The Southeast’s Top Contractors

Region’s Top Contractors Report More Than $33.1 Billion in 2007 Revenue

By Scott Judy

Southeast Construction presents its eighth annual Top Contractors ranking. This year, the ranking has slightly more than 160 firms listed, and a record $33.1 billion in collective revenue represented. That’s up from the $29.7 billion in 2006 revenue that was reported on last year’s ranking.

To obtain the revenue information listed here, the magazine solicited information from both last year’s respondents as well as many other firms included in our database, the McGraw-Hill Construction Network, and other sources. The survey was conducted online, from a link at www.southeast.construction.com, where any qualifying firm could input its information directly.

The information provided here is based upon the submissions provided by each firm through this online process.

This current list ranks the top general contracting and construction management firms in the Southeast. As in past years, the list includes building contractors, heavy/highway firms and all general contracting firms in between.

It should be noted that this list reflects only those companies that chose to participate by filling out the magazine’s survey form and submitting their revenue information.

At the Top

Our main Top Contractors ranking is based upon each firm’s 2007 revenue generated from projects within the four-state region only. Within the main ranking we also include more extensive information about each of the firms, including address and phone number, Web site address, year established, number of regional employees, the top officer for the area, a breakdown of the contractor’s focus of work and their biggest project under construction during 2007.

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Repeating in the ranking’s top spot was Brasfield & Gorrie, which again reported more than $1.3 billion in revenue from its Southeast operations for 2007. That’s on par with what the firm reported last year

As it was last year, the company’s regional total was spread out among the four states, and included the following: Florida nearly $491 million; Georgia ; $629.6 million; North Carolina $129.2 million; and South Carolina $51.5 million.

This year’s second-place finisher was Turner Construction Co., which saw its ’07 Southeast revenue improve by approximately $300 million compared to the preceding year. As a result, the company jumped three spots from last year’s ranking.

Balfour Beatty Construction, in third, is new to the list, but in name only. The London-based engineering and construction firm bought Centex Construction in early 2007, thus gaining a strong foothold in the Southeast U.S. The re-named company showed consistent revenue performance during 2007, taking second place again this year with nearly $1.1 billion in Southeast revenue actually an improvement from last year’s second-place tally of $937.7 million.

With the one-year anniversary of the acquisition coinciding with this year’s Top Contractors ranking, Southeast Construction teamed up with sister publication Texas Construction to report on the changes at Balfour Beatty, and its big splash into the U.S. construction industry, which is included in this issue. For expanded coverage of this story, Southeast Construction readers can visit www.texas.construction.com to learn more about Balfour Beatty’s Texas activities.

Beyond the top two firms, the rest of this year’s top 10 with a few exceptions is strikingly similar to last year’s.

Bovis Lend Lease fell one place to finish fourth, with $1.06 billion in Southeast revenue. Skanska fell one spot, too, and ranked fifth, this time with $954.2 million. The Yates Cos., which placed seventh in last year’s ranking, edged up to sixth with $820 million in Southeast revenue reported.

BE&K of Charlotte, N.C., jumped from 12th to seventh with about $770.1 million in 2007 revenue, while Archer Western Contractors moved up from 10th to eighth with $715 million in revenue last year.

Atlanta-based Choate Construction Co. stayed steady in ninth, with an estimated $697.6 million in ’07 revenue. Another Atlanta firm, Hardin Construction Co., rounded out the top 10 with approximately $681 million for 2007 Southeast revenue.

Here are some other findings from this year’s ranking:

• As was the case last year, Florida revenue makes up the biggest part of the cumulative revenue total. This year’s list represents nearly $19.6 billion in Florida revenue, up from last year’s $18.2 billion total.
• The cumulative total of revenue reported from Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina tallied roughly $13.6 billion, up from last year’s collective $11 billion total. On a state-by-state basis, the amount of revenue reported included: Georgia approximately $6.2 billion, up from last year’s $4.3 billion; North Carolina roughly $5.4 billion, up from last year’s $4.8 billion; and South Carolina almost $2 billion, up from the previous year’s $1.9 billion.
• The average revenue number reported on the ranking equaled approximately $205.6 million, an increase from last year’s $182.2 million average.
• In addition to the main ranking, Southeast Construction also provides some breakout rankings of the top 20 contractors for each of the four states in the magazine’s coverage area. By state, the top contractors and the amounts they generated from each state included the following: Florida The Yates Cos., $763 million in ’07 state revenue; Georgia Brasfield & Gorrie, $629.6 million; North Carolina Barnhill Contracting Co., $426.9 million; and South Carolina M.B. Kahn Construction Co., $290.5 million.