Finalist: Environmental Works Inc.

For Robin E. Melton, being a finalist for the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce's W. Curtis Strube Small Business of the Year Award is nothing new. This is the third time her company, Environmental Works Inc. has made it to the final round of judging for the award.

While it's possible that the third time may be the charm for Melton, there's also honor in just being recognized as a nominee and a finalist.

"To be in the company of these companies and in the final five for the third time in a row is just, I think, a tremendous accomplishment for Environmental Works," she said. "Everybody, of course, hopes we win anybody in the final five wants to win but yet, I'm pretty happy just to be in the final five."

Environmental Works Inc. provides a wide array of environmental services, including consulting, environmental compliance, remediation, due diligence assessments, emergency response and site investigations. The company, which this year marks its 10th anniversary in business, has 24 employees.

Environmental Works has its headquarters at 1016 W. Battlefield Road. The company opened its first satellite office in Kansas City in November 2001, and the Dallas/Fort Worth area is currently being evaluated as a possible satellite location.

Melton said that while her company perhaps isn't as well known as some of the other finalists, she believes that's changing.

"The market and clients' needs have changed, to a certain extent, over the last 10 years. The public awareness has really increased on environmental compliance and environmental issues and we find that the larger corporations that we do compliance and consulting and cleanups with are doing even more than they were doing before, to a greater degree, and the smaller companies who weren't doing much 10 years ago are now starting to do more, to manage their compliance even better," Melton said.

"The environmental industry has had some changes over the past 10 years, some peaks and valleys, if you will. Lots of mergers and acquisitions over the past three or four years have sort of characterized the industry, but as far as the client needs, I think the demand is still there, and still strong."

The customer base of Environmental Works is comprised of local companies and individuals, but also of several Fortune 500 companies across the United States. The company's mission is "to provide innovative, effective environmental solutions in a manner that exceeds client expectations," and the management philosophy has been to focus first on quality and excellence, with the theory that profits will follow. While Melton declined to provide the company's total sales, she did note that Environmental Works has experienced good, continuing growth.

In fact, managing the company's growth is something Melton called a "blessing and a key challenge" on the company's nomination form. The company has doubled its employee base in the last five years, and the staff members hold a variety of professional certifications.

Another challenge is the management of Environmental Works' hazardous materials emergency response division, which is on call 24 hours a day. The firm recently developed a new environmental management software tool called the Environmental Compliance and Track-ing System, or ECATS. Users of the system can track the compliance status of permits, sampling deadlines and other pertinent information.

Melton and her employees also make time to support the community. Melton recently was elected as vice president of the board of directors for Habitat for Humanity of Springfield Inc. She en-courages her staff to support local schools by serving as judges at science fairs or by conducting demonstrations at career days. The staff also participates in other community events, such as the Sertoma Chili Cook-Off.