Pynn Masonry, based in Plaistow, New Hampshire, has been a fixture in the regional construction scene for more than five decades. Originally established in 1971 by George W. Pynn, the company built its reputation on a foundation of skilled craftsmanship and strong work ethic. George’s vision shaped the company’s early years, and even after his passing in 2021, that legacy continues to guide the business forward.
Today, Pynn Masonry is co-owned and operated by Matt Tremblay and Jason Huelsman, who together play a key role in maintaining the company’s commitment to excellence and professionalism. Under their leadership, the company remains focused on delivering reliable, high-quality masonry solutions for a range of commercial projects in New Hampshire, southern Maine, and northeastern and southern Massachusetts.
“I started with the company right out of high school, working my way up from an entry-level laborer, to an operator, foreman, vice-president, and now, president, but Jay and I don’t really use titles around here,” Tremblay says. “Together, we’ve taken the company through the Great Recession from 1.8 to two million to just north of 15 million dollars a year.”
Huelsman, who has served as the company’s vice-president since 2018, handles the project management and estimating side of the business. Huelsman and Tremblay took over company operations together shortly before the global financial crisis of 2008 and became full co-owners in 2024.
As a specialty trade service provider, Pynn Masonry specializes in all aspects of commercial masonry, including brick, stone, concrete masonry units (CMU), historical restoration work, custom stone applications, intricate flashing systems, engineered wall tie systems with architectural granite and precast. Additionally, Pynn Masonry also offers integrated scaffolding services, allowing for efficient and streamlined project management. “We’re also getting into gridwork systems and wall drainage systems, thin stone facades, and rain streams on some of the larger projects,” Tremblay says.
Currently, the company has approximately 28 active commercial projects in the pipeline, with an average completion period of two years. Typically, these projects fluctuate in budget from one to 3.5 million dollars.
“We’re at the point now where we’ve had to start turning projects away and we’ve got quite a backlog, which is great,” Huelsman says, noting that the company has shifted focus to accept fewer small projects, instead taking on those of a larger scale. “The room for expansion is there; if we can get the right people in place in this area, there’s plenty of work.”
“The amount of growth right now in New Hampshire is really good,” Tremblay adds.
One of Pynn Masonry’s most recent high-profile projects was the completion of The Artisan at Tuscan Village, a Tribute Portfolio Hotel, located in Salem, NH. Located on the former 170-acre Rockingham Park, this two-year, new-build project, done in partnership with Procon Inc. of Hooksett, NH, encompassed the creation of a mixed-use development site spread across five stories. It now includes the 165-room Marriott Artisan Hotel, 60 luxury condominiums, a 10,000 square-foot Tuscan restaurant with a pool and outdoor dining space, and 30,000 square-feet of ground-level retail space.
“The client was very particular on colors and finishes and we were on board the whole way with samples and a mock up process to ensure everything was to their liking and they were comfortable with what we had before moving forward on to the building,” Huelsman says. “They made quite a few changes along the way but we accommodated every one and didn’t miss a beat.”
Another recent project that Tremblay and Huelsman are proud of is the completion of the town of Derry, New Hampshire’s new fire and safety complex with Eckman Construction Co. of Bedford, NH. Citing the overall design and structural details as one of the most challenging aspects of this job, Huelsman and Tremblay both agree that this project was one such example of Pynn Masonry’s ability to handle large-scale construction projects with precision and tenacity, with the project requiring incredibly technical precision, like the placement of 6,000-pound pre-cast headers by crane. “The firefighters are very happy and that’s all that matters, because they’ve got a building that’s going to last for future generations,” Huelsman said. “We can’t give our lead foreman, Kevin Elliott, enough credit for this one,” Tremblay adds.
In the last five years, Pynn Masonry has completed four new-build fire stations in various locations across New Hampshire, and approximately 12 schools. With more than 53 years in business, the company has also built and renovated hundreds of hospitals, hotels and inns, and apartment complexes.
