Thalle Construction specializes in dam, environmental, civil, landfill, transportation and other concrete projects.

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By keeping its debt low and being selective in its work, Thalle Construction Co. has enjoyed longevity in its industry, Dir­ector of Global Bus­iness Dev­e­lopment Anthony Hattey says. Based in Hills­borough, N.C., the contractor specializes in dam, environmental, civil, landfill, transportation, site development, utility and roller compacted concrete projects.

Founders Guido Pacchiana and Joe Thalle started the company in 1947, and today, Thalle Construction has grown to operate additional offices in Yonkers and Briarcliff Manor, N.Y. In addition, Hattey says, the company employs 150 full-time workers and operates under the leadership of Pacchiana’s grandson, President and CEO Gregg Pacchiana.

Thalle Construction currently has projects in the Southeastern states and New York, and is pursuing work internationally. When choosing jobs, “We seek out work that is schedule-driven and has some complexity to it,” Hattey says. “[That way], we don’t get in a bidding war with a whole slew of competitors.”

A former Marine, Hattey previously wor­k­ed on reconstruction projects in Iraq and Latin America. In addition, he wor­ked for Thalle Construction part-time before joining it full-time in February 2009.

Hattey says his previous experience has been beneficial on the strategy side of Thalle Construction’s business. “When you talk about evaluating new business initiatives, the methodology for doing that analysis and implementing [it] is very similar to what I did as a staff officer in the military,” he explains.

In addition, the military experience has aided Hattey when the company has traveled to an area where it does not have a presence. “We basically bring in a capability from [our] home station into an area where there is nothing and build it up to do a project,” he says. “There are all kinds of parallels.”

Hattey adds that he enjoys working alongside Thalle Construction’s people. “[The staff] has a good degree of camaraderie, [and] a real desire to produce some­thing and see the results of their labor,” he says. “I found that to be something that has always been attractive to me, particularly in my last career.”

Avoiding the Trap
Despite the downturn in the economy, Thalle Construction has avoided falling into the trap of bidding too aggressively on projects as it has expanded its capacity in personnel and equipment, Hattey says. “Because we have a good cash position and not a lot of debt, we were able to husband our resources and pick the right projects,” he says.

“There may have been a couple months there where we doubted that strategy,” he admits. “[However], we hired a couple dozen people in the last [few] months, not only to do estimating but to manage the projects we’ve taken on.”

The company also recently began a large dam site development project in upstate New York, a dam in northeastern Pennsylvania, another dam in Georgia, and it was recently awarded a $34 million contract by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to build a new lock at a dam in Western Kentucky.

The company also made additions to its safety team, which included the hire of a new safety director. With these additions, “We feel we have a [safer] presence,” he says.

Thalle’s Green Focus
Although some companies are now pursuing environmental initiatives, Thalle Construction has always considered itself green, “because of our recycling capabilities,” Hattey says. He notes that the company recycles building materials on its project sites, allowing its clients to earn LEED credits.

Hattey adds that Thalle Construction has the ability to recycle such materials as concrete, metal and asphalt. “We can chew [those] up and turn [them into] usable building material on-site,” he says.

Hattey says Thalle Construction plans to continue growing, as it pursues its goal of being a world-class contractor.