Omnibuild: The Fascinating Growth Philosophy Built From Synergy
Since its founding in 2007, Omnibuild has quickly become a top contractor in New York’s competitive construction industry. One of significant turning points came with this firm was the acquisition of Cava Construction in 2015, which brought the two companies’ leaders together.
In 2017, Inc. magazine identified Omnibuild as one of the country’s fastest-growing private companies which specifies in building hotels, while also constructing other high-rise commercial and residential buildings. The firm has recently worked on projects including infrastructure upgrades at the Marriott Marquis in Times Square; two 35-story hotels on West 24th Street and West 28th Street; and a hotel on 48th Street with more than 1,000 rooms. At Omnibuild, they always strive for what is more difficult in this world, also they seek to achieve more – because they are built for more.
Acquisition of Cava: The Crucial Milestone
On November 11 of 2015, Omnibuild announced it was acquiring Cava Construction & Development Inc. (Cava). It is noticeable that 2016 was a boom-time for construction, so this acquisition has strongly helped Omnibuild to expand its footprint.
For more detail, this acquisition has enhanced Omnibuild’s ability to compete in the New York City marketplace. The merger was completed in November of 2015 and so it set-up Omnibuild to go into 2016 full steam. As Omnibuild and Cava engaged in a few joint ventures over the past five years, there was a synergy in place already. After the acquisition, they were also able to take on larger and more complex projects.
The combined companies, which began operating immediately under the Omnibuild brand, employed more than 100 professionals and was estimated more than $200 million in revenues in 2015. The new management team was led by Peter Serpico, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and John Mingione, Chief Operating Officer (COO). Including this acquisition, Omnibuild was had 16 major projects underway in the New York metropolitan area, including the Hilton Garden Inn at 6 Water Street, the Courtyard Marriot at 133 Greenwich Street, and the Doubletree Hotel at 350 West 40th Street.
“We are very excited about Omnibuild’s future and the opportunity it presents to our clients and employees,” said Peter Serpico, who has been appointed the Chief Executive Officer by Mingione. “We have enjoyed great success as joint venture partners on previous projects, and now as one company, we will be able to pursue a more focused growth strategy that will benefit the entire Omnibuild team.”
The combined enterprise has built or renovated million square feet of commercial and residential space in the city, focusing primarily on hospitality and multi-tenant buildings.
The Leaders to Bring an Inspirational Working Environment
Omnibuild believes in a comprehensive approach to project delivery. This approach is centered around its strong leadership, and accomplished teams, which is comprised of construction industry veterans who have experience in every aspect of construction management, and instill company values from the top down. In other words, Omnibuild supports its teams and clients with a full complement of specialists.
What really defines Omnibuild as one of the market leaders is its outstanding team of professionals – a mix of industry veterans who average more than 20 years in the business and inspired young engineers and managers. They have infused this firm with positive energy as well as expertise in the latest technology and planning tools. Let’s take a quick look to the Omnibuild leadership team to know this approach.
Peter Serpico – The CEO
Arriving every day before seven in the morning, Peter Serpico is one of the hardest working people in a company full of dedicated professionals who all put in long hours solving complex challenges within the firm. Inevitably his days are derailed helping others address their urgent problems, but he always pitches in with a can-do spirit and an attitude of “let’s do this together.”
Peter has not only earned the respect and admiration of his Omnibuild colleagues, he is highly regarded throughout the New York construction industry as a savvy business leader and a great boss. Prior to being appointed as CEO of Omnibuild by John Mingione in 2015 upon Omnibuild’s purchase of Cava Construction, Peter led Cava to unparalleled success, experiencing more than 500 percent growth from 2010-2014, landing it on the Inc. 5000 list of America’s Fastest Growing Companies. From 2004-2014, Peter led a team that built more than two million square feet of new commercial and residential high-rise space, specializing in hospitality and multi-tenant buildings.
Peter began his career in construction working on building sites in his native Bronx, New York. Prior to his time at Omnibuild and co-founding Cava Construction, Peter led his own construction and development company, focusing on residential buildings in the New York City metropolitan area, including Westchester and the outer boroughs.
John Mingione – The COO
“If you love what you do, the success will come.” It is this philosophy that has propelled John Mingione throughout his career, from spending summers working construction in his hometown of Brooklyn, New York, to founding Omnibuild, one of the most revolutionary companies in the business.
John studied Construction Management at the Institute of Design and Construction in Brooklyn, but credits much of his education to growing up in the carpentry business with his father and subsequent years of on-the-job training. In 2003, John founded his first company, Foreman Interiors, which then became Omnibuild – a full-service construction and project management firm with a specialty in interior and infrastructure renovations.
