William J. Gilbane, Jr. will be honored as the 2017 ENR New England Legacy Award winner on Dec. 12 during the ENR New England Best Project’s awards event on Dec. 12 in Boston.

Chosen by ENR editors, the Legacy Award is given annually to an individual in the region who has established a solid “legacy” of lifetime service to the construction industry, their colleagues and to their community. ENR New England includes Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont.

Gilbane Building Co.’s current vice chairman and former president and COO helped expand the firm to more than 50 offices around the world. Despite its global footprint, the privately-held family-owned company founded in 1873 has maintained its corporate headquarters in Providence, R.I. Gilbane, Jr., who also won an ENR Newsmaker award in 2007, is known for mentoring family members at the firm. Currently, more than 12 members of the fifth and sixth generations work at Gilbane.

After joining BT Equipment Corp., a subsidiary of Gilbane, in 1970, Gilbane, Jr. led the management of the company’s construction equipment leasing and rentals business. He later became the president overseeing all of BT Equipment’s personnel and operations. He joined Gilbane in 1980 while still managing BT Equipment Corporation through its subsequent sale in 1996. 

Another noteworthy accomplishment was helping to build Gilbane University, an immersive training platform recognized as one of the top learning organizations in the construction industry.

He won the 2014 March of Dimes, Service to Humanity Award, Private Sector Award, the 2008 RI Justice Assistance, Neil J. Houston, Jr. Memorial Award and the Construction Industry Safety Excellence Award from the Construction Users Roundtable in 2006, 2008, 2011 and 2015. Additionally, he was CEO/senior executive at the Incident and Injury-Free Forum and a former board member for the Professional Facilities Management.

He is a board member of the Brown University Hockey Association, a past member of the U.S. Olympic Committee, a past board member of the Rhode Island Red’s Heritage Society and a past member of the NCAA Hockey Championship Advisory Committee. He’s also served on advisory committees for the Irish Famine Memorial and ReFocus Rhode Island. Gilbane, Jr. is a past chairman of the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation of Rhode Island.

Gilbane, Jr. will be profiled in the May/June 2018 issue of ENR New England.