OUR STORY
Our Story
Founded in 1970 by the late Ray Bell, Ray Bell Construction was the groundwork for what would eventually become one of the premier construction firms in the southeast. Bell & Associates Construction (BELL) was established in 1997 by company principals to serve as the next generation of the firm and is known for its building expertise and tradition.
In 1990, Ray Bell saw the opportunity to broaden and diversify our business and started BELL’s Transportation Division. Since then we have completed miles and miles of roadways and hundreds of bridges, self-performing the majority of this work with our own workforce.
While leading over 1,000 construction projects across the southeast has made BELL a renowned firm, it is our Nashville landmark projects that have created our greatest recognition. We served as the Construction Manager for the BellSouth Building, also known as the Batman building, the Tennessee Performing Arts Center; the Gateway Boulevard Bridge, the Shelby Street Pedestrian Bridge, and more recently, both Music City Center and the First Tennessee Ballpark. The Nashville skyline looks significantly different than it did in 1970, in large part to the work and dedication of BELL.
With continued success delivering complex projects, our clients know they can count on BELL Construction to help them achieve their construction goals.
OUR VALUES
Mission: Building better. One relationship at a time.
Core Values: Safety, Integrity, Commitment & Work/Life Balance
- Safety: We make a commitment to following safety procedures to maintain a safe working environment for all.
- Integrity: We conduct ourselves with honesty & transparency – always.
- Commitment: We are committed to the success of our clients, our projects & our people.
- Work/Life Balance: We value the health & happiness of our hard-working people and encourage them to have fulfilling lives outside of work.
PARTNERS
TEAM
SAFETY
SAFETY STARTS WITH ME
Since 2005, the senior management team at BELL has worked to make construction safety a top priority in the company’s overall strategic plan. Through their commitment, our company has seen a decrease in the total number of recordable cases, the OSHA recordable incident rate, and the lost time frequency rate year after year.
Culture of Safety
Our proactive culture of safety is based on the philosophy that everyone is responsible for safety and should pursue it in all construction activities. The motto "Safety Starts With Me" can be seen throughout BELL's office and job sites as a reminder to our team members, vendors, subcontractors, and other industry partners. Our comprehensive construction safety program teaches employees to take action to protect themselves and others, correct potentially unsafe behaviors, and adopt a mindset of proactively choosing to follow safety rules. The construction safety program includes a full range of ongoing initiatives, including safety training for new employees, daily safety inspections, weekly safety meetings, bi-monthly safety director visits, and regular safety consultant visits. In addition, all job site personnel are empowered—and required—to proactively address any potential hazards.
COVID-19 Response
We immediately formed a pandemic response team to proactively address the health and safety of our team members once it was clear that our geographical area was being affected. We then increased safety measures both on job sites and in the office to help our team fend off the novel coronavirus. Posting job site best practices, adding more hand-washing and sanitizing stations/materials, and requiring additional PPE are some of the most visible ways we have helped our essential workers remain safe during the pandemic. We continue to monitor the situation, including guidance from local and state government entities and health organizations such as the CDC, WHO, and the Metro Nashville Health Department, so that we can implement or adjust health/safety protocols as necessary.
Safe & Healthy Construction Pledge
The Safe & Healthy Construction Pledge was founded in May 2020 by the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
As a company, BELL has signed the pledge, which commits that we will take all reasonable steps to increase awareness of threats throughout the construction industry and to protect employees in our company and on our worksites. We commit to implementing a prevention, preparedness, and response plan that includes practicable engineering and administrative control measures to prevent injuries and disease and safeguard total human health.
Learn more on the Safe & Healthy Construction page.
Safety Benefits Everyone
Thanks to BELL’s focus on safety, our lower insurance rates translate into lower project costs for our clients, along with the peace of mind knowing that construction safety is our most important task on their job sites.
SUSTAINABILITY
BELL is committed to protecting the environment throughout the entire construction process. This commitment is fulfilled by incorporating sustainable principles and environmentally responsible practices into the company’s administrative and construction operations on every project.
BELL is an Associated Building Contractor “Certified Green Contractor," certified through the program that recognizes construction companies that implement green practices and principles in the workplace, including headquarters, branch offices, and job-sites. To keep sustainable construction “front of mind” and to remain current in the latest trends and practices in sustainable construction, we hold weekly in-house “Green Building Tool Box” educational sessions.
During the construction phase of a project, we implement construction activity pollution prevention methods, construction waste management procedures, and indoor air quality (IAQ) construction management procedures. We also educate subcontractors on sustainable construction procedures and compliance on our job sites.
LEED
BELL’s commitment to sustainability has given us a strong reputation as a leader in the growth of sustainable design and LEED construction. We work alongside our clients and subcontractors to embody a philosophy of comprehensive understanding, strict enforcement, and an awareness of how every day construction tasks affect LEED performance.
Over the years, BELL has served as the construction manager / general contractor on a number of sustainable projects. BELL provided leadership in the development of sustainable construction through its involvement with the Music City Center, the largest green building project in Nashville’s history.
Our LEED Projects include:
First Tennessee Ballpark - LEED Silver
One Greenway Centre - LEED Gold
Metro Detention Facility - LEED Silver
Davidson County Criminal Justice Center - LEED Silver
One Franklin Park - projected LEED Silver
Lentz Public Health - projected LEED Silver
Other projects BELL has completed that implemented State of Tennessee Sustainable Design Guidelines include:
Tennessee State University Agricultural Bioscience Building
University of Memphis School of Law
Morgan County Correctional Facility (the largest project to meet Tennessee Sustainable Guidelines)
Company Culture
When you join BELL, you join a family. BELL employees collaborate on and off the job site and get involved in the community to build stronger relationships with each other and our clients.
Community Involvement
BELL is committed to serving and supporting our community and values giving back to the communities that support our business and employees. Our employees actively participate in a variety of business, charitable and social organizations that benefit the growth and well-being of their community.