Solid foundation: Vogel Bros. Building Co. draws upon its depth of experience to become a green building trailblazer.(Cover story)

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Building contractors have any number of ways to distinguish themselves in the construction industry. As in any other type of business, they ultimately must respond to what current and potential customers are requesting. Among the things that Pete Vogel and the other leaders of Vogel Bros. Building Co., Madison, Wis., have been hearing for the past several years are requests to build energy-efficient structures in a sustainable fashion.

At Vogel Bros., that has translated into becoming a pioneer in building Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-certified structures and making other green building practices--including recycling--standard operating procedure at the job site.

SOLID FOUNDATION

Vogel Bros. Building Co. was founded in 1928, when the grandfather and great uncle of current CEO Pete Vogel incorporated a cabinetmaking and building business that was already in its second generation.

The company grew even during the Great Depression years of the 1930s and expanded into commercial and institutional construction in the 1940s in coordination with the war effort, according to Pete Vogel. "That's when my grandfather George really started the transition into commercial work," he comments.

Pete's father David Vogel was a commissioned officer in the Army Corps of Engineers and gained valuable experience serving in Europe as part of Marshall Plan reconstruction projects. "In the early 1950s, he came back to Madison and worked with my grandfather until my grandfather's death in 1968," says Vogel, who notes that the early 1960s was an important growth era for the company as the University of Wisconsin and other institutions in Madison grew at that same time.

The third generation of Vogels--Pete and his brother Dan--started becoming active in the company in the early 1980s and gained ownership of the company in the mid-1990s. Vogel Bros. opened a Lakeland, Fla., office in the 1980s that continues to grow, now having more than 50 employees. The Florida operations were managed by Dan until his death in an auto accident earlier this decade. Pete Vogel now oversees …