AUCH Construction Looks to the Future

What does the future hold for the construction industry? In healthcare, education, entertainment—all areas—what will the industry look like in 2052?

Last year, AUCH Construction President and CEO Jeff Hamilton challenged retiring CEO Vince DeLeonardis to answer that question as a legacy to his dedicated and prestigious career in the business. So DeLeonardis took on a special project in his final year before retirement and “6 Glimpses of 2052”—a symposium with six dynamic speakers who discussed what the next 30 years may hold in their respective industries—was held this fall.

DeLeonardis explained, “At AUCH Construction, we have always valued the power of forward planning in our work. Whether used on a construction project or in corporate governance, actions based on the early identification of challenges and opportunities are the best method to optimize the outcome. Motivated and inspired by the employees of AUCH, the 6 Glimpses of 2052 program was developed to give our employees, along with our industry partners, community leaders, educators, and students, the tools to make our optimism for the future a reality.”

The future-driven “6 Glimpses of 2052” was held at the historic Flagstar Strand Theatre in downtown Pontiac, just blocks from AUCH’s headquarters. The inspiring program was also live streamed through reservations, which included invitations to 15 colleges and universities across Michigan. The full program video is available on AUCH’s website. Included in the four-hour program were introductions by Karl Daubmann, AIA, FAAR, Dean and Professor, College of Architecture and Design at Lawrence Technological University, and the program was moderated by Dr. Thomas Kimble, Ph.D., President Emeritus, AARP Michigan.

The topics and speakers included: Culture/Entertainment—Anthony La Verde, CEO, Emagine Entertainment, Inc.; Economy—Dr. Gabriel Ehrlich, Director of Research Seminar in Quantitative Economics (RSQE), University of Michigan; Healthcare—Peter Karadjoff, FACHE, Senior Vice President Performance Excellence, Trinity Health; Education—Dr. Kimberly Hurns, Vice Chancellor of Student Services, Oakland Community College; Architecture/ Engineering—Dan Pitera, FAIA, Professor and Dean, Detroit Mercy School of Architecture and Community Development; and Construction—Brian Turmail, Vice President, Public Affairs and Strategic Initiatives, Associated General Contractors of America.

Preparing for the future has been an integral part of its culture since AUCH’s founding in 1908. In the subsequent 115 years, AUCH has had a part in building Michigan: from schools and homes to religious, manufacturing, and healthcare facilities. Now AUCH employs nearly 100 full-time construction professionals and support staff. And Hamilton considers the company “a family. We support each other, encourage each other, and promote from within. Our integrity and the quality of our work and our people are our foundation.”

Hamilton, the eighth president and CEO in those 115 years, has been with the company since 1994. He became president two years ago and CEO when DeLeonardis retired at the end of 2022.

“Took about a year for Vince to put ‘Glimpses’ all together. It was a special project as a way to close out his legacy,” Hamilton said. “He was a big history buff, so I asked ‘Vince you’re interested in history, what about doing something to highlight the future?”

Hamilton said there were numerous take-aways from the symposium, and also many questions, “We need to think about where we will be in 30 years. How will we do business? Obviously artificial intelligence will play a role, robots are already doing many of our tasks—including things we don’t have enough people to do.”

Hamilton says one of the most serious challenges facing the construction industry today is attracting and training the skilled workforce required to build the projects necessary for the continued growth of the Michigan economy.

“A lot of the essential things in high school—woodshop, auto shop – have gone away. We have STEM and STEAM but we also need the people who like to work with their hands. We need people who love to do things with their hands. People who’d rather be building things,” he said, adding that the option of a career in construction isn’t always in front of the students who would excel at it. “But when you expose them to construction, they have no idea how easy it is to get involved once you give them that path.”

With this in mind, AUCH works hard to get the message out about the excellent careers available in the skilled trades as well as the architectural, engineering, and construction professions. This includes organizing, supporting, and participating in career fairs, mentoring programs, and scholarship programs reaching thousands of Michigan school students every year. AUCH also actively participates in minority and women-owned business mentoring and project participation programs.

“Our AUCH Foundation is involved at Schoolcraft and Oakland Community College and we actively are involved in workforce development, especially on a field basis, working with unions, the Talent Development Coalition and the ACE (Architecture, Construction, Engineering) Mentor program,” he said. “We work to expose individuals—who don’t have the means or knowledge about programs that can inform them about what they could achieve with their lives—to new opportunities.”

In addition, to show AUCH Construction’s appreciation for both educators’ and students’ participation in the symposium, the AUCH Construction Foundation funded $5,000 in scholarships for students enrolled in accredited college, university or certified apprentice programs who attended the program, and submitted an application.

Hamilton said looking to the future means embracing technology but also holding on to the key strengths from the past. “Artificial intelligence is a big part of where we’ll go. I’m excited for new construction and what the future holds in this area,” he said. “But any achievement is done through teams and people working together. Great communication is and will be key because we cannot achieve our goals for the future without solid communication.”

As DeLeonardis explained at the beginning of 6 Glimpses, “We know that problems will come about. By looking ahead and anticipating what some of those challenges are, so we can take advantage of them, it helps us to be optimistic that we can look at the past, and know we can take care of those challenges in the future.”