No Waterway? No Problem for the Utah Inland Port Authority

UIPA aims to build on its successes over the last seven years and continue its mission to enhance the lives of Utahns through municipal collaboration and well-positioned industrial development.
By Taylor Larsen

Ports? In landlocked Utah?

Sure, the traditional idea of a port in Utah, with cargo ships, cruise liners, container cranes, dockworkers, barges—not to mention coastal water—is farfetched. But the Utah Inland Port Authority (UIPA) has broadened the meaning of a port since its formation in 2018. Even without a coast, UIPA has worked to strengthen rail, air, and road cargo infrastructure to turn Utah into a 21st century logistics hub and changing the economic trajectory of the Beehive State in the process. 

It’s been seven years of increased industrial development that has been a boon for the A/E/C community, but more importantly the logistics and manufacturing network to build for an ever-growing consumer demand. There have been plenty of detractors to UIPA, especially as it relates to ecological conservation. Ben Hart, Executive Director of UIPA, has heard it loud and clear as he sets the organization on a path to aid in development goals that benefit the entire state and the values Utahns hold dear.

Origin Story + Coordinated Efforts

UIPA was created to pioneer and implement strategic and sustainable logistics-backed economic solutions that enhance the lives of Utahns and establish Utah as a global industry connector. 

While UIPA began its journey overseeing 16,000 acres in the northwest portion of Salt Lake County, the Northwest Quadrant, it has grown in area and emphases since 2018. Today, UIPA is associated with 110,000 acres in 12 project areas across the state. Most importantly for the organization, Hart said, is how developments within UIPA project areas create high-paying jobs to strengthen Utah communities.

Where regional logistics infrastructure does not exist, UIPA can make strategic investments to
unlock regional economic growth.

“Part of the [UIPA] charter is developing projects that provide economic strength for their entire
region. Regional projects need regional infrastructure, which most importantly includes
transportation infrastructure,” said Hart, detailing UIPA tools to build out transportation infrastructure intended “to help grow the entire regional economy.

Hart said that UIPA has grown its overall area scope to help meet statewide initiatives from current Governor Spencer Cox and regional initiatives from municipal leaders around the Beehive State. Speaking specifically of many of Utah’s rural counties, “There is more commerce going on in those areas than what people recognize,” Hart said, “and you still have a really good workforce in those areas as well.”

Municipalities and counties of all levels (see project area map) have been willing to go through a four-step process to access UIPA capabilities in route to industrial development and the high-wage jobs that come with it.

1. Resolve: The municipality or county adopts a project area resolution in a public

meeting.

2. Draft: UIPA staff work with the municipality or county to develop a project area plan

or amend a project area plan for the UIPA Board to review in at least two public UIPA

Board meetings.

3. Adopt: The UIPA board may adopt a project area or project area amendment in a

public meeting.

4. Build & Measure: During this 25-year phase, construction, development, and recruitment will occur in the project area. Project area budgets are annually prepared and adopted by the UIPA Board. In addition, project area metrics are reported and shared.

Lakeshore Learning Materials’ 1.2 million-SF manufacturing and distribution facility brought high-paying jobs to the cities of Garland and Tremonton thanks to UIPA incentives. (photo courtesy Millstream Partners)

In the “Build & Measure” phase, companies looking to locate to UIPA project areas put in an incentive application on where they would like to locate, which Hart said sometimes come with a request on where the company thinks it will most likely succeed. The UIPA Board then evaluates the application and determines which of the UIPA tools—public infrastructure districts, loans, business incentives, and more— are available for the project before awarding it and beginning the development process.


Industrial Development Expands


Hart is confident that UIPA’s formula for success—working with communities who want development help and then responding to market demands—will continue to grow. 


“We feel like, from an industrial perspective, Utah is hugely under-built,” Hart said. “We want to be able to capture the manufacturing moment that we feel like has been going on the last few years and seems only to be getting bigger and more significant across the country.”


Jared Boyer, Director of Development and Acquisitions for Colmena Group, saw a similar outlook. Colmena Group, along with Wadsworth Development Group, and Stokes Partners, oversees the 3,000 acre logistics park, the Global Logistics Center, within the Northwest Quadrant project area. 


