Newtron was ranked 17th nationally in 2023 with $843 million in sales in ‘Electrical Construction & Maintenance’ ranking of top 50 largest U.S. electrical contractors.
Courtesy
Baton Rouge-based design-build electrical contractor Newtron made its first foray into Northern Nevada to work on construction of Tesla’s Gigafactory at Tahoe Reno Industrial Center.
What was supposed to be a one-and-done project turned into a long-term venture when Newtron opened an office on Spice Island Drive in Sparks to service clients throughout Northern Nevada and Lake Tahoe.
Lee LaRussa, Newtron vice president and general manager of the Sparks office, told NNBW that Newtron made a lot of important connections during work on the massive industrial building east of Sparks, and rather than fold up shop the team decided instead to plant a flag in Northern Nevada.
“We travel all around the nation doing projects like that – we come and we go,” LaRussa said. “We encountered a lot of very good people in Reno who approached us about doing more projects because they really liked working with Newtron.”
Newtron won Best Construction Company and Best Subcontractor in Northern Nevada Business Weekly 2024 Best in Business contest. Newtron was formed by Newton B. Thomas in Baton Rouge in 1973. Newtron wasn’t a common name in the region when it came to work on the Tesla Gigafactory, LaRussa said, but the company was very well-known in other parts of the country. Newtron was ranked 17th nationally in 2023 with $843 million in sales in ‘Electrical Construction & Maintenance’ ranking of top 50 largest U.S. electrical contractors. It was ranked 12th in 2022.
“We’ve been in business a long time,” LaRussa said. “Our company has about 4,500 employees.”
After work on the Tesla project finished, Newtron’s local headcount shrunk to a skeleton crew. At peak construction on the gigafactory, though, employment swelled to hundreds of electricians. LaRussa said his team was planning on bugging out for the next big project when calls for work started coming in and opportunities began to arise.
In its fifth year with a Northern Nevada office, Newtron’s employment has surged to more than 400, LaRussa told NNBW. The company is made up of various people who migrated to Newtron from competitors, clients and other industries because of the company’s reputation, LaRussa said
Over the past five years, he added, Newtron has built a large portfolio of long-term clients.
“We always get called back – about 85 percent of our work is from repeat customers.”
Newtron’s employment prior to the 2020s weren’t truly local employees, LaRussa noted – most left for other ventures once the gigafactory job was complete. Today, however, Newtron’s regional employment base is 100 percent local, LaRussa said.
“The Tesla job brought in thousands of people from across the country,” he said. “The bulk of our workforce back then was travelers from out of state. Now, the bulk of our employees are local; it’s the other way around. We have built up our employee base over the years.”
Part of Newtron’s success lies in its ability to successfully navigate the largest and most complex projects, such as schools, office buildings, heavy industrial, manufacturing and geothermal facilities, and data centers. Still, as LaRussa came to find, Northern Nevada is a saturated market with many well-established and respected names in commercial electrical construction.
“There are more electrical contractors in this town than I have ever seen (elsewhere),” he said. “When I was in the early stages of writing up a business plan to see if it would be viable to open an office and stay here, I came up with at least 80 contractors.”
LaRussa told NNBW another key factor in Newtron’s rapid growth lies in the way the company treats employees across the organization. The company mandates its core values be posted at every job site and on the walls of every office and job trailer.
“If we set up an operation or have a project, our values need to be posted for everyone to be reminded of them,” LaRussa said. “It has proven successful for 51 years. We continue to grow organically, and we continue to get more work.
“What’s different about Newtron is how we operate,” he added. “Our slogan is, ‘Live It.’ You’ll see that all over our gear, and on our shirts and hats. We live by the values of always treating people with respect and dignity.”
Newtron also shares up to 60 percent of its profits with employees, LaRussa said, a compensation perk that’s well received by employees. Most companies are top-heavy with compensation for executive and management positions, but Newtron gives out bonuses to its apprentices, laborers, and long-term employees who have demonstrated commitment to helping the company be successful and profitable.
“We really care about making this a best place to work,” LaRussa said. “The (former) owner always told me that each person should be able to do what they believe is right in accordance with their values, and that will align with this company’s values.
“That’s why I have worked for this company for 16 years. You are able to do what you believe is right in how to treat people, and that is in line with the way this company expects you to operate.”