The Virginia- and Kentucky-based AE firm Mason & Hanger has promoted Benjamin A. Lilly, PE, a 23-year company veteran, to the position of President.
Lilly, 46, replaces Mike Matthews, whom the company named President in July 2016 after it had acquired the AE firm Hankins & Anderson, which Matthews had helmed for 18 years.
Prior to assuming his new role, Lilly was Mason & Hanger’s Vice President of International Federal Programs. He has traveled to over 31 countries, and has managed AE services for international construction projects with a combined value of more than $4 billion.
Mason & Hanger is a Day & Zimmermann company whose origins date back to 1827. It is one of the industry’s oldest architectural and engineering services firms, and has worked on projects in 48 U.S. states and 163 countries.
Currently, international work represents a bit more than half of Mason & Hanger’s total portfolio. But Lilly tells BD+C that the firm will continue to invest “in all of our services and consider them to be equally essential” to the company’s growth and mission.
The firm has three offices spanning Lexington, Ky., and two in Virginia (Glen Allen and Hampton Roads), supporting both domestic and international projects with equal importance to the U.S. government.
As a federally focused firm whose primary clients are the U.S. Departments of State and Defense, Mason & Hanger will continue to invest in such growth sectors of energy, sustainability, and security design services, says Lilly. Its strategic focus includes adding other government agencies “where we believe we can provide unique value.”
Mason & Hanger will continue to focus on expanding its business with federal agencies. Image: Mason & Hanger
To achieve its objectives, Mason & Hanger will need to find qualified and capable people to support its work in complex environments and various geographies. “This is a good challenge to have and one I am most excited about,” says Lilly.
He is not averse to expansion via acquisition, either. After acquiring Hankins & Anderson last year, he says “we are always open to the right new growth opportunities that fit within our overall strategy.”
A graduate of Virginia Military Institute, Lilly is past president of the Virginia Chapter of the American Council of Engineering Companies, which in 2015 bestowed on Mason & Hanger its Virginia Engineering Excellence Grand Award for design of the Innovation Center in Helsinki, Finland. The previous year, Mason & Hanger received ACEC’s Virginia Engineering Excellence Pinnacle Award for design of the U.S. embassy in Monrovia, Liberia.
In his spare time, Lilly is an avid golfer and, as an Eagle Scout, has been an active leader with the Boy Scouts of America.
Related Stories
Architects | Feb 27, 2023
Hord Coplan Macht announces retirement of Founder/CEO Lee Coplan, FAIA, and names successor
Hord Coplan Macht, an award-winning integrated architecture, interior design, landscape architecture, and planning firm, announces the retirement of Founder and Chief Executive Officer Lee Coplan, FAIA. Lee leaves behind a long and celebrated career leading the practice over the last four decades while bringing innovative design strategies and leadership to the architecture and design community.
Libraries | Feb 26, 2023
A $17 million public library in California replaces one that was damaged in a 2010 earthquake
California’s El Centro community, about two hours east of San Diego, recently opened a new $17 million public library. With design by Ferguson Pape Baldwin Architects and engineering services by Latitude 33 Planning & Engineering, the 19,811-sf building replaces the previous library, which was built in the early 1900s, damaged by a 7.2 earthquake that struck Baja California in 2010, and demolished in 2016.
Architects | Feb 24, 2023
7 takeaways from HKS’s yearlong study on brain health in the workplace
Managing distractions, avoiding multitasking, and cognitive training are key to staff wellbeing and productivity, according to a yearlong study of HKS employees in partnership with the University of Texas at Dallas’ Center for BrainHealth.
University Buildings | Feb 23, 2023
Johns Hopkins shares design for new medical campus building named in honor of Henrietta Lacks
In November, Johns Hopkins University and Johns Hopkins Medicine shared the initial design plans for a campus building project named in honor of Henrietta Lacks, the Baltimore County woman whose cells have advanced medicine around the world. Diagnosed with cervical cancer, Lacks, an African-American mother of five, sought treatment at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in the early 1950s. Named HeLa cells, the cell line that began with Lacks has contributed to numerous medical breakthroughs.
Arenas | Feb 23, 2023
Using data to design the sports venue of the future
Former video game developer Abe Stein and HOK's Bill Johnson discuss how to use data to design stadiums and arenas that keep fans engaged and eager to return.
Museums | Feb 22, 2023
David Chipperfield's 'subterranean' design wins competition for National Archaeological Museum in Athens
Berlin-based David Chipperfield Architects was selected as the winner of the design competition for the new National Archaeological Museum in Athens. The project will modernize and expand the original neoclassical museum designed by Ludwig Lange and Ernst Ziller (1866-1874) with new spaces that follow the existing topography of the site. It will add approximately 20,000 sm of space to the existing museum, as well as a rooftop park that will be open to the public.
Multifamily Housing | Feb 21, 2023
Watch: DBA Architects' Bryan Moore talks micro communities and the benefits of walkable neighborhoods
What is a micro-community? Where are they most prevalent? What’s the future for micro communities? These questions (and more) addressed by Bryan Moore, President and CEO of DBA Architects.
Healthcare Facilities | Feb 21, 2023
Cleveland's Glick Center hospital anchors neighborhood revitalization
The newly opened MetroHealth Glick Center in Cleveland, a replacement acute care hospital for MetroHealth, is the centerpiece of a neighborhood revitalization. The eleven-story structure is located within a ‘hospital-in-a-park’ setting that will provide a bucolic space to the community where public green space is lacking. It will connect patients, visitors, and staff to the emotional and physical benefits of nature.
Multifamily Housing | Feb 21, 2023
Multifamily housing investors favoring properties in the Sun Belt
Multifamily housing investors are gravitating toward Sun Belt markets with strong job and population growth, according to new research from Yardi Matrix. Despite a sharp second-half slowdown, last year’s nationwide $187 billion transaction volume was the second-highest annual total ever.
Multifamily Housing | Feb 21, 2023
New multifamily housing and mixed-use buildings in Portland, Ore., must be ready for electric vehicle charging
The Portland, Ore., City Council recently voted unanimously to require all new residential and mixed-use buildings to be ready for electric vehicle charging. The move amends Portland’s zoning laws to require all new multi-dwelling and mixed-use development of five or more units with onsite parking to provide electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