“Utah’s industrial development outlook remains incredibly strong, driven by our central location, business-friendly climate, and growing population. The Northwest Quadrant, in particular, is quickly becoming one of the most attractive industrial hubs in the western United States,” he said.


Fundamentals match the sentiment. Utah's low industrial vacancy rates (around 5% across the state), more on-shoring from multinational corporations, Trump administration federal policy advocating for domestic manufacturing, and the robust workforce across the state combine for an appealing pitch for companies seeking to expand.


Utah’s lack of navigable waters be damned, the Inland Port ethos shares one trait with water: fluidity. As supply chains broke or unwound during the pandemic and linked together in new ways in the years that followed, Hart said the importance of adding a Utah manufacturing link into statewide supply chain plans became more important than ever in industrial development.


“Manufacturing in particular brings with it an incredible economic multiplier,” said Hart. “Consider that Boeing alone has 139 suppliers in Utah. Aerospace, bio-manufacturing, and other types of advanced manufacturing bring new investments and help to lift the entire Utah economy.”


Greg Nelson, Managing Partner for Farmington-based developers Millstream Partners is seeing it firsthand. With Millstream Partners as project creator and sponsor for the recently opened Lakeshore Learning Materials, Nelson sees the indirect benefits that this manufacturing project will provide the cities of Garland and Tremonton (since the building itself is on the border of both cities) and greater Box Elder County. It’s a recipe where discretionary income and ancillary businesses surrounding the project quickly turn into a thriving, growing community.


But there are storm clouds on the horizon, even with operations ongoing at Lakeshore Learning Materials and other projects in development. The situation regarding industrial development is getting choppier, especially as the Trump administration continues to yo-yo on tariffs.


“We all have to go through these times of correction, and we’ll see what they look like in the next 12-24 months,” Hart continued. “I think demand is going to stay high, but I think investment is going to check up” and be more cautious than in prior years, with less speculative building and more build-to-suit coming in the industrial market.


The Beehive State is a resilient one, but Hart said getting the best projects into Utah requires alignment between UIPA, the Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity (GOEO), municipalities, and local entities to bring prosperity to residents and their communities.


Nelson shared similar thoughts, saying that without UIPA, EDCUtah, GOEO working together with Box Elder County and the cities of Garland and Tremonton, the Lakeshore Learning Materials project would not have materialized. Nelson described the work to bring the company to Northern Utah as “a lot of cooks in the kitchen,” but said UIPA was integral keeping everyone aligned and satisfied after leaving the negotiating table.


“There are road blocks,” he said, praising UIPA’s role in creating a healthy incentive structure for projects to move forward while recognizing the developer’s “quarterback” role must be made in a spirit of collaboration. “When developers look to cities as either handouts, a vending machine, or even as adversaries, people feel it. We approached this group as literal partners. We created a huddle that everyone wanted to be in.”

Company: Lakeshore Learning Materials

Market: Education

Location: Box Elder County, Golden Spike

Incentive: Post-performance 2.5% tax rebate capped at $1.7 million; 60% property tax liability rebate for 25 years

Expected Jobs: 500+


Lakeshore received the green light in 2023 on building 1.2 million SF of industrial space in Garland. The $62 million manufacturing and distribution facility opened in late 2024 and operates with modern robotics and automation.


Company: Northrop Grumman

Market: Aerospace

Location: Salt Lake County, Northwest Quadrant

Incentive: Post-performance 10% property tax rebate over 25 years

Expected Jobs: 100-250 


UIPA’s first incentive awarded in 2023 went to Northrop Grumman’s $70-100 million capital investment plan to convert a 300,000-SF warehouse into an aerospace- and defense-focused manufacturing facility. 


Company: Savage

Market: Logistics and Transportation

Location: Tooele County—Twenty Wells

Incentive: $10 million Authority Infrastructure Bank loan over 10 years at an interest rate of 3.45%.

