Walsh Construction gets optimal results on I-294 with Intelligent Compaction roller.

Dawn Watson's excavation crew works hard, which is a good attribute to have when business refuses to slow down.

The crew is employed by Walsh Construction, a large company that continues to grow while performing a variety of construction services in 36 states. Operating out of five regional offices across the country, Walsh covers the gamut of large construction, from luxurious high-rises to heavy highway and freeway work.

Good road construction crews aren't exactly born out of a desire to work strictly a Monday-to-Friday, 9-to-5 shift, and Watson's team is no different. The hours are long and tough, especially when your employer is rapidly expanding operations and taking on more and more jobs. Staying on schedule while maintaining the required project specifications is a task that requires efficiency, focus and maybe a little sweat. Experience doesn't hurt either.

The experience that Watson's crew has gained over the years was put to the test when it began work in March 2005 on the rebuild and widening of a three-and-half mile segment of Tri-State Tollway I-294 through the Southland Corridor on the outskirts of Chicago. Scheduled for completion in October 2006, the job took up a $140 million chunk of a massive $5.3 billion undertaking by the Illinois Tollway to implement motorist-friendly open road tolling.

Debuting in November of 2005, the new toll system allows users of a special I-PASS to avoid the wasted time of stopping at toll plazas to drop loose change, but instead have their tolls electronically recorded through transponders in their vehicles as they pass by each plaza at highway speed.