AMS Industries Has A 60-Year History Of Adapting To Chicagoland’s Diverse Construction Market

Driven by the widespread demand for modern infrastructure, the mechanical, electrical and plumbing market is expected to grow by more than $23B over the next five years. While this demand may inspire newcomers to enter the market, many industry clients prefer collaborating with seasoned professionals with a deep understanding of their field.

For the past 60 years, AMS Industries has provided the Chicago area with MEP+ construction, maintenance and engineering services. With a team of more than 700 industry professionals, AMS has served Chicagoland’s diverse construction industry on projects involving commercial building, heavy industrial manufacturing, food processing and industrial refrigeration.

However, the firm wasn't always a large, multidisciplinary team.

“My father, John Berzanskis Sr., started AMS as a small refrigeration company to cater to the ammonia refrigeration needs of the Chicago Stockyards in 1963 under the name Antarctic Refrigeration Inc.,” said John Berzanskis, director at AMS Industries, who took over his father's role as president and owner in 1978.

Two key moves have propelled the company's growth since then.

Berzanskis said that while following in his father’s footsteps as the next-generation leader, he developed a passion for mechanical construction, creating a vision for the future of the company. The firm's first major expansion took place in the mid-1980s when he formed a relationship with Dennis J. Kiley, who ultimately became his business partner, mentor and friend. That was AMS’ first segue into commercial construction, which ultimately became its largest marketplace.

Throughout the 1980s and into the early 1990s, AMS worked in the commercial and industrial refrigeration marketplace. In 1994, Berzanskis met Lynn Carmody, a leader in heavy industrial construction. Berzanskis said that Carmody took a chance on AMS, previously relatively unknown to the industrial sector, and developed a senior team of project managers and supervisors, leading the company into a high-barrier marketplace with success that continues to this day. Carmody remains a mentor and ambassador to AMS’ leadership team.

It was these two milestones, along with the effort of many others, that made AMS Industries one of the leading full-service MEP+ contractors in the Midwest, he said. 

“We’re the most diverse mechanical contractor in the Chicagoland area,” said Ben Campbell, president and CEO of AMS Industries. “The years of experience we have in these walls is second to none.” 

Over the past 60 years, diversification has proven to be a big asset to the AMS team, not only for corporate expansion and financial success but also in terms of employees' personal growth. 

It was a core belief and philosophy of Berzanskis to invest in the firm’s employees, Campbell said, adding that taking care of the company’s people allows the business to prosper. That’s why, in 2017, Berzanskis made AMS a 100% employee-owned company, to “give back to the people that had been so good to the company all of these years.”

“We’ve built a culture of trust, respect and passion for being the best we can be,” Berzanskis said. “This is our core business strategy and is imperative to our success. Our people are the reason behind all of our achievements.”

Berzanskis said the company’s greatest accomplishments include fostering existing relationships and establishing new business partnerships throughout the years. 

AMS Industries has collaborated with companies such as Gonnella Baking Co., United Insulated Structures Corp. and McHugh Construction since the firm’s early days, and these partnerships continue today. Berzanskis’ philosophy, “We do not chase projects, we build relationships,” has been a guiding principle for AMS.

The company also embarked on several large-scale heavy industrial projects that helped transform the trajectory of the business, such as the Whiting, Indiana, refinery modernization project for BP in 2012, allowing Chicago-based AMS to expand its Midwest presence.

“At that time, we were a small player in the industrial market, and this was a $300M project on one of the largest oil refineries in the U.S.,” Berzanskis said. “We were growing, and BP took a chance on us. We ended up peaking at about 1,000 tradesmen on the job, and it became a major milestone and turning point in our company's financial success and growth.”

Since assuming the role as president and CEO from Berzanskis six years ago, Campbell has led the company to complete a variety of projects across multiple disciplines. These projects include 1000M, a high-rise in downtown Chicago in which AMS worked on plumbing, and The Salt Shed, an entertainment arena in Chicago’s Morton Salt complex that included plumbing and fire protection systems.

Other major jobs have included the Greater Chicago Food Depository, an HVAC project, and Costco’s meat production plant, for which AMS provided industrial refrigeration services. 

Guided by Campbell, the firm has advanced its MEP+ philosophy through the strategic expansion of its geographic footprint. Concurrently, the firm has diversified its portfolio by amplifying its presence in the data center sector.

AMS is committed to staying at the forefront of technological innovation, and the company continually invests in emerging technologies while strengthening its presence in key sectors like distribution centers, healthcare, food processing facilities and electric vehicle charging stations throughout the Midwest, Campbell said.

“Not only are we doing work in all those areas, but we're doing quality work in all those areas with repeat customers that go back decades,” Campbell said. 

Given the team’s success in the Midwest, the company decided to expand into Nashville, opening its first location in the Music City in 2022. 

“We look at every opportunity to see if there’s a match with our team members and clients and our core strengths,” Campbell said. “That’s when we made the decision to jump into Nashville.”

Looking at the past 60 years, trade and market diversification have played a key role in AMS’ success, Berzanskis said. Looking forward, Campbell said that AMS will continue to expand its horizons, exploring new locations and investing in technology that allows for further innovation and productivity on the job.

“We leverage technology from the standpoint of not only our operational processes but also in promoting enhanced job performance,” Campbell said. 

The firm has prioritized the implementation of on-site technology to provide more value to its clients.

“As a contractor, we need to provide more than construction services. We need to provide value and solutions through experience, knowledge and people who care,” Berzanskis said.

This article was produced in collaboration between AMS Industries and Studio B. Bisnow news staff was not involved in the production of this content.

Studio B is Bisnow’s in-house content and design studio. To learn more about how Studio B can help your team, reach out to studio@bisnow.com.