Expected Jobs: Indirect job growth to be determined


Savage is advancing a transformative rail expansion project with a $25 million investment to construct/rehabilitate 11 miles of rail line in Tooele County and connect to the 1,700-acre Lakeview Business Park in Grantsville.

(Pictured) Nautilus 1 is the first of a three-part industrial complex completed in Cedar City’s BZI Innovation Park as part of UIPA’s Iron Springs project area. (Right) Savage Transload Facility, also in Cedar City, plays a critical role in delivering rail service to Southern Utah as it continues to grow. (photos courtesy UIPA)

Rose Colored Glasses?


Development is exciting, certainly, but development doesn’t come without drawbacks, an especially sensitive subject as stewardship of Utah’s wetland resources has come more into focus. Four UIPA project areas surround the Great Salt Lake across Salt Lake, Davis, Weber, and Box Elder counties and include wetlands identified by the Utah Geological Survey. 


Calls for ecological stewardship have been a constant since UIPA began. Protests from Stop the Port Coalition and their supporters—one which postponed a UIPA Board meeting in 2021—opposition from Utah Physicians for Healthy Environment, and a bevy of lawsuits calling for UIPA Board transparency and ecological preservation show that not everyone is on board.


To answer some of those concerns, Hart pointed to a $2.5 million grant issued by UIPA to preserve existing wetlands.


“We’ve also put protections in our project areas that provide protections for existing wetlands, but also funding to protect additional wetlands,” Hart said, detailing how tax revenues within certain project areas are earmarked for wetland conservation. “We feel very comfortable that we're developing in a responsible way around sensitive land areas, and that includes both generating money for their protections.”


Hart emphasized that UIPA does not have regulatory land use authority in land it does not own. What UIPA does have “is the position to work with landowners in their project areas to require certain standards for conservation and protection of ecologically sensitive areas and precious natural resources before sharing financial tools of the [UIPA]. It can also use financial tools to incentivize more environmentally friendly developments and the recruitment of sustainable businesses.”


“There is this belief that [UIPA] comes in and destroys everything,” Hart said of the major misunderstanding of UIPA’s role in development. “Zoning is what dictates what can and cannot go in project areas. […] The thing that that governs all of this is local land use authority. We cannot overstep local land use authority.”


Said Boyer, “One of the most impactful aspects has been UIPA’s coordination with other key state entities, particularly the Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity. This kind of collaboration ensures that development isn't happening in a silo, but rather as part of a broader, forward-thinking strategy that considers environmental quality, long-term job growth, and responsible resource management.”


Less Trucks, More Trains and Planes


Hart understands the concerns from UIPA detractors in their fears about Utah air quality. The Executive Director sees alignment where UIPA stewardship can be a critical component to improve air quality by prioritizing alternatives to truck-based logistics.


Hart said rail expansion is an important way that UIPA seeks to keep commerce flowing while improving air quality by shifting as many as 300 trucks worth of materials onto a train. According to Canadian freight marketplace Freightera, when compared against truck transport, rail can be five times more fuel-efficient, emit 60% or fewer greenhouse gases, and consume up to nine times less energy per tonne kilometer traveled.


Projections from the above-mentioned Savage Tooele Railroad show that it will help eliminate approximately 5,000 truck trips annually in its first year of operation and remove 20 million truck miles over 20 years in operation.


Within UIPA’s Iron Springs project area in Cedar City, BZI Innovation Park will be an 820-acre rail-served project. The greenfield development will include 8.5 million SF of businesses in construction, aerospace, and advanced manufacturing, as well as warehouse distribution and data centers.


Air transport is also a critical component of UIPA’s logistics plan, namely the aptly named “Aerotropolis” around the SLC International Airport. These efforts are buoyed by the airport’s main carrier Delta Airlines’ 250 peak-day departures to more than 90 destinations. Progress continues on that front with the new direct flight from Salt Lake City to South Korean’s Seoul Incheon Airport coming in June 2025.


“With UIPA’s commitment to growing air freight on this route, we see an opportunity to further solidify SLC as a competitive logistics hub connecting the Mountain West to the world,” said Bill Wyatt, Executive Director of Salt Lake City Department of Airports.

