COVER STORY, JULY 2004

Contractor Sketches
Southeast construction firms keep up with national and regional trends to bring great projects to our region.
Julie Fritz Hunt

According to Bill Pinto, president and chief operating officer of Atlanta-based Hardin Construction Company, two current — and seemingly unrelated —trends in the construction industry have an impact on each other: mixed-use projects and the rising cost of materials.

“The live/work/play market continues to blossom,” he says. “In every region of the country in which Hardin Construction works, we are seeing more activity in urban settings that provide the ability for rental and for-sale housing contiguous with office and retail components. Secondly, all construction is being impacted by rising material prices, and has been since late last year. Steel pricing has increased anywhere from 10 to 20 percent in cost, which has impacted total building costs from 3 to 8 percent, depending on the physical characteristics of the building. This impact has also affected other building products such as concrete, drywall and other metals such as copper. Pricing appears to be stabilizing; however, it is doing so at a much higher level than many projects had expected. Short-term pricing is still very volatile, but expectations are that prices should retreat somewhat toward the end of 2004.”

Andrew McPherson, vice president of Seretta Construction in Orlando, Florida, says that many owners and developers throughout the country are realizing the value of insulating structures for energy savings. “Insulated sandwich panels (reinforced concrete insulated tilt-up panels) are a cost-efficient solution. We have seen a tremendous increase in the number of insulated building projects including industrial, manufacturing, office, and temperature-controlled facilities such as food and beverage processing and packaging plants,” says McPherson.

Seretta Construction Founded: 1987 Headquarters: Orlando, Fla. Additional offices in the Southeast: Charlotte, N.C. (operates throughout the central and eastern U.S. and the Caribbean) Property types built: industrial, manufacturing, office/warehouse, distribution centers, retail, multi-story office buildings, institutional facilities and temperature-controlled facilities Seretta Construction is commercial concrete contractor specializing in tilt-wall construction and specialty slabs. The company provides a turnkey building service to owners and contractors that includes foundation, slab-on grade, elevated slabs, tilt-up panels and exterior concrete. Recent/current project: Brighthouse Networks/ Carillon Office Park Brighthouse Networks/ Carillon Office Park – St Petersburg, Fla. • General Contractor: The Murray Company • Developer: Echelon Commercial Development • Subcontractor: Seretta Construction • Seretta has completed construction of the 166,000-square-foot, three-story, tilt-wall, Class A office building in a premiere office park. • 60-foot-tall tilt-up panels with full height cast in place thin brick weighing 70 tons each. • Two variations of colored thin brick set in three different patterns, corner return bricks on the outside edges of panels provided the look of a true modular brick building, saving the owner substantial money, yet allowing them to achieve a desired look. • Seretta’s scope of work included construction of foundations, slab-on grade, composite decks for upper floors, tilt-up panels with installation of thin brick, truck ramps and stairs. • The building shell was completed in 5 months. Concrete contract was $1.4 million of the total $16 million project. Contractor is scheduled for completion late summer and tenant occupancy in September. Recent Awards: • Associated Builders & Contractors (ABC) 2003 & 2004 “Charles J. Seidel” Safety Award – Gold Level • ABC 2003 Excellence in Construction Eagle Award – Metropointe Business Park, St. Petersburg, Fla. • ABC 2003 Subcontractor of the Year

Summit Contractors Founded: 1989 Headquarters: Jacksonville, Fla. Federal Law Enforcement Training Center Housing Additional offices in the Southeast: Montgomery, Ala. Property types built: all multi-residential, office, warehouse, retail and flex Recent/current projects: •Federal Law Enforcement Training Center Housing in Brunswick, Ga. •230,000-square-foot pharmaceutical distribution facility in Jacksonville, Fla. •42 multifamily properties in 23 states Recent Awards: • Various local Associated Builders and Contractors Eagle and Merit Awards • 50 Fastest Growing Companies • Engineering News and Record Top 400 Ranking (170)/Top 10 Construction Company State of Florida

Centurion Construction Company Inc. Founded: 1980 Headquarters: Raleigh, N.C. Property types built: office, flex space, medical, research labs, religious facilities and schools Recent/current projects: • Old Town Yacht Club, an exclusive, multi-story, condominium project: The primary structure is a cast-in-place, post-tension system that utilizes job cast concrete panels as the architectural façade. The uniqueness of this project is the incorporation of the job cast panels, which are not only aesthetically pleasing but extremely durable, thereby producing a facility that requires less maintenance. • Coastal Federal Credit Unions: These facilities have embraced the high-technology sector, not only through the forward-thinking design, but also the integrated interactive technology. These types of facilities have proven themselves by providing the highest levels of security possible. Centurion has adopted the philosophy of cyber banking as an innovative approach that appeals to the current market demands. These facilities are designed to create a casual, comfortable atmosphere, which invites the member to partake in the various amenities offered.

