business. Throughout her career, she has participated in multiple professional organizations and committees, including the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), the Urban Land Institute’s Women’s Leadership Initiative (ULI-WLI) and the Arizona Association of Economic Development (AAED).

“Allison is a fantastic addition to our team in Arizona,” says Vice President Jay McQuarie. “She has an innate sense of client relationship-building and advocacy and a unique drive to see our clients connected to the teams and project solutions that best suit their needs.”

Today, Landon leads a team that, though based in California, is actively leaving an indelible mark on our preconstruction practices nationwide. Landon is also Balfour Beatty’s foremost expert on DESTINI Estimator and spearheaded its implementation over eight years ago.

While Landon and his team continue to test new and exciting AI-powered preconstruction tools, they still churn out more than 200 estimates per year, constantly driving down risk for our clients and trade partners.

From Trade Partnerships to Estimating Prowess

Landon attributes much of his estimating success to his roots in the trades, where he first worked as a metal stud framer and experienced the many ways that inaccurate estimating can result in cost escalations or delays that directly impact trade partners. After transitioning to the world of estimating, he brought this ground-level knowledge of the jobsite to bear.

It can be easy for estimators without that experience to overlook the granularity of a jobsite’s day-to-day activities and materials – how many tubes of caulk will be needed on a project? How many screws? How many cans of paint?

“At Balfour Beatty, we’ve created a culture where we expect that kind of precision as a higher degree of service to our clients,” Landon says. “Most of our estimators also come from the subcontracting world, so they understand the value of minute detail.”

While pursuing ever more accurate estimates is a clear benefit to our client, Landon’s and others’ trade backgrounds also ensure that our preconstruction teams have a clear window into our trade partners’ interests in achieving mutually beneficial goals.

“Large contractors can fall into a mindset that small preconstruction inaccuracies ‘come out in the wash,’ but we know better,” Landon adds. “Not only does that mentality betray our mission to deliver lean project solutions for our clients, but it lets down our trade partners for whom small changes can have outsized impacts.”

Embracing DESTINI

Collaboration – within, with clients and with design and trade partners – is at the core of Balfour Beatty’s behaviors as a company. When Landon first encountered the possibility of an even more collaborative and virtually accessible preconstruction environment via DESTINI Estimator, he seized the opportunity with the full support of company leadership.

At a base level, DESTINI provides a powerful tool for parametric estimating, able to extrapolate future estimates based on Balfour Beatty’s ever-expanding database of current and historical costs. In a time of persistent market volatility, owners increasingly rely on “napkin sketch” estimates during the earliest phases of project planning.

By implementing DESTINI Estimator, Balfour Beatty makes “napkin sketch” calculations as reliable as possible, and the following more concrete estimates are faster and more collaborative than ever.

“Many of our projects follow a collaborative alternative delivery contracting model like design-build or CM at-Risk, which already universally enhances collaboration between our team, the client and our design partner,” Landon says. “Using DESTINI combined with powerful 3D modeling tools, our preconstruction team and design partners can generate hypothetical sub-estimates in minutes, testing value engineering decisions and their cost implications in real time.”

What was once handled in a series of tedious back-and-forth emails (potentially losing the accuracy of cost data in the process) can now be accomplished instantly, accessible to all and accurate to the minute. Beyond just enhanced accuracy, the time savings significantly accelerates preconstruction and thus a client’s prospective speed to market.

Building on Success

Even after successfully implementing and improving upon DESTINI Estimator’s powerful advantages, Landon and his team have continued to explore new enhancements to the technology.

Under Landon’s leadership and out of commitment to Balfour Beatty’s mission, Senior Estimator Jorge Vargas has recently made DESTINI’s already collaborative environment even more user-friendly and accountable by creating a data-rich environment of trend management with software from Join. With the tool, clients, designers and our estimators can easily prioritize the most financially consequential value engineering options, comparing even minor design changes using DESTINI’s reliable cost predictions.

That data is largely managed by Estimator Hans Seggelke, and the entire process is overseen by Chief Estimator Neil Reilly, all while Director of Design Management Kristen Tuerk utilizes her architecture background to help clients identify the most lean and cost-effective design choices for any project.

While Landon is quick to divert attention away from himself and toward the dynamic preconstruction team he’s assembled, they’re all united by the same client-first values. Whether building schools, emergency operations centers or world-class aviation facilities, preconstruction professionals like Landon and the rest of our California team have the technical knowledge, collaborative mindset and willingness to try new and powerful tools necessary to create success.