Longtime Cianbro chief Peter Vigue has stepped down as CEO of the large Pittsfield construction company and handed the reins to his son, Andi Vigue.

The senior Vigue will continue as chairman of The Cianbro Cos. and will work with Cianbro Development Corp., according to a statement issued Monday by the company. Cianbro’s board of directors appointed the younger Vigue to the position of CEO, effective Jan. 1.

“We have been blessed with Pete’s great leadership for many years and we are fortunate that the apple did not fall far from the tree with Andi,” said Eli Carter, Cianbro’s lead director. “We knew we had our work cut out for us trying to find someone who could be the successor to Pete. As we got to know Andi and watched him perform in his role, we quickly came to realize that Andi is a very competent young man.”

“Andi Vigue has great financial acumen and the strategic ability to connect vision, people and ideas to sustainable growth,” added Jim Vamvakias, a member of the board of directors.

Peter Vigue, who had served as Cianbro’s CEO since 2000, stressed that he will still have a significant role in the company.

“I’m not leaving,” the 70-year-old Vigue said Monday night in a telephone interview. “The company is continuing to grow and I will be there to offer my support.”

Vigue said the company had been planning for some time to have his 47-year-old son succeed him as CEO. Vigue said that a lot of companies struggle with finding a capable successor, but in this case, Vigue said he believes his son will do a great job.

“I had a responsibility to ensure that the company is in good hands,” Vigue said. “Andi has a lot of energy and enthusiasm and understands the culture of this company.”

Cianbro is 100 percent employee-owned, a fact that Vigue says he is proud of.

“It’s everyone from top to bottom,” he said. “I believe it is an arrangement that motivates people to work collaboratively.”

Vigue has devoted most of his life to Cianbro.

When he joined the company 48 years ago, Vigue said, he started out on a construction crew assigned to a job on the Portland waterfront.

“I learned a lot in those years,” said Vigue, who worked his way up through the ranks to become the company’s leader.

Vigue has led a team that has transformed the company into one of the world’s largest, most diverse and successful employee-owned companies in the United States.

Last year, Cianbro landed a $215 million contract to help modernize and expand facilities at the U.S. Land Port of Entry in Alexandria Bay, New York. In November 2016, Cianbro received a $28.8 million Navy contract to repair and modernize wharf structures at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery.

Cianbro also constructed and replaced the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge on the Piscataqua River and served as construction manager for renovations to the former Cumberland County Civic Center. Cianbro operates in five markets across more than 40 states and employs more than 4,000 people.

The firm was ranked 103rd on the list of the top 400 contractors in America in 2017 – a ranking based on contracting revenue.

The Associated Builders and Contractors of America has recognized Cianbro as the Contractor of the Year and it was named the Healthiest and Safest Company in America by the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine in 2004.

Cianbro was founded in 1949 by the Cianchette Brothers.

Dennis Hoey can be contacted at 791-6365 or at:

dhoey@pressherald.com