TX Firms Honored For Building Diversity

RICHARDSON, TX - The University of Texas System has honored four firms for advancing the goal of using historically underutilized businesses to design and build the spate of campus buildings that opened last year at UT Dallas.

“These awards are one indicator of the longstanding comprehensive commitment UT Dallas has to engaging the diversity that it takes to deliver an extraordinary transformation of the campus,” said Dr. Calvin D. Jamison, UT Dallas’ senior vice president for Business Affairs. “Really, it’s a great business model with an outstanding product.”

A historically underutilized business (HUB) is one that is at least 51 percent owned by an Asian-Pacific American, Afro-American, Hispanic American or an American woman with its principal place of business in Texas.

One HUB – Kell Muñoz Architects – and three firms that hired HUB subcontractors or subconsultants – Turner Construction, Adolfson & Peterson, and Perkins & Will – were recognized for their work on the Founders Building, the Center for BrainHealth, the Science Learning Center and the Student Services Building.

“We present the awards for Office of Facilities Planning and Construction projects that have exceeded the HUB goals during the previous year. The architects and general contractors that work on UT System projects have committed to work with the subcontracting community to develop relationships with HUB firms,” said Christi Johnson, senior HUB coordinator for UT System.

“These awards are strong indicators of a truly inclusive process that incorporates HUB subcontractors and consultants as a part of highly functional teams that produce superlative results.”

Rick Dempsey, associate VP
for Facilities Management

UT Dallas received five of the UT System's 14 HUB awards.

“These awards are strong indicators of a truly inclusive process that incorporates HUB subcontractors and consultants as a part of highly functional teams that produce superlative results. These new facilities are universally recognized as being both aesthetically pleasing and functionally capable buildings that are positive additions to the campus,” said Rick Dempsey, associate vice president for Facilities Management at UT Dallas.

Architects must meet or exceed the HUB goal of 20 percent for professional services for the design contracts, and general contractors must meet or exceed the building construction goal of 26.1 percent.

The University also has an established track record with HUBs for non-construction expenditures, such as commodities and other services, said Peter Bond, assistant vice president for Procurement Management.

“Since minorities and women make up the majority of the citizens of the state of Texas it is to all of our benefit that they be as productive and successful as possible,” Bond said.

“Often, dealing with local Texas companies enables us to get quality goods and services faster, and it’s often a win-win for the University and the HUB business,” he said.

The UT System requires state agencies to make a good-faith effort to use HUBs in contracts for construction, services and commodities purchases.

UT Dallas ranks 33rd among 180 state agencies in percentage of expenditures with HUBs and has ranked among the top HUB-contracting agencies consistently since the inception of the program 20 years ago.

“Our reputation with HUB vendors gives us great pride and is one of the few measures we have of our success and positive effect on a large scale,” Bond said.