In 1906, Carl J. Seagren, William Kallasch, Stanley White and Harry Leach organized and incorporated the Illinois Hydraulic Stone and Construction Company. Initially the company manufactured concrete blocks compressed by hydraulic pressure. Concrete blocks were phased out beginning in 1913 when road paving became their primary business. As time progressed, the company diversified and accelerated their commercial, industrial and institutional building program.

The founders retired in 1947 and turned over the management to several employees, including Melvin E. Rakow, and the company name changed to Illinois Hydraulic Construction Company. New businesses were added and utility work for Commonwealth Edison, Illinois Bell, and other utility companies became a major part of the company business.

The company became family owned in 1970 when the retiring partner sold his interest to Melvin Rakow. Upon his death in 1972, May Rakow became President and Secretary and Thomas S. Rakow was elected to Executive Vice President and Treasurer. Elected to President in 1980, Thomas Rakow developed the business into a wide variety of services and changed the company name to IHC Group, Inc. in May, 1994 to clarify its diversity.

David Rock (former Vice President) succeeded Mr. Rakow in January 2002 as our new President and Chief Executive Officer. To better identify the core business of IHC, the term “Construction” returned to our name as IHC Construction Companies, LLC. In 2018, IHC expanded its operations by opening a Southeast Regional Office outside of Atlanta, Georgia in the suburb of Marietta.

Culture
“IHC Is Staffed With Down To Earth, Hard Working People, Supported By A Company That Breeds A Culture Of Service.”

Design and construction are creative and fulfilling experiences; incorporating a vision with decision making, reconciling values, a balanced budget, quality performance and precise scheduling. From the design in a conference room, through the labor in the field, to the pride of ownership, construction is a unique experience.

We Are Partners. Construction is a partnership of the owner who uses and pays for the project, the designer who invents it and ourselves, the builder who prices and assembles it. Each project we partner with is unique and the quality of the creative experience is defined by the quality of our relationship. When the project is complete, we should all experience the satisfaction of success.

We Are Builders. Our clients are primarily in Northern Illinois and our reputation has been built here since 1906. We must succeed on each project we undertake to remain a qualified and desirable contractor to our wide variety of clientele. Our firm culture is to provide an excellent construction experience. It is exemplified by many long-term continuous relationships with our clients and the quality references they are willing to provide.

Diversity & Inclusion
DISADVANTAGED, MINORITY, WOMEN, AND VETERAN BUSINESS ENTERPRISES
PROTECTED CLASS & DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS ENTERPRISES
PROGRAM POLICY STATEMENT AND GOOD FAITH EFFORTS

IHC is committed to ensuring that Disadvantaged, Minority, Women, and Veteran Business Enterprises (D/M/W/VBE) will have the maximum opportunity to compete for portions of contracts.  IHC will not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, or sex in the selection and retention of subcontractors, including procurement of materials and leases of equipment.

IHC has developed measures to facilitate the participation of Protected Class and Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (PCE/DBE) in construction contracts and will continue to take the following steps to provide opportunities and assist the development of disadvantaged firms in the marketplace.