Graycor Construction has never stopped pursuing and perfecting ways to exceed our clients’ expectations. In new construction and renovation, our proactive management style, value engineering, sophisticated project planning systems and focused constructability methods enable our team to manage projects more aggressively without sacrificing safety and quality.
Collaboration is the name of the game in commercial construction. Building the structure is just one piece of the process. We provide detailed planning, source the best materials, find the right subcontractors and craft specialists for the job, and manage your project hands on, from pre-construction to completion.
Our Markets
When you’re making a mark on the world, make it count. Construction is bigger than the end result. It’s everything that goes into the process, and the role that you’re building will play in the lives of those that interact with it. On top of it all, fine arts centers, museums, parochial and child-care facilities, cultural and educational institutions often have limited funding and sensitive schedules.
At Graycor, “Nothing is more important than safety…not production, not sales, not profits.” A direct quote from Chairman Melvin Gray, this principle was established years before most in the construction industry realized the importance of employee safety and health.
Our second value is that all injuries and incidents are preventable, not inevitable. The direct result of this value is our “Zero Injuries” goal. We truly believe, and have accomplished, major self-performance projects without a single injury. In fact, our heavy industrial division worked for more than a year without an OSHA recordable injury, so we know the goal is achievable. Graycor’s current EMR is 0.74—well below the industry average of 1.0.
Graycor is focused on cultivating meaningful and genuine relationships with our clients for the long-term. We value our relationships with clients, designers, engineers and subcontractors striving to earn their trust. We recognize that strong relationships are based on mutual trust and professionalism.
At Graycor Construction, our people are our most valuable asset. Our employees are the best of the best in our industry—talented, educated, experienced, skilled and highly motivated construction professionals who are given the resources, training and development opportunities to perform their jobs with a sense of pride and ownership, while achieving their career goals.
The Graycor culture is an important part of who we are and the work we do. We partner with employees who share in our core values of:
To satisfy our clients’ demands for superior Quality, Graycor Construction Company created a Quality program that focuses on the use of proactive, preventive, efficient and effective systematic approaches replacing the traditional attitude in the construction industry that is ‘reactionary’ to problems. Graycor’s commitment and full support to ensuring the highest standard of quality on all projects comes from the highest level of our organization.
The Quality Committee, led by CMQ/OE certified Business Excellence Manager Michelle Galindo, in concert with Graycor’s Executive Leadership, strives to inspire Excellence with every action percolating this notion throughout the entire organization, and making it a part of our DNA.
We continuously seek ways to leverage the Quality processes to benefit our clients. In each pre-construction effort, we work to identify and define the client’s objectives and our commitment to achieve them.
Zero-Punchlist Goal: All Subcontractors are required to correct visible defects before they demobilize from the jobsite in order to deliver a defect-free facility to the client by the project completion date.
Quality Control Procedures: The project team will coordinate the implementation of the procedures listed above with the relevant Subcontractors to control the Quality of the project. Key QC procedures: The Three-Phase Process, Kanban Commissioning.
Pre-Project Quality Risk Assessment (Q-RAM), Subcontractors’ Quality Control Plan and Site Specific Quality Plan: The Quality risks in each project are assessed and managed accordingly, creating a strategy specific to the project summarized in a Site Specific Quality Plan (SSQP). Subcontractors are required to follow a Subcontractor’s Quality Plan provided by Graycor.
Quality Assurance Procedures: The project team will implement the procedures listed above to provide confidence that the project will exceed the Quality expectations. Key QA procedures: Non-Conformance and Rolling Punchlist, Audits.
Project Management Procedures: These procedures ensure consistency and repeatability in business practices and operations across the different projects, promoting efficiency and effectiveness that translate into delivering successful projects to our clients.
Graycor continues to invest in its Virtual Design and Construction (VDC) and Building Information Modeling (BIM) capabilities as an instrumental component in visualizing projects and detecting clashes with building systems. Through creating fully-integrated models from construction documents to eliminate problems typically discovered in the field, both time and costs savings are realized on projects. Architectural, structural and MEP components are included to provide a comprehensive summary of all clashes involved.
Graycor project managers are also using the BIM models alongside augmented reality via tablets to visualize how this model will appear on site before it is fully completed. “Our investment in our VDC capabilities has already begun to pay significant dividends for both us and our clients”, says Dave Wing, President at Graycor Construction. “Our VDC capability is not only a differentiator in the marketplace but delivers a huge value added service to our clients and helps us better serve them”.
When clients want a reliable single source of responsibility that can maximize cost-effectiveness, quality and safety—while also managing scheduling, efficiency and project scope at every stage—Graycor is the perfect design-build partner. Graycor creates an environment that fosters collaborating among all team members throughout design and construction. Our design-build approach can provide clients with a fast track delivery method that allows for speed to market which may include opportunities to start construction sooner.