Hardin Construction Company Founded: 1946 Headquarters: Atlanta Additional offices in the Southeast: Orlando and Tampa, Fla. Property types built: retail, hospitality, multifamily, corporate and speculative office, K-12 and higher education, government and public assembly BellSouth at Lindbergh Center Recent/current projects: • BellSouth at Lindbergh Center: This project anchors a transit-oriented, live/work/ play, master-planned community and features twin 14-story office towers that share a central atrium and 2,400 parking spaces. The final mixed-use project will include 1.2 million square feet of office space, 380,000 square feet of retail space, an entertainment complex, 566 apartment units, 380 condominium units, public parking and a transportation hub. Recent Awards: Associated Builders and Contractors: • 2003 Award of Excellence for the Kforce.com Corporate Headquarters (Florida Gulf Coast Chapter) • 2003 Award of Excellence for the Mall at Millenia (Florida Central Chapter) • 2003 Award of Merit for the University of Central Florida Parking Garage IV (Florida Central Chapter) • 2003 National Platinum Level Award for Safety Training and Evaluation Process (STEP) – this is the fourth consecutive year that Hardin has received this award • 2003 Safety Award for Superior Safety Performance by a General Contractor (Georgia Chapter) National Association of Industrial & Office Properties: • 2003 Best of the Best Award for Outstanding Office Building for the Nielsen Media Research Corporate Offices Phase I Construction Users Roundtable (CURT): • 2003 Construction Industry Safety Excellence (CISE) Constructor Safety Award – This is the second CURT Contractor Safety Award (formerly awarded through The Business Roundtable) that Hardin Construction has received in a 5-year period. Because the award evaluates a 3-year time period, a company that has received a CURT Constructor Safety Award cannot be nominated for the award again for 3 years.

Batson-Cook Company Founded: 1915 Headquarters: West Point, Ga. Additional offices in the Southeast: construction offices in Atlanta; Birmingham, Ala.; Jacksonville and Tampa, Fla. Property types built: office, industrial, retail, institutional, healthcare, hospitality, education and resort Recent/current projects: • Batson-Cook recently completed the Franklin D. Roosevelt Little White House Museum, which consisted of a new 12,000-square-foot facility to house permanent exhibits and a theater. Additionally, renovations were made to the existing ticketing areas and gift shop to accommodate access to the new museum and to provide an “exit” experience. The existing museum, Mustian Place, was renovated to become staff offices. This facility, which is eligible for LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification, was constructed on a historic landmark site and the additions/renovations involved structures on the National Register of Historic Places. Facility for the Federal Bureau of Investigation • Batson-Cook is currently serving as general contractor for a three-story, 86,200-square-foot building, which will house Class A office/administrative space for the Federal Bureau of Investigation and will include a 130-space parking deck. The scope of work will also include space for a planned radio maintenance facility, site amenities and complete tenant build-out of the facility. Recent Awards: Groups such as the Associated General Contractors (AGC), American Concrete Institute (ACI), Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) as well as other prestigious national and state associations have consistently recognized Batson-Cook for its outstanding achievements in the area of quality and safety. Other recent awards: • ACI’s First Place Award for the Galleria 600 Office Building in Atlanta. • Horizon Award by the Greater Florida AGC for projects at Flagler College in St. Augustine and Landon Middle School in Jacksonville.

Gulf Stream Construction Company Founded: 1966 Headquarters: Charleston, S.C. Property types built: automotive dealerships, commercial, educational, golf resort amenity, healthcare, hospitality, industrial, institutional, office, retail, religious, renovations and up-fits, restaurant and speculative space Recent/current project: ‚ Automated Trading Desk: This is a state-of-the-art financial research and investment complex in Charleston consisting of a high-tech, 68,000-square-foot facility including a highly secure data center, trading floor, executive board room, 120 offices, 10,000-square-foot computer access flooring, 50 miles of data cable and redundant backup for all primary systems. Construction complies with IBC 2000 for Seismic Resistance. Gulf Stream successfully secured a conditional Certificate of Occupancy for the owner to ensure that the 5,000-square-foot data center could be commissioned and brought on line. The company s site work division was tasked with completing aspects of site construction on a fast track schedule and was successful in working with a challenging site marked by grand oaks and storm water ponds. The result is a park-like setting that flows with the natural environment. Recent Awards: ‚ LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certified General Contractor ¬ USGBC - 2003 ‚ No. 1 Ranked General Contractor ¬ Charleston Regional Business Journal ¬ 2002, 2003 ‚ SC Certified Construction Manager - State of South Carolina - 2002 ‚ Carolina AGC s Presidential Award ¬ CAGC - 2002 ‚ Associated General Contractors Outstanding Safety Performance Award ¬ CAGC - 2002 Additional details about the company: Gulf Stream, a site improvement division, has completed high-end, resort golf clubhouses, including the legendary Cassique clubhouse. The company is also known for high-end office projects in Charleston.

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