of Novaré Engineers Inc.
Company: Novaré Engineers Inc.
Location: 39 Pike Street, Providence
Owner: William J. Schlageter
Type of Business: Engineering firm
Employees: 24
Year founded: 1992
Annual revenues: Between $2.5 million and $3 million
If you ask William Schlageter, owner of Novaré Engineering what he does, he will answer with a smile, “We are invisible architects.”
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Owner of a design engineering firm that specializes in mechanical, plumbing and electrical, as well as fire protection design, Schlageter’s said most of his work “is behind the walls, under the floors and in the ceilings.”
The company, started in 1992 does predominantly commercial work, renovating old buildings and helping to design new structures.
But quite a bit has changed since Novaré first started his company eight years ago. Though he keeps a box of old relics, gone are the protractors, special thicker-leaded pencils, slide rules, and drafting tables. Today the business is as much about technology as it is about design.
From the computer software used to create blueprints, to the software that is used to keep an active list of contacts for future projects, Schlageter said technology has changed the way he does business.
“We just recently upgraded all of our computers,” he said. “This is a three-year project for us, so you can tell it’s important.”
Still, he is cautious not to get too far out ahead.
“Some contractors still want to see the paper,” he said. “We could send people out in the field with laptops, and though it seems easier, it’s too far ahead. We have to remember who we are working with.”
And as technology has become an increasingly large part of the company, it has also become part of the company’s work.
“More and more people are building smart buildings,” he said. “For us this means designing a backbone that allow for community reaching cabling, data, telephone and lighting control. People are looking to build or renovate buildings that over the next 20 years will be able to handle expansive technology. It makes the space more attractive when building owners or managers can provide that benefit.”
But it also requires Schlageter to keep up with up new ideas, as well as the changing needs of his clients, a task he takes pride in managing.
“I am constantly reading and planning,” he said. “You see new ideas all the time.”
For example, he said the latest trend has come in the form of ‘Green Buildings,’ or buildings that are ultra energy efficient.
“This is new idea that involves taking a look at how the entire building is environmentally friendly,” he said. “From using recycled wood to lighting that is less glare for the eyes. It’s all part of a new program commissioned by the Federal Government and it is less than a year old.”
What also makes it easier to keep up, Schlageter said is that his company’s work happens up to three years before the general public even knows about the project.
“I am already doing my networking years before people even hear about the project,” he said. “Most of what I am learning is confidential, but by the time the owner puts out a request for a proposal my work has already been done.”
The most difficult part of the job, Schlageter said, is getting clients to articulate exactly what they want.
“There are 10 ways any given engineer can design a building,” he said. “The challenge is to design, by the codes, exactly what the customers need.”
The high level of secrecy surrounding finding projects to work on makes getting client referrals extremely important to Schlageter’s business.
“In this business you live on your reputation,” he said.
His reputation has helped Schlageter build a $2.5 million company with 24 employees in eight years – a feat that resulted in many company changes.
Schlageter said the company spent almost a year reworking the company’s internal organization, while at the same time working on a marketing plan. In addition, he said, the company worked on becoming ISO certified.
“After our third year of doubling in size and continuing to grow, we decided to start a quality management program,” he said. “Most firms like ours have only five people on staff, so when we saw ourselves growing we wanted to ensure that our quality stayed constant.”
As the number of its employees has expanded, so over the years has Novare’s range of interests grown. The company had developed its expertise in air quality, doing studies for such clients as Harvard University.
“It started when companies began to complain that it was either too hot or too cold in their buildings,” he said. “And as it matured engineers started solving the problem. It’s a part of the indoor environment, and you have to understand the components to solve the problems. We do.”
Like the name of the company itself, Schlageter said the way his company works is unique.
“Novaré is a Latin word with a French accent,” he said. “There is no such thing. It comes from a Latin word meaning new ideas, but it is basically what the people around it wanted it to be.”
“The conference table in the office is round,” he continued. “I think that’s a statement about this company. I allow people to speak their minds, and it’s very humbling to watch other people step up and excel.”
