BZI® Wins Seven 2026 Top Workplaces Awards for Culture Excellence and the Construction Industry Award, Recognizing Multiple Areas of Accomplishment

KANARRAVILLE, Utah--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr 2, 2026--

BZI® (bzi.com), a top steel and construction company nationally recognized for transformative innovations in its industries, revealed today that the company is the winner of seven 2026 Top Workplaces awards for Culture Excellence and the Construction Industry Award, recognizing the company for its outstanding performance in several areas of accomplishment. BZI also announced that its Chief Marketing Officer, Spencer Douglas has been invited to present BZI’s approach to facilitating a positive and thriving employee culture at the USA TODAY Top Workplaces Annual Conference on April 7 at 1:30pm in Nashville, Tennessee.

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Included in their Top Workplaces Culture Excellence and Industry Awards, BZI was recognized with the Construction Industry Award and seven culture awards for the following areas of accomplishment:

This recent recognition joins the several previous Top Workplaces awards presented to BZI in the last few years. Top Workplaces celebrates outstanding companies that listen to their people and put them at the center of decisions to build cultures where people and performance thrive. The lists are chosen based solely on employee feedback gathered through an employee engagement survey, issued by Energage. Results are calculated by comparing the survey’s research-based statements.

"Earning a Top Workplaces award is a badge of honor for companies, especially because it comes authentically from their employees,” said Eric Rubino, Energage CEO. “That's something to be proud of. In today's market, leaders must ensure they’re allowing employees to have a voice and be heard. That's paramount. Top Workplaces do this, and it pays dividends.”

"A culture where BZI creates high-value opportunities and allows team members to thrive is a strong foundational pillar that supports our company and contributes to our overall success. This approach is represented in everything that we do and illustrates our mission and the values we aspire to at BZI,” said Thomas Harker, President of BZI. "We are thrilled to receive this Top Workplaces recognition and will remain steadfast in our efforts to facilitate an exceptional culture as our company continues to grow and expand.”

Douglas was invited by Energage to share his perspectives on BZI’s approach to team and leadership building methods with attendees at the upcoming USA TODAY Top Workplaces annual conference. He will join a breakout session, “Shop Talk with Top Workplaces: From Insights to Impact.” The presenters will bring real-life examples for using Top Workplaces insights to strengthen culture, engage employees and enhance employer branding.

“BZI continues to shine as an organization that creates a team member-first culture where employees can thrive and grow,” said Bob Helbig, media partnerships director at Energage. “This award is earned through employee feedback, and the message from employees is loud and clear: BZI is a leader in the industry for successfully encouraging people to reach impressive accomplishments and also feel personally fulfilled. This is one of the many reasons we asked Spencer to share BZI insights into culture and the best ways to leverage the Energage surveys.”

“These awards are only made possible through our team members' hard work and dedication, and BZI is honored to be listed alongside other companies who are leading their industries and care about providing outstanding cultures,” added Harker.

ABOUT BZI

Considered one of the top steel and construction organizations, the BZI® group of companies headquartered in Kanarraville, Utah, operates through three primary organizations: Building Zone Industries, LLC is responsible for steel erection, while BZI Steel, LLC specializes in steel fabrication. InnovaTech®, LLC specializes in designing, engineering and manufacturing innovative construction equipment and processes to enhance efficiency and safety on the job.

BZI’s solution to the construction industry’s labor shortage is accomplished through a partnership with the BZI Academy™. The academy provides training, certifications and continuing education to all its team members. An exclusive technical, safety, vocational and leadership training center, the academy provides training in OSHA (10) and (30) certifications, equipment operations, fall protection and industry-specific welding certifications. Since 2021, the academy, formerly known as SteelTech Academy, has issued thousands of certifications across these disciplines and logged over 33,000 student contact hours in 2025. As part of this expansive training curriculum, the academy also offers a Department of Labor certified Apprenticeship Program, helping to shape relevant skills and advance careers for those wanting to pursue construction as a vocation.

The company continues to receive numerous industry awards and accolades for its exceptional performance and contributions to its industries. The company has been the recipient of:

BZI is a proud member of and accredited by AISC, an organization that has recognized BZI with its top safety awards, the "Erector Award of Honor” and “Safety Award of Merit.” CEO James Barlow serves on the Forbes Business Council and Inc. Leadership Forum and is a recipient of the prestigious Malcolm Baldrige Award. Jakob Harker, President of InnovaTech, is a proud member of the Fast Company Executive Board, an organization of select senior executives, founders, business owners, and industry experts who are defining the future of business.

