You need a building.
Rhodes can get it built.
Design-build general contractor in Somerville, Texas. We handle complete commercial and industrial projects — site work, foundation, steel, and the finished interior — across Central Texas since 1974.
- What we build
- Commercial and industrial buildings, warehouses, shops and barns, agricultural buildings and custom barndominiums — plus hail damage re-roofs on metal buildings.
- Where we work
- Bryan–College Station, Brenham, Navasota, Giddings, Caldwell and the surrounding Central Texas counties.
- How we work
- One contract covers the whole project. One person — Jason Rhodes — answers the phone.
What we build
Three ways people come to us. All of them end with a finished building.
General Contracting
We take the whole job. Design through final finish-out, under one contract, with one company accountable for the budget, the schedule and every subcontractor on site.
- Design-build coordination
- Site work and concrete foundations
- Erection, electrical, plumbing and mechanical
- Interior finish-out
- Permits and inspections
- Turnkey delivery
Commercial Buildings
Buildings that have to pass inspection, open on a date and work for a business. Code, permits and inspections are part of our scope, not your problem.
- Warehouses and distribution
- Office, retail and service buildings
- Manufacturing and maintenance facilities
- Church and community buildings
Metal Buildings
We fabricate our own steel framing, which is why we can hold a price and a schedule. Four framing systems, engineered to your loads and spans. Not a kit.
- Four framing systems, engineered to your spans and loads
- Clear span with no interior columns
- Shops, barns and buildings on your own place
- Hail damage re-roofs on existing buildings
Barndominiums
Steel-framed homes, shops and retreats designed from scratch. We do not have three floor plans to pick from.
- Living space and shop under one roof
- Clear-span rooms built around your life
- Oversized doors for equipment, boats, RVs
- Foundation through finish
On a complete project, Rhodes handles
This is what general contractor means here. You are not buying a building from one company and then hiring people to put it up, pour the slab, run the wire and finish the inside. One contract covers all of it, and one person answers the phone when something needs to change.
- Design and engineering coordination
In-house design and AutoCAD drafting - Site work
Grading and prep before anything goes vertical - Concrete foundations
Every building we put up sits on a slab we poured - Steel fabrication
Framing built in our own shop - Building erection
Qualified, insured crews we work with repeatedly - Electrical
Rough-in through fixtures - Plumbing
Underground through trim-out - Mechanical and HVAC
Sized and installed with the building, not after it - Interior finish-out
Walls, ceilings, floors, the parts people actually see - Permits and inspections
Including the jurisdictions that take a while - Subcontractor management
A select group we use repeatedly, so there are few surprises - Warranty
On the building and on the labor
Why Rhodes
Since 1974
Incorporated in Texas in 1974 and still run by the same family, now in its second generation. The company has built through several downturns and is still here.
We do not disappear after the steel goes up
The company that fabricates your frame also pours the slab, erects the building, runs the trades and finishes the inside. One contract, one number to call.
Our own steel
We fabricate our framing rather than reselling somebody else's kit, which is how we hold a price and a schedule instead of passing along someone else's delay.
Estimates in hours, not weeks
We have used our own estimating software since the mid 1980s. A complete estimate covers foundation through insulation.
Subcontractors we actually know
A select group we use repeatedly. That is why change orders and back charges are rare on our jobs and common on low-bid ones.
90% referrals and repeat customers
Nine out of ten jobs come from people who have built with us before, or from someone they told. After fifty years that is the only number about a contractor worth much.
Fifty years in Central Texas
Rhodes was incorporated in 1974 and is still run by the same family.
- 1974
Rhodes Building Systems, Inc. is incorporated in Texas. Mike Rhodes starts the company in the back of his father's workshop, working alongside Carol Discher. - Early 1980s
Expanded from metal buildings into design-build general contracting. - Mid 1980s
Built our own estimating software, able to produce complete, accurate quotes within hours. Still in daily use. - Late 1980s
Began fabricating metal buildings, initially for our own construction work.
How a project goes
Six steps, start to keys.
- 1You call, or send us the basics
Tell us what you need built, roughly how big, and where. If you have plans, send them. If you have nothing but a use and a piece of land, that is fine too.
- 2We look at the site and the scope
What the ground is like, what utilities exist, what the jurisdiction will require, and what the building actually has to do for you.
- 3You get a real number
A complete estimate, foundation through insulation, not a building-only price that grows later.
- 4We design it
In house, to your requirements. Not your requirements trimmed to fit a kit that already exists.
- 5We build it
Site work, concrete, steel, erection, the trades and interior finish, scheduled by one company.
- 6You get the keys and a warranty
On the building and on the labor.
Areas we serve
Rhodes has completed commercial work throughout the I-10, I-45 and I-35 triangle. Most barndominium and custom home work falls within about 60 miles of Bryan–College Station. We look at every job individually — distance, complexity and workload — so if you are outside this area, call and ask.
- Bryan–College Station
- Brenham
- Navasota
- Giddings
- Caldwell
- Somerville
- Franklin
- Calvert
- Hearne
- Snook
- Madisonville
- Anderson
- Washington
- Chappell Hill
- Bellville
- Sealy
- Hempstead
- Waller
- Magnolia
- Montgomery
- Conroe
- Plantersville
- Industry
- New Ulm
- Smithville
- La Grange
- Bastrop
- Elgin
- McDade
- Lexington
- Dime Box
- Rockdale
- Cameron
- Milano
After the first one they did such a great job that I didn’t even ask for bids. I just called and said here’s what I want, do it. Never had a complaint, never had a gripe.
Bob Handley — former owner, Tarlton Supply & Trepan Tools
Common questions
Does Rhodes do general contracting, or just sell buildings?
Both, but general contracting is the larger part of what we do. We can supply and erect a building, or take the entire project — site work, foundation, steel, electrical, plumbing, mechanical and interior finish — under one contract.
Does Rhodes handle concrete and foundations?
Yes. Every building we put up sits on a slab we poured. Site work and foundations are part of a complete project rather than something you arrange separately.
What is a pre-engineered metal building?
A building whose steel frame is engineered and fabricated for your specific spans and loads before it reaches the site, then bolted together there. It is not a kit off a shelf — the frame is designed for your building.
What is a barndominium?
A home built on a steel-framed metal building, usually doing double duty: living space on one side, shop or workspace on the other.
Tell us what you are planning to build
Seven fields, or one phone call. Either starts the conversation.