O&G Industries Inc. – 2025 income
280.68 million dollars – General Procurement $244.54 million – Construction Management
318.44 million dollars – Transport market
288.82 million dollars – Education market
557.05 million dollars – Earnings throughout the state of Connecticut
32.95 million dollars – Income throughout the state of Massachusetts
32.88 million dollars – Income throughout the state of Rhode Island
1.114 – Total number of employees (all regional)
0.66 – Experience modification ratio
O&G Industries Inc. in Torrington, Conn., has been active in state and regional construction since Andrew Oneglia founded the company in 1923, with family ownership and leadership now in its fourth generation and with many multigenerational employees.
“The combination of long-term employees and emerging talent gives us stability and momentum,” says the company, now diversified into intensive recruiting, complex project management and materials production, with strengths in transportation, education, healthcare, commercial and industrial markets. O&G ranks No. 159 on ENR’s Top 400 National Contractors list with $830.5 million in construction revenue by 2025, and No. 30 among ENR East’s top contractors with $668.68 million in regional revenue by 2025, up 46.59% from the previous year.
O&G says it is targeting market demand for low-carbon buildings and infrastructure, forming a tie-up with Urban Mining Inc. to replace standard cement using a proprietary concrete admixture made from locally recycled glass that reduces emissions. Its community involvement includes Crew for a Cause, an employee-driven charitable giving effort that has contributed more than $1 million to local groups and projects since 2023. The company now has seven fourth-generation members as company managers. One of them, Thomas J. “TJ” Oneglia, vice president of building materials, laid out the company’s strategic approach in a Q&A that has been edited and condensed.
O&G Industries’ notable projects include:
Amtrak Connecticut River Bridge, from Old Saybrook to Old Lyme, Connecticut.: The landmark $1.3 billion infrastructure project supports one of the region’s most important rail corridors to improve passenger connectivity, mobility and long-term infrastructure resilience, says O&G, which, with joint venture contractor Tutor Perini, expects to complete work by 2031.
I-91/I-691/Route 15 Interchange Improvements, Meriden, Connecticut.: The $712 million project, reported to be completed by 2030, is a key connection point for commuters, freight movement and daily commutes across central Connecticut, with roadway upgrades to improve safety, traffic flow and reliability for thousands of automobiles.
Manchester Public Library, Manchester, Connecticut.: The recently completed project, with an estimated cost of $53.6 million, is a 75,000-square-foot building that is the state’s first net-zero library. Operating off the local power grid, it produces enough energy to power its operation and feed any excess back into the grid for separate use.
How do you balance business stability with staying agile to meet new industry needs?
O&G is far from static. We have all spent the majority of our careers directly involved in the day-to-day operations of the divisions we are responsible for overseeing, while maintaining a strong focus on business strategy. This means being intimately involved in tender work, pricing, production decisions, staffing, training, safety and compliance. Through deliberate strategic planning, Fourth Generation prioritizes initiatives that leverage the full depth of our collective expertise and resources, such as expanding the capabilities of our Energy and Power Division to support Building Division customers, particularly those bringing renewable energy initiatives to their campuses. This level of involvement is the best way to stay in touch with changing needs and trends.
How has safety and mental health developed as a key workforce priority?
The construction and materials manufacturing industries saw government-regulated safety standards in the 20th century, but O&G recognized early on that compliance is only the baseline for building a safe workplace. By implementing processes for hazard identification, near miss reporting and worker participation in our safety program, O&G has maintained a workplace that people are proud to be a part of. Related to mental health, the industry has historically emphasized self-reliance and heart, often leading to apprehension in workplace discussions. O&G has been a leader in addressing stigma by speaking directly with employees and partnering with unions to inform them about mental health resources. These can benefit not only an individual employee, but can also keep collective morale high and increase workforce performance. Mental health and physical safety are a shared priority.
What macro trends are you most concerned about regarding the industry’s future workforce?
The industry faces a labor shortage due to decades of outsourcing, Baby Boomer retirements and an emphasis on four-year degrees among GenX and Millennials. Market factors are beginning to correct this as companies compete for skilled labor at better wages. Workers are also beginning to question the payback of rising college education costs. We are always concerned about maintaining a pool of talent to deliver on the promises we make to our clients. The better an organization is at recruiting and retaining, the greater its competitive advantage. We have very few problems with retaining skilled labor and have extremely low turnover. I attribute this to our family business oriented culture and [being] a union company that offers outstanding wages and health and pension benefits.
“The better an organization is at recruiting and retaining, the greater its competitive advantage.”
—TJ Oneglia, Vice President of Materials, O&G Industries Inc.
O&G emphasizes pre-construction planning. How has recent material cost volatility changed value engineering and subcontractor prequalification?
Delivering a successful project requires more than tracking cost. From the earliest stages of design, it demands a proactive and disciplined approach to maximize value and protect the schedule. As drawings are developed, teams review materials, systems and construction methods for the best balance between performance, durability and cost. Potential improvements are tracked in a centralized registry and reviewed internally before being presented to the design team to ensure that only well-developed and buildable recommendations are advanced. This helps avoid late-stage redesign and minimizes project disruption. We identify key long-life components early in the design and work closely with team members and potential subordinates to help ensure specifications are advanced enough to support early major equipment purchases, especially mechanical and electrical systems.
O&G attributes its survival in past economic downturns to operational diversity. Which sectors will be your strongest growth drivers and why?
For decades, O&G has been a diversified and vertically integrated building materials and services business. We do not intend to change this model by focusing growth in one area over another. Each division has its own specific growth targets. Building schools will continue to be a cornerstone of our construction business, but we are working hard on health care and defense. In addition to road and bridge construction, our heavy civil division focuses on delivering electrical projects, and the materials unit looks for opportunities that bring synergistic value to our existing network of plants and quarries.