 

Work between both airport and UIPA will leverage the area’s logistics network to develop air cargo facilities and attract dedicated international freighter service to key international markets that work in tandem with Utah’s growth in health sciences and aerospace industries.


Utah—Port of Call


UIPA continues its work to bring industrial projects and high-paying jobs to Utah and fulfill their mission to make Utah a global industry connector. Hart said the UIPA and the greater public are aligning more and more in understanding what the organization is trying to accomplish in conjunction with municipalities in their project area.


Even in choppy waters, Hart said there are plenty of tailwinds for industrial investment to bring prosperity across the state. With UIPA’s help, Utah can be a 21st century port of call.

Like a Phoenix Rising

By Bradley Fullmer • November 15, 2025
Residents have access to a wealth of modern, high-class amenities: Check out this open-air rooftop patio with tasteful lighting, pool, and spacious hot tub—it’s party time! (all photos courtesy Kier Construction)

Mission In Progress

By LADD MARSHALL • November 15, 2025
Steve Green is out in McCornick, Utah. Where is that? And what’s near McCornick? “Nothing,” joked Green, the Sr. Vice President for Wheeler Machinery Co. While he may be far from even the smallest of small towns, with Holden and its 492 residents 13 miles away, he’s close to the site of a major development in data center technology. Isolated on the western edge of the Sevier Desert, the Joule Data Center will also be isolated from the grid—by design. Operation Gigawatt Rolls On Green is one of many energy and power professionals hoping to double Utah’s power generation capacity by 2034 as a part of Operation Gigawatt, an initiative launched by Utah Governor Spencer Cox in October 2024. Utah has long been an economic growth leader; Operation Gigawatt aims to make Utah a power player in energy development by increasing transmission capacity, increasing energy production, strengthening policy, and investing in energy innovation. While Governor Cox’s Operation Gigawatt moves forward statewide, out in McCornick, Green said, “We’re doing operation gigawatt and a half off grid.” The Joule Data Center project team will deliver “In-situ power generation”—power not connected to any electrical distribution or transmission system. It starts with Caterpillar G3520K reciprocating generator sets that produce 1.5 gigawatts of electricity. Waste heat and exhaust from the generators then move through an absorption chiller system as part of the overall systems combined cooling, heat, and power (CCHP) solution, providing much of the water required to cool the data center servers. Beyond the electric power to be generated for the Joule project, there will be 1.5 gigawatts of thermal energy and 1.1 gigawatts of available battery storage to meet the data center's peak electricity needs. Added Green, “And we’re not taxing the local utility grid.” Isolated or Community Power? The massive power capabilities delivered there are impressive, but they reveal a troubling trend in how Utah will double its power generation capabilities. Will it be from well-funded companies looking to power data centers and AI technology separate from the grid? Or will Utah fulfill the mission of Operation Gigawatt by creating power solutions accessible to all? According to Troy Thompson, Chief Operations Officer for Big-D Companies, power generation is about more than supplying data centers. “In my mind, how do we build a billion-dollar hospital downtown that needs ten megawatts of power?” he said, referencing Intermountain Health’s future downtown Salt Lake campus, “let alone the data centers, and manufacturers who we are hoping that will come here?” Ten megawatts of power may pale in comparison to what data centers require, but it is one of many projects seeking regulatory approval to move forward. The Utah Inland Port Authority, the Economic Development Corporation of Utah, and others continue to drive projects and jobs into Utah—data centers, too. But Thompson said he has heard from many potential clients who are hesitant to bring their energy-intensive projects to the state without firm guarantees of available power. Operation Gigawatt and state leaders have embraced an "all of the above" approach to energy sources, extending the design lifespans of coal plants, embracing new technologies and power sources, and developing new power-generating capabilities. While the industry is willing, the operating environment needs rewiring to meet state goals. Changing for 21st Century Needs “With as hot as the Utah market is,” began Eric Haslem, “there are too many obstacles for us to overcome.” The market may be ready to ramp up production, said Haslem, Chief Operating Officer for Vernal-based utility and heavy civil contractors BHI, “But the current system can’t handle it. We have this massive web of transmission and distribution infrastructure that was not designed or built for the power demands of the 21st century.” “In 1970, they didn’t know what a smartphone was,” Haslem said, “let alone AI.” Transmission projects have been developed. Rocky Mountain Power/PacifiCorp’s Energy Gateway South transmission line—a 416-mile, high-voltage 500-kilovolt transmission line that runs from Mona to Medicine Bow, Wyoming—certainly helped when it went live in 2024. Still, it's just one project amidst a plethora of needs. Haslem stated that Utah's growth over the last 10 years meant a large majority of the transmission line's capacity was accounted for when it went live. .

