Market growth spurs Ruppert Landscape expansion

 

This branch joins 18 existing branch offices that are located in Pennsylvania, Maryland, D.C., Virginia, North Carolina and Georgia, supporting both the landscape construction and landscape management divisions of the company.  Bob Jones, president of the landscape construction division, describes the opening of the Texas landscape construction branch, which was started as a satellite operation over one year ago, as right in line with the company’s five-year plan. 

 

“The continuing success of several large landscape construction projects in the Houston area, including ExxonMobil headquarters, Baybrook Mall and River Oaks District, has enabled us to develop a more permanent presence in the Texas market,” said Jones.  “We are fortunate to be in a position to expand into a new market and provide growth opportunity for our employees.”

 

“The branch is overseen by Patrick Luzier, who has been instrumental in helping us maintain and further our presence in the Houston market,” said Jones. “Operations manager Joe Maes manages local operations in Houston and reports directly to Patrick. We have every confidence that they will continue to provide excellent service for our customers while advancing the growing team in Texas.”

 

To round out the Texas team and position the branch to better serve its growing clientele, management has made five new additions. “We are pleased to welcome Aaron Blanton, Melissa Echavarria, Torin Garfield, Sergio Gomez and Andres Paredes to our team in Texas,” said Luzier. "We look forward to the positive impact these employees will have on the success of the branch as we expand our presence in the Houston market."

 

Blanton, a resident of Houston, Texas, has been hired as senior estimator. He has more than seven years of experience in both project management and estimating in the landscape industry and has managed several prominent landscape construction projects in the Houston area. He holds a bachelor’s degree in landscape architecture from Texas Tech University. As senior estimator, he will be responsible for accurately estimating direct costs for landscape installation bids and change orders based on plans, specifications and site inspections. 

 

Echavarria, also a Houston resident, has been hired as assistant project manager. She has more than three years of experience in the landscape industry and a strong background in project management/coordination. She is a licensed irrigator and holds a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from Temple University. In addition, she studied landscape architecture at the University of Texas. As assistant project manager, she will be responsible for assisting with the administration and installation of large or specialty landscape projects in the Houston area.

 

Garfield, a resident of Richmond, Texas, has been hired as contract administrator. He brings more than five years of experience in construction and holds a bachelor’s degree in construction management from the University of Houston. As contract administrator, he will be responsible for overseeing all accounting and business functions for the branch and producing and analyzing financial and performance reports.

 

Gomez, a resident of Humble, Texas, has been hired as production manager. He brings more than 11 years of landscape industry experience, having held positions such as foreman and general manager with other landscape organizations. As production manager in the Texas branch, he will be responsible for all aspects of the installation of landscape projects, including supervising field personnel, managing subcontractors, overseeing projects, communicating to customers and maintaining quality standards.

 

Parades, a resident of Conroe, Texas, has been hired as field manager. He brings more than 15 years of landscape industry experience and has held positions including account manager, operations manager and most recently, principal owner of a landscape and vegetation management company. As field manager, he will be responsible for overseeing all aspects of assigned landscape projects, including managing his crew, communicating with customers, tracking production hours and completing work on schedule.