HARMAN CONSTRUCTION, INC.
FORT WORTH, TX

Harman Construction is a design-build general contractor made up of about 65 individuals—20 in our Harrisonburg office and 45 working in the field. Though our backgrounds and interests differ, you’ll find common themes of family, faith, and pride in our work run strong throughout our company. We come together under the example of our leadership, upholding the Valley tradition of hard work grounded in fairness and integrity. This common ground has led to a steady growth over Harman’s 40-plus year history. What began as a spin-off to CEO Carl Harman’s family farm supply business, Harman Construction now has an annual volume consistently around $40 million. In talking to Carl, there are a few key take-aways that have helped define Harman Construction for over forty years. First, Carl has always done as much or more than what he asked of his employees. Second, his willingness to trust employees and empower others maximized their talents and ability to do good work. And, perhaps most importantly, The Golden Rule has been his guiding philosophy. “Treat those we serve and members of our community as I would want to be treated.” So simple, really. Also worth mentioning, the JMU graduate loves to kid around. He can take it just as well as he can dish it out! It’s a little thing, but one that has helped shape Harman Construction’s company culture. To start, our leadership has empowered every employee to uphold the safety standards. That means, no matter where an employee sits on the totem pole, he or she is encouraged to speak up and stop work if they see something unsafe. It’s in our milestone safety celebrations where our CEO mans the grill full of steaks. It’s in the company-wide recognition for safety suggestions and the incentives awarded for zero accidents. Though we do all this because we think it’s the right thing to do, there are indirect benefits to you as a client. A safe work environment leads in increased morale with lower turnover, higher productivity, and greater quality. And, companies with lower accident rates have lower insurance rates and other costs that increase overhead. The History of Harman Construction Frank Harman begins his career in business as he owns and operates poultry hatchery, equipment and farm businesses. The hatchery grew to become the largest in VA in the 50’s and 60’s. Carl and Orden Harman decide to follow in their father’s entrepreneurial footsteps. They start Harman Farm Supplies and begin selling and installing buildings, grain bins, and feed equipment. Harman begins to transition into a commercial builder, due in large part to the company’s strong relationship with Butler Manufacturing—a leading developer and manufacturer of metal building systems. Harman Farm Supplies becomes Harman Construction. HCI introduces the “R-Steel” Wall Panel System to the Shenandoah Valley, and helps Butler Manufacturing launch the product nationally. HCI is selected as a key partner in helping Merck complete a series of critical projects at the Elkton , Virginia facility. This series of projects, started in 2006 and continued into 2008, totaled nearly $20M in value and helped Merck establish strategic initiatives on schedule. Carl Harman, transitions into CEO role and names Wayne Witmer the new company president and COO. Harman Construction celebrates 40 years of service. I know that this was an extraordinary accomplishment, to complete the project on time, and that this has historically been EMU’s experience with Harman Construction projects on our campus. In all our business encounters with Harman Construction, we have found them to be professional, accommodating, and responsive to the requests of our clients and to the particular demands of the projects. They are always well organized, technically proficient, and can be counted on to deliver a quality product—on time and on budget.