One-Stop Shop

By Bradley Fullmer • November 15, 2025
And the King shall answer and say unto them, "Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."—KJV Matthew 25:40 From a social and community impact standpoint, few projects match the value to disabled and special needs individuals as the new Utah State Development Center (USDC) Comprehensive Therapies Building in American Fork. The $36 million, 65,000-SF facility was designed as a "one-stop shop," said Joe Jacoby, President of Salt Lake-based Jacoby Architects, whose team led the project’s design. It consolidates and modernizes myriad services under one roof, including physical therapy, occupational therapy, recreational therapy, speech, language, and hearing resources, and behavioral health resources. In addition, the new building offers full-service medical and dental clinics, an indoor therapy pool, an Autism treatment wing, and workshops for life skills and vocational training—all geared to helping people live independent, authentic lives, while striving to reach their full potential. "This building was very much about accessibility," Jacoby said, "and putting in many different types of resources for these residents—all in one building." Jacoby's firm has significant recent experience in projects that combine education and healthcare for people with special needs. The firm's design of the Sorenson Legacy Foundation Center for Clinical Excellence in Utah State University's College of Education and Human Services earned UC+D's 2016 Most Outstanding K-12 Project. Two years later, the firm earned another UC+D award for the C. Mark Openshaw Education Center for the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind, a project similar to this one in that it contains an array of services, including education and therapy for varying levels of sensory, behavioral, physical, and cognitive abilities. "We've been working on different [design] aspects for many years, starting with a deaf preschool, which led to working with the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind," said Jacoby. "With that came many other sub-specialties, like therapy for behavioral issues, cognitive issues, development disabilities, and even speech, language and hearing clinics. It helps people with a variety of disabilities and serves an underserved population of people."

Built Different

By Taylor Larsen • November 15, 2025
On a fall tour of Utah State University's (USU) Carolyn & Kem Gardner Learning & Leadership Building (Gardner Building), students and faculty are hard at work on a late Tuesday afternoon. Getting here, where USU's business school students could thrive, was a long time coming. The University commissioned the Gardner Building to meet a new mission for the school outside the traditional knowledge acquisition and transfer for which USU has excelled since its founding in 1888: Giving students a differentiated experience they cannot get anywhere else. Purpose Revealed Frank Caliendo, Senior Associate Dean of the Huntsman School of Business, said that the new building is the third and final piece of the business complex, "a realization of the longtime vision of Dean Douglas Anderson, the driving force behind the school's transformation, to meet the needs of students for generations to come." Caliendo, a longtime Aggie (USU BS, '98; PhD, '03), said that, even after the opening of the George S. Eccles Business Building and its faculty offices and classrooms in 1970, growth in business courses eventually outpaced the school's capacity. Jon M. Huntsman Hall's 2016 opening broke the campus bottleneck, with classrooms and other spaces dedicated to business school participants. "But we still needed space for our centers and experiential learning programs," Caliendo said, of the importance of collaborative spaces and differentiated experience for the five programs (see page XX) that would call the Gardner Building home. The design intent for this final piece wasn't a re-creation of Huntsman Hall, Caliendo said of the initial message to MHTN Architects, "But it does need to rhyme with Huntsman Hall." Working within a Busy Environment The first order of business was siting the building just east of the other two business school structures. Stan Burke, Project Manager for Jacobsen Construction, said the Gardner Building was part of a trio of projects that included Ridge Point Hall and a parking garage—three Jacobsen-led projects that utilized the same construction corridor as construction commenced from "An active campus is difficult enough," said Burke of the challenges of simultaneous construction, which required constant coordination amongst the three teams, made a tad easier as they shared a job trailer. "We had to stay cognizant of the school's activities and coordinate with them so that everyone was aware of what we were doing." Coordination went from important to critical, with the three teams meeting daily to discuss coordination and scheduling material and equipment deliveries in 15-minute intervals as the respective construction teams worked on each of the three structures.

