Walsh Brothers
The Walsh Brothers Difference, Since 1901
For 114 years, Boston-based construction management specialist Walsh Brothers has helped to push the industry forward with a company-wide commitment to innovation and tackling the toughest, most challenging jobs. As one of the most distinguished companies of its kind in the country today, Walsh Brothers brings a flexible, ever-evolving set of skills to bear on the most complex and sensitive of projects, consistently delivering results that exceed clients’ hopes and expectations. A family-owned and led company for more than a century, Walsh Brothers also stresses the importance of cultivating enduring relationships and ensuring that every partner benefits from the superior craftsmanship and service that have characterized the organization since the beginning.
The Walsh Brothers Approach
Partnering regularly with educational, medical, cultural, and other institutions where construction work must not be allowed to disrupt ongoing operations, Walsh Brothers has forged a strong reputation for innovation, sensitivity, and flexibility, key traits that allow the company to succeed with the most delicate and demanding of jobs:
Massachusetts State House Time Capsule Removal
When work on the Massachusetts State House revealed a time capsule that had been hidden away in one of the building’s cornerstones for more than a hundred years, Walsh Brothers was called upon to oversee the difficult task of safely removing it. The company’s long history of successfully completing such delicate projects made it the unanimous choice of the Simpson Gumpertz & Heger design team members leading the renovation.
Careful, surgical work overseen by Walsh Brothers led to the removal of four surrounding granite blocks, each weighing around 800 pounds, as well as the installation of steel shoring to support the State House in their absence. The cornerstone itself was then removed on December 11, 2014, after which the time capsule, which had been originally placed in 1795 (before being added to in 1855), was safely removed.
Finally, on January 7, the 10-pound time capsule was opened in a ceremony at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, revealing a trove of coins dating back as far as 1652, a silver plaque that is thought to have been engraved by Paul Revere, and a collection of documents and newspapers from the Colonial period. The careful work overseen by Walsh Brothers allowed this historical treasure to be recovered entirely without damage and is characteristic of the unique character that has made the company such a consistent leader in the industry for well over a century.
Restoring the Dome at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
One of the most recognizable landmarks in Cambridge and the Boston area in general, the Great Dome of MIT’s Barker Library reading room is a point of pride for the world-class research and educational institution. When leaks in that structure began threatening the prized engineering collections within, Walsh Brothers was called in to manage the repair work.
By planning every detail with the greatest of care and sensitivity, including securing an exact replacement for the damaged limestone of the dome from a quarry in Indiana, Walsh Brothers finished the project without disrupting the operation of the Library or the surrounding buildings. This extremely active portion of the MIT campus remained entirely usable and safe throughout, ensuring that students, professors, and researchers could go about their important activities without interference even while a project of such scale went on above. That is a common feature of the company’s work, as with the “Skinney Binney” construction project for the Children’s Hospital that current President and CEO Richard Walsh characterized as “the toughest postage stamp site I ever worked.”
The company’s performance on this project earned it an AON Build America Award from the Association of General Contractors, one of a number of these prestigious distinctions that it has collected. Working with such assuredness and capability on this kind of sensitive, high-profile project is typical of what makes Walsh Brothers a leading force in the construction industry.
The Yawkey Center for Cancer Care at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Another project that produced an AON Build America Award for Walsh Brothers, the Yawkey Center for Cancer Care was also the Boston area’s first Gold-level LEED certified health care building. In addition to ensuring that this rigorous energy-efficiency standard would be met, Walsh Brothers employed a number of other cutting-edge, industry-leading, techniques while managing the construction of this 13-story building.
The company’s work that aimed at isolating the patient-oriented facility from the vibration produced by the adjoining Medical Area Total Energy Plant, for example, involved the highly coordinated use of a number of advanced construction techniques. Built to enable closer collaboration between researchers and patients, the Yawkey Center today serves as the entrance point to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and is a fine illustration of the kind of critical, challenging work that Walsh Brothers consistently excels at. A long, flourishing relationship with the Institute made Walsh Brothers the clear choice for the project.
Walsh Brothers Looks toward the Future
With a forward-looking, innovative perspective that has held up to the ever-evolving challenges of the construction industry for well over a century, Walsh Brothers is primed for even greater successes in the future. Current President and CEO Richard Walsh represents the fourth generation of the Walsh family to lead the company to greater growth and new accomplishments, having joined the firm soon after graduating from Dartmouth College.
Throughout his career with the company, Walsh has focused on building the kinds of enduring, productive relationships that are so typical of Walsh Brothers, working personally with such important partners as Boston University, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and Emmanuel College, among others. Walsh embodies the spirit of community engagement that has guided Walsh Brothers for so long, taking time to serve on the Advisory Council of Northeastern University’s School of Architecture and in a number of crucial roles at the Belmont Hill School and elsewhere. He also stresses the importance of company-wide persistence and resourcefulness, having productively identified the most recent recession as “a time to enhance technology and customer-service capabilities to be ready when the market bounces back.”
Under his leadership as President and CEO, Walsh Brothers stands poised to build on its long, impressive history in ambitious and evolving ways, confronting with eagerness and an innovative spirit the many challenges the construction industry can pose. Whether undertaking new projects for clients with whom the company has worked for decades or building new relationships that will last just as long, Walsh Brothers remains committed to delivering the best in craftsmanship and service while managing and mastering the most complex, sensitive, and difficult projects.
Since 1901, the professionals of Walsh Brothers have built and restored some of the most recognized landmarks in New England and beyond. We believe that our culture and the way we conduct our business day-to-day is distinguished by some very unique qualities of our firm:
We manage EXCEPTIONALLY COMPLEX PROJECTS exceptionally well…
Year after year, owners and architects choose Walsh Brothers to handle their most demanding and complex construction projects. They know us as talented problem solvers who excel in every aspect of construction management – from logistics and scheduling to the coordination and integration of sophisticated systems and building elements.
We are BUILDERS at our core…
We are a team of seasoned builders and engineers. Owners consistently turn to Walsh Brothers because of their unique abilities in assessing the constructability of designs, solving complex problems through well thought-out sequencing and phasing, and because of their continued success in bringing architectural ideas to life in exacting detail. Our experienced project teams are uniquely qualified to provide in-depth analysis of construction materials and methods.
We are a family-owned firm, built on LASTING RELATIONSHIPS…
As a family-owned firm, we serve as trusted partners and advisors to our clients before, during, and well after the project is completed and turned over. Our project teams take pride in their work, keep their promises, and react quickly, creatively, and responsibly to changing circumstances. Our promise of quality, care, and commitment endures from one generation of the Walsh family to the next.
Walsh Brothers
210 Commercial Street
Boston, MA 02109
Phone 617-878-4800
Fax 617-720-6116
Website – www.walshbrothers.com
