Meet The Team | Byggmeister Design & Build

Rachel White - CEO

Rachel joined the company in 2009 after having hired Byggmeister to renovate her master suite. She started as a consultant helping to develop standards and goals for energy and water use, and indoor air quality and to track these over time. After she became an employee, her role evolved to include project management. In her current role Rachel splits her time between overseeing the company and shepherding projects through the planning process.

One of the things that Rachel feels distinguishes Byggmeister is the emphasis on performance. “During project planning we look for opportunities to improve comfort, efficiency, air quality. In other words, we plan to improve performance. Then, once the project is over, we measure how we did and apply the lessons learned to future projects. It’s a virtuous circle.”

Cador Pricejones - Estimator

Having joined our team as a carpenter in 2000, Cador has held multiple positions at Byggmeister. Currently, he is the full-time estimator working with the project development team to clearly define and accurately estimate project costs (our goal is for actual costs to be within 2% of estimated costs).

Cador feels that one of the things Byggmeister does best is create a sense of teamwork. "Not just among the crew," he says, "but for everyone involved: the architect and homeowner and the builders. The trust between Byggmeister and our clients is very high because they know we are all on the same side, we all want the same thing: the best possible outcome for their home."

Karin Mahdavi - Products & Finishes Coordinator

Karin got to know Byggmeister from the outside in: she was a client before she joined the design team in 2003. "I was really impressed not just with their work, but with how respectfully they treat the client's space, and how approachable everyone in the company is," she says. "They keep their promises and always follow through."

During her project she realized she has a knack for product selection—marrying form, function and logistics—and was inspired to pursue interior design full-time. She founded KM Design, an independent interior design company, and at the same time created a new position within Byggmeister. "I really love coordinating products & finishes selection at Byggmeister," she says. "I get to be involved in such interesting and exciting projects."

Paul Eldrenkamp - Founder and Project Manager

After a wide range of carpentry jobs and a bachelor's degree in History and Literature of Medieval Europe, Paul founded Byggmeister (Scandinavian for "master builder") in 1983. Over the course of nearly forty years in business he has "always placed a high priority on two things: fostering easy, friendly relations with our clients and building a team of people who are as interesting and diverse as they are talented and dedicated."

In 2018 Paul passed the leadership reins to Rachel White and is in the process of selling the business to his employees. As he scales back his work with Byggmeister, Paul is scaling up his efforts to advance triple bottom lines business practices in the design and construction industry. In 2020, Paul joined HELM Construction Solutions as a part-time business consultant and coach. "I now have the opportunity to give back to our community—to share with other small design and construction businesses the lessons I have learned as a business owner and, I hope, to help them also learn from some of the mistakes I made."

Catherine Autio - Master Carpenter

A carpenter since 1989, Catherine worked as a subcontractor for Byggmeister for about five years before joining the company in 2002. "I really like my work and I really like this company," she says. "Paul is very creative, and he maximizes our attributes and works with our flaws." A former cook and caretaker of thoroughbred horses, Catherine says she gets great satisfaction from seeing what she has helped to build.

Maria Washington - Business Manager

Maria has been with Byggmeister since 1995, and has seen the company change in size but not in work ethic. "Excellence is Byggmeister's philosophy. Everyone here brings something unique and different to their work, but they all believe in doing their best work every time on every job," she says. She thinks the company's dedication to quality makes a visible difference. "They make excellence a priority so that when the job is done you can see the difference."

Joshua Menard - Senior Lead Carpenter and Production Manager

Josh started with Byggmeister in 2008 as a carpenter after having "worked as a general carpenter for a small renovation and remodeling firm for over seven years." During that time, Josh grew "to appreciate the attention to detail in fine residential construction. In my search to find a company that shared the same appreciation, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that not only do Byggmeister employees share the same regard for detail, but their customers do too."

Josh has since moved into the position of Senior Lead Carpenter and Production Manager. In the latter role, Josh is responsible for balancing resources across jobs, supporting other lead carpenters, and overseeing quality and safety standards.

Josy Raycroft - Designer

Josy has been part of the Byggmeister design team since 2014 when she relocated to the Boston area. After 3 years of graduate architecture school, she worked with the Newton based architecture firm Tise Design Associates and spent time in Western Massachusetts as a residential energy consultant for the Center for EcoTechnology.

She was attracted to Byggmeister because of our "integrity, strong client relationships, and environmentally sensitive approach" and is very excited to be part of a cohesive team. "My past roles as designer and consultant often felt as though I was working on the outside but the design-build model at Byggmeister allows me to be a part of renovation work from the first site visit, through design, all the way through construction." When she's not on the job she enjoys biking, playing hockey and spending time outdoors with her three kids.

