Experts claim that a form of Construction Management (CM) construction delivery was used in ancient times as far back as the pyramids. However, according to Construction Management Association of America, CM became known as a distinctive construction delivery option in the 1960s1. The need for a new construction delivery method at that time was due to more “sophisticated” systems being designed for large, complicated buildings and stricter regulations. It was a growth time for the HVAC industry with the introduction of air conditioning and computerized control systems2. More complex applications increased the role of the contractor to be more involved with the “specification of equipment and parts”. There eventually was a shortage of HVAC installers and with the increased desire for air conditioning, shoddy applications led to many problems. A problem which was well suited for CM advocacy between the Designer and the Contractor.
Wolgast Corporation originated in 1948 as G. H. Wolgast Masonry by Gerald Wolgast, a Masonry Contractor, and then expanded to a General Contractor (GC) soon after. The company remained a GC for twenty years until Gerald and his sons were the first to add Design/Build services as an option to deliver complicated projects more efficiently. This method was great for buildings with a smaller square footage and shorter durations to build and worked well in many applications for another twenty-five years. At that time, ever the progressive contractor, Wolgast added CM Services to enter the education sector, officially. The new service groomed Wolgast to quickly become a top advocate for our school clients who had complicated systems, a long construction duration, and lots of construction activities to plan simultaneously. A team of Owners Representative, Architect and Construction Manager created the strong leadership necessary for large, complex projects guaranteeing that critical elements of design, cost, time, and quality would come together to deliver a project that the owner wanted and needed.
Since 1996, Wolgast’s CM Division has completed more than $2 billion of in-place construction just for school clients. We now have three offices dedicated to CM Services and have worked with almost 150 of the 450 school districts within Michigan, plus a few in Ohio. Our staff is top-notch and our field managers are on our work sites 100% of the time. He or she is there to monitor the day-to-day activity and to help school officials arrange schedules, so that school activities can carry-on uninterrupted. This is only part of the reason why 80% of our clients are repeat customers.
1https://www.healthdesign.org/sites/default/files/an_owners_guide_to_construction_management.pdf, preface, page 1, reprinted with the permission of Construction Management Association of America, Inc.
2 https://www.contractingbusiness.com/archive/1960s-incredible-growth-amid-chaos, 3/10/09
