Equipment World

March 2015

Equipment World Digital Magazine

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Y ou could say that as Don Facciobene climbed to a height of around 200 feet in the air just to change a light bulb, he had reached the lowest point in his career. After starting his construction company in 1987 in his hometown of Palm Bay, Florida, work began drying up in 1990. By 1993, Faccio- bene's company had been deci- mated – only he, a secretary and one other employee reamined. He had just fi nsihed the building that houses his offi ce and, at the time, an auto parts store that provided quite a bit of income through rent. When the auto parts store went un- der, Facciobene was forced to think outside the box for income. So when he got the opportunity to replace light bulbs at the top of water towers in and around Palm Bay for $275 a pop, he took it without hesitation. He took it even though he had never climbed a ladder that high before. He simply asked an electrician friend for a few tips and started climbing the fi rst tower. "I was scared to death," Facciobene recalls. "Shaking, scared to death the whole way. But I was in a bind." If only climbing had been the only obstacle. As he reached the top of the tower, he was greeted by a giant nest of hornets. Most would have called it a day at that point and made their way back down. Maybe some would have given it another shot equipped with a can of bug spray or a beekeeper's mask. Facciobene on the other hand, not interested in making this trip any more times than was necessary, simply climbed through it, changed the bulb and climbed down. Though he signed on to do 10, Facciobene only did one more tow- er himself before fi nding someone else who would do the remaining jobs for much less than the $275 he was being paid for each one. "So, I ended up subcontracting the rest out and making money on it," he says with a smile. Since then, Don Facciobene Incorporated (DFI) has seen more ups and downs. But through it all, Facciobene has always come back strong, largely due to a relentless dedication to his work and a will- ingness to diversify his business in surprising ways. So, yeah. You could say that the water tower was the low point of Facciobene's career. But really, it was the ladder to higher ground. Getting skinny when you need to Facciobene is a second-generation builder. His father moved the family to Palm Bay in 1962 when Fac- ciobene was 3 years old. His father was interior contractor and when the kids were old enough, Fac- ciobene, his brother and his sister started working for the family busi- EquipmentWorld.com | March 2015 63 contractor of the year | by Wayne Grayson | WGrayson@randallreilly.com Don Facciobene Palm Bay, Florida Don Facciobene Incorporated (DFI) Year started: 1987 Number of employees: 70 Annual revenues: $10 million Markets served: Vertical construction, design-build, utility, timber bridge construction. Staying determined after several setbacks, this Florida contractor is laser-focused on customer service

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