President's Message - Sustaining Success into the Future

I want to express my heartfelt thanks to all our outstanding team members for another successful year. I also want to recognize the trusted clients who make our success possible through their confidence and partnerships with us. It is indeed our honor and privilege to serve their construction needs.

The sustained economic downturn has created daunting challenges for every public and private entity. Market competitiveness is fierce. We must continue to work diligently to maintain our core strengths and competitive edge while staying true to the core values that are central to our achievements. Our Fru-Con hallmarks, Quality • Performance • Service • Integrity, remain solid guidelines for all our decision-making.

We have much to celebrate – a productive Fall Leadership Gathering, our recent win of the $115.7 million Patapsco Wastewater Treatment Plan project in Baltimore, Maryland, and the achievements featured in this edition of Fru-Con News.

In the year ahead, we can anticipate that some competitors will grow more desperate as the recession touches additional market segments, driving more commercial and building contractors into our specialized niche. While no one wins when the enticement of low bids is combined with inexperienced contractors, the lure can be too attractive for many public entities to resist. This expands the opportunity we have to educate our clients about the value of our unique strengths, deep experience, knowledge and the abiding commitment to performance we bring to them. And we need to remind them of the reality that underbidding by contractors with limited experience and resources will not result in what will ultimately be the least overall cost to an agency. Every member of our team needs to be actively engaged in these efforts.

It remains my privilege to lead our exemplary team. Our sustained safety achievements fill me with pride, knowing that this is the ultimate measure of how deeply we value each other.

Thank you for keeping an acute focus on safety each day.

I wish you joy and peace throughout the upcoming holidays. And as we begin a new year, I wish you and your family all the best and look forward to what we can and will accomplish together in 2010.