Carlos Gonzalez, PE
Project director, Clark/McCarthy, A Joint Venture (Costa Mesa, Calif.)

Who he is: Gonzalez has spent nearly 20 years in the construction industry, joining Clark Construction in 2001. In 2006, he served as project executive for the VA San Diego Healthcare System’s seismic retrofit and moved on to become a vice president overseeing Clark’s San Diego region. In 2010, he was assigned to the role of project director for the design-build delivery of the Naval Hospital at the Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton.

Year in review: After years at the helm of the Clark/McCarthy Joint Venture building the Camp Pendleton replacement hospital, Gonzalez and his team completed construction on the 1 million-square-foot, $456 million project in October 2013. The construction team was involved in the project from the get-go, working closely with designers to ensure constructability, expedite work, and control quality and costs. The effort paid off, too, with the project coming in six months ahead of schedule and $100 million under budget.

On the job site, the benefit of a number of safety initiatives that were implemented was realized with the project’s 2.5 million man-hours coming to a close with no recorded lost-time incidents. Shooting for another achievement in LEED Gold certification, the Camp Pendleton project’s energy performance is estimated to be 30 percent better than ASHRAE’s baseline standards, with the team using more than 20 percent recycled content, reducing water usage by more than 50 percent, and restoring vegetation to more than twice the footprint of the building.

What’s next: After wrapping up the Pendleton project, Gonzalez embarked on a new career challenge: taking on the role of vice president of Clark Concrete Contractors, a division of Clark Construction that provides self-perform structural concrete services. The new role offers Gonzalez the opportunity to interact with and lead tradespeople, simultaneously manage several projects at different stages of development, and oversee marketing and work acquisition.

THE HCD 10 (Click any winner's name for more information):

  • Owner: David Schuller, vice president of medical center expansion and outreach, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center—Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (Columbus, Ohio)
  • Architect: Laura Poltronieri, principal, Poltronieri Tang & Associates (Swarthmore, Pa.)
  • Association/foundation executive: Douglas Erickson, CEO, Facility Guidelines Institute (Dallas)
  • Interior designer: Carolyn BaRoss, design principal, Perkins+Will (New York)
  • Researcher: Sheila Bosch, director of research, Gresham, Smith and Partners (Tampa, Fla.)
  • Construction executive: Carlos Gonzalez, project director, Clark/McCarthy, A Joint Venture (Costa Mesa, Calif.)
  • Educator: James Shraiky, assistant professor, director of healthcare design initiatives, Arizona State University (Tempe, Ariz.)
  • Facility manager: Mitch Goplen, vice president and director of facility services and construction, Billings Clinic (Billings, Mont.)
  • Rising star: David Ruthven, co-lead and creative director, NXT Health (New York)
  • Firm of the year: Perkins+Will (worldwide)