William Harper (Bill) - Associate AIA, Designer

Bill has a long history with Byggmeister, going back to 2001 when he first joined the team as an Apprentice Carpenter. He quickly moved into the realm of estimating projects and few years later he returned to school to become an Architect. He is currently pursuing licensure.

We asked Bill, why, after earning his Master's Degree in Architecture, did he want to come back to work with Byggmeister? “After I had left Byggmeister, when describing the company's process and approach I would still find myself saying "we" - it's a rare and special thing, to work for a company whose mission is one that you believe in. That was a hard thing to walk away from in 2007 and I'm grateful that since then we've been able to collaborate in a new way."

Jason Taylor - Energy Specialist

An ardent carbon dioxide cutter, Jason has been doing home energy assessments and air sealing for Byggmesiter since 2009. He says he wanted to work with Byggmeister because our "company spirit is always to do the right thing. Not to mention that the crew is so smart, funny, passionate and talented."

Before joining Byggmeister Jason ran a successful painting business, but his concern about climate change led him to learn the weatherization trade. Jason claims that "nothing makes me happier than to crawl around in the recesses, nooks and crannies of someone's home, and repair the holes responsible for that home’s heat loss." Which sounds far-fetched until you've been on a job with him; then you know he means it.

Here's a poem Jason wrote to his favorite building diagnostic tool:

An Ode to the Blower Door

O, Blower Door
You red glowing beauty
Giver of wisdom
Revealer of mystery and hidden secrets
Perfection-maker
You lift me with your lusty breeze
Though some may think that I'm a bore
I’ll never stop my blower door

Francis Prunier - Lead Carpenter and Warranty Co-manager

Francis worked in construction for four years before joining Byggmeister in 2012. Francis appreciates the team environment and feels that the emphasis on community sets the company apart. Francis was initially attracted to Byggmeister in large part because of the warranty program and focus on energy efficiency. He says, "I've never encountered another company that cares as much about energy performance, or does as much to ensure that their work holds up over time."

Brendan Kavanagh - Project Manager and Performance Manager

Brendan joined our team in 2019 after 6 years as a project & program manager at CSG/Clearesult. Throughout those 6 years he inspected Byggmeister work for different energy efficiency programs and was impressed by our “thoughtful and comprehensive approach to efficiency.”

Brendan’s splits his time between developing new projects and monitoring past projects. “I love how my roles complement each other and allow me to continue improving our team’s ability to help our clients. Being able to evaluate the effectiveness of our work is so valuable in focusing our energy on impactful solutions.”

Stephen Szatkowski - Apprentice Carpenter

Prior to joining Byggmeister in 2019, Stephen built, installed and refurbished countertops in Virginia. He had been considering a career in the trades for a while, but it was at this job that he "learned how much I love to build things. Taking raw materials and making something out of them that is pleasing to look at and also valuable is a great feeling."

Stephen interviewed at several construction firms before accepting our offer. He says he chose us for several reasons. "I was impressed with their body of work, I really liked the people and felt there was a great atmosphere of camaraderie, and the benefits package is extremely generous."

Michael Gimbrere - Lead Carpenter

Michael joined Byggmeister for the second time in 2019. He was a founding partner in the business with Paul back in 1983 and spent a couple of years with the company before heading off to complete his college degree. In the intervening decades, Michael has lived and worked "around the country with diverse and creative builders, designers and educators who all share a committment to creating a more sustainable built environment." He also ran his own construction firm in the Boston-area for many years.

Michael decided to return to Byggmeister because he wanted to be part of "a team of professionals working together to make all of the parts of a successful business operate smoothly." Over the course of nearly four decades in the industry, Michael says he has found at Byggmeister "something that is quite rare: a transparent, structured and progressive environment that is quality driven and dedicated to giving all the members of the company the support they need to be successful."

Emily Sills - Carpenter

Emily joined the Byggmeister crew in 2018. Before embarking on her career in carpentry, Emily followed a “meandering route” that includes a degree in math and several years of organic farming. Most recently, Emily approached Catherine, who is a family friend, about making a career change to carpentry and decided to invest in carpentry training through the North Bennett Street School.

During her interviews with us, Emily was impressed by Byggmeister's highly organized planning process, the clear and specific expectations around work culture, and the number of women on the team. "The fact that more than half the people I met during my interviews were women was a huge draw for me.”

Frank Dill - AIA, LEED AP, Architect

Frank, a licensed Architect in Massachusetts since 2006, specializes in the unique challenges of residential additions and remodels. Frank joined the Byggmeister team in early 2019 but has long been familiar with the company’s reputation as a leader in high performance home construction.

“What I admire most about Byggmeister’s approach is that they regularly ask themselves: How can we improve the process and finished product the next time?” says Frank. “They focus not only on the visuals, but also the hidden aspects of construction, which will only become obvious over time: waterproofing, energy performance, acoustics, etc. This places them among the best general contractors in the field and makes working with them a true pleasure.”

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