| July, 2005 - Lewisville/Flower Mound Business Journal
Modular spaces from Nortex can fit a variety of needs- by Kathy Floyd
Nortex Modular Space has clients all around the country, from Hawaii to
Florida, and even overseas. But Jim Attrell points to his shirt with "Nortex"
embroidered on it, and said, "Where we really want to service is right here in "North Texas". Then he points to a project
map of the area. "We want to concentrate here in Denton and Collin County.
Thereıs a lot of growth here."
Now if you're thinking typical modular buildings that have about as much
personality as a blank wall, think again. Sometimes the clients like their
buildings so much that they keep them.
Jimıs been in this business since 1970. "My dad was in this business and he
got me into it," he said. He worked for ATCO, a Canadian company who has been in
the manufactured structure business for more than 50 years. "I came through
Houston in 1976 to site check installations and wondered why I didn't see more
modular buildings in Houston." So in 1980, Jim made the move to Houston because
there were so many opportunities.
Jim and his wife, Sherry Stewart, started Nortex Modular Space in Highland
Village, in 1998. Sherry is the owner and President. Jim is Vice President.
On the project board, the client list is varied.... prisons, churches,
colleges, schools, military, railway offices, even offices for the Attwater
Prairie Chicken Wildlife Refuge, in southeast Texas.
They"ve recently started construction on an 11,000 square-foot fellowship
hall, administrative office and classroom addition for the First Baptist Church
in Anna, Texas, and are close to completing a 10,000 square-foot classroom and
restroom building for the University of Texas at Dallas in Richardson, Texas.
Something that sets these buildings apart from other temporary or modular
buildings, is the finishing and customization that Jim and the crew put into
them. They use stucco finishes on many buildings to give them a more permanent
look. Other exterior finishes are available.
The Nortex office is a great example of the look that customization can give
a modular building. It has a concrete ramp and steps, and handrails, and is
nicely landscaped. It doesnıt look like a building that's here today, and gone
tomorrow.
The walls in Jimıs office have lots of mementos about his favorite sport,
hockey, but theyıre also a showing of the different samples of wall coverings
that are available. The building also shows samples of different floor coverings
Ceilings can even be 10-feet high. "We put beams in a 10-foot ceiling in a
church to make it feel more like a church sanctuary," Jim said.
One thing Jim considers a strong point is blending to match existing
buildings. In Frisco, a church administrative office building was built to blend
in with the existing building right downto the orange metal roof.
For a real estate developerıs office, Jim designed the modular to look more
like a house with more homey looking windows.
"Something else we do is that everything is built to code and is handicapped
accessible," Jim said.
Some clients like the buildings so well they take them with them. The modular
building can be incorporated in the site design of a new permanent building.
"Or something else that's happening,"Jim said, "is that the building is used
as a starter church, then when the permanent building is complete, itıs moved to
a new location for another starter church or fellowship hall or youth facility".
The process starts with the client meeting with Jim and Sherry to discuss
what the customerıs needs are. They look at the site, consider utility
connections, parking, site access, any permits the customer might need to
obtain, and any landscaping to be worked around. "We design the building to
minimize utility costs," Jim said.
"We do all the design and installation, and the preparation work. Our crews
install engineered concrete footings for bearing points. All the carpet,
lighting, skirting and stucco work is done after the installation."
Some of the larger projects take three to four months to complete, others can
be done in just a few weeks. Nortex's services donıt stop when the building is
complete. They have a fully-equipped service truck to do any maintenance needed.
A list of recent customers on Nortexıs web site shows their diversity:
The U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Secret Service, the City of
Dallas, the U.S Veterans Administration, the U.S. Army, Rayzor
Ranch in Argyle, Creekwood Christian Church in Flower Mound, Christ
Presbyterian Church in Flower Mound, Vista Ridge Baptist Church in Lewisville,
University of Texas at Arlington and the U.S. Department of Corrections.
Last year, Nortex won an Award of Distinction from the Modular Building
Institute for a building they designed and installed for the Air National
Reserve at Camp Bullis in San Antonio. The award criteria were architectural
excellence, technical innovation, cost effectiveness/energy efficiency, and
calendar days to complete.
You donıt have to buy a Nortex modular space building. They can be leased.
"The City of Wylie and City of Dallas are leasing two public works facilities
right now," Jim said.
From modules that can make buildings in the thousands of square feet, Nortex
also has storm shelters and safe rooms. One model of storm shelter is built
under the garage.
They also carry special-use modules like mobile office trailers, a laundry
building, and a restroom building for special events. They also lease or sell
handicapped ramps.
Nortex is listed with GSA, so government entities can place orders on
the Internet, and for customers with state funds, Nortex is affiliated with
TXMAS. This lets State of Texas agencies lease and purchase a building right off
the web site, without going through a bid process.
They are also certified as a historically underutilized business (HUB)
because it is a woman-owned business, and state agencies can get credit for
using them.
Nortexıs web site quotes their Mission Statement as this; "To be recognized
as an industry leader, to provide a full range of services to our
customers at a fair price, and to provide services to our customers with
integrity. We will share our customer's vision and offer the best products
available on the market today."
Last year, Nortex posted $8 million in sales. Judging from that, the variety
of clients, and the success with past projects, looks like Jim and Sherry have
succeeded in their mission.
Contact Jim Attrell, Nortex Modular Space, 555 Jubilee Lane, Lewisville,
Texas 75056, Riverview Industrial Park, 972-492-4040, e-mail jim@nortexmodular.com.
You can visit the web site,
www.nortexmodular.com.
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