Rocketing revenues blasted general contractor Barton Malow Co. to the top of the regional heap last year, landing the Southfield, Mich.-based firm among the Midwest's 10 largest builders. A panel of his peers named firm president Ryan Maibach one of ENR Midwest's Top 20 Under 40 industry professionals. Another industry panel named Michigan State University's (MSU) Eli & Edythe Broad Museum, for which Barton Malow served as CM, the Midwest's Project of the Year in ENR Midwest's Best Projects Competition.

As stellar as 2013 was, 2014 looks as good, if not better. In January, Barton Malow was awarded University of Notre Dame's $400-million, 750,000-sq-ft Campus Crossroads project in Notre Dame, Ind., the largest undertaking of its kind in the school's 172-year history. In April, it was selected to construct a $450-million arena for National Hockey League's Detroit Red Wings in a joint venture with Detroit-based White Construction and Indianapolis-based Hunt Construction Group.

Those achievements alone would qualify Barton Malow for consideration as ENR Midwest's General Contractor of the Year. Of even greater interest – and significance – are the programs and practices driving its accomplishments. Its mastery of BIM, 4-D scheduling and 5-D estimating – programs it deploys on nearly every project – have assisted Barton Malow in executing projects of surpassing complexity, whether for Detroit's Big Three or East Lansing's MSU, for which it also has constructed a facility for rare isotope beams. 

The common denominators are quality and unyielding precision. To ensure projects are built to spec and on schedule, Barton Malow has emerged as the largest employer of trade labor in Michigan, self performing civil (excavation, backfill, earth retention), concrete (foundations, flooring, architectural, including installation of reinforcing steel and post-tension systems.) and mechanical/process installations (equipment miscellaneous), in addition to interiors work.

The firm remains committed to developing and mentoring young talent. Begun to provide opportunities for women and minorities, a three-year internship program known as LEAPS (LEArning Practicum for Students) places interns in the field their first summer, where they work directly with a superintendent on a project site. Summer two finds them in the main office, where they learn estimating and accounting. The third summer places them in the field or office of choice, where they assume greater responsibilities. Maibach himself has broadened curriculum and programs to provide interns with a more practical and comprehensive view of industry practices.

Barton Malow is equally invested in community programs, having been active with the American Heart Association, Habitat for Humanity, United Way and Give Kids the World for years.

The firm will be profiled in the July 14 edition of ENR Midwest, which also will feature the magazine's annual ranking of the region's Top General Contractors.