One of the most challenging environments in construction is the addition or renovation that has to be built while the workplace continues on, usually in close proximity.
Bowerman Associates Inc., of Providence, has made a name for itself in executing these balancing acts. The company, which has 14 employees, approaches design-build and construction-management jobs from the perspective of a partner in construction.
“Where we feel our strengths lie, is being part of a team,” said Charles A. Morton, one of its co-principals. Colleen B. Titmas, also a co-principal, said the company has grown steadily and carefully by choosing employees that will represent Bowerman well, and who will grow with the company.
Bowerman Associates is managing eight projects under active construction, with more in design, she said.
The current projects include the ongoing renovation of a former office building, at 259 Weybosset St. in downtown Providence, into student apartments; the addition of a new parish hall on the historic Grace Episcopal Church, also downtown; and the renovation of the Thundermist Health Center in Woonsocket.
The relationship with Thundermist began three years ago when the health care company hired Bowerman Associates to build a 20,000-square-foot center in the Wakefield neighborhood of South Kingstown. The work involved constructing the new building and parking garage while the existing office operated nearby, then demolishing the original building.
Morton estimated the separation between old and new was all of 8 feet. How did it happen? Communication and teamwork.
This year, the company is working on its second Thundermist project, in Woonsocket, also involving the renovation of an existing facility.
“If there is a niche that we get involved in, it’s probably that,” Morton said. “We have a crew of superintendents who are very, very good at working with customers and making sure that we’re keeping them as happy as possible in the midst of a construction process.”
One of the more complicated projects, in terms of site and requirements, is taking shape in downtown Providence. Bowerman Associates is the construction manager for the parish-hall addition to the historic Grace Episcopal Church.
The project is urban infill – creating a new building between two historical buildings. On one side, the elegant 19th-century church, and on the other, the newly renovated Kinsley Building.
On this site, Bowerman has worked closely with the project architect and the owner’s representative to deliver a building that will be constructed within budget and on time. One of the greatest challenges involved creating an entry from the new building to the church, which happened to fall beneath a nearly 200-year-old, stained-glass window.
“The only thing that intimidated me about that project was we had an opening from the parish hall into the main section of the church,” Morton said. “And it [was] directly under one of those stained-glass windows.”
Construction management has never required a more delicate hand.
OWNERS: Colleen B. Titmas and Charles A. Morton
TYPE OF BUSINESS: General contracting, construction management, design-build
LOCATION: 1 Richmond Square, Suite 220E, Providence
EMPLOYEES: 14
YEAR ESTABLISHED: 1987
ANNUAL SALES: WND
