Two of Hawaii's building contractors have merged in the wake of an economic downturn and softening demand for construction.

Honolulu-based Nordic Construction Ltd. and PCL Construction Services Inc. of Denver, Colo. joined earlier this year to create Hawaii-based Nordic PCL Construction Inc., with 125 employees.

Nordic closed its Waipio office and moved workers last month to PCL's downtown district office at Alii Place, after legal issues associated with the merger were settled. No personnel or operational changes are anticipated.

The companies had for years considered a merger, which just happened to come during an economic slowdown, according to a company representative.

“;We've worked together as a joint-venture partner for many years and it's a natural progression to become one,”; said Wayne Melnyk, who now manages the new company with Glen Kaneshige. The new company has donated $50,000 to Aloha United Way to commemorate the merger.

The companies' joint-venture projects over more than a decade include the $200 million Hawaii Convention Center, Kahala Nui Senior Living Center, Marriott Vacation Club International's timeshare towers at Koolina, Alexander & Baldwin's 44-story Keola La'i condominium in Kakaako and the Residences and Ritz Carlton Club at Kapalua Bay.

Nordic, founded in 1938, was one of the island's top 10 building contractors by revenue, with sales of $122 million in 2007. Its projects include Kaiser Permanente's Honolulu Clinic, Alii Place, the James Campbell Building in Kapolei and the new Safeway store on Kapahulu.

PCL Construction Enterprises Inc., the employee-owned parent of PCL that began in Canada in 1906, reported $233 million in revenue last year for its Hawaii projects. It operates 29 district offices between the U.S. and Canada and ranked as the eighth-largest contractor in the nation with 2007 revenue of $5.5 billion. PCL was the contractor for the Mall of America in Minneapolis and the Staples Center, home of the Los Angeles Lakers.