Our Safety Director, Ted Larkin, is a certified master instructor of the OSHA 10 and 30-hour training programs, veteran outreach instructor of the 1926 OSHA construction standards and a medic first instructor. He provides in-house safety training for all our employees that's tailored to the common project types and work scopes that we undertake. Ted then works with Berglund project teams and their subcontractors to develop project-specific preconstruction safety plans that are monitored throughout every project.

We complement the top-down aspects of our safety program with bottom-up initiatives that encourage every tradesperson to take ownership of our safety culture. Anyone who enters a jobsite is charged with speaking up if she witnesses an unsafe act — even if it’s uncomfortable. And we celebrate proactive “good catches” where tradespeople find and report potential hazards on projects before they result in incidents.

Combining top-down with bottom-up initiatives has led to a company EMR — a standard of jobsite safety — of .47, besting the industry average of 1.0. And it’s led to a highly trained workforce that cares deeply about the health and safety of everyone associated with a Berglund project.

With a focus on our clients' needs, we continually evaluate everything we do for ways we can do it better. This company-wide approach to continuous improvement encompasses all our processes — from installing curtainwall systems to developing construction progress schedules.

In the field, we use our extensive database of quality bulletins and checklists to monitor the installation of all products that are installed on our projects. Our cloud-based project management software, Procore, allows us to notify responsible parties of installation deficiencies in real-time and track their remediation. Using the data from this system, we continually monitor company-wide performance and identify areas where additional education, training or quality bulletins may be warranted. We use first-work-in-place reviews and mock-ups to ensure all installers understand the project team's high expectations for quality.

To monitor our overall company processes, we maintain several coalitions tasked with continually assessing policies and initiatives to see where improvements can be made. We have separate coalitions that monitor quality control, risk management and safety, lean processes, technology, ethics and operations - along with an executive committee that sets the high-level direction.

This all-inclusive approach to quality ensures that we're never complacent in our quest to do better for our clients.

Building Information Modeling (BIM)

A prototype helps to identify potential avenues for failure before significant investment is made. But it can be cost-prohibitive, especially for building projects. Building Information Modeling is the solution. By employing BIM, we can build our prototypes virtually, to exacting dimensions; all while avoiding the prohibitive cost of real-world prototyping.

Virtual Design & Construction

To fully maximize the benefits of BIM throughout the entire project lifecycle, we use Virtual Design and Construction. From the beginning stages, we can show clients specific details across multiple design concepts. We apply costs to the model elements for these concepts to support real-time estimating. We can test building performance and give clients early visibility into aesthetic choices, all from the relatively low-cost virtual world.

Our preconstruction teams leverage VDC to make better decisions, maximizing the return on our client’s investment. Our builders will utilize the models to coordinate mechanical systems, communicate more clearly, and plan for the most efficient and safest approach to construction. This saves precious time and ultimately money, while boots are on the ground.

As a project nears completion, our BIM will cease to be a prototype; we will inform the model with as-builts conditions and data for future use in facility maintenance. This ensures vital project information is not lost when the last contractor leaves the building.

Laser Scanning

Laser Scanning allows us to proactively solve for unknowns. The majority of construction issues on renovations result from unforeseen existing conditions, which conflict with design documents. With laser scanning technology, we can rapidly capture job-specific conditions and anticipate these potential issues ahead of time.

Drone Program

For over 100 years, Berglund has always kept a watchful eye on our projects. As technology has evolved from film, to digital cameras, to smart phones, so has our ability to monitor our projects. Drones are the next wave in that evolution, allowing us to get closer to hard-to-reach places, decreasing the cost of inspections while increasing the frequency, and taking us to new heights to capture the full perspective of project evolution.

Last Planner® System

Utilizing a critical path method (CPM), Berglund starts with target completion dates and works backward. Tasks are identified and sequenced so their completion releases work. This methodology cultivates a collaborative, opportunistic approach to improve completion dates and avoid surprises or delays in the field.

