3 NoCo engineering firms expand into bigger offices

The engineering business in Northern Colorado is booming. The result: more spacious digs for some of the growing firms.

Of late, several engineering firms have moved or announced relocation plans, while others contemplate such options.

Northern Engineering Services didn’t move far from its former location at Mulberry and Howes streets in Fort Collins when it relocated to the old Blue Cross/Blue Shield building at 200 S. College Ave. in October. But the short distance is not mirrored by the impact of the move for the company.

The civil engineering company’s Web site sums it up: “Movin’ on up.”

The new $5.5 million location is actually a renovation; Northern Engineering occupies the first and part of the second floor of the now four-story building, selling lofts on the stories above.

“We needed more space,” explained George Schock, president of Northern Engineering.

The move increased the firm’s offices from 6,000 square feet to 10,000 square feet. Housing 42 employees, the company has filled about 75 percent of the building’s capacity, Schock said, leaving room for growth.

With such a large investment, the company was sure to incorporate its needs into the design.

“We worked directly with the architect to make sure we got what we wanted,” Schock said. “We were 100 percent involved.”

The layout is based around the company’s design teams, with central work tables surrounded by private offices.

In addition to seeking roomier accommodations, Northern Engineering kept its staff in mind when choosing a new location. “Our employees really enjoy being in Old Town Fort Collins,” Schock said.

Location consolidation

Northern Engineering’s staff isn’t the only one that will benefit from a downtown location. CTL Thompson Inc. is taking a page from the renovation book to revamp the Sears Trostel building on Linden Street in downtown Fort Collins.

CTL, a geotechnical, materials and environmental engineering and testing firm, will consolidate two offices into the renovated building. The company picked up an additional Fort Collins location when it acquired Secure Foundations LLC in 2005.

To say the least, the company is growing. At the time of the acquisition, the company had 27 employees at both offices. Today, the company employs 36.

“We have five new employees this year, and we’re still in growth mode,´ said Howard Perko, Fort Collins branch manager for CTL. “We have immediate needs for structural engineers.”

The renovated building will boost the firm’s lab and office space by about 60 percent. CTL will occupy half of the building’s 18,000 square feet when the renovations are completed in August. The ownership – several key employees at the firm – will lease the rest of the space.

“We are actively looking to lease out the executive suites and the retail/restaurant space,” Perko said.

Again, the proximity to the downtown was a major attraction for the firm. Perko explained that the new building will be equipped with bike racks and showers to encourage employees to take advantage of the nearby bike trails.

On the business side, the location will allow field technicians easy access to major thoroughfares en route to projects – at least, when projects require travel.

“We have a lot of clients that are located downtown,” Perko explained.

Regional focus

Client proximity persuaded geotechnical and materials analysis firm Earth Engineering Inc. to hop out of Fort Collins for a more central regional location.

The firm moved into its new building in Windsor at the end of 2004, according to Mike Coley, president of Earth Engineering’s residential division.

“It made sense for us to relocate to more of a regionally central location,” he said.

The building, located just north of the Wal-Mart Distribution Center on Crossroads Boulevard, offers a quicker route to regional clients.

“When I started here (eight years ago), a lot of the work was located in Fort Collins,” he said, adding that while the Fort Collins work hasn’t tapered off the work in other locations has heated up.

But location isn’t everything.

“Not only did we need more office space, we needed more laboratory space,” Coley said.

In the company’s Fort Collins office, there was no room for an asphalt testing lab. Now, the company not only has an asphalt lab, it also has room to grow, which the firm is doing. It now has about 30 employees – up from the 25 it had when it announced plans for the move.

Driven by location, proximity to clients and actual physical restraints, Northern Colorado engineering firms continue to shuffle within the region. The moves are indicative of the success of the industry and regionalization of the economy.

on Facebook on LinkedIn