Past Winner Stories
Fanning/Howey Associates
www.fhai.com
Seeking a niche where it could make a positive impact, the newly opened architectural engineering firm of Fanning/Howey Associates, Inc., decided to specialize in the design of educational facilities.
"School designs at that time were basically boring and contributed little to the education of students," says Daniel R. Mader, now president and chief executive officer, who is based in the firm's Indianapolis office.
But in 1961 the standard for such construction was "build it cheap and build it fast," he adds. Fanning/Howey showed in its presentations how the firm could use quality materials efficiently in designing school buildings that would enhance the educational process.
The company began receiving contracts and soon gained a reputation for quality structures that represented good value.
Growth brought the original staff of five people to 30 and led to geographical expansion. The company's original office was in Celina, Ohio, and it opened a regional office in Michigan City, Indiana.
The original choice of a specialty area was severely tested by the unprecedented combination of recession and hyperinflation in the early 1980s. "There wasn't any school construction taking place and none was planned," Mader says. "School personnel would not even discuss what they might do when the recession was over."
During that period, the company relied heavily on the marketing strategy developed by founder Ronald H. Fanning to be prepared for a turnaround. Fanning/Howey contacted school districts regularly to keep itself aware of developments that might indicate future construction needs.
As a result of this system, Mader says, the firm "often knew when a school district was ready to look at a construction project before the district knew it was ready."
The partners also installed strong fiscal controls to cope with the downturn. A cash-management system tracks each project through all its phases. A project-management program promotes profitability on each job.
The success of this system allowed Fanning/Howey to expand its marketing area by opening offices in Indianapolis; Columbus, Ohio; Williamston, Michigan, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and West Palm Beach, Florida There are now more than 300 employees.
Through a network of associate architectural firms, Fanning/Howey can now participate in projects from the Florida Keys to Alaska.
Today's market, Mader says, is driven not only by the need for construction but also the renovation of the schools built quickly in the 1950s and 1960s for the first waves of the baby boom generation.
Fanning/Howey's ability to compete in the changed market of school architecture is evident in its continuing growth. It is now the world's third largest specialist in designing K-12 education facilities and has completed more than $2 billion of such projects over the past five years alone.
What hasn't changed, Mader says, is that "the design of educational facilities has a tremendous impact on the quality of education."
"School designs at that time were basically boring and contributed little to the education of students," says Daniel R. Mader, now president and chief executive officer, who is based in the firm's Indianapolis office.
But in 1961 the standard for such construction was "build it cheap and build it fast," he adds. Fanning/Howey showed in its presentations how the firm could use quality materials efficiently in designing school buildings that would enhance the educational process.
The company began receiving contracts and soon gained a reputation for quality structures that represented good value.
Growth brought the original staff of five people to 30 and led to geographical expansion. The company's original office was in Celina, Ohio, and it opened a regional office in Michigan City, Indiana.
The original choice of a specialty area was severely tested by the unprecedented combination of recession and hyperinflation in the early 1980s. "There wasn't any school construction taking place and none was planned," Mader says. "School personnel would not even discuss what they might do when the recession was over."
During that period, the company relied heavily on the marketing strategy developed by founder Ronald H. Fanning to be prepared for a turnaround. Fanning/Howey contacted school districts regularly to keep itself aware of developments that might indicate future construction needs.
As a result of this system, Mader says, the firm "often knew when a school district was ready to look at a construction project before the district knew it was ready."
The partners also installed strong fiscal controls to cope with the downturn. A cash-management system tracks each project through all its phases. A project-management program promotes profitability on each job.
The success of this system allowed Fanning/Howey to expand its marketing area by opening offices in Indianapolis; Columbus, Ohio; Williamston, Michigan, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and West Palm Beach, Florida There are now more than 300 employees.
Through a network of associate architectural firms, Fanning/Howey can now participate in projects from the Florida Keys to Alaska.
Today's market, Mader says, is driven not only by the need for construction but also the renovation of the schools built quickly in the 1950s and 1960s for the first waves of the baby boom generation.
Fanning/Howey's ability to compete in the changed market of school architecture is evident in its continuing growth. It is now the world's third largest specialist in designing K-12 education facilities and has completed more than $2 billion of such projects over the past five years alone.
What hasn't changed, Mader says, is that "the design of educational facilities has a tremendous impact on the quality of education."