Bridgepoint Client Feature

By allieway In Uncategorized

Executive Voice: Durham Exec’s Love for Construction Bridges Her Passion for Work

Shelley McPhatter, president of BridgePoint General Contracting in Durham, has found success in an industry that is not exactly overrun with women.

McPhatter has worked in the commercial construction business for 18 years, learning the ropes from construction trailers as she oversaw subcontractors and construction projects for more than a decade.

She founded BridgePoint in 2007 and the business has experienced rapid growth as it heads into 2017.

What sparked you to get into the commercial construction business? Growing up in western Pennsylvania, there was very little happening in terms of new buildings or commercial construction projects. When I went to college in Florida, I took note of all the construction happening in my area. I have a distinct memory of driving by a beachfront condo under construction and staring up at the structure. It never occurred to me until then that a career in construction was possible, since I had seldom seen construction while growing up.

What brought you to the Triangle? I went to college in Florida and moved to Raleigh about eight months after graduating. I happened into the construction industry when I moved here. I applied to a temp agency and requested an assignment in an engineering department. They put me in the construction and commissioning department at Glaxo Wellcome in RTP. After working for the director for about two months, he kept me on to assist some of their project managers. He then let me put his name on my resume, which landed me three interviews and two job offers in construction. My first job was working for Jacobs Engineering on the main EPA campus in 1996 for GSA.

How many employees does BridgePoint have now?General Contracting/Construction Services has 12 and Civil has 32.

What do you expect revenue to be in 2016 and how does that compare to previous years? General Contracting/Construction Services will have booked revenue of $7.3 million and Civil (launched in March 2016) will likely finish at about $3.8 million. We have seen a lot of growth in the last few years. Our goal for 2016 was to stay relatively even with our success in 2015. We have experienced such fast growth in the past few years that we wanted to make sure we weren’t growing too quickly. Our focus for 2017 is to continue growth, at a manageable pace.

What was the goal of the American Underground project and how did you achieve it? The American Underground project was a two-floor renovation. The challenge was renovating two floors and cutting a stair between the floors without interfering with the active office space below and above. Another challenge was adding a 1,600-square-foot rooftop patio with large skylight. Setting the steel in such a tight area was tricky for the steel company.

Is renovating older buildings a focus? Yes, we enjoy working on older buildings and being part of the team that gives them new life. Many of our field superintendents have a background in this type of work. There is always a cool piece of history you can uncover that wouldn’t exist in a new office building.

The construction industry tends to be dominated by men. How does leading a company in this sector differ for a woman? One of the main differences is the way I run my business. My approach has always been to treat my team and my clients like family. My goal is to make sure employees feel proud of their work and accountable to a company that works ethically and cares about each individual employee. My other objective is to make each client feel that they are part of the BridgePoint family. We want our clients to always find comfort in knowing that when working with our team, they are always in the best hands.

What lessons have you learned that would be of value to other women? I believe that if you don’t think of yourself as different, you won’t be treated differently. I like to put this to practice by being part of the team and getting in the ditches, literally, with everyone else.

You are heavily invested in Durham. How do you see Durham evolving? My office has been in Durham since 2008, but I have worked in Durham since 2003. I do love it! I think the biggest change we will see downtown in the next few years will be residential. In the past few years, we saw an influx of restaurants and businesses that made downtown a place to visit. Now with so many residential units being built, I think it will give the area a new feel as it becomes a place to live.

You had a tragic situation in 2015 when your home in Wake Forest burned. Where are you living now? We were renovating a historic home when it caught fire in the middle of the night. The cause was not determined, but it was a total loss. Fortunately, during the renovation we were living in a townhouse in Wake Forest, so we did not lose any of our property.

What are your goals for 2017? One of our main goals is to see our average project size increase. As we take on larger projects, we are also focused on providing quality service to our existing clients by remaining nimble in our ability to manage ongoing facilities projects.