ForConstructionPros.com

Reading the business headlines today, it appears as if no new equipment is being purchased and all construction activity has come to a grinding halt. This holds especially true in the Fort Myers-Cape Coral, FL, metro area, where the unemployment rate was 10% in December. President Obama even made a stop in Fort Myers on his recent tour to promote the need for economic stimulus.

While the country is in the midst of challenging economic times, there are bright spots to be found. For example, Tallahassee, FL-based asphalt producer and contractor, C. W. Roberts Contractor Company, is successfully navigating the rough waters of Florida's turbulent economy and is growing.

Last year, the company operated five Terex Triple Drum asphalt plants along Florida's west coast, reaching from the Panhandle to near Fort Myers. Each plant produced an average of 150,000 tons per year to supply asphalt for the company's crews and for other paving contractors.

After recently acquiring Cougar Contracting Specialties Inc., C.W. Roberts officials saw a need for a sixth plant and an opportunity to lower operating costs.

"Cougar had grown to where they were purchasing approximately $8 million of asphalt in a year," explains Geoffrey Thaw, area plant manager for C. W. Roberts. Paving upwards to 100,000 tons of asphalt in a year, "we needed a plant for internal consumption as well as to develop an FOB market (selling asphalt to other contractors)," he adds.