"Instead of laying people off, we shifted people around and placed them on smaller jobs. It enabled us to keep our top talent," says Jarrod Fugate, on-call division manager.

Today, the on-call division has 12 full-time employees and draws workers from other divisions as needed. Fugate says that on-call work is not for everyone. "It requires a special set of people who can wear multiple hats and work on multiple jobs at the same time."

On track to hit $42 million in revenue this year, the division has completed 34 projects by mid-August—more than any year since its inception, Fugate says. On-call projects have ranged from building a playground sandbox for the polar bear exhibit at the Denver Zoo to replacing the underground piping used for restaurant grease traps at Denver International Airport.

"By taking on smaller projects for new clients, we also introduced ourselves to a new set of ownership groups. Some are taking on larger projects now and looking at Haselden because we've already established a relationship," Fugate adds.

Another reinvestment came in the form of company-wide training in green building and energy-efficiency techniques. Haselden collaborated with design-build partners RNL and Stantec to build a key research support facility at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colo. The 222,000-sq-ft facility—along with its subsequent 155,000-sq-ft expansion—were built to achieve net-zero energy and LEED Platinum.

Back to School

The education sector remains a top performer for the company as well, with a number of projects under way throughout Colorado and Wyoming. As with Haselden's health care business, the company's education division thrives on repeat clientele. After the successful fast-track delivery of its first campus in Castle Pines in 2009, American Academy selected Haselden to build its second campus in Parker. "I will never work with another contractor again," says Erin Kane, executive director of schools for American Academy. "With school construction, you need a trusted contractor that will watch the bottom line, quality and schedule. They did all that and more."

The University of Wyoming Foundation selected Haselden to complete the Marian H. Rochelle Gateway Center based on its prior work on the Berry Biodiversity Conservation Center. "Haselden was amenable not only to allowing us on site but also helping us tell the story of the construction to our donors. They understood the importance of stewardship with our donors," says Toby Marlatt, director of marketing and strategic planning for the UW Foundation.

With a series of strategic reinvestments, Haselden has positioned itself for new markets. The company is taking on senior-living and senior-care work and entering the civil infrastructure arena.

"We use our policies and practices to guide our decisions, but we don't let them limit us," says Derek Oliver, general manager of Haselden's Wyoming offices. "We rely on entrepreneurial instincts to figure out the best way to solve a problem and chart our next moves."