Company Report: AMG & Associates Inc.
Respected general contractor With a highly-experienced staff and focus on both construction and engineering, AMG of California is holding strong in a tough economy

It's no secret the construction industry has taken a beating in the current economic climate. Project delays and cancellations have businesses struggling and, according to the US Department of Labor, job loss has risen to 6 million the last 12 months.

"The competition is very fierce. I've been in this business since 1975 - through a number of recessions - and I've never seen the construction industry so adversely affected," says Albert Giacomazzi, President and CEO of AMG & Associates Inc. "Recently we bid on two projects with 28 bidders on one and 22 on the other. A year ago, it would've been just five bidders."

In addition, bids are coming in at least 20 percent lower than projected values, he adds.

Despite these dire circumstances, AMG's skill and experience are helping it successfully weather the storm. The Santa Clarita, CA, general contractor targets mainly small and mid-sized public works projects with additional private contracts throughout the state in the $1 million to $5 million range. It separates itself from other contractors by focusing on both general construction and general engineering. Capable of handling projects from concept to occupancy, AMG also does design-build, management; and constructability reviews to evaluate owners' designs and determine if projects will fall within budget. Its clients are in the public works, education, religious, military and industrial sectors.

Giacomazzi founded AMG in 2005 with partners Gregory Barrow and Anthony Traverso. "Greg and Tony have continuously worked for me since 1989 and 1990," says Giacomazzi. "With the familiarity of working together nearly 20 years, it makes communication easier. We have a clear direction of where the company's going and how we're going to get there."

AMG's revenue was $12 million in 2008, however the rocky market sets 2009's predictions between $10 million and $14 million. While maintaining revenue levels in the current market is an accomplishment it's not the steady growth AMG was looking for.

STRENGTH OF SMALL BUSINESS
AMG has several projects on its plate right now, including a lifeguard paramedic station on Catalina Island, located 22 miles off the Los Angeles coast that requires a barge for shipping materials. Other projects are a new fire station for the City of Seal Beach, improvements on the City of Buena Park Senior Center and a library at UCLA. AMG has worked repeatedly for the school as well as LA Community College doing renovations.

"We're also renovating a building for Pacific Clinics - a nonprofit that focuses on drug and alcohol treatments," says Giacomazzi, "and we just completed a 15,000sf addition to Culver City's Mar Vista Institute - a 4.4 million project."

The general engineering division is relatively new and has been actively bidding as well on infrastructure projects for bridges, slope repair and highway work. Since the company is a small business, it allows the principal to manage each project and to work on site with the owner. This helps to immediately address and solve issues and strengthens business relationships. The contractor counts more than 50 percent in repeat clients.

With a hands-on approach to its operations, AMG also has close relationships with its bonding and insurance agents, as well as its banking and accounting partners. Through collaborating with other companies on projects, AMG has additionally developed ties that help it find work.

"We've had people ask us to bid on their projects, like with Pacific Clinics. The architect had worked with us on the Mar Vista Institutes team and recommended us for this one," Giacomazzi says.

LONG-TERM EXPERIENCE
AMG's staff operates as a solid team, enabling it to move quickly and efficiently on projects. Of the 13 administrative employees, 11 have worked for Giacomazzi in the past, when he ran a company prior to AMG. All in all, the management team has 75 years of experience in the public works market. Three members are LEED AP certified - VPs Barrow and Traverso and the company's senior superintendent.

As far as training, the management is focused on mentoring employees in the field, pairing newer superintendents with more experienced ones. AMG has an especially strong safety focus.

"We hired a third-party consultant from the EEAP safety organization for our employee training. They also randomly visit our project sites unannounced to make sure everything's in order. We've only had two minor employee accidents with no lost time, and one subcontractor incident. It's a strong safety record," Giacomazzi says proudly.

SUBCONTRACTOR RELATIONSHIPS
AMG has excellent relationships with its subcontractors throughout California, Nevada and Arizona. When subcontracts exceed $250,000, AMG has the subcontractor provide a payment and performance bond.

Finding experienced subcontractors isn't always an easy task, Giacommazi says, especially with the Baby Boomer generation retiring and less experienced workers filling their shoes.

"We're seeing subs that are unfamiliar with bidding in the public works sector. They think it's just like residential, but public works is extremely complicated. The technical skill required is completely different," he explains. "That's why we seek out quality people who understand the sector. We try to keep a constant pool of subcontractors that we have both experience and history with."

MAINTAINING GROWTH
AMG uses a progressive website that sends bidding alerts and enables potential subcontractors to download specifications on projects. Also, the company's hardware is continually upgraded for additional capacity as the business grows.

"For now, we'd simply like to see steady growth in this economy," Giacomazzi says. "I think the construction industry has further to go before bottoming out, so maintaining 10-15 percent growth and satisfied clients would make us more than happy."

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