Melissa Ferchill is the Founder and President of MCM Company, Inc. MCM Company began as a full-service construction management firm currently located in the historic warehouse district of Cleveland. MCM, established in 1992, was originally known for its general contractor, construction management and design-build capabilities. As MCM’s reputation for excellence grew, so did the demands of the business.
Over the course of the last two decades, MCM successfully expanded its body of work to include project management, program management, planning and pre-construction services, project consulting and real estate development.
The firm has engaged in long-term Project Management services for such clients as University Hospitals, specifically serving as Project Executive for UH’s $1.2 billion Vision 2010 strategic growth plan.
The development arm of MCM has brought about expertise in historic adaptive reuse for commercial residential and mixed-use projects as well as not-for-profit institutional restorations and off-balance sheet financing for medical/research facilities.
MCM has completed over $1.5 billion in construction and development.
WHY MCM? EXPERTISE
As illustrated by our past project experience, we have gained the trust and confidence of our clients. Our methods have earned their respect and repeat business. We are passionate about the projects we are involved in.
We have an unmatched depth of experience and a management style that is uniquely designed to respond to the specific challenges and goals of each project. The following factors differentiate MCM Company:
• Industry leaders in Collaborative delivery methods for historic and institutional construction projects
• Proven track-records of using a multi-faceted approach to projects
• Trusted Owner’s Representatives and Development firms for over 27 years
• Highly respected among Construction Management, Architectural, and Engineering Firms
• Qualified Personnel who are leaders in institutional, historic and commercial construction projects
• Significant database of projects used for budget and schedule benchmarking
• A dedicated Core Team of experts who work exclusively on institutional and historic projects
• Demonstrated method of planning and completing quality projects on-time and on-budget
WHY MCM? COMMUNICATION
For all projects, communication is key. MCM Company is well known for our unsurpassed ability to effectively communicate with our client and with the other members of the project team. We have been told by many that our communication skills and our ability to build an environment of trust and mutual respect among the project team, is essentially what sets the tone for a project and points it towards success.
We strive to always be professional, honest and direct with our clients so that their expectations are reasonable and achievable. We understand the importance of process and establishing early on, the proper approval channels to ensure that the client is always fully aware of the project’s progress.
It is always our goal to foster relationships and establish processes that provide for better budget and schedule adherence, as well as a pleasant working environment.
Our team has extensive experience working in institutional settings and on historic buildings, interacting with the multiple stakeholder groups that are typically involved including but not limited to facilities, administration, marketing, and donor relations, as well as the design and construction team.
WHY MCM? ALTERNATIVE FINANCING EXPERTISE
MCM has vast experience with Entitlements, Public Incentive Programs, and Alternative Financing, especially in the Cleveland area. In Ohio, MCM has monetized incentives worth hundreds of millions of dollars, both for our own account and on behalf of our clients.
Those incentives include real property tax abatement, sales tax exemptions on construction materials, conservation easements, federal historic tax credits, state historic tax credits, and new markets tax credits.
WHY MCM? BUDGET & SCHEDULE MANAGEMENT LEAN PRINCIPLES EXPERTISE
Our years of experience working on projects in multiple roles including Owner, Developer, Construction Manager, and Owner’s Representative has equipped us to provide estimating services for all phases of project development. We are able to utilize the depth of resources at our firm by using past, similar project cost information as a basis of comparison, by maintaining a significant database of project information which we can access for budget benchmarking.
Experience is an indispensable tool in the building industry, especially working on institutional and historic projects. We are able to draw on our 30 years of experience in institutional, commercial and historic construction and the data accumulated during that time to create benchmarks for comparison of cost, schedule, building methods, purchasing, value engineering, safety and quality.
Quite often, the Owner has not taken on a significant construction project, therefore, it is our responsibility to advise the Owner on industry standards and trends.
Additionally, we have been using Lean Principles on all projects since before it was trendy to do so. We believe the following key points are the primary advantages to applying those principles:
• Ability to fast-track design and construction schedules
• Design Integrity is maintained • High quality of work product
• Reduced Fees
• “Barrier-free” working environment – high emphasis on teamwork
• Guaranteed Maximum Price Control / Less chance for Change Orders
• Construction sequencing and phasing identified during the design
• More thoughtful process because stakeholders are involved from the onset
• Encouraging learning and improvement from all parties as project design emerges
WHY MCM? WOMAN OWNED BUSINESS
Since 1992 Melissa has prided herself in being a woman-owned business and providing meaningful careers for her employees and creating career opportunities for women in what used to be non-traditional roles in the construction industry.
Melissa has helped change the climate in the construction and development industry over the past 25 years, making it more commonplace to have women sitting at the table, in leadership positions. She makes herself available to any woman with a serious interest in career development in her field of business or with an entrepreneurial idea that needs developing.
In addition to the development company, Melissa is a 50% partner in HP Group, LLC, also a certified woman-owned, historic preservation consulting business that employs 100% women.
