Joe Meuleman, 35

MEULEMAN

Advising industry on legal issues
Attorney
Meuleman Mollerup LLP
Boise

Joe Meuleman is a construction lawyer who learned the industry from the inside out. He worked as a painting contractor during high school and spent his final two summers while getting a degree in finance at the University of Idaho working as a carpenter and concrete laborer. During law school, he interned with AGC of America in Virginia, helping to revise industry standard-form contracts. Now he represents contractors, subcontractors, suppliers, sureties and developers in construction-related disputes and transactions. Meuleman has continued his work with AGC and also advises the construction management department at Idaho State University on curriculum, accreditation and industry issues. He works with Habitat for Humanity and the Girl Scouts of Silver Sage and was a 2013 recipient of Idaho Business Review's "Idaho Accomplished Under 40" award. His advice to young people in the industry: "Young construction and design professionals must quickly adapt to new technologies and project delivery methods as project owners continue to emphasize services and value," he says.

Cory Moore, 36

MOORE

Landing big projects at Big-D
Senior Vice President, Partner
Big-D Construction Corp.
Salt Lake City

Cory Moore grew up with Big-D Construction, working in field operations, estimating and business development for nearly 18 years. He now leads business development across Big-D's seven offices and 14 operating groups. He has helped the contractor win many large projects, such as the Salt Lake City International Airport Expansion, Utah Data Center, Xactware Corporate Headquarters and the Natural History Museum of Utah. Moore has also improved processes within the company that enhance employee and client satisfaction. "Cory is always focused on customer satisfaction, making sure we develop 'customers for life,'" says John Kemp, a senior estimator at Big-D. Moore says the toughest part of his job remains the still-recovering economy. "Owners are unable to fund many projects with traditional financing, and lending institutions have been reluctant to provide loans for development due to regulatory requirements," Moore says. "However, it seems investors are finding fewer perfectly positioned assets, so we appear to be moving back into a more normalized real-estate cycle."

Sean M. Mulholland, 36

MULHOLLAND

Advocating best practices and lean methods in health-care projects
Construction Manager
Penrose/St.Francis Health Services
Colorado Springs, Colo.

Sean Mulholland began his career in civil design and surveying, then worked for general contracting firms building parks, schools, prisons and hospitals. Early projects helped him understand the codes, standards and best practices that are key in health-care construction. Now, as an owner's representative, he has led hospital designers toward using more virtual modeling, thus improving real-time cost models and making 3D designs more accessible to end-users. Mulholland is also bringing health care construction into university programs, combining engineering specialties, construction management and business classes to tackle the unique problems of the health-care industry. He encourages the use of lean construction principles on health-care projects, working with the construction management department at Texas A&M University on using lean construction to improve quality and efficiency. "It's a challenge to express value in a design, not just as a commodity, while also ensuring value in the quality of construction," Mulholland says, "especially when many other industries are relenting to the mantra of cheaper and faster at the expense of quality."