Diversification and adaptability build success for nearly century-old, Abilene-based contractor
Adapting to the marketplace is often an essential element of surviving nearly 100 years in the construction industry. That’s been a hallmark of Bontke Brothers Construction Company Inc. since 1924 when the original owners and brothers A.T., John and August Bontke founded the company in Abilene, Texas.
Now, A.T.’s grandsons, brothers Kenny and Mickey Bontke, oversee Bontke Brothers Construction as president and vice president respectively. The company was previously run by their father, Eugene, as well as their uncle John and aunt Pauline.
In its earliest days, Bontke Brothers Construction focused on crushing and material supply for the Abilene area. By 1930, it had 65 employees and two crushers. Over the course of 97 years, the company grew alongside Abilene and transitioned into paving and full site construction, which involves everything from stripping to finish grading, including utility installation. Additionally, the company now recycles concrete and uses the resulting product as base material.
“Whatever the times have called for, we have made it work,” said Mickey. “Offering such a large scope of work, including asphalt and concrete paving, has given us the ability to do that. If one sector or market is down, we can easily move into another and basically maintain a consistent volume of work.”
The shift that Bontke Brothers Construction made during the Great Recession of 2007-2009 illustrates Mickey’s point.
“Our emphasis was primarily TxDOT (Texas Department of Transportation) — which is kind of ironic, because our offices are located in a former TxDOT building in Abilene — and municipality work,” Kenny recalled. “That slowed down considerably, so we diversified and turned our attention to commercial and banks, schools, and other projects. During the last few years, there has been a lot more TxDOT work because the state made a significant investment in infrastructure, so we have ramped back up there.”
Generational projects
With about 60 people among multiple crews, Bontke Brothers Construction typically has 10 to 15 projects in the works at any one time. The company usually stays within a 90-mile radius of Abilene.
“We general contract, and we sub our services out to other contractors, depending on the type and size of the job,” said Mickey. “Nearly everything we do is low bid — whether it’s a commercial or residential subdivision site we are prepping for a developer, or a highway or street project for the state or municipality.”
Recent undertakings include reconstruction work on Butternut Street in Abilene. As the general contractor, Bontke Brothers Construction completed full-depth repair on some of it, mill and overlay on other sections, and added concrete drainage structures throughout. The previous generation of Bontkes rebuilt the same roadway about 50 years ago, changing the street from brick to a paved surface.
“We have done several jobs over the years on sites that our dad, uncles and grandfather had been a part of,” said Kenny. “It’s fun to drive around Abilene and some of the other places we work in and see the legacy that’s been built.”
Adding the right equipment
As the Bontkes grew their sitework services list, they added the necessary equipment with the help of Kirby-Smith Machinery Inc. (KSM) Territory Manager Todd Coffey and Product Support Sales Representative (PSSR) Cody Christopher.
“Kirby-Smith, Todd and Cody are great about determining what the right machines are for our needs, then backing them up with quick service when needed,” said Kenny. “We have a long relationship. Over the years, we have purchased and rented a lot of machinery from them — Komatsu loaders and a new GD655 motor grader, SkyTrak telehandlers, and HAMM rollers — as well as turned to them for service. They go above and beyond to keep us up and running.”
Bontke Brothers Construction utilizes the GD655 equipped with a Topcon GPS system for rough and finish grading. The company uses the Komatsu WA270-8 and WA380-8 wheel loaders for a variety of work.
“The visibility in the Komatsu equipment is outstanding, so our operators really like that and are more productive,” said Kenny. “The motor grader is consistently smooth at all speeds. It’s been a great addition to the fleet. We match the loader to the task; the bigger WA380 is mainly for truck loading because it allows us to do that faster. The WA270 is primarily used on smaller sites such as parking lots or when we’re working in tighter spaces.”
About two years ago, Kenny and Mickey decided that it would be beneficial for Bontke Brothers Construction to do its own milling.
“We knew we wanted a WIRTGEN mill because the contractors we had subbed milling to almost exclusively used WIRTGEN,” said Kenny. “Our discussions with Todd and Cody focused on what was the right size to be most effective because our aim was to create greater efficiency and better control scheduling. Together, we determined that a W 200 i would be the best fit.”
Bontke Brothers Construction uses the W 200 i for multiple tasks.
“It saves time and expense on full-depth repair projects because you can set it to the depth you want, and the machine will precisely cut to that,” said Mickey. “We don’t have to excavate with a loader, then use a dozer to get to grade. We have used it to cut up to 10 inches without any issues.
“We are using it to do things we had never thought of before, such as cutting base in a subdivision, as well as on patching jobs in parking lots,” Mickey added. “Its size allows us to cover a wide range of applications. Another great advantage is that it’s increased our recycling efforts because we are reusing more asphalt millings, so we’re more environmentally friendly.”
Looking forward to the future
The Bontkes believe that staying diversified will remain essential to long-term success as they look forward to reaching Bontke Brothers Construction’s 100th anniversary in 2024 and welcoming a new generation to the business. Mickey’s daughter Liz has already joined the firm and operates equipment.
“It’s definitely enjoyable and rewarding carrying on the family tradition,” Kenny said. “You don’t see many businesses last this long, and we think that being able to do a wide range of projects and providing quality work will drive us forward.”
