New Mexico’s Brycon Corp. joins $13 billion national contractor HITT

New Mexico-based contractor Brycon Corp. has been acquired by one of the nation’s top general contractors.

HITT Contracting, which started as a small family business in 1937, acquired Brycon in a transaction that closed on Feb. 2. Steve Garcia, Brycon’s director of business development, announced the acquisition at a NAIOP event on Tuesday.

“They’re a $13 billion company, and we just got acquired by them — that’s exciting,” Garcia said. “That’s a national presence.”

The Brycon name isn’t going anywhere, though, former CEO Phil Casaus said in an interview. The company, founded in 1990, will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of HITT Contracting, he said. HITT declined to share the acquisition cost.

Through the acquisition, Brycon — headquartered in Rio Rancho with offices in Albuquerque, Arizona, Nevada and Texas — now has the resources and capacity to expand its reach and take on more projects from coast to coast.

Establishing a national reach drove Brycon leadership to reach out to a merger-and-acquisition broker about a year ago, Casaus said.

“We really needed to find a mechanism to be able to get more national reach to support the semiconductor growth,” Casaus said. “We also wanted to provide our employees with growth opportunities — not only in our markets, but in those markets that are supported by a company like HITT.”

Casaus said HITT’s company values and focus on employees, safety and community involvement are what sealed the deal for Brycon.

For HITT, the acquisition was “a strategic move to meet the growing demand for advanced manufacturing work nationwide,” said Vice President Thomas Kindle, who oversees the Albuquerque and Phoenix offices. He cited Brycon’s experience and specialization in clean-room construction, which involves completing projects for semiconductor manufacturers, like Intel and Samsung.

“Brycon brings 35 years of expertise and strong client relationships in those types of environments,” Kindle said, “and together we’re expanding our Southwest business — especially in Arizona and New Mexico, which continues to emerge as a hub for semiconductor manufacturing.”

Aside from its work in semiconductor construction, which has increased in recent years, Brycon’s local portfolio includes the University of New Mexico Hospital Tucker Family Clinic and Central New Mexico Community College’s Catering & Brewing Facility.  Most of the company’s projects — about 60% — are in Arizona.

HITT has delivered government-contracted projects in New Mexico, specifically for CACI and ManTech. HITT — a prominent data center builder amid the rise of rapidly developing artificial intelligence technology — also has highly complex commercial projects in Arizona.

The contractor hopes to pursue more high-tech projects in the region with the addition of Brycon, Kindle said. By joining HITT, Brycon will add multifamily and hospitality construction to its portfolio — which also includes government, education, and health care — but under the HITT name.

“Structurally, all general contracting operations will align under HITT’s brand to leverage enterprise resources and scale,” Kindle said. “All self-perform work will continue under Brycon’s name, preserving its strong reputation as a specialty trade partner in the Southwest.”

There will be no layoffs during the transition, said Casaus, who will be stepping into an advisory role to help Brycon through the transition over the next year. Casaus said he believes the company’s employees will be “well taken care of” and have “a strong future ahead of them.”

With Brycon, HITT now employs more than 3,000 people nationwide. The company’s average project is $2 million, and the contractor delivers more than 300 million square feet annually, according to its website.

Despite its vast resources, Casaus described HITT as a “national firm with a local feel.” He added the acquisition gives Brycon’s clients “a local contractor option with national contractor capabilities” — something Kindle said the industry should be excited about.

“This is an investment in the Southwest,” Kindle said.

Kylie Garcia covers retail and real estate for the Journal. You can reach her at kgarcia@abqjournal.com.