Premier Business Partners:

Bulk Materials Intl.

Mosko’s Group of Companies is comprised of 13 companies, seven of which specialize in a different sector of the construction industry such as earthmoving, general contracting, marine construction, ready-mix concrete and other materials. “If interests in one sector slow down, we have other things we can shift our interest to,” Vice President John Mosko explains.

The family’s entrepreneurial spirit was first demonstrated by Mosko’s grandfather who founded Mosko’s Furniture and Cabinet Works in 1925. John Mosko’s father, George Mosko, continued the tradition by founding Mosko’s United Construction Company 50 years ago, and John along with his brothers, Milton and Jim, joined their father during the mid-1970s.

John and Jim each have civil engineering degrees, and Milton has an industrial management degree. “When we came on, each of us became responsible for a different area of the group,” John Mosko says. Today, Jim Mosko is in charge of the wholly owned Bahamas Marine Construction Company Ltd., Milton Mosko works in the corporate office in Nassau, Bahamas, and John Mosko oversees Mosko’s United Construction Company Ltd.

George Mosko is still involved in the business. “My father is 82; he’s slowing down,” John Mosko acknowledges. “But he still comes in to work and we keep him appraised on everything,” he says.

Mosko and his brothers focused on growth when they joined the company, and now, it is one of the three largest private locally owned construction group of companies in The Bahamas. “We were able to expand a lot more at that point,” John Mosko says, by adding new sectors over time. “We grew slowly; it didn’t happen all of a sudden.”

The pattern of expansion basically followed the path of least resistance, he says. For example, “A construction client needed a great deal of heavy earth moving and no local company was available to do the job,” he explains. “We had the capital to bring in excavators and heavy-duty dump trucks which secured us the contract. We have been involved in heavy earthmoving since.”  
Other avenues of expansion were in the way of vertical integration, such as forming or acquiring companies to supply bulk cement, aggregate and sand to Mosko’s ready-mix concrete companies, he says.

Also, the group’s positive reputation also helped it grow, Mosko says. Mosko’s Group of Companies prides itself on being good corporate citizens that contribute to the development of its community and nation. “We are known to have high moral and ethical standards,” he says. “That had been slapped into our heads growing up. “We also have a diverse client base.”

“We do government work, joint ventures with international companies and sell concrete and materials. We are well spread across the construction industry.”

The big challenge the group faces is acquiring skilled workers. Mosko’s is involved with the College of The Bahamas and its employees often speak to students about the construction industry.
“We tell them what’s expected, and encourage them to get hands-on experience,” Mosko says.

Atlantis Project
The group has performed work for Atlantis, a hotel and resort on Paradise Island, Bahamas, since it began to expand in 1992. At that time, Mosko’s concrete plant, N.P. Building Supplies Ltd., joined forces with its competitor, Nassau Ready Mixed Concrete Company Ltd., and formed the joint venture, Paradise Island Ready Mix Ltd. During the first phase which was completed in 1993, Paradise Island Ready Mix supplied 35,000 cubic yards of concrete and Bahamas Marine Construction Company performed demolition work and earthwork for the resort’s pool, lazy river and theme park.

In the second phase, which was completed in the late 1990s, Paradise Island Ready Mix supplied about 240,000 cubic yards of concrete. The concrete portion of the project earned that company the Award of Merit from the American Institute of Concrete in 1999. Also, Bahamas Marine Construction Company Ltd. dug the marina, which involved excavating a million cubic yards of limestone.

Last year, the group finished the third phase of the expansion project. Mosko’s portion of the project involved the production and supplying of all of the ready-mixed concrete, as well as earthworks and supplying aggregate. Mosko Hardform Bahamas Ltd. completed the formwork, rebar, concrete and masonry packages for the new Spa and Dolphin encounter buildings, which are approximately 30,000 square feet. The group values its relationship with Atlantis, Mosko stresses. “It is the biggest [hotel and resort] in The Bahamas,” he says. “It was a great company to grow with. The opportunity to perform in that capacity was an honor.”

Growing in The Bahamas
The group plans to continue to focus its services in New Providence, Bahamas, where the capital city, Nassau, is located. However, the group has done work on other Bahamian islands, or “Family Islands,” including Abaco, Eleuthera, Andros and Exuma. Mosko’s Group wants to increase its presence throughout The Bahamas and expand its operation to include more of the islands, he adds. “We want to stay in The Bahamas and grow with it,” he says.