The Long and Winding Road

By Bradley Fullmer • November 15, 2025
Warren and Jennie Lloyd (above) have built Salt Lake-based Lloyd Architects into a well-rounded, versatile firm capable of excelling in both the commercial and custom residential markets, as evidenced by projects such as Snuck Farm in Pleasant Grove (main photo) and this cozy private Powder Mountain based cabin in Eden (below ).

Power Player

By Bradley Fullmer • November 15, 2025
The last five years have been a whirlwind for the Larry H. Miller Company (LHM), with the organization selling the majority of its beloved Utah Jazz franchise in October 2020 for a reported $1.66 billion, followed by the sale of its auto dealership empire of more than 70 properties for a reported $3.2 billion a year later. The influx of nearly $5 billion was parlayed into several jaw-dropping real estate and other corporate purchases, including: —1,300 undeveloped acres within the massive 4,100-acre Daybreak development in South Jordan in April 2021. —Advanced Health Care Corp. in January 2021, a transitional health care provider with operations in eight states (primarily in the west) and 3,500 employees. —The purchase of the majority stake in Swig, a leader in the flavored soda craze, in May 2023. — Partnering with Utah Trust Lands Administration to develop 1,200 acres in Saratoga Springs. — The acquisition of over 1,000 acres near Park City and Hideout will include multi-family units, housing, restaurants, and retail. —100+ acre mixed-use development in an area along North Temple being dubbed “The Power District”; the future home of not only Rocky Mountain Power’s new corporate campus but potentially a ballpark for a future Major League Baseball expansion team. —A reported $600 million acquisition of controlling interest in MLS team Real Salt Lake and NWSL team Utah Royals, along with associated infrastructure, including America First Field and Zions Bank Training Center. —The development of Downtown Daybreak, a 200-acre parcel that this year saw its 30-acre Phase I debut with the completion of the Salt Lake Bees' new 8,000 capacity stadium—dubbed The Ballpark at America First Square—in April, followed by a new Megaplex cinema entertainment center in July with luxury theatres, bowling, games and a scratch-made kitchen in addition to an open air plaza. A seven-story, 190-unit multi-family development is currently under construction and rising along the right field bleachers, with views that will look down into the ballpark upon completion next year. And LHM is just getting started, said Brad Holmes, President of Larry H. Miller Real Estate since 2018, calling Downtown Daybreak a "new urban center that is central to where the majority of growth is occurring" and combines a "full spectrum of business and year-round entertainment, culture and connectivity, as well as a wide range of housing options." When LHM executives first conceived of a new home for the Salt Lake Bees, Holmes said they went on a "ballpark tour" of MLB and minor league stadiums, and "really fell in love with a ballpark" in Durham, North Carolina—home of the Durham Bulls—which had buildings that framed in the stadium. So, The Ballpark at America First Square has the multi-family project underway in right field, with a proposed hotel slated to begin next year in left field. "In another two seasons, you'll have this urban setting for the ballpark that frames the mountain views. [The design is] really intentional, and I think it will bring a finished edge to Downtown Daybreak," said Holmes. "It was a process trying to figure out the best location, site plan, traffic, but it's in a great spot. The goal for us was to make it feel like it fit in with the community, almost like having a baseball stadium inside of a park, with an open corridor that connects to a plaza."  Holmes said the seemingly small 8,000-capacity stadium (about half the capacity of the Bees former home at Smith’s Ballpark) aligns with national trends. "It's better to play in front of a sold-out crowd than in a half-empty stadium. Some new MLB stadiums are at 30,000 [capacity]. The trend is smaller, more intimate venues with closer views of the field."

