Building a Future for 35 Years
RUSH CONSTRUCTION:
New Divisions, Enduring Values
By Meaghan Branham
Driving, windows down, over the Indian River on the last stretch of the NASA Parkway, it’s hard not to notice as the horizon suddenly gives way to a spectacular view. Towering over visitors from all over the world at a height of more than 153 feet, the space shuttle’s iconic orange external tank welcomes you to the Kennedy Space Center. For visitors, it calls to mind the legendary, larger-than-life missions of Neil Armstrong and Eileen Collins. But for Space Coast natives, it conjures up memories of sitting on a lawn chair in a yard on a warm summer night, following the shuttle through a sunset-colored sky. Just a bit further down the road sits the headquarters of RUSH Construction Inc., which happens to manage the shuttle landing facility through RUSH Facilities, a firm that is part of the RUSH family of companies. Working so closely to what its leaders regard as a reminder of both the legacy of Central Florida and the heart of its residents, RUSH is doing its part to lay the foundation for the next stages.
On the Pulse of Change
Al Forbes, the executive vice president of RUSH Construction, recalls the buzzing energy of the community decades ago. “What we are seeing with health care, Port Canaveral, and privatizing of the space industry — I do not see it slowing down anytime soon. Remember what it was like during the Apollo program? Multiply that by four and that’s what’s going to happen around here.” 32 | JUNE 2019 | i4Biz.com
As Central Florida keeps its pace, more industries join aerospace to diversify the area’s portfolio — with changes that might otherwise take decades happening in just a few years. According to a survey conducted by the Kauffman Foundation and reported in the Orlando Sentinel, Orlando’s metro area placed No. 4 in the nation for its density of highgrowth companies in the health industry, while already-established entities such as Orlando Health and AdventHealth are announcing expansions and new facilities at an astonishing pace. Tourism, which has always been a stronghold of Central Florida’s economy, is hitting its stride as well, with an unprecedented 126 million visitors to the state and 75 million to Central Florida in 2018 alone. RUSH is paying attention to those numbers and has been for quite some time. Before 2013, RUSH was primarily a federal government contractor. When aerospace and defense budgets seemed to dry up overnight, the company found itself looking to branch out. President and CEO William Chivers met with Forbes, whose experience as the manager of facility construction
with Wuesthoff Health Systems in Rockledge and another area general contractor would prove invaluable in their ensuing partnership.
“When Forbes joined our team, this allowed us to grow our limited health care work into one of our primary markets,” Chivers said. The company has evolved from a government aerospace/defense contractor into a diversified firm that handles construction and management of medical, commercial, marine and other kinds of facilities, Forbes said. In recent years, growth has been just as explosive for RUSH as it has been for the industries it serves. The two newest expansions, RUSH Marine and RUSH Facilities, are only 18 months old but have proved to be a catalyst for evolution. RUSH employed almost 30 people by the end of 2017, and that number has almost tripled today. When a national peer group of construction companies RUSH regularly hosts returned to Central Florida for its first visit since February 2017, Chivers cautioned the visitors:
