EMEEMCOR Group, Inc.

EMCOR is the largest US building systems contractor, working on the same construction sites.

Electrical, ventilation, fire protection and industrial piping — the work is done by crews under contract on the customer's site. Profit is set by estimating discipline: a contractor who takes a fixed price and overruns it pays the difference itself.

The backlog grew with industrial construction and data centres, while the service arm provides steady revenue between projects. The constraint is the industry's — a shortage of labour. Work is done on fixed-price projects, so an estimating error consumes the margin entirely, and discipline in choosing jobs matters more than their number. The company pays a dividend and buys back stock very actively.