Ken BeCraft joined the Blair Construction team in 1985 at a time of significant growth for the company. He had no idea what the future would hold for the family-owned firm.
“Mr. Blair’s commitment to grow and take on larger projects has been very successful,” he said. “Blair’s largest project in 1985 was in the $2 million range. Now we are building $40 million to $50 million schools and, recently, an $80 million-plus new beverage can manufacturing facility.”
In BeCraft’s first year at Blair, he worked as a project manager while being mentored as an estimator under Bailey Henderson. When Henderson retired, BeCraft was well suited to fill his shoes, diving immediately into industrial and commercial client work. Overseeing design development in his new role would become one of his favorite parts of the job.
“Being able to see a project from design development through completion is extremely rewarding,” he said. “I also enjoy developing relationships with customers like Delta Star Transformers that have entrusted their expansion projects with Blair throughout the years.”
BeCraft’s time at Blair spans multiple industries. In his aforementioned work with Delta Star, he led a team using large bridge cranes to move transformers. Additional highlights of BeCraft’s career include building new facilities for school bus distributor Sonny Merryman, expanding Graham Packaging warehouses, and rerouting Graham’s railcar pellet delivery system.
“Graham was particularly challenging,” said BeCraft. “2018 was the rainiest year on record, which we had to account for throughout construction. The project also involved a roof overbuild, which was unique to pre-engineered building construction.”
After spending his childhood in Southwest Virginia and Kingsport, Tennessee, BeCraft settled in Virginia’s Campbell County in the city of Lynchburg, where he has remained since. Though he started with Blair in 1985, he remained busy serving as assistant county administrator, director of public works, county engineer, and a building official until 1989. Despite the workload, these experiences have made him a well-rounded member of Blair’s team.
“Since Ken joined the company in 1985, his contributions to our clients, subcontractors, and overall trajectory have been invaluable,” said Blair President Tim Clark. “Ken embodies so many of Blair’s core values and is instrumental in building and maintaining client relationships. He is able to envision the needs of the client to avoid those unexpected hiccups once the project gets underway. It’s a difficult job, and we’re lucky to have someone so diligent in that role.”
In his 38th year with Blair Construction, Ken BeCraft has not tired of his work. He continues to learn eagerly and take on new challenges.