Hogan Construction 80th Anniversary

By Taylor Larsen • November 15, 2025
Much has changed about Hogan & Associates Construction since the company's inception 80 years ago. The name may be the most obvious example, the size of the company may be another giveaway, and the difference in markets served might require a double take if the founders could see the company today. But what hasn't changed is the firm's desire to build communities. It has regularly built important, community-focused projects with a similar purpose since the company came to life in 1945.

(De)signed, Sealed, Delivered

By Taylor Larsen • November 15, 2025
Imagine this: A company has just begun a meeting with the intent of moving forward with a major investment. One party knows something that will help minimize the investment's risk. Should that party tell everyone, it will save money, time, and everyone involved from future headaches. So when should that party spill the beans? At the beginning of the meeting At the end of the meeting At the right time during the meeting Never Bradley Crocker, Director of Preconstruction for Mollerup Glass, has seen how answering this question correctly—and choosing “A”—brings about successful and profitable investment in commercial construction. “I think that [project teams] need to bring in subcontractors early to help guide budgets in general,” said Crocker, detailing how every trade can bring a similar level of expertise to architects and owners by being involved from the beginning of the “meeting”, while the project is in design. Why? “We can vet cost versus performance and find the best value for the performance, which is essential as meeting or beating the budgets gets the project to construction on time,” said Ben Hiatt, Chief Estimator for Steel Encounters. After all, he said, “Nothing moves if budgets are not met.” Design-assist is a positive step forward, where subcontractors assist in matching design intent with a deep understanding of building envelopes to ensure glazing, roofing, walls, and fenestrations perform at their highest level. Glenn Rainey, Salt Lake City Branch Manager, and Larry Luque, Senior Estimator and Business Developer for Flynn Companies, each said efforts in design-assist fulfill what owners and architects want: buildings that meet the design intent and perform at their highest level for as long as possible. It’s not just architects who benefit from that early involvement. “More GCs realize they need us right up front,” said Luque. With teams whose combined experience totals thousands of hours, building envelope contractors stay up to date on changing codes, materials, and specifications, which is highly beneficial to the project. Their close involvement with vendors can help ensure a variety of solutions that meet each job’s needs and help optimize building envelope performance. Consultant Involvement Other parties are lending their expertise. Brandt Strong said building envelope quality has increased with the arrival of more building envelope consultants in Utah and a greater dedication to the building envelope in general. “We had a time where we could say ‘This is a Vegas project, and we have to have the belt and suspenders,’” said Strong, Director of Operations for Mollerup Glass. On Utah projects, the building envelope used to be an afterthought. But it’s changed for the better over the years. “The Utah teams are as sophisticated as anywhere else.” While the markups on shop drawings can draw some ire, both mentioned how working with consultants has led to better, more efficient projects, potentially reducing the need for future repairs by inspecting every material and transition on the building envelope. Said Crocker, “We cannot discredit the envelope consultants’ role in making us, and the industry as a whole, perform at a higher level.” Hiatt credited each party overseeing the building envelope scope for learning and adapting to create a better building environment, specifically in understanding seismic drift and its relationship to glazing, as well as thermal performance and continuity. Improvements to air-barrier coordination and tie-ins to stop water and air leaks are helping buildings operate at peak efficiency. “The architects, general contractors, consultants, and trades have improved their knowledge over the years,” said Hiatt. “Design and execution of façades are better coordinated and executed.”

