Nevada Builders Alliance celebrates 50th anniversary

Nevada Builders Alliance, with more than 700 member companies representing the tens of thousands of Nevada construction trade workers, celebrated its 50th anniversary Thursday evening at the Bob McFadden Plaza.

Established in 1966 as the Ormsby County Builders’ Association by a number of builders looking to protect the interests of a growing industry, the Alliance, currently under the leadership of Aaron West, CEO, has grown to represent construction companies and their respective supply chain industries across the state.

Larry Peyton, of Tahoe Insurance Group, said he serves as the secretary of the Nevada Builders Alliance board of directors because of the outreach work the Alliance has done for construction in Nevada and its supporting industries.

“Building as an industry is going through the roof and it trickles down to everybody,” he said. “For us, general and sub-contractors need workers’ compensation and general liability coverage and we can help. It’s getting exciting for everyone, and it’s an exciting time to be a part of this organization.”

Bill Miles, president and CEO of Miles Construction and a long-time board member for the Alliance, said West is a big reason for the success of the Alliance, refocusing the organization into a pro-contractor, pro-business group.

“Our organization was lucky to bring Aaron on board,” he said. “The construction industry was experiencing difficult times coming out of the recession. Aaron is working hard to keep Nevada business friendly, not only for contractors, but for everybody. He truly gets the big picture.”

West said with the boom in construction comes the need for workforce development. The Alliance will soon announce the new fall Construction Gateway program, an 8-week accelerated construction craft laborer certification course at Western Nevada College, scheduled to start in October.

“As our industry continues to become more active in the region, Nevada Builders continues to work with local and state organizations to help develop a skilled construction workforce,” he said. “We have partnered with WNC, DETR and JOIN to create programs like Construction Gateway to get people trained and ready to hit the jobsite running.”

For more information on Nevada Builders Alliance, contact outreach@nevadabuilders.org, or call Pam Duxbury, outreach officer, at (775) 882-4353. To inquire about the Construction Gateway construction craft laborer program at WNC, contact Nigel Harrison at Nigel.Harrison@wnc.edu.