After purchasing Cava Construction, John took over field operations of the venture, continuing to assemble teams that provide expertise in all phases of the construction process.
John holds a commitment to changing the future and structure of what a general contractor fundamentally is, especially in the minds of potential clients and the public, who are suspicious of overdrawn budgets and unreliable time-lines. Communication between contractor and client is key, and as chief operating officer, John sets the precedent for cultivating that open relationship.
Omnibuild’s Strengths to Grow In Construction
Named to ENR’s Top 400 list and Inc. Magazine’s Inc 500 list is a kind of achievement for Omnibuild. However, in a world and an economy hypnotized and conditioned for growth, analyzing by products of growth should not be ignored. We will list down some strengths of this firm.
Strength #1: Diversify the Category
Markets are cyclical and the construction industry is not immune to that. We all know that the current hotel/residential boom – which is also Omnibuild’s major – cannot last forever. It is Omnibuild’s job to stay relevant in other sectors so that if there is a shift in the market, it can switch to a different lane. This is why this firm always stays very active in complex renovation work, in high end restaurant work, in new office builds and in mixed-use buildings. The more fingers they have to grip, the greater the odds that they won’t slip.
For example, the Channel Club, at 6 Waterview Road in Island Park, NY has only five stories, bit of a departure from Omnibuild’s usual high-rise structures. However the setting makes up for all the height. Beautifully sited on Reynolds Channel with amenities, rooftop pool, parking and dock space; this construction has been hot address when units open for lease in Summer 2019.
Strength #2: Build Strong Internal Connect
One thing that Omnibuild is always in control of is who they want to be as a company and how they treat each other on a day to day basis. The leaders want their employees to be as happy working here. That’s why they are working harder to gather feedback, finding times to connect with the staff both onsite with individual teams and as a company as a whole, and offering them financial and cultural reasons to want to be here.
After all, Omnibuild’s tagline is “Building. People.” This firm does not build buildings without its people, and it does not have people if they do not have a place to grow, feel respected and be utilized.
“There is competition left and right, from very reputable firms whom it bid against. They all need good people too. We pride ourselves on hiring “people, not resumes”.” – written by Bassam Tarazi, Director Of Business Strategy for Omnibuild.
Strength #3: Take Advantage of Accolades
As Omnibuild stated in its news release of the Inc. 500 announcement, this firm does not do things for the accolades. But when they come, obviously, the firm can utilize it for its benefit.
“One of the easiest times to get lazy with marketing is during growth because you think “What’s the point of marketing? We’re busy enough!” But it’s at times of growth and public praise when we should double down on our marketing efforts because even when the economy does eventually slow down, we’re still going to be a company that needs work and one that needs to staff its projects.” Bassam Tarazi, Director Of Business Strategy at Omnibuild.
As members of the USGBC, Omnibuild has played our part in numerous LEED projects. They have completed more than 20,000 vertical feet of building space in New York, representing nearly 6,200 hotel guest rooms and almost 4.0 million square feet. In 2017 they were named to ENR’s list of the top 400 contractors in America, and to Inc. Magazine’s Top 500list of the fastest privately growing companies in America.
Omnibuild is still going to be a company on ENR’s List of Top 400 contractors in America, and Inc.’s list of the 500 fastest growing companies in America. Those facts will never hurt this New York-based firm, and they are also its strengths in compare to some others competitors if they are used in marketing.
Strength #4: Coordinate Process with BIM
BIM stands for Building Information Modeling, and at Omnibuild it is an important part of almost every step of the construction process. After a conceptual design is agreed upon, the next step is a detailed design. From that point on, BIM is front and center of the process. The model, which is built to visualize the detailed design, is developed with BIM software to provide the architect, engineers, and contractors a roadmap for the rest of the project.
All projects can benefit from BIM. The more complex the project, especially ones that require more coordination between entities (Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing Coordination, Structural Calculations, Bid process Etc.) the more benefit BIM provides to the process. At Omnibuild, this model works effectively.
“One that comes to mind is our 60 West 37th Street project, which is currently under construction. Utilizing BIM, we were able to facilitate the Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing (MEP) coordination process. With the 3D model we were able to foresee MEP hits, and properly re-route or give different heights to avoid conflicts in the field during the installation process.” – William Calderon, Resident BIM Expert at Omnibuild.
The Bottom Lines
Through Omnibuild’s achievements, we can see various opportunities for this firm to lead the way for a more inclusive, equitable engagement which shapes the company’s future. Omnibuild has successfully named itself in construction sector with continuous efforts to deliver extraordinary values to both clients and the world. This company’s performances can be considered as valuable lessons for other business.
