Adams & Ruxton Construction Co

Adams & Ruxton traces itself back to 1909 — 117 years, by the company's own count, working out of West Springfield. It's also one of the few construction firms in western Massachusetts that describes itself as both veteran-owned and woman-owned. The work is commercial, not residential. The company describes a crew that self-performs the finish end of a job — millwork, framing, finish work — alongside site development and renovations for public and private commercial clients across western Massachusetts and New England. A 2019 BusinessWest profile named Dorothy Ostrowski, then 39, as president and co-owner. The company says it is a signatory with Carpenters' Union Local 336 and Laborers' Union Local 999, and that it was recertified in November 2023 as a Women's Business Enterprise through the Center for Women & Enterprise, a regional partner of WBENC. What's missing is the customer voice. Its BBB page is an A+ with no complaints and no government actions listed, and the company isn't BBB accredited — but that same page carries no customer reviews, so there is no written account from anyone who hired them. It does turn up in Springfield Technical Community College's published bid results, which fits the public-institution side of the business. One dated item worth knowing about: BusinessWest's court dockets column recorded a suit the company filed in September 2021 against Cei Builders and Agawam ORF 1, alleging breach of contract for $57,994.99 in construction services. Adams & Ruxton was the plaintiff there, chasing payment rather than answering a complaint. This is a call for a facilities manager or commercial owner in the Springfield area who wants a union shop that keeps finish carpentry in-house — and it's a reasonable fit for a public bid list. Because none of the tenure, ownership or certification detail here comes from anywhere but the company itself, ask for the WBENC certificate and two or three recent project references you can phone before you sign anything.