R.A. Sheehan, Inc.

After graduating from Merrimack College with a degree in Philosophy, I found myself working for a couple of childhood friends at their growing and successful construction company.  During that time, I was exposed to both residential and commercial construction.  We worked on all aspects of both fields.  On the commercial side, we did everything from metal stud framing and drywall to finish paint, wallpaper, and finish mill-work installations.  On the residential side, we did everything from the ground up - from site-work to handing over the keys to the completed home and everything in between.  I was able to gain a wealth of knowledge during my time working for my friends.  As a result of my experience there, I knew I needed to strike out on my own and pursue the type of work that I had a passion for.

 

In 1998, I made the leap.  I started off like many in the construction industry did in those days, namely by performing as many of the trades as possible.  This included demolition, framing, siding, roofing, insulating, hanging blue-board, installing mill-work, installing tile, and painting just to name a few.  Over time, I realized that wood framing was the area that I wanted to focus on.  There was something very satisfying about showing up to a job site with only a foundation in the ground, and driving away at the end of the frame leaving behind the house that would continue on it's path to becoming a home.  In other words, we built the structure that then allowed all of the other trades to come into to work.  Without us, no other trade could perform their jobs - there would be no place for them to work.  Framing offers something tangible, and a satisfaction every day that we were accomplishing something.  You can literally watch a house grow during the framing process.

 

All along during the early years of framing houses, I came to realize that more and more of the builders that I sub-contracted from were relying on me for advice and my opinion.  At first, it was mostly for structural issues, but over time that grew to be more.  Soon I was being asked to advise on site layout, foundation elevations, site grading, structural issues, design (which included layout of the home, but also efficient and cost effective means and methods to achieve certain design), among a host of other areas.  This led me to trying my hand a building my first "spec" home - and in 2003 I built and sold my first.  Another followed in 2004, but that would be the last until 2013.  In the time between, we were called on to frame bigger and more complicated houses (as well as a couple conversions of old churches into condominiums).  This didn't allow for much time to be spent on "spec" home building - until 2013.

 

In 2013, I embarked on the "spec" home journey again.  We have been successfully building and selling homes regularly since.  Our intimate construction knowledge gained from all the years of getting our hands dirty in the process of demo, remodeling, framing, trim install, etc is what makes us the perfect contractor for building, remodeling, or adding on to your home.  Unlike many in this industry, we actually employ carpenters that work on various aspects of our jobs.  If you hire us, you WILL see our team framing your project.  We will have our hands literally on the bones of your home.