Target Value Design

Through comparative analysis of similar work types and a comprehensive historical database, Berglund's implementation of target value design creates design criterion for major building systems. These methods help inform and shape the design conversation.

Lean Project Delivery System

Lean Project Delivery eliminates silos, encourages communication between project teams and leads to shared objectives. This reduces waste and streamlines resources, resulting in facilities better fit for purpose at lower total cost.

Starting at the earliest phases of design and preconstruction, our interdisciplinary team of professionals is trained to identify alternatives that contribute to a large array of sustainability initiatives. For projects seeking certifications, whether Net Zero or LEED, Berglund is equipped to help achieve sustainability goals. We employ several LEED-accredited professionals who have a track record of finding creative ways to achieve project points.

Our unique combination of green building experience and façade expertise helps project teams design and construct building envelopes that perform over the long-term. At least five of the major LEED credit categories are impacted by the building façade: Innovation & Design, Indoor Environmental Quality, Materials and Resources, Energy and Atmosphere, and Sustainable Sites. Our Building Division collaborates with our Restoration Division, which specializes in building envelope maintenance and repair, to review details and systems to ensure sustainability efforts aren't hampered by poor facade performance.

Our commitment to sustainable building extends to our own facilities. The Berglund Indiana office building achieved LEED Silver certification when it was built in 2007.

Past Projects: Minority-Owned Businesses and Women-Owned Businesses

We’ve developed positive working relationships with many locally owned subcontractors, consultants and suppliers, including minority- and women-owned business enterprises. Our commitment to promote economic growth and development is best demonstrated by our track record for exceeding our client’s enterprise and workforce outreach goals.

MBE/WBE by Project

Local Work Force by Project

Community Workforce Training and Development

Berglund is committed to finding and developing talent from underrepresented communities. We draw upon our long and successful relationships with local organizations, leaders and activists to find and hire terrific people from within these communities. As a result, minority employees make up around 50 percent of our workforce.

Lasting Relationships

Berglund is built on long-term relationships. Thanks to long-lasting relationships with business partners and subcontractors, we've earned the trust of long-term clients. Over 80% of our business comes from repeat clients. Some clients have known all four generations of our company's family history.

In addition to employing long-time employees and tradespeople, many of our subcontractors have worked with Berglund for decades. This allows us to control for cost and quality for clients. This strong network of subcontractors is cultivated through demonstrated performance on both sides. Our subcontractors deliver quality work because we're a professional and trustworthy partner.

Berglund also values and maintains relationships with similar-minded service providers. We have been with the same bonding company — one of the industry's best — for more than 50 years. This reflects our reputation in the industry and our commitment to doing business with integrity. We sustain long-term relationships with our banks, insurance brokers and other service providers.

Controlled Growth

We believe in and are committed to growing our business. This helps up provide better service to our clients and opportunities for our employees. However, we only grow by investing back into our business. We do not believe in excessive leverage or long-term debt. We do not take unnecessary risks. Our growth over the years has been funded by our ongoing operations, not by borrowing. We value a strong, stable balance sheet. We understand the need to always be in a position to handle the unexpected.

Risk Management

One of the key stalwarts of fiscal responsibility is managing risk. This is a challenge in an industry as risky as construction. Our EMR of .59 is just one testimonial to how well Berglund manages risk.

One of the cornerstones of our risk management strategy is our association with American Contractors Insurance Group. This is a coalition of 40 industry-leading contractors that works together to implement world-class risk management processes. We learn from each other and hold each other accountable for developing increasingly more effective risk management strategies.

We qualify and re-qualify our subcontractors with increasingly stringent standards. We manage and monitor their work on every project to make sure we are proactively aware of any issues that might arise. This allows us to provide a high level subcontractor default insurance program as a benefit and risk management tool to our clients.

Transparency with Clients

We understand our role as vanguards over our clients' resources. That's why we have processes in place to evaluate and track every aspect of a project. We have always offered open-book transparency in all financial transactions. From the preconstruction phase through final close out, we value and appreciate the opportunity to help manage our clients' financial interests.