MARTIN 8/7/08 3:29 PM Page 69

martin bros. / marcowall inc. profile

ny for 15 to 25 years. “While we have a they dive for jobs at cost; we don’t do Should the market soften, Ounanian
core group of field employees, we have that,” Ounanian says. says the company will focus more in
the ability to employ, manage and run “I think there is plenty of work out here bidding jobs in the public sector.
850-plus men in our field operation,” to sustain us and our competitors. While He predicts Martin Bros./Marcowall
Ounanian says. the market may be softening in a year or will expand its portfolio to include more
two, there will always be a niche for education projects within the next
Competitive Edge Martin Bros./Marcowall,” Ounanian says. year or two.
Advanced in-house resources have
been a boom to business. The firm’s
engineering department and design
team are, in large part, the differenti-
ating factor between Martin
Bros./Marcowall and the local compe-
tition, Ounanian maintains. Using 3-D
design modeling and advanced soft-
ware, the firm can minimize time
spent on the design phase and accu-
rately provide pricing for its clients.
“Preconstruction and design/assist
projects have been a trend and focus in
our company over the years,” he says.
The company has taken part in sev-
eral design/build projects. For exam-
ple, it was asked to help conceptualize
and design the unique wall systems in
the Walt Disney Concert Hall and the
Cal Tech Cahill Center for Astronomy
and Astrophysics.
Working with large, well-known
general contractors such as Turner
Construction Co., Hathaway
Dinnwiddie, Swinterton Builders,
Webcor and Bovis Lend Lease has given
the company the experience over the
years to tackle any size project. “We are
prequalified with 15 of our core clients in
the Southern California area,” Ounanian
maintains. “We also have very good rela-
tionships with our material vendors, so if
we need certain materials on site and on
time, it is a phone call away.”
In the last four years, healthcare and
multifamily condo projects have pro-
vided numerous jobs for Martin
Bros./Marcowall.
Although the company has enjoyed a
steady stream of work, there is some
speculation that business might slow in
the waning economy. “The Southwest
market has been strong in the last four
years, but what happens in our market
is when people are looking for work,

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