Operating from the philosophy that being physically close to clients is a must, McGill Associates, unlike many of its counterparts, maintains office space within driving distance of its client base. “We don’t like to get on a plane to go see our clients,” says Danny Bridges, vice president and Newport News office manager. “We want to be close enough to see where they are, potential projects they may have and react to emergencies as they arise so we can quickly find a resolution.”
McGill Associates is a full-service civil engineering firm that moved into the Virginia area this past February and is located on Rock Landing Drive in the heart of Newport News. Gary McGill founded the company in 1984 and, until recently, it has predominantly served in North Carolina and eastern Tennessee.
Building its reputation on one-on-one, face-to-face client service, McGill Associates works primarily with local governments and communities on projects related to land planning and recreation, water and sewer infrastructure, environmental consulting, land development and surveying, civil engineering, water treatment and the like.
As a community-based entity, McGill seeks to form relationships with local municipalities, serving as an extension to their staff. “We’re not looking for big projects to land,” says Bridges. “We are looking for community we can be involved with, form relationship with and, if the community needs help with something for which they don’t have the resources, from an engineering perspective, they can call us, consult with us and seek our help. We’re not looking to be international— we’re more of a regional firm.”
Whether it’s doing survey work to determine the boundary of a wetland area or trying to resolve water treatment and waste management issues or creating recreational designs in community parks, McGill Associates is most interested in formulating long lasting relationships with clients, built on genuine interest, mutual trust and clear and honest communication. “We want our clients to see that we are sincerely interested in helping them perform their job better—in being a resource that makes them look better to the public,” Bridges says.
In addition to serving the larger community, McGill Associates also works hard to create a positive work environment for its employees, recognizing the importance of work-life balance. “What I’ve figured out,” says Bridges, “is that we have been practicing work-life balance before it was called that. Our founder, Gary McGill, always encouraged us to have a strong work/family balance. As a company, we understand people need lives outside of their career—whatever that may be.”
As a growing company, McGill is not resting on its laurels. Its goal is to continue to appeal to clients within the community and to expand its line of services as need dictates. Bridges says, “We added surveying to our North Carolina operations about 12 years ago, electrical engineering to our breadth of services about 10 years ago and an environmental group about four to five years ago. We will continue to look and see if there are other spectrums of service connected to engineering that we need to offer.”
Having now expanded its reach to the Hampton Roads area, McGill Associates is excited to get its first official Virginia project under its belt. “We may be new to the region,” says Bridges, “but we’re not new to what we do.”
TO THE POINT:
McGill Associates
Address: 11832 Rock Landing Dr., Ste. 104, Newport News, VA 23606
Phone: 757-788-3040
Business: McGill Associates
Contact: Danny Bridges, vice president/office manager, Newport News
Website: http://mcgillengineers.com
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