Houston’s Precision Development is a specialty stucco, EIFS, stone and cast stone subcontractor that was founded 35 years ago, in 1989. Its project manager, Bruce Honore III, visited with Walls & Ceilings and spoke with the magazine about the company, business, goals and more.
His grandfather, Bruce Honore, was a bricklayer by trade. Then, Bruce Honore Jr. followed his example and opened Precision Development with his partner, Lance Smith. Once Honore III graduated college in 2012, he joined the company full-time.
“Our market is the semi-custom and custom residential markets. For the most part, we do new construction and remodels but do some repair work for homeowners as well,” Honore III says. “The cool part of our company is we are a one-stop-shop for all masonry needs. It makes it easier on customers, knowing that the brick, stucco and cast stone guys are all on the same page because we are under the same roof.”
He says the company’s niche is helping with moisture management and double-checking flashing and WRB details on projects. “As far as our scope, we do some things that are not required but make for a better system,” Honore III says. “We started using Plain Drain 6-millimeter rainscreen on all our stucco and full-thickness stone houses. Also, we use a ‘dove tail’ entangled net at the base of our brick jobs, along with MTI’s Wall-Opening Weeps to ensure that the walls are able to drain correctly. I am currently patent pending on a new ventilated stucco system. I am looking forward to its launch this year.”
The company has 48 employees between the field and the office. It is also a member of TLPCA, Associated Masonry Contractors of Houston and AWCI.
Honore III reports that the subcontractor has seen a good amount of growth over the years, especially on the custom side.
Upward Trends
Business is strong, Honore III says, adding that last year was one of the company’s best years since the recession in 2008. As of press time, Honore III says he’s hopeful that trend continues this year.
“In the Houston market, the semi-custom jobs (1.2 million and lower) have slowed, but we have started to see a slight increase in permits towards the end of 2023,” Honore III says. “The high-end custom jobs have picked up and look to continue setting the pace in 2024.”
For Honore III, the exciting part of the job is creating new solutions when problems arise. Being in the custom side of things, no two houses are the same, he says. The company constantly has to be on its toes to be able to find these hidden problems, but problem solving that works for everyone is what is most important to the young man. Being in the Houston market, moisture management comes up the most, he says.
However, for any successful company, there are always a couple arising, problematic issues. For Honore III, that problem is retaining quality workers. “The market is tight for those who are willing to work much less do what we do,” he says.
“Long term, we want to continue providing our customers with quality customer service and a finish product that will last,” Honore III says.
Project Profile
With the Frankel Design Build Project, the owner and designer came to Precision Development with an idea. The firm wanted a slurry/smear over the brick with light grays bleeding through. Since Precision Development completed this project, it has replicated the same application on many more houses.
This house was designed and built by Frankel Design Build. The firm has been one of Precision Development’s customers for more than 25 years. It is a turnkey builder in the greater Houston area. It offers semi-custom and build-true custom projects. The firm has developed multiple neighborhoods in the Houston area, as well as offering build-on-your-lot services.
For this project, the scope was the stucco and brick (with “smear”).
“The owner and designer came to us with a vision,” Honore III says. “They wanted a brick slurry/smear over the brick with light grays bleeding through. We selected ‘Old Texas’ gray/Antique Queen Size style as the brick, then did a light slurry over the top. Since we completed this project, we have replicated this same application on more houses than I can count.”
Manufacturers Used:
- Old Texas Brick – Gray Antique Queen Size
- Holcim was the brand of cement used
- The slurry mix was a custom blend Precision Development made specifically for this house
- Sherwin Williams – Loxon XP paint