Taylor Electric Thriving at 50

By Bradley Fullmer • November 15, 2025
Taylor Electric proved its mettle on the challenging Salt Lake International Airport, Southeast Concourse project, with their portion of work concluding in October 2023. (all photos courtesy Taylor Electric)

Hungry and Ready

By Bradley Fullmer and Taylor Larsen • November 15, 2025
By Bradley Fullmer It's been a whirlwind 18 months for Adam Del Toro and Nick Pexton, who co-founded Fountain Green-based Reliance Engineering Services in May 2024, a company specializing in full-service telecommunications engineering, including design, project management, permitting, and funding and grant applications. Two years ago, Del Toro was more than a decade into his career as a Research & Development Supervisor for natural gas giant Dominion Energy, while Pexton was working for Nephi-based Rocky Mountain West Telcom (RMWT) as a Sr. Director of Business Development, with just over four years at the company. The two had met a couple of years earlier while collaborating on a potential fiber optic network project in Mona that never happened. Neither was particularly content with their respective positions, so when Del Toro got a random call from Pexton in March 2024, the timing could not have been better. "I was planning on leaving the natural gas industry and start my own firm [...] Nick happened to call the day I was putting in my two weeks [at Dominion],” said Del Toro, 39. "It definitely felt like Providence was helping us." "Somebody was looking after us, because the timing was unbelievable," added Pexton, 35. "It's crazy how things lined up." Del Toro is a native of St. George and earned a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering from Utah State University in 2011. After 2.5 years as a USU Graduate Research Assistant, he joined Dominion Energy in January 2013, where he designed major natural gas systems and structures. Del Toro also earned a Master of Clinical Mental Health Counseling from the University of the Cumberlands (Williamsburg, Kentucky) in 2023, and moonlights as a counselor at The Center for Hope in Springville, where he helps clients address life challenges both personally and professionally. Pexton is a native of Nephi and studied at Utah Valley University from 2008 to 2010, and earned the Certified Telecommunications Network Specialist designation from Teracom Training Institute (2013-2014). Pexton joined Nephi-based Mid-State Consultants, a telecommunications engineering firm, in March 2011 and spent more than nine years there. He joined RMWT in June 2020, gaining experience in project management and operations. After that fortuitous phone call from Pexton to Del Toro, the pair met four times from March to May to "make sure we were aligned on what the company would look like," Pexton said. "It was a pretty quick process," added Del Toro. "We got talking about goals, how to build a general company vision. I trusted Nick's background and experience, and his character, as well. It was a big risk, but I'm a sink-or-swim guy. If those are my options, I'm going to swim!" Since teaming up, the pair have been aggressive regarding company growth, having exploded from just the two of them to 30 employees, with revenues expected to more than quintuple from $560,000 in 2024 to nearly $3 million by the end of this year. Both expect the telecommunication market to be a fruitful, busy market given the need for fiber optics to rural America, in addition to the "Internet for All" initiative in May 2022 that was part of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration's (NTIA) implementation of the infrastructure law that allocated $65 billion to improve high-speed Internet access. Utah, specifically, received $330 million, with the goal of reaching some 40,000 unserved homes and businesses. The firm's location in Sanpete County puts them in the center of the state geographically, and they're committed to working with communities of all sizes to improve their internet capacity. In addition to Utah, Reliance is working in Michigan and Oklahoma, and Del Toro and Pexton expect to land significant future work throughout the Midwest. They want to grow intentionally while ensuring a diversity of revenue streams. "We set some early goals, and we've been able to do really well—we're on track to beat our goals," said Del Toro, crediting the many employees who have joined the firm. "Those individuals took great risks coming on board. We anticipate we'll be even larger next year with the work coming down the pipeline." "Our outlook has been wise," said Pexton. "We've taken into consideration diversification into other sectors—that's a key element. Adam has experience in the natural gas industry, and we want to further our diversification and get into the power side of the industry." Major clients include the federal government (USDA), utility companies, and municipalities, with a focus on rural communities. "We love Sanpete County," said Del Toro. "We value helping the communities we live and work in and providing services that help build up the community and hopefully help the residents." "We depend on repeat work from 18 major clients, and continuously getting work from them," said Pexton. "The minute we stop doing a good job, they can go someplace else. As long as we do a good job, we'll keep getting work." The pair expect Reliance to maintain its explosive growth, perhaps even doubling its employee total in another 12 months. "Next year's [revenue] goal is $4.8 million," said Pexton. "We have confidence in what our workload will be like. We are scaling quite dramatically and want to grow at a healthy pace, where we're not stringing ourselves out too thin. We're in a good position right now."