Brookline, MA According to Kaplan Construction, their work on Trust Early Learners has earned the company a national Excellence in Construction (EIC) Eagle Award, presented during the annual Associated Builders and Contractors National Convention in Orlando, Fla. on March 14. The EIC awards recognized 91 of the nation’s top construction projects in 2023 as the leading national competition that annually honors general and specialty contractors for industry-leading, safe, and innovative construction projects from across the country.

Kaplan was hired in 2017 to provide preconstruction and construction services for The Martin Trust Partnership in Education for Early Learners’ flagship early education center, a new 20,000 s/f five-story steel building located at 127 Harvard St. The demolition of an existing two-story building was executed during preconstruction before construction began in earnest in 2019. Notable construction challenges included working within the building’s 9,000 s/f footprint and navigating an abutting store built in 1850. To prevent any structural impact to the abutter’s foundation, Kaplan installed an earth retention system and utilized deep foundation methods to transfer the building load safely.

Trust Early Learners features six classrooms, a library, sensory gym, learning kitchen, STEM room, makerspace, rooftop playground, and administrative offices. 

The diversity-focused early education center began welcoming children in January of 2022.

 “I am thrilled that the Trust Early Learners project has been recognized nationally,” said Nathan Peck, president of Kaplan Construction. “With proximity to a busy city street and pandemic-related disruptions, this project was a meticulous exercise in communication, workflow, and logistics. Delivering this state-of-the-art center to our client was also particularly special because it was built right in our community.”

“This exemplary project is the pinnacle of quality, safety, and innovation in our industry, showcasing the incredible structures and teams at Kaplan Construction that build the best of the best in merit shop construction,” said 2024 National chair of the ABC board of directors Buddy Henley, president of Henley Construction Co. Inc., Gaithersburg, Md. “Trust Early Learners is an industry-leading construction project, showing how ABC members build projects safely, on time, and on budget. It is an honor to congratulate Kaplan for showcasing construction excellence.”

The EIC awards honor every member of the construction team, including the contractor, owner, architect, and engineer. The winning projects are judged on complexity, attractiveness, unique challenges overcome, completion time, innovation, and safety.

A panel of industry experts served as the competition’s judges. This year’s judges included representatives from At Home, the Design-Build Institute of America, Engineering News-Record, Marriott, the National Institutes of Health, the National Institute of Building Sciences, the Smithsonian Institute and other select construction-related firms nationwide.

The project team members for Trust Early Learners include:

• Owner: Martin Trust Partnership in Education for Early Learners
• Construction Manager: Kaplan Construction
• Architect: CBT
• Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing Engineer: Wozny/Barbar & Associates, Inc.
• Civil Engineer: Bryant Associates
• Structural Engineer: Foley Buhl Roberts & Associates, Inc.