To stay a step ahead in the area of green building and sustainability means meeting the needs of the present generation without sacrificing the needs of future generations. As environmental and sustainability standards become more strict, our clients are choosing to build facilities that are more environmentally friendly that include many facets in achieving this goal. From energy efficiency to resource efficiency to low-toxin and low-impact construction, Graycor partners with you to drive the most responsible methods without losing sight of cost and schedule.
At Graycor, we understand the complexities and components of green building—whether it is providing preconstruction services, including green concepts and budgeting, sourcing and procuring salvaged, or recycled building materials, or even performing the project using environmentally sensitive methods.
Home-based near Chicago in Oakbrook Terrace, IL, Graycor Construction Company is strategically located in the Midwest, with regional offices in Atlanta, GA, Bakersfield, CA, Boston, MA, Charlotte, NC, Phoenix, AZ and San Jose, CA, to serve commercial clients throughout the U.S.
General Contractor: Coast to coast, our unique focus on combining our financial stability with an ability to manage even the most complex type of project has made us a premier general contractor.
Design-build Contractor: When clients want a reliable single source of responsibility that can maximize cost-effectiveness, quality craftsmanship and on-site safety – while also managing scheduling, efficiency and project scope at every stage – Graycor is a perfect partner.
Pre-construction: Construction begins at conception. So it stands to reason that this is the most critical time for true partnership to pay off. The earlier your team and ours can work together to plan, source materials and select subcontractors as necessary, effect cost and increase efficiency the more opportunity there can be for real consistency and value.
Agency Construction Management: There are times when our management skills are our most valuable asset to a client. We can manage subcontractors on projects to help keep the project focused and on track toward a safe, successful end.
Construction Management at Risk: Management requires understanding both the risks and the rewards of every aspect of a project. At Graycor, we have the financial stability and field experience to tackle complex construction management projects, at risk.
Roll-out Service: Graycor Construction has decades of experience leading successful roll-out and rebranding programs. We have the capability to deliver an integrative approach to retail roll-outs from project development to closeout and commissioning.
Graycor has delivered a myriad of projects in live facilities where our clients continue their operations while construction is taking place. We understands how critical it is to keep a business operating without disruption. Over the years, Graycor developed a detailed and unique “Live Environment” work methodology that has been successfully applied to projects at malls, retail stores, manufacturing plants, corporate offices, hotels and healthcare facilities. Graycor’s success on these types of projects stems from our proprietary process for buying, planning, scheduling and executing the work efficiently while minimizing the impact to the facility, its employees and its customers.
Graycor’s experience working in live environments dates back to the inception of the company. The Chicago Concrete Breaking Company, as Graycor was known more than 90 years ago, performed its first project removing existing concrete retaining walls which abutted operational railroad tracks in the City of Chicago. That project, and early projects of similar nature, not only taught Graycor how to work in a live environment, but also gave rise to our famed motto: “Wanted – A Hard Job”.
To learn more about Graycor’s live environment projects, please download our PDF.
The “Graycor Way” is the foundation of our Business Excellence and Continuous Improvement initiative embraced to align plans, processes, decisions, people, actions and results in order to achieve business strategies and goals, improve results and become more competitive in the marketplace. The Graycor Way provides to our people a logical, systematic and clear structure on the way we operate as organization and do business, presented in the form of business processes. The Business Excellence and Continuous Improvement initiative is led by the Continuous Improvement Steering Committee (CISC) and Business Excellence Manager (BEM), and is Continuously Improved by the Continuous Improvement Process (CIP) Teams. In a collaborative team effort, the CISC, BEM and CIP Teams continues to develop the most efficient and effective processes possible in order to excel our business practices, inspiring Excellence at every step of the journey.
Our preconstruction services will set your project up for success.
Graycor Construction Company engages in a collaborative team approach to provide comprehensive preconstruction services to our clients. By getting involved on the project in its earliest stage, our team is able to work with clients to plan, model, source materials and subcontractors, influence cost and increase efficiency to ensure project success. Our preconstruction services include:
As President of Graycor Construction Company, Tim provides executive and strategic leadership to the company’s operations, nationally and regionally. Tim’s responsibilities include building and expanding our efforts to ensure long-term growth of the business with financial stability, people growth and development, a best-in-class experience for our clients, and operational excellence of our teams.
Since joining Graycor as an intern in 1995, Tim has grown to become a leader who embraces the importance of Graycor’s culture, defining objectives, core values and reputation—all of which frame our strategy in how we do business. Working alongside Graycor’s leadership team, Tim’s ongoing commitment is to continue building our culture of performance excellence, continuous improvement and innovation, diversity equity and inclusion. He is dedicated to investing in our people and our mission to make Graycor a great place to work for all employees.
Scott joined Graycor in 2001 and is currently the Vice President of Operations responsible for directing the company's operational and business initiatives that serve both the commercial and industrial markets in the Southeast. As a part of the Senior Leadership Team, he provides leadership to the company's operational strategies for safety, quality, employee development, business unit growth, business development, project execution, and client satisfaction. Scott leverages his 35-plus years of diverse market experience to attain operational excellence in the execution of projects that results in long-term client relationships.
