KANSAS CITY, Missouri — Eric J. Buer has joined Burns & McDonnell as Director of Real Estate Development, where he will lead an all-new business initiative for the firm. Buer initially will focus on development and investment opportunities encompassing light industrial projects with a primary focus on logistically optimized warehouse and distribution centers and other storage facilities.

“Burns & McDonnell has always been willing to make strategic moves into services that are natural extensions of what we do for our customers,” says Burns & McDonnell CEO Ray Kowalik. “A big key to success in these startups is to identify talented leaders. Eric has put together an impressive record of success in property development and investment and we’re excited to have him lead this new venture for Burns & McDonnell.”

With total online retail sales projected to double within five years, there is an urgent need for more distribution space to house the continued wave of additional demand. The current pace of development will only meet half of the expected demand in North America.

Buer will target logistically optimized projects located near multi-mode transportation hubs, primarily in North America. Projects will include both redevelopment as well as greenfield development.

“A big key to success in the development business is relationships with the right partners and maintaining a strong focus on market demands,” says Buer. “Burns & McDonnell already has an excellent reputation for strong project management and going the extra mile to do whatever it takes to satisfy the customer. I am extremely excited about the opportunity to add another offering to the company’s suite of services, by developing and investing in industrial, warehousing and distribution space.”

Buer most recently served as managing director, chief operating officer, and board member for the Tradebot family of companies. For Tradebot Properties, LLC, he was responsible for development and growth of an investment portfolio of industrial, commercial and residential real estate properties. Buer oversaw growth of the portfolio to a total of 27 million square feet of industrial space. The portfolio also included 1,500 Class-A units of multi-family residential space.

In addition to his role with Tradebot Properties, Buer served in a variety of management and fiduciary roles at Tradebot and within affiliated ventures. He served as chief financial officer, director of finance and board member of Tradebot Systems, Inc., where he was responsible for all accounting, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reporting and finance and treasury activities.

Prior to joining Tradebot, Buer worked at KPMG in the audit practice. He’s on the advisory council for Youth Entrepreneurs and for a decade has been actively involved with FosterAdopt Connect. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Management and Accounting from Drake University, where he also was a three-year letterman in football.

About Burns & McDonnell

Burns & McDonnell is a family of companies made up of more than 6,000 engineers, architects, construction professionals, scientists, consultants and entrepreneurs with offices across the country and throughout the world. We strive to create amazing success for our clients and amazing careers for our employee-owners. Burns & McDonnell is 100 percent employee-owned and is proud to be on Fortune’s 2018 list of 100 Best Companies to Work For.