Randall Park, project development director for UDOT, says he has worked with Horrocks since coming to UDOT more than 10 years ago.

"They have always adapted to different types of innovative contracting methods," Park says. "They have also been leaders in building relationships with the contracting community. We know they are not just doing design and handing it off. They really work together with the contractors."

The firm has exported its experience with alternative delivery methods to other states, performing as lead designer on the first design-build project for ITD on State Highway 44 in 2012. "They came in with a great proposal that would reduce impact on the public and reduce shifts in the corridor," says Amy Schroeder, ITD's engineering manager for District 3. "For our first design-build, it was wonderfully executed, and they kept things on schedule."

Schroeder says ITD is working with Horrocks' Intelligent Transportation Systems division on several projects to improve busy intersections in the state. "Horrocks has done a lot of leg work and education for our department about how alternative intersections can work and how we can maintain them," she says. Schroeder says the firm has proposed a continuous-flow interchange in the booming Boise suburb of Eagle, another first for ITD.

"We've had success implementing intelligent transportation systems in Idaho," says Jim Horrocks. "We've been working with officials in Arizona and now they are also committed to it. We're looking forward to doing more innovative projects with them."

Fiberoptic Services

"Staying on the cutting edge of technology has been one of the best ways we can serve our clients," says Jim. That has meant investing resources in LiDAR mapping technology and service lines specifically for GIS, 3D modeling and CAD.

"We are doing more detailed modeling, and just the other day, one of our clients told us to skip the plan sheets and just send them our model, and they would build from that," says Reasch.

Recently, when Google selected Provo City as the site for its new fiber optic system, the city needed a quick inventory of existing infrastructure. Horrocks was able to produce it using LiDAR. "That even led us to form our own fiberoptic group, which is one of the newest services we've added," Reasch says.

Jim says geographic information systems (GIS) technology continues to get better and more useful across the construction industry. "We are constantly refining our use of GIS and upgrading the software and always getting more and more out of it," he says.

Reasch says that construction management services also has been a major growth area for the firm. "We have really expanded that area of our firm and been hiring more and more people with experience in that," he says.

But Jim says it's the people at the firm that make the difference to clients. "It always comes back to the people. It isn't all the hardware or software you have but employees with dedication to the clients that makes the difference," he says.

"As principals, we all have active roles in each project," Reasch says. "When you have people from the senior level working with these outstanding young engineers and the technology, you can come up with some amazing solutions for clients. It is fun to be part of."

At UDOT, Park praises the firm's teamwork approach. "There are some firms where you don't always get the A-team for a project," he says. "But with Horrocks, you know, with their training and expertise, you always get the A-team."