Business Development Manager, Graycor Construction
As Business Development Manager, John is responsible for supporting Graycor Construction Company's market leaders by identifying and developing new business opportunities for growth of the company's commercial markets across broad geographies. He supports the leadership team through evaluating business strategies and establishing timely market plans. John mentors Graycor's senior management leadership helping to inspire a great development acumen for realizing new business opportunities and growing established relationships. In 2000, John joined Graycor Construction and leverages more than 20 years of professional sales achievements since earning his Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Relations from the University of Kentucky.
As the Director of Safety for Graycor Construction Company, Rob is responsible for providing safety leadership, guidance and support at both the project and senior management levels to achieve the Company's Zero Injury safety culture. He has been in the construction safety industry for over 25 years. Rob earned his bachelor's degree in occupational safety from Illinois State University and is a Certified Safety Professional. He is also a member of American Society of Safety Professionals and a founding member of the Build Safe Chicago group.
Rusty is a 25-year local construction industry veteran. As the General Manager of the Southwest Division, Rusty provides executive leadership and oversight to all Graycor projects and teams in the southwest region, ensuring a best-in-class construction experience through operational excellence. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Construction Management from Brigham Young University. Rusty is an affiliate member of SIOR, a member of NAIOP Arizona, Arizona Manufacturing Council, spent 20 years as a volunteer with the Boy Scouts of America, and is currently serving as a youth leader with his church. Rusty is a native Arizonan from Thatcher, Arizona, and currently resides in Gilbert, Arizona.
As the general manager of Graycor’s Southeast Division, Jyot is responsible for providing leadership to meet the division’s overall strategic plan, achieve operational excellence and expand the company’s Southeast presence. Since joining Graycor in 2006, Jyot has been instrumental in growing our national commercial and industrial markets by consistently meeting the demands of our clients. Jyot earned his bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from the Nirma Institute of Technology, as well as a master’s degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. He has served as a member of the Continuous Improvement Committee (CISC), as a mentor on the Engineer Mentoring Committee (EMC) and is a graduate of Graycor's Leaders of Others development program.
Business Development Manager, Graycor Construction
Sue Sylvester is the Business Development Manager for the Southwest Division of Graycor Construction Company, a 100-plus-year-old national general contracting firm with a large market presence in Arizona.
Sue is focused on developing new, emerging and adjacent markets for Graycor Southwest and providing strategic business development focus with Graycor’s operational teams. She is a client advocate who provides solutions to supply chain and regulatory issues affecting our clients as they build and develop in the Southwest.
She is an active member of the Arizona Manufacturing Council, Greater Phoenix Economic Council, Southeast Mesa Economic Resource Forum, Pinal Partnership, West Valley Meet Up and Valley Partnership. Sue is currently serving as fundraising chair for the Valley Partnership Community Project benefitting the House of Refuge and the Economic Development Committee for Pinal Partnership. She is also working towards gaining GPEC’s Ambassador status.
Sue is a graduate of Arizona State University and a LEED accredited professional. She has her executive education certificate from Stanford University for Business Strategies for the Environment (BSES) and was a co-founder of U.S Green Building Council’s Arizona Chapter and the Business Development Guild.
She is from Arizona and has over 25 years of experience in the A/E/C industry.
The Graycor group of companies employs more than 1,600 construction specialists at its headquarters in Oakbrook Terrace, IL, regional offices and project sites throughout North America.
At Graycor, we invest in the welfare and professional growth of our people. We place greater value on partnerships over profit, and we operate within a set of core values that frame our strategy and culture, including maintaining a long-term perspective, upholding integrity and honesty, demonstrating safety leadership, emphasizing relationships, creating value, striving for continuous improvement, and achieving a healthy balance of work and family life. At Graycor, we’re building something more.
Nothing is more important than safety…not production, not sales, not profits.
Safety is not just a policy but a key part of our culture. As a family-owned and -operated company, it strikes to our core—each one of us is essential. Our health, our safety and the quality of our worksites is priority one. Protecting people means perfecting the environments in which they work. We believe errors are avoidable because our teams have accomplished major self-performance projects without a single injury. Our “Zero Injury” goal is the challenge every one of us aims to achieve every time we set foot on site.
To satisfy our clients’ demands for superior Quality, Graycor Construction Company created a Quality program that focuses on the use of proactive, preventive, efficient and effective systematic approaches replacing the traditional attitude in the construction industry that is ‘reactionary’ to problems. Graycor’s commitment and full support to ensuring the highest standard of quality on all projects comes from the highest level of our organization.
Graycor continues to invest in its Virtual Design and Construction (VDC) and Building Information Modeling (BIM) capabilities as an instrumental component in visualizing projects and detecting clashes with building systems. Through creating fully-integrated models from construction documents to eliminate problems typically discovered in the field, both time and costs savings are realized on projects. Architectural, structural and MEP components are included to provide a comprehensive summary of all clashes involved.
