consortium wins major piece of Marquette pie

Several contractors are completing work simultaneously on the massive Marquette Interchange project, among them Marquette Constructors LLC, a company exclusively formed to bid on the Marquette Interchange reconstruction.

Three companies came together to form Marquette Constructors - Edward Kraemer & Sons Inc. of Plain, WI; Lunda Construction Co. of Black River Falls, WI and Zenith Tech Inc. of Waukesha, WI. The joint venture won contracts for the project's South Leg and Core contracts, worth close to $360 million of the estimated $810 million job.

This approach, of contractors with different areas of expertise joining together to bid on a large project, is not a new concept in the US, but it is new in Wisconsin. Frank Busalacchi, secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, says the coalition is a good idea for a project of this magnitude. The team approach gives the companies better access to experience and knowledge that will be needed on the project, he says.

Plus, having the project go to a Wisconsin company has made things even better, Busalacchi says, because there's a huge sense of pride among those working on the job.