S&B construction generates work by the billion
“We have seen a significant increase in project investments along the Gulf Coast by our clients over the last year.” J.D. Slaughter, S&B president
With more than 50 years as a local go-to in the engineering procurement construction industry, S&B Engineers and Constructors has gained a reputation for reliability and safety that’s gained favor with oil companies and workers alike.
Among other recent victories, the family-run company last June announced that it won a contract from Phillips 66 for the engineering, procurement and construction of two natural-gas liquids fractionation plants in Old Ocean that will have a combined capacity of 300,000 barrels per day.
Such work helped S&B generate $1.4 billion in revenue last year, making it Houston’s tenth-largest private company by revenue.
S&B President J.D. Slaughter says the firm has bucked the trend of cost and schedule overruns that have plagued many of S&B’s competitors as work has ramped up.
“We have seen a significant increase in project investments along the Gulf Coast by our clients over the last year,” said Slaughter, who added that the company’s willingness to take fixed-price contracts keeps it in favor. “Unlike most of our competitors, many of whom consider fixed price work to be a necessary evil, we prefer lump sum EPC work as we consider that in most cases it provides the best opportunity for true project success.”
Co-founded in 1967 by Slaughter’s grandfather James G. Slaughter, Sr., the company, which employs about 5,100 people, continues to plot its expansion course. S&B opened crafthiring offices this year in Mont Belvieu and Nederland and added one last September in Lake Jackson. Additionally, last October, S&B also acquired a 155,000-square-foot building along Houston’s Energy Corridor.
The company continues to bolster its reputation among workplace environments. In Forbes’ annual poll of America’s Best Midsize Employers, S&B’s ranking rose to No. 53 this year from No. 161 in 2018.
“For years, we have had a robust craft skills enhancement program
,which is open to all of our construction craft employees,” said Slaughter, who added that the company opened a training facility at its Baytown location last year, and that it takes pride in its safety record. “That reputation helps us attract and retain some of the best talent in the industry.”