Avis Phillips: A Pioneering Woman in Construction

Original Post: LinkedIn | Patrick McMullen | March 28, 2019

Earlier this month P&J celebrated National Women in Construction Week. March has been an opportunity to focus on some of our own women in construction, and I want to close the month with our chairman of the board, Avis Phillips. Avis has spent a lifetime in civil construction, starting in the mountains of North Carolina with her husband, P&J founder Ted Phillips. Never one to simply sit back and watch, Avis has been involved in P&J’s growth and operations for decades. She understands the value of hard work and resourcefulness, and she has taken it beyond supporting P&J.

In 1982, Avis founded Avisco, Inc., an environmental construction company where I was able to build my own career before coming to P&J. Over more than 30 years in business, Avis oversaw Avisco’s growth and development in heavy civil construction, with a special focus in environmental remediation and sensitive projects. Under her leadership, Avisco became one of the top contractors in the Southeast. Working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Department of Energy required Avisco to maintain extensive quality assurance and health and safety programs.

As Ted’s health declined in 2010, Avis began taking a more active role in P&J as well, bringing her own decades of experience in the construction industry with her. Eventually, P&J acquired all of Avisco’s assets, and in 2017, Avis created Phillips Infrastructure Holdings, Inc. (PIH), a holding company for various subsidiaries, including P&J. She has always been at the heart of P&J, but beyond that, she is truly a pioneering woman in construction. Like P&J itself, she is a proven leader, and I’m proud to have her at the helm.