The Alaska Contractor - Summer 2008

MEMBER PROFILE
ALASKA ROADBUILDERS By HEATHER A. RESZ
Alaska Roadbuilders welcomes third
generation into paving family
Alaska Roadbuilders uses a pair of paving
machines to lay asphalt near Gulkana.
Since Alaska Roadbuilders Inc. – 44482 Frontier
Ave., Soldotna – began in 1973, the company
has made a name for itself completing
projects across the state.
Jim Richards and Ron Davis started Harley’s
Trucking 33 years ago with one dump truck.
“Every year we’d get one more truck,” Davis said.
At first, the two just leased the trucks back to
Arctic Asphalt, which Davis’ father owned.
But things changed in 1976 when Harley’s
Trucking bought out Arctic Asphalt.
“We just started growing from there,” Davis said.
At first the two bid small jobs, like parking lots.
As their company and expertise grew, so did the
dollar value and complexity of projects.
With the company’s growth came other changes
such as replacing their old asphalt plant with a
drum mix plant in 1981, Davis said.
Things changed again in 1989 when Richards
died of lung cancer.
At that time, Davis changed the name and structure
of the company and created Alaska Roadbuilders.
A third generation bought into the family business
about three years ago when Davis’ wife Terri, son Ron
Jr., and cousin Chuck Davis joined the partnership.
This summer Alaska Roadbuilders will start a
job on the Parks Highway.
The Cantwell area was getting snow through
the end of May, Davis said.
“The ground is still frozen at Igloo, so we can’t
start yet,” he said.
Until the ground warmed, crews were working
on a four-mile overlay project on the Sterling Highway.
Since part of the contract required the company
to maintain two-way traffic, Davis said work
is going on at night to keep traffic flowing.
“It’s not going to take very long to do the job,”
he said. “Stuff like logistics and traffic flow are a big
part of the work we do.”
Paving Alaska
From Valdez and Cordova to Kodiak and Kenai
– Alaska Roadbuilders has spent the past three decades
completing paving projects across the state.
“We did the very first foam job in the state down
by Homer,” Davis said.
The company also repaved a 26-mile section of the
road between Sutton and Caribou Creek in 2005.