By Irene Jones
By Irene Jones
If there is one thing that might make Frank "Skip" Schipper stand out from his peers - besides being this year's Builder of the Year with the Santa Barbara Contractors' Association - is his constant desire to seek out challenges and to achieve seemingly impossible deadlines in the construction industry. And he makes all of this happen while maintaining the company slogan, "Quality without Compromise."
Officially listed as president of Frank Schipper Construction Co., based in Santa Barbara, Skip refers to himself as the company "nudger," and explains that he finds the projects and keeps tabs on every phase of every project by "nudging" things along as they progress until they are completed to his satisfaction.
And somewhere between accepting seemingly impossible challenges and nudging them along until they are finished, he has built a reputation that has kept his business growing every year, even during lean economic years. This year his business total will be close to $14 million, fifty percent over last year. His marketing techniques have resulted in his firm being gone of only six in southern California allowed to do U.S. Post Office construction work. He also is known widely for his ability to fast track projects and to do medical construction, as well as commercial tenant improvements for expanding companies.
Because of his firm's ability to bring in projects before deadline and the excellent quality of the work performed, Skip has been the recipient of numerous awards, including SBCA's Best Commercial Contractor and Best Commercial Remodeler , both for three years, as well as the 1997 and 1998 Safety Award of Excellence from the Associated General Contractors of California for being the safest construction company of its size in the state of California.
Some of the more recent achievements include the award-winning Wells Fargo Bank project, a $3 million job completed in three months; St. Mary's Episcopal Church, for which he received the 1966 SBCA Best Commercial/Industrial New Construction Builder of the Year Award; the Channel Islands Surgicenter; Carpinteria Girls Inc.; El Montecito Presbyterian Church; and club houses at Glenn Annie Golf Course in Goleta and Alisal River Course in Solvang.
In addition to maintaining a hectic schedule at work, Skip has taken on extra responsibilities in the community and with construction organizations. He currently serves as vice chairman of the state board for the Associated General Contractors Association of California. This means he will be state president in 2001. Also he is chairman of the Building Division for the State of California and for seven years was chairman of the open shop committee with the AGC. He is on the board of directors for the Business and Industry Associates for Santa Barbara City College, helping to set the curriculum for people ready to enter the work force. And he participates with other construction organizations, including the Santa Barbara Contractors' Association and the Ventura County Contractors Association. His community work includes membership in the Santa Barbara Suburban Kiwanis Club, the Goleta Valley Bicycling Club. He is a life member of the American Mensa Society.
"I wanted to improve the image of the construction industry in California. Dollarwise, construction is the largest industry in the state. However, we aren't a voice that is heard often and I wanted to change that. I became involved on local and state levels in organizations to keep the industry progressing and to open doors that have been closed in the past because of lack of understanding and inaction. My goal is to return to the industry some of what it has given me. There are thousands of honest, hard-working people in construction and they need to be recognized for all the good they do to help our state," he explains.
Because of the wide range of his activity in the construction industry, Skip is well-known. He attributes part of his company's success to name recognition and his ability to keep his company's name synonymous with quality and an excellent reputation for meeting deadlines. "Fasttrack work is very competitive and I enjoy the challenges it presents," says Skip. "We make the impossible happen and without compromising quality in the process." He mentions such projects as the U.S. Bankruptcy Courthouse in Santa Barbara, Casa Dorinda, a skilled nursing facility in Montecito, Cottage Hospital's outpatient surgery area, and various phases in refurbishing the Lobero Theatre in Santa Barbara. The variety of his work also presents challenges, which he enjoys tackling.
"Almost every block I drive by has some building we have worked on in one aspect or another," he points out. "I've been doing construction long enough that now I'm tearing down old buildings we worked on years ago and building new ones in their place."
A native of the Netherlands, Skip came to the United States with his family in 1953 and to Santa Barbara in 1954. He comes from a family of builders, he says. Generations ago his ancestors were shipbuilders. His father, an architect, became a supervisor for J.W. Bailey Construction. Skip graduated from Santa Barbara High School and later attended Santa Barbara City College, receiving an associate degree in mathematics. Initially, he thought he might be a machinist and worked as a tool and diemaker for a firm near the airport. He became disillusioned when he learned hard work and quality performance didn't count for anything at the firm where he was employed. "I looked around for a job that would pay me for what I did and for what I was worth, and that turned out to be construction work," he states. He started as a framer, later becoming a superintendent and then, after his father retired, general manager for 16 years, for J.W. Bailey Co. He obtained his first general contractor's license in 1973. He also spent over four years working as a contractor in Oregon, but soon returned to Santa Barbara.
In 1982, while still employed with J.W. Bailey, he obtained a corporate general contractor's license to start his own business and within four years was able to be on his own. He now employs 50 people and has more than 10 supervisors. His employees include his son, Arlan, currently a vice president with the company. Arlan originally graduated from college with degrees in music and philosophy, but came into the business when an opening presented itself and has earned and learned the job from the ground up, Skip says.
One of the goals Skip has had for his company is to select a mission statement and a list of principles that represent his employees' standards. At a company retreat, the mission statement was created by the employees and principles were compiled. "It been good for us to analyze what we're all about and it makes us more of a family," he affirms. "Integrity is our main theme. Having a mission statement always before us will keep us strong as a company. To be able to articulate what we are all about, to strive for what's right, innovation, and the bottom line that we follow, lends credibility to all of us and creates a bond within our team."
What does Skip see in the future? He sees only growth for his company as the economy gains strength throughout the state. He's been doing more and more design/build projects and sees that as a direction and a movement that is coming into its time, as well as where the industry is currently heading. One recent example of his design/build work in this area is the University Research Park. In spite of all the pressures of his company and his commitments in the community and industry, Skip has maintained a sense of humor and remains humble. He says he tries to find humor in every day and make each day a great day. "Whatever kind of a day you start out thinking it's going to be, you're right," he jokes, "so why not start out positive?" He also tells a story about when he was a superintendent in his younger days and was feeling very important and in charge of his life and the work going on around him. "I had another, older, carpenter, come up to me and say, 'Skipper, you think you're pretty important, don't you?' I told him, 'Yeah, I thought so.' He put his finger into a bucket of water and pulled it out and said, 'That's how big of an impression any one of us makes in this world and how fast the gap is filled when we leave.' It made me really stop and think and I've tried to remember that - life's going to goon with or without me, so I might as well make the best of every day and enjoy it and do the best I can. If I expect the best from myself, I'll rise to the expectation. It's a challenge I've given myself."
Obviously, judging from his record and reputation, Frank "Skip" Schipper and Frank Schipper Construction Co. are meeting those expectations and new challenges and no doubt will continue to do so for years to come.
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