I was introduced to RADIX Construction, Inc. when they won the bid to be the general contractor on our new North Pointe Retail Project (NWC of State & Saxton | Boise, ID). At the time, I was the assigned construction accountant over the project, responsible of making sure RADIX was paid in a timely manner over the course of construction. I was impressed with RADIX right away as my counterpart in their office, Amber Jones, provided her documents to me in a timely and organized fashion – not something all GCs do. Overall she was easy and very pleasant to work with. Therefore, when I was asked to provide a vendor for our “Business Spotlight” feature of our News blog, I instantly picked RADIX. So earlier this year, I reached out to Amber with a few questions. She passed the questions to their president, Dave Ward, who answered them as follows:
1. How and when did RADIX start?
RADIX was formed by David Ward, Scott Stimpson, and Tony O’Neil. The business was incorporated in on July 09, 2003. Prior to forming RADIX, Dave, Scotty and Tony were employees of CSDI Construction, Inc., of which Dave was a co-founder, part owner, and served as the president of that firm for ten years. Since forming RADIX, Dave serves as the President of the firm, and manages the day-to-day administration responsibilities for the firm. Tony serves as the Vice President of our firm, and manages all field operations for the firm. Scotty is the Secretary/Treasurer for the firm, and serves as a Vice President and Project Manager for special projects.
2. What exactly does RADIX do?
RADIX Construction, Inc., (RADIX) is a full service Architectural Design, Commercial Construction Management and General Contracting firm based in Nampa, Idaho. RADIX is knowledgeable and experienced in both traditional and alternative project delivery systems, which bring an added value approach to projects of various size and complexity. The types of project delivery styles range from traditional bid, construction management, design-build, to negotiated contracts for both private and public entities. RADIX has extensive experience in the commercial office space, education, multifamily housing, retail, government, health care, restaurant and food service industries.
Radix has credentials in place to provide commercial general contracting services through state registration and licensing requirements in the following states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming, and the US territories of Guam and Puerto Rico. In addition, should a client have an interest in a project where we presently do not have the credentials, we can generally secure them with several months’ notice.
RADIX has developed a simplistic business philosophy, which incorporates the values of “Partnering, Quality Assurance & Full Disclosure,” whereby the project participants’ efforts are coordinated and maximized for the mutual benefit of the Owner’s project goals. The success of the project is dependent on the cooperative efforts resulting from this partnership, a partnership that is formed as a non-adversarial relationship between the Owner, the Architect, the Engineers, the Interior Designers, RADIX and the Trade Contractors and Suppliers. This partnership is accomplished by RADIX’s proactive management style that begins during the conceptual stage of the project, and then continues through the design development stage, the construction stage, and the project’s completion and warranty period. This approach focuses on providing Architectural Design, Construction Management and General Contracting services, on a full disclosure basis, which are designed and developed to meet the individual project needs and budget of the Owner.
Our success as an Architectural Design, Construction Management and General Contracting firm is a direct result of repeat and satisfied clients, and our ability to maintain quality, budgets and schedules for our clients. Whether the project is a tenant improvement or a multi-story commercial office building, RADIX employs the same management philosophy and commitment to quality and service, which has been the legacy of the Principles of RADIX Construction, Inc. for over 45 years.
To insure that a project is built in a quality manner, on-time and within a budget, we have a knowledgeable and seasoned staff of construction management, supervisory, and administrative personnel to meet the challenges of our clients Architectural and Construction needs. Each of our employees has diversified backgrounds and hands-on working experience of current Architectural Design and Construction technology and project controls.
Overall, RADIX has the resources to offer its clients a custom commercial arrangement tailored to meet their project needs. Whatever agreement is decided upon, RADIX is willing to work with our clients on an open book full disclosure basis, so that they know how and where their money is being spent.
3. How many employees work for RADIX?
RADIX currently has 28 full time employees.
4. Name the things that sets RADIX apart from the competition?
It’s our belief that RADIX has three major attributes that gives us an advantage over our competition.
First, over the years we have developed what we believe is a true design/build project delivery program. We believe, and there is a national trend developing that the days of design-bid-build project delivery program is winding down. Collaborative approaches are expected be more common and gain ground. Too often in a competitively bid construction project, contractors are awarded a project based purely on their bottom line, without being involved in any upfront planning or discussion of design intent. Not only can this lead to unrealistic requests and expectations from the client, because there hasn’t been a conversation about factors that could impact the construction schedule and budget, but it can also create an adversarial relationship from the start. Design-Build and Public-Private Partnerships are two of the most often cited methods that are altering the industry, and are likely to gain ground. The design-build process consolidates the design and construction phases and allows the owner, architect, contractor and other project stakeholders to collectively determine project goals, cost, risk-sharing, and compensation. On the public-sector side, Public Private Partnerships (P3s) involves a government entity hiring a group from the private sector to design, finance and build projects. The group will then operate and maintain the facility for years before turning it over to the Owner.
Secondly, RADIX has the licensing and credentials in-place to provide our services in 28 states and the US territories of Guam and Puerto Rico, which gives us a larger geographic marketing and client base to draw from.
And lastly, RADIX has developed a team of construction and construction administrative professionals who have successfully been able to administer and execute projects from Portland Maine to Miami Florida and from San Diego California to Seattle, Washington on the Mainland, and then to Hawaii and the US Territory of Guam.
5. How many projects has RADIX completed over the years?
RADIX has completed 201 projects to date since we started our business on July 09, 2003. And, it is important to note that we have had in-house architecture services from that date, with the capacity to provide a true design/build project delivery program if ask for by the client.
6. What is RADIX most proud of? Or what project is RADIX the most proud of?
RADIX is most proud of the culture that we have able to create. That culture is shaped by a dedicated and devoted staff that embraces the ideals of excellence, persistence, dedication and commitment to doing what we say we will do. In addition to our staff culture, RADIX is also proud that we will be moving into our OWN new office this year.
7. What is the craziest thing RADIX has had to deal with?
We were contracted to build two restaurants (a Tony Roma’s Barbecue and a California Pizza Kitchen) in the US Territory of Guam by a Japanese restaurant development company. Since there were limited equipment and material supply houses in Guam, the project required that we take-off all of the materials and equipment required to build the restaurants and load it in sea containers in Nampa, Idaho, and then ship it to Guam via truck and marine shipping to Guam to facilitate the building of these restaurants. The logistic alone was a major task. Through it all we were able to provide the required quantities of material and equipment for the project, arrange the shipping including clearing everything through customs, and them successfully completing the projects with limited resources.
8. Is there anything else that RADIX would like the readers of this blog to know?
RADIX would like to let the Hawkins Companies know that we are appreciative of the opportunities that they have given our firm to partner with them to meet their construction services needs. We have found their staff to be very approachable, helpful, and fair in their dealings with our staff. Their management style has always made our project staff feel like we were part of the Hawkins team, which is rare in the industry today. As a result, we at RADIX look forward to continuing to explore future business opportunities with the Hawkins Companies. We will always value the trust and confidence that they have given us to meet their building needs.
For more information, visit their website at www.radixplans.com.