Manning Squires Hennig Co., Inc.

MSH is a full-service general contractor servicing western New York. The 68-year-old company employs over 200 incredibly talented tradespeople, allowing them to take on the region’s most challenging projects.

What inspired the founding of your company, and what was its original mission?

In 1958, two highly skilled masons, Duane Squires and Richard Manning, started Manning Squires as a masonry and masonry restoration contractor. Richard Hennig joined the company in 1962, forming Manning Squires Hennig. Squires and Manning saw an opportunity to become general contractors with the K-12 public schools building boom that occurred in the late ‘50s and early ‘60s and the success of those projects led to additional general contract work with private commercial and industrial clients.

What were the most significant milestones or turning points in the company’s 50+ years in business?

Gary Squires joined the firm in the early ‘70s, rising to lead the company in the mid ‘80s. Masonry work with Kodak began in the ‘70s and for the next 25 years Kodak was at least 50% of our sales volume. MSH learned and grew alongside local industry, leading us to develop a strong culture based on safety and quality, allowing us to successfully make the transition from negotiated work to the hard-bid market. Gary’s leadership, MSH’s reputation, and our talented tradespeople were the cornerstones.

How have your core values and vision influenced the way your company operates?

Duane Squires operated with a philosophy to “Build with Quality, Act with Integrity and Treat People Well.” That motto has been a guide for success at MSH for decades. We strive to ensure those values are represented at every level of our organization daily and as a reminder it is inscribed on the wall of the kitchen in each of our offices.

How has your company adapted to industry changes or economic challenges over the years?

Having a leadership team that embraces change is the first step. MSH has never been stuck in a pattern of “this is how we do it, so this is how we have to do it.” Within the construction industry, every project presents a new and demanding challenge. We encourage teamwork and problem solving from top to bottom, allowing us to adapt to any and every change we meet.

What’s unique about your workplace culture that has contributed to your longevity?

Two things: First, MSH is a family business that recognizes family first. Secondly, MSH recognizes that the company is driven by the talents of its union tradespeople. MSH employs the most talented carpenters, masons and laborers in Western New York. Everyone else is there to support the success of those tradespeople.

What are your company’s top goals for the near future?

Our number one goal is to continue to secure work for our team. We seek a mixture of general construction work along with healthy amounts of self-perform work. The combination of our self-perform forces, careful planning and fantastic subcontractor relationships ensures successful GC projects. Our reputation in these trades speaks for itself and we absolutely believe it — our teams are the most talented available and our goal is to always have work ahead of them.

What are the key factors that have contributed to your company’s ability to stay competitive?

Early on it was the company’s ability to adapt and change with a shift in industry in our market. In more recent times, our ability to attract and retain talented leaders, from our executives, project managers and field leaders. In addition, our team has the ability to act as the general contractor on a project and also self-perform many trades on the same project, allowing us a “second bite at the apple” in a hard-bid environment.

This profile is part of Rochester Business Journal’s In the Lead: Best Legacy Businesses list for 2026. Information used in this profile was sourced from the honoree. View the full list at rbj.net.