BZI’s mission is to revolutionize the steel construction industry through innovation and team performance, while accelerating project delivery and setting new standards in safety and efficiency.

BZI is completing and executing major construction projects across the United States and is recognized as a leading provider of innovative construction solutions nationwide. Its reputation for excellent client and operational performance is attracting premier companies from around the world. These organizations are building with BZI as a trade partner and bringing new economic opportunities across the U.S. through the many BZI projects. Top customer industries include data centers, e-commerce retail, manufacturing facilities for batteries, aerospace, microchips, electric vehicles and food and beverage.

For more information about BZI, visit bzi.com, email office@bzi.com, or call 888.509.2280.

ABOUT ENERGAGE

Making the world a better place to work together. ™ Energage is a purpose-driven company that helps organizations turn employee feedback into useful business intelligence and credible employer recognition through Top Workplaces. Built on 20 years of culture research and the results from 30 million employees surveyed across more than 80,000 organizations, Energage delivers the most accurate competitive benchmark available. With access to a unique combination of patented analytic tools and expert guidance, Energage customers lead the competition with an engaged workforce and an opportunity to gain recognition for their people-first approach to culture. For more information or to nominate your organization, visit energage.com or topworkplaces.com.

BZI® (bzi.com) revealed today that the company is the winner of seven 2026 Top Workplaces awards for Culture Excellence and the Construction Industry Award, recognizing the company for its outstanding performance in several areas of accomplishment, including: Innovation; Compensation & Benefits; Leadership; Purpose & Values; Employee Appreciation; Professional Development; Employee Well-Being.

Spencer Douglas, BZI Chief Marketing Officer presents the company’s approach to a positive and thriving culture at the USA TODAY Top Workplaces Annual Conference on April 7 at 1:30pm in Nashville, Tennessee

TOKYO (AP) — Japan on Friday announced the execution of a man convicted of killing five people after setting fire to an Osaka pachinko parlor in 2009, a first execution by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi 's government as the country faces growing calls for more transparency and the abolition of capital punishment.

The Justice Ministry said Sunao Takami, 58, was hanged to death earlier Friday.

Takami in 2009 set fire to the crowded pachinko parlor in Osaka by spreading gasoline and throwing a lit match, engulfing the building, killing five and injuring 10 others, Justice Minister Hiroshi Hiraguchi said.

“It caused extremely serious outcomes and dealt a major shock and fear to the society,” he told a news conference, adding “the victims whose lives were taken away must have felt unimaginable pain and fear, and those who suffered injuries ... were forced to live with long-term effects.”

“As justice minister, I have ordered an execution after careful and thorough considerations,” he said.

Takami was convicted of murder, attempted murder and arson and sentenced to death in a 2011 Osaka District Court ruling. His appeals up to the top court were rejected in 2016 by a Supreme Court decision upholding the death penalty.

Japan now has 100 people on death row, including 43 seeking retrials, Hiraguchi said.

Japan has faced growing criticism over its use of the death penalty, as a majority of the international community has abolished capital punishment. Japan and the U.S. are the only two countries in the Group of Seven leading industrialized nations that put people to death.

Calls to abolish capital punishment or increase transparency have grown after the 2024 acquittal of the world’s longest-serving death-row inmate, Iwao Hakamada.

Executions are carried out in secrecy in Japan, where prisoners are not informed of their fate until the morning of their hanging.

Since 2007, Japan has begun disclosing the names of those executed and some details of their crimes, but disclosures are still limited.

Hiraguchi said he has no intention to change the ongoing practice, saying disclosure of additional details would disturb the mental state of the death-row inmates.

Friday’s hanging was the first by Takaichi’s government and comes during a parliamentary recess — a move criticized as a tactic to avoid public debate. Hiraguchi denied it was intentional.

Japan previously executed in June 2025 a man known as the “Twitter killer," who was convicted of killing and dismembering nine people in his apartment near Tokyo in 2017.

Japan’s crime rate is relatively low, but it has seen some high-profile mass killings in recent years.

Justice Minister Hiroshi Hiraguchi speaks during a news conference on an execution of a man convicted of killing multiple people after setting fire to an Osaka pachinko parlor in 2009, in Tokyo, Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. (Masanori Kumagai/Kyodo News via AP)

This photo shows a deadly fire at a pachinko parlor in Osaka, western Japan, July 5, 2009. (Kyodo News via AP)