The best athletes in the world play on fields built by Sports Construction Group. The New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore Ravens and Cleveland Indians. Yeah, name your favorite team. They’re probably a client, too.
If that’s not enough, consider this: Every inning — all 153 outs — of the 2009 World Series between the Yankees and Phillies was played on surfaces created by the Brecksville company.
“Not many people can say that,” says Paul Franks, Sports Construction Group’s president and CEO. In fact, SCG’s clients include 25 percent of NFL teams and one-fifth of Major League Baseball teams.
But it all started here with Jacobs Field (now Progressive Field) in 1992. At the time, the company was called S.W. Franks Construction, and it focused on building roadways, parking lots and high school tracks. Franks wanted to expand. He wanted to grow beyond the local market, and he didn’t want to do it without a niche.
“The sports end of the business is more fun, and you meet a lot of different people,” he says. “The Jake project catapulted me to moving the company in another direction.”
Like so much in the construction business, it began by being the low bidder. Yet the company’s large-scale approach, honed from its highway work, changed the game.
“We came in with large Cat equipment and dozers, but the field designers never saw that before,” Franks says. “They were used to seeing four or five landscape guys in the field.”
Franks used two crews and two shifts, surprising even renowned stadium architects HOK at how fast they approached the project. “When it was done,” Franks says, “I thought, Wow! How are we going to top this?”
Because the project went so well, HOK invited Franks to bid on removing the artificial turf at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, where the NFL’s Chiefs play, and replacing it with natural grass the following spring. It was the company’s first out-of-town project and led to a similar turf-replacement job at Kauffman Stadium, where MLB’s Royals play.
Life Lessons
Paul Franks, president and CEO of Sports Construction Group
» Surround yourself with the best employees, listen, observe, communicate, and respect everyone’s opinion.
» Delegation is essential for the growth of any business. It builds a team atmosphere, empowers your work force and produces employee satisfaction.
» Never lose. Find a path to victory.
» Treat your employees the way you would like to be treated, you know … the Golden Rule. We were all taught that when we were kids, and it turns out to be true.
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It was a good time to be in the business. Many of the old synthetic surfaces were being replaced with grass. New-technology synthetic fields were coming into the market. And it seemed like every city needed a new or renovated facility for its pro sports team.
“We did a lot of artificial turf removal projects at that time, but we were also installing synthetic turf fields, too,” Franks says. “Then we started installing heated fields and fields with forced air into the [grass] root zone. We were becoming involved with new technology and implementing different ideas.”
The stature of the company’s projects continued to increase. In 2001, it simultaneously rebuilt the fields at the former Yankee Stadium and Shea Stadium, home of the New York Mets. Work commenced right after Thanksgiving and finished in early 2002.
“We worked in the worst weather you could imagine,” Franks says. Snow needed to be removed before the projects could start, and the 9/11 terrorist attacks had shaken New York.
“We were working in a city that had gone through such emotion and security measures. It was mind-boggling.”
So when it was time to build the field at new Yankee Stadium, SCG was a natural choice.
The work schedule was extremely difficult. The company had to navigate 1,000 trades workers following 20 different union guidelines. Cranes and loaders were bringing tons of equipment and material, some of which could only be transported during certain times of the night. There were 1,000 deliveries a day.
“It was like building a skyscraper,” Franks says. “With high school fields, in comparison, you have more access, and you’re not walking around as many people. You have more control to get the job done.”
The results were worth the effort, Franks says. “You’re doing your best work for the best,” he says. “To complete the reconstruction of the field at old Yankee Stadium and have the organization bring you back a second time to work on the new Yankee Stadium is humbling.”
Still, of all SCG’s high-profile projects, Progressive Field means the most to Franks because of the hometown connection and its springboard for the company.
“There’s a lot of pride that goes into that project,” he says. “We have a strong connection with Jacobs Field because it’s the facility that got us out of the box.”
The connection is so strong, SCG’s 6-acre headquarters in Brecksville resembles the Indians home. The outside façade of the office building features steel columns like those at the stadium, and a sports theme permeates the interior.
Employees use professional sports lockers to hang their coats; trophies line the halls; and a 25-foot-long, floor-to-ceiling graphic in the conference room makes it seem like you’re looking onto Progressive Field from a center loge. Just outside the building, 40,000 square feet of synthetic turf signifies the company’s new commercial turf division, which sells turf to contractors nationally.
When Franks moved the company from downtown to Brecksville in December, he told the mayor he wanted to build a field on the company’s property with the purpose of hosting fundraising games. (Franks’ son has an immune deficiency, so Franks is active with related charities.)
The mayor suggested using one of the city’s fields so SCG didn’t have to waste space on its property. So SCG partnered with the city to build a soccer/lacrosse field at Blossom Hill school. SCG covered half the cost. The field will be used, at times, as a showcase for potential clients.
“They can get a one-on-one with our project management team and get a handle on what we’re all about,” he says.
But no matter the client, whether it’s a big-name professional sports team or a local high school, SCG aims to treat all customers the same. “I welcome anybody to call any one of our clients,” he says. “Customer satisfaction is most important to us.”
Since 2004, SCG has grown 300 percent. Last year, the company had sales of more than $25 million. “The work ethic is the same throughout,” Franks says. “We’ve gone through a lot of people over the years and kept those who perform.”
That’s translated into good relationships with the architects and large general contractors, such as Whiting-Turner and Hunt Construction Group. “Because we’ve done excellent work, we’re invited back,” says Franks.
Despite SCG’s growth, the recession has put collegiate projects (often funded by donations) and many high school projects (funded by levies) on hold. Franks expects the company to be back on track in 2010. Current projects include several minor league and high school facilities.
The 150-employee company continues to evolve. Franks is forming a board of directors outside the industry because he’s considering manufacturing sports products and related ventures.
“Never be apprehensive with change,” he says. “Change is difficult. It opens our minds to new opportunities.”