|
Hard Work Builds Contractor's Success
 Ken Flynn
El Paso Times
Saturday, January 8, 2005
When Raymundo Beltran raised his five sons in the Lower Valley, little did the brick mason realize that they would all grow up to become important players in the El Paso construction industry.
Raymundo Jr., 49, owner of Belt Con Construction Co., is the masonry contractor for the new Texas Tech regional research center on Alameda Avenue. His recently expanded company is now competing for major construction jobs throughout West Texas and Southern New Mexico.
Julian Beltran, 54, joined his brother as chief of operations at Belt Con after retiring from the Air Force. A third brother, Juan Beltran, 52, joined the company as an administrator after retiring as a Fort Bliss building inspector.
Alfredo Beltran, 47, is owner of Beltran Electrical Contractors. Ricardo Beltran, 42, is owner of R. Beltran Construction Co., General Contractors.
"My dad taught us all to work," Raymundo Beltran Jr. said. "When I was young, I didn't think much about it, but as I grew older, I realized my dad really knew his business and taught us a lot."
Beltran said he worked in Houston for eight years before returning to El Paso to start his company in 1985 with one employee. Today Belt Con employs 75.
"We started out making mailboxes," he said. "By 1991, we were getting bigger jobs and we incorporated."
While the Beltran brothers followed in their father's footsteps by entering the building trades, their two sisters took a different route. Virginia Beltran Aldaco teaches in the Ysleta Independent School District, and Genoveva Beltran Santos teaches in the Socorro district. Both teach bilingual education.
"I'm proud of all my brothers," Santos said. "They're keeping alive our father's name. He was a hardworking man and taught us the value of working hard to achieve our goals."
Raymundo Beltran said his first big break came when Hunt Building Corp. subcontracted his company to do the masonry work for 300 new homes at Fort Bliss.
"We jumped from $500,000 in gross sales to $1.5 million," Beltran said. "That job gave us the confidence to bid for bigger contracts."
Belt Con now averages $3.5 million a year in gross sales, he said. Included among the company's successful projects are Canutillo High School, El Dorado High School and the Federal Law Enforcement Training Facility at Artesia, N.M. In addition to the Texas Tech research center in El Paso, Belt Con is also involved with the Cleveland Square redevelopment project Downtown, which includes the expansion of the Main Library and addition of a new Museum of History. Belt Con is also involved with building the support facilities for the El Paso Zoo.
Beltran said he is proud of his work on the Texas Tech building.
"The building is being built like some of the older buildings in Texas, with a lot of limestone, and it will look beautiful," he said. "This job will lead us to other opportunities in other parts of Texas because of our experience here."
Belt Con received a Small Business Administration guaranteed expansion loan for an undisclosed amount of money through the efforts of El Paso Community College's Small Business Development Center.
Beltran praised Olga Tavárez for her technical experience in loan packaging. He also praised Ray Aguilar, vice president for lending at United Bank of El Paso del Norte, for his help.
With the loan, obtained in October, the company acquired working capital and expanded by 30 employees, from 45 to 70, Beltran said.
"Ms. Tavárez's expertise was very instrumental in assisting us and guiding us through the entire process of obtaining this much- needed SBA guaranty loan," Beltran said.
Beltran, who has a master's degree in business from the University of Texas at El Paso, said all economic indicators, from the construction point of view, indicate 2005 will be a good year.
"We've had some rough times, but the economy looks like it's getting better," he said.
Ken Flynn may be reached at kflynn@elpasotimes.com; 546-6138.
For the full story click on the El Paso Times News (website) below.
Website: El Paso Times News |