Currently, Pynn Masonry’s largest running project is a mixed use development in partnership with Windover Construction of Beverly, MA, at Cochecho in Dover, New Hampshire. The project encompasses roughly 415 housing units including 45 condominiums, 346 apartments, 24 townhouses, and 30,000 square-feet of retail spaces. Spanning 300,000 square-feet with two separate buildings at four storeys each, the final stage will also include individual clubhouses and smaller detached condos.
“We have a goal to have it all wrapped up in three to four months, at least on the masonry end of things,” Tremblay says.
“It’s a fast-track project with quite a lot of details, which has its own unique challenges, but it’s going very well thanks to the hard work of our lead foreman, Jason Morin,” Huelsman adds.
Pynn Masonry currently employs 85+ full-time employees, many of whom have been with the company for a number of years. “We have a lot of really good employees here in the field and office. We really value that; they’re all a part of our success,” Huelsman said.
“We have a lot of really good employees here in the field and office. We really value that; they’re all a part of our success.”
“We see a lot of growth in the industry that we’re in now, with a lot of opportunity,” Tremblay adds. “We promote everybody from within; we currently have 11 foremen and seven of them started either as laborers or apprentices out of co-ops in this company. All of the laborers who start here at entry-level are either working their way towards becoming a certified operator, or, if they want to be an apprentice for a mason, we track all of their hours and make sure that nobody gets left behind. Jay and I love seeing people grow and become successful.”
While Pynn Masonry does work with local educational institutions to source apprentices and entry-level Assistant Project Managers, Tremblay says that roughly 90 percent of the company’s apprentices are developed from within the company, starting as entry-level laborers. Pynn Masonry is focused on creating pathways for career development whether it be from the office to the field or the field to the office. Currently, Pynn Masonry is in talks with the Association of Builders and Contractors of NH/VT on taking the company’s billed hourly program and transforming it into a certified apprenticeship program for masons, which is a challenging task, but Pynn Masonry is up for the challenge.
An active member of several associations, Pynn Masonry is currently a diamond sponsor for the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC). They are also affiliated with the Mason Contractors Affiliation of America (MCAA), the Associated Subcontractors of Massachusetts (ASM), the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) and Safe Trust.
Having won several awards in the past, including the ABC Merit Award and ABC Excellence Award, Tremblay says the company has plans to submit again on safety awards. “In our industry, the national average is 1.0, and we are sitting at a 0.71 MOD rating, which is thanks to our safety consultant Danny Mc Ellin, President of Construction Training Solutions and our teams’ participation,” Tremblay says.
Adapting to Change
Along with prioritizing relationships with internal team members and external clients, a great deal of Pynn Masonry’s success—and legacy—comes down to a proactive approach, especially where embracing new technology is concerned.
In 2014, the company provided its foremen with training for a project management software called ProCore. ‘Everybody said we were crazy to put a foreman on a tablet but now, it’s become an industry standard that you adopt new technology,” Tremblay says.
Pynn Masonry is also constantly replenishing and updating its equipment in the field, making sure the team has access to the top-of-the-line tools and tech required to do their jobs safely and efficiently. Soon, the company plans to introduce Microsoft Copilot to the team, which Tremblay and Huelsman say will further increase productivity, allowing employees to devote more time to projects in the field, rather than spend hours poring over once tedious data sets and administrative tasks, while benefitting from summarized meetings.
“It’s our willingness to change, step out of our comfort zones and continue to grow; that’s what sets us apart,” Tremblay says.
And as the future of construction changes, both Tremblay and Huelsman can’t help but share their enthusiasm for an industry they’re both incredibly passionate about.
“We’re seeing a lot of interest in the industry, and I know there’s more work out there for us,” Huelsman says. “We’re both very excited about the future, and we want to make sure that our kids, and everyone else, have an industry to go to, because construction’s the best.”
