About 20 years ago, Daniel and Katy Crookham were working for another construction company whose owner told them that within a few years he was planning to retire. That prompted the couple — who have been together since high school — to start their own business, Crookham Construction, that’s focused on concrete work.

“When we started, we did a lot of little stuff — small commercial jobs mainly,” recalled Katy, who oversees Crookham Construction’s financial side and handles project management. “Our first projects were working on a couple of pharmacies in the local area. We have escalated from that to doing much larger work in terms of size and volume.”

Since founding the business in 2007, the Crookhams have continued to build the Tonganoxie, Kansas-based firm. Crookham Construction’s portfolio has grown significantly and includes several large and comprehensive concrete projects throughout the greater Kansas City metro area.

“If it has to do with concrete, we’re involved,” said Daniel, who oversees field operations, equipment, preconstruction and estimating. “We do footings, walls, structural decks, slabs on deck, tilt-up and more with an emphasis on private work in the commercial and light industrial markets. We also do a lot of multifamily housing construction right now, so we have moved into that as well.”

Goal achieved

With several jobs going at once and spread out across a large area, Crookham Construction runs multiple crews with its staff of 80-plus employees. Daniel indicated that growing from its early days to where the company is now has come from a combination of planned growth and taking advantage of good opportunities. Katy added that they usually have a couple of larger “anchor” projects with smaller ones mixed in.

“We wanted to grow and sometimes just had to take some big steps that were put in front of us,” reflected Daniel. “There were years where we doubled in size because of the sheer opportunity to do it. There were times that were tough, but we got through it.”

Katy added, “When we set out, our main goal was to just build a good company that would provide our employees with a good income, retirement opportunities and benefits. Just looking at it from that standpoint, I believe we have achieved that. We’re big enough we can do that, while still small enough that we can know our people and effectively manage the business.”

Versatility with Magni and Takeuchi

A recent project on Kansas City’s downtown Plaza area is a good example of Crookham Construction’s capabilities. The structural project was located on a site that was formerly razed to make way for new construction. Crookham Construction’s scope of work included pouring a concrete slab, 30-foot walls around the slab and two decks. In total, crews poured more than 1,000 yards of concrete.

“Projects like that take a lot of careful planning and preconstruction to know exactly how to get from point A to point B,” Daniel emphasized. “It’s not the biggest job we have ever done, but it is one of the more intricate and toughest because of the logistics. There was little room to move. As we proceed, there is a lot of labor involved in putting up forms for the walls and rebar as well as on the other end to remove the forms. Fortunately, we have very skilled staff members at every phase who know how to get the job done.”

The project also highlights why Crookham Construction recently chose to rent a Magni RTH 6.30 rotating telehandler with a maximum lift height of 97 feet, 9 inches; maximum forward reach of 85 feet, 4 inches; and 13,200 pounds of lift capacity. Crookham Construction positioned the telehandler near the street and used it to set and remove forms, set vertical steel, fly rebar, and pour concrete with a specialty bucket.

“We were looking for something similar to a small crane that would allow us to get into tight areas and be able to reach practically anywhere,” explained Shop Manager Nik Lorenzini. “We also wanted versatility, and the Magni allows you to use a wide variety of attachments such as forks, a man basket and winch. The winch makes it more like a crane as you get good lift capacity without the larger footprint and with the ability to quickly drive it from one spot to the next.”

Crookham Construction decided on the Magni RTH 6.30 after Kirby-Smith Machinery Inc. (KSM) Territory Manager Jason Woods set up a demonstration and gave the company a chance to try it out.

“Kirby-Smith and Jason are great and easy to deal with,” stated Nik. “We have been working with them for several years to buy parts, then started purchasing Takeuchi track loaders when Kirby-Smith became the dealer in this area. Anything we need, they have been right there to help.”

Daniel added, “Jason and Kirby-Smith helped us determine the right size machine based on the loads we were going to pick, and they set up the winch. That’s handy when lifting forms and materials because it gives us the ability to keep the boom up and get over things. It’s much more effective than using forks and having to move the machine back and forth.”

Crookham Construction has multiple Takeuchi TL8, TL10 and TL12 compact track loaders as well as some older models. The business runs several attachments to handle everything from grading to loading trucks.

“We have found that the TL8 models are the most versatile because they’re just the right size to get in everywhere, and they have a good pick rating,” noted Daniel. “We do some jobs that involve moving a lot of material, and they will handle it. The bigger TL10 and TL12 are for larger work such as when we have to more quickly move 200,000 feet of rock. The TL12 models are for those really sizable jobs where you are on the cusp of needing a dozer.”

Expansion plans in the works

Crookham Construction will soon start some street work in conjunction with the revitalization of Kansas City’s West Bottoms. The company will do all of the infrastructure and street work for the project and will be paving as a subcontractor on the first phase.

Crookham Construction is also doing some dirt work projects, a side of the business that the Crookhams would like to expand on.

“We don’t know how much yet at this point,” commented Daniel. “We’re exploring that, and we’re looking at tapping back into public work as a sub. We were in the market before mainly as a prime.”

Katy added, “We developed a lot of good relationships with a group of general contractors and continue to do a lot of repeat work for them. We believe that’s due to our quality and consistency, so we won’t lose focus on that, no matter where we go.”

*The opinions expressed here are based on the customer’s specific experience. Results may vary.

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