Heading into its 80th year of operation in the New York region, Rochester-based LeChase Construction is hardly slowing down. The company surpassed the $1-billion mark in overall revenue last year for the first time, with $889.8 million of that generated in the state and New Jersey.

This increase represents steady growth over its 2022 regional revenue of $803.9 million and the $643.9 million total in 2021. With this latest milestone, LeChase rose one notch in this year’s regional top contractors ranking to No. 9.

“We like controlled growth,” explains LeChase CEO Bill Goodrich. He notes that over the past decade, that rate has probably been about 5% to 10% per year, versus more significant annual gains, which have never been the focus of the company’s strategy.

“What we’re looking to do is increase market shares where we do business, establishing relationships and partnerships within the markets that we serve—and it takes time to do it the right way,” Goodrich says.

Such cultivated relationships have been key to the growth trajectory that has continued into 2024 for the firm and the 850 employees who serve its client base.

“LeChase is in it for the long game as far as building relationships, especially in this industry where things can be a little bit cutthroat,” adds Kailly Mintel, project executive at LeChase, who led the recent expansion of the Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester. “Collaboration is key to our success, and we don’t underestimate our partners’ role in that.”

Repeat and core customers represent more than 70% of LeChase’s portfolio, with the remainder tied to new opportunities and clients, so fostering and growing both new and established connections is vital.

“It really comes down to our culture of doing the right thing, building partnerships, delivering excellence—and you’ve got to have the right people to be able to do that,” Goodrich points out. “I think we have the best in the business.”

A new outdoor play area at the Strong National Museum of Play features life-size elements from Hasbro games.
Photo by Kim Smith Photography

Diversified

With eight offices across New York and New Jersey, LeChase’s footprint in the region is extensive. Its headquarters in Rochester boasts more than 400 employees alone. The firm also has two locations in North Carolina.

Selective acquisitions have helped LeChase broaden its reach. The most recent of these, completed in 2022, was of Albany, N.Y.-based Sano-Rubin Construction Services, a family-operated firm with more than 100 years of experience that expands LeChase’s presence in that geography.

“What that allows us to do is to be flexible and really focus on the work opportunities within those markets,” Goodrich explains.

“LeChase is in it for the long game as far as building relationships, especially in this industry where things can be a little bit cutthroat.”
—Kailly Mintel, Project Executive, LeChase Construction

As far as specific markets, LeChase notes growing opportunities in affordable housing, life sciences, higher education and health care. “There are also some big things happening” with chip manufacturing plant construction in upstate New York funded by the federal CHIPS and Science Act, Goodrich adds. The contractor does not see slowdowns in the markets in which it operates—which also include commercial, K-12 and industrial/manufacturing—except where rising interest rates are having a larger impact.

“The market is still robust, and we’re bullish on the future,” he continues. Although challenges related to ongoing labor shortages and supply chain issues have been inevitable, LeChase’s teams have helped mitigate these by leaning heavily into its partnerships and planning as much as possible, Mintel adds.

LeChase’s diversification—both in markets and geographies—has allowed the firm to shift resources when one market slows, enabling successful company navigation through any shifts in the economic landscape.

“Having that up-front planning has become more and more important today, especially with supply chain issues and pricing escalation throughout the country, not just in our region,” Goodrich adds, noting that LeChase’s dynamic preconstruction department uses more than just historical data to determine pricing. Instead, its team breaks down costs to understand risks and how to mitigate them, which has evolved into an important differentiator, he says.

“We were just awarded a project [valued at] about $135 million in New York state [with] fierce competition,” Goodrich notes. “The customer said, ‘Your competition was tough, and this was a very hard decision. But your preconstruction team made the difference for us.’”

LeChase’s executive team, from left: Will Mack, president; Wayne LeChase, chairman; Bill Goodrich, CEO and managing partner; and Kyle Sayers, executive vice president and chief operating officer.
Photo courtesy of LeChase Construction

Coordinated Work

LeChase completes more than 300 projects across the region annually, varying in size from $5,000 to more than $1 billion in total value.

“One thing with our business is that it’s tangible—so you can finish a project and bring your family or friends to see it and actually say 'we played a role in that,'” Goodrich says.

Hospital work represents about 25% of the company’s overall revenue. One of the largest health care projects LeChase teams have completed this year is the Wilson Medical Center modernization and expansion in Johnson City, N.Y., for United Health Services Inc.—a $175-million project that is the largest in the health care provider’s history.

The relationship between it and LeChase is more than 15 years old, with the contractor having managed construction for some of the health care firm’s most significant expansion and modernization projects, says John Carrigg, United Health Services president and CEO.

“I would say that the relationship is characterized by trust, by communication, by integrity, and those are the factors we look at when we choose a partner, especially for this latest project,” explains Carrigg, adding that the Wilson hospital project will include a new emergency department, trauma center, main lobby and helipad.

“LeChase understands what we’re trying to achieve with each project,” he says, noting that the contractor “is willing to work very closely with us and our internal teams to make things happen.”

Carrigg emphasizes that the construction of a new building on a hospital campus cannot be done in isolation and must be in coordination with all of the other active services. LeChase “has always understood how important those things are and how we need to minimize the impact to our existing operation,” he says.

Foundation and slab work progresses on the $650-million, 750,000-sq-ft Fairlife production facility for The Coca-Cola Co. in Webster, N.Y. Construction began in April, with completion set for late 2025.
Photo by Gene Avallone

People First

“Every company has a culture. It’s either by default or it’s deliberate. We choose to be deliberate,” says Goodrich, who is also a strong proponent of servant leadership at LeChase.

He stresses that the firm “wants to be the place that people want to work at,” and one that appeals to customers. Also, “we want it to be dynamic,” Goodrich says. “We’re in a very challenging, sometimes hard business. So we have to work together, we’ve got to have a team and we like to call it One LeChase.”

The culture at the company is unique compared with much of the construction industry, says Mintel, who joined the firm in 2018. “When I was looking for a job here in Rochester, I’d asked around and hands down LeChase had the best reputation according to everybody I talked to—and they did not steer me wrong,” she says. “The culture here definitely speaks for itself.”

She points to the firm’s commitment to employees’ personal, professional and career growth, which contributes to LeChase’s overall success. “There’s a big emphasis on personal relationships and also on relationships with the community,” Mintel says. “So it’s really fulfilling because it’s not just all about business.”

In fostering career development training, management skill sharpening, communication improvement, relationship building and more, LeChase takes a well-rounded approach to employee growth. This has helped improve recruitment efforts as well as employee retention and motivation, Goodrich says.

“I think that investment in our people and the culture has provided dividends,” he continues. “The programs we’ve created and the internal promotions and the opportunities for growth—the sky is the limit at LeChase Construction.”