Creative problem solving has long been one of Apogee Consulting Group’s defining characteristics. It is a proficiency that has helped the organisation assemble an impressive portfolio of projects, transforming communities with its comprehensive architectural and engineering services. Apogee’s reputation for creative problem solving was also instrumental in persuading COO Josh VandenEnde to join the organisation in 2004.
“Since Apogee was founded in 1999, this has been a company with a willingness to meet our clients where they are, tackle their problems, and deliver quality solutions,” Josh affirms. “As a full-service architectural and engineering firm, we do everything – aside from civil engineering – in-house. We have never limited ourselves to a particular specialty; we are always ready to adapt to our clients’ needs.”
As Josh indicates, Apogee’s broad offering includes, among others, structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, master-planning, design-build, and commissioning services. These capabilities have been applied across an equally diverse range of industries, including healthcare, commercial, education, multi-family, retail, manufacturing, and government projects.
Deep Understanding of the Client
Since 2009, a large majority of Apogee’s work has been in service of the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). As a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned business, it is a line of work close to Apogee’s heart. The VA operates the largest integrated health care system in the United States, meaning much of Apogee’s work for the client has taken place across the VA’s 1,380 health care facilities.
Recently, the company has been involved in the delivery of numerous Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) clinics. “The VA’s PACT model was developed in part by one of our healthcare planners Cullen Keen,” Josh explains. “Instead of a veteran with multiple health needs having to arrange different appointments with different health specialists, they can set up a single appointment at a PACT clinic, where they will be supported by a full range of health specialists to suit their requirements. With PACT, healthcare providers come to the veteran, rather than the other way around.
“At Apogee, we have designed PACT-model clinics on campuses in cities like Las Vegas, Nevada; Mather, California; and Dublin, Georgia. At present, we are working with private developers to build and lease a 35,000 square-foot PACT clinic in Bismarck, North Dakota.”
More generally, over the past five years, Apogee has exhibited the scope of its skillset in efforts to overhaul the VA’s IT infrastructure. Working across over a dozen campuses, the company has helped to re-build the VA’s outdated computer network from the ground up.
Embracing the Latest Technologies
With customer-centricity a core priority, Apogee continues to meet the external needs of its clients. In order to keep up with changing demands, the company is embracing the latest technologies, exploring ways in which digitalisation could optimise its output.
“Our initial findings on AI have been pretty earthshaking,” Josh states, “but it is important to understand that it will not replace our people. As I said to our board recently, Waymo has spent billions on autonomous cars, but they have not changed the market – and driving is not half as complicated as architecture and engineering.
“Arguably the biggest return for investment in AI will arrive in the shape of structured automation for rudimentary tasks, such as checking deliverables for standard sets of issues and reformatting those deliverables to meet client specifications. In this sense, AI could save our administrators time and energy, helping them to achieve more.”
Josh is acutely aware of the huge potential within Apogee, and technological advancement is one way in which it could be unlocked. With this in mind, the company is currently retooling and streamlining its accounting system, as well as moving its entire design workflow to the cloud, allowing it to be positioned for easier automation.
“It’s possible that, within three to five years’ time, we will be able to host our complete computing infrastructure on the cloud, which will enable us to apply AI in collaboration with our data set,” Josh reports. “It’s a large undertaking, but we’re getting closer to that mark each day.”
The Next Generation
As Josh has previously made clear however, technology is only one piece of the Apogee puzzle. Ultimately, it is people that will lead the organisation into the future, and Apogee is actively working to ensure that the business will be guided into its next era by safe hands.
“One of our biggest challenges going forward is tackling an age gap as we prepare to hand the company off to the next generation,” Josh reveals. “In 2008/2009, when the last big recession hit, the construction industry took a huge dip and didn’t return to the same activity levels until around 2014. These six years of low construction volume led to a lack of new talent being brought into the industry. “Now, with many industry stalwarts soon set to retire, we need to find a way to fill that talent gap. Over the next five years, we will look to provide accelerated training and new opportunities for younger people who can take Apogee into the future.”
