Eddie W. O’Brien was born on August 19, 1926 in Williams, Oklahoma. He was the first born child of Ward and Natha O'Brien. The family came to Pontiac, Michigan in 1937, and settled in a modest house at 75 Hamilton Street. Eddie was enrolled in the Pontiac School System, attending Wisner Elementary, Lincoln Junior High, and Pontiac High schools. Julie O'Brien recalled that Eddie's high school years were interrupted at the age of 18, when he enlisted into the United States Army to serve in World War II. He served as a U.S. Army Military Policeman, and was stationed in the U.S. and later in the Phillipine Islands (at Leyte and Cebu) until his honorable discharge from the service. He earned the rank of corporal.

Upon his return to the United States, Eddie completed high school and then applied for college. Initially attending Michigan State University, he transferred to the Detroit Institute of Technology to be closer to home. He commuted from Pontiac to Detroit each day for classes, mostly by bus. He graduated from DIT with a Bachelor's Degree in Civil Engineering in June, 1950. Shortly thereafter, he had the harrowing brush with death on his new job as an Inspector for the Detroit Water Board.

On a fateful day back in 1950, the world almost lost Eddie at a young age. Fresh out of college as a newly-minted civil engineer, Eddie was working his first job as an Inspector for the old Detroit Water Board. He had been assigned to work the second shift, inspecting the water tunnel that was being constructed 95 feet under Mt. Olivet Cemetery. The date was November 20, 1950. Eddie completed his shift in the tunnel and was relieved by the third shift inspector. Shortly thereafter, with Eddie safely on his way back home, a terrible explosion rocked the tunnel. A pocket of natural gas was somehow ignited. The old Detroit Times newspaper devoted extensive front page coverage to the disaster that severely injured several sandhogs and one Detroit Water Board Inspector who were working in the tunnel at the time. Eddie, in later life, often recalled how close he came to death 95 feet under Mount Olivet Cemetery.

Other construction jobs followed. In 1956-1957, he worked for the old J.A. Utley Company, and then moved on to work for the Perron Company. In 1962, he and a partner Richard Featherstone, established the Waterford Construction Company, specializing in industrial, commercial and institutional projects. The company opened its first office on M-59 in Waterford, Michigan, and was located there for 21 years.

In 1983, Eddie moved his company to the majestic Pontiac State Bank Building in Pontiac, Michigan. A few years later his offices were relocated in the landmark Riker Building. Eddie passed away on December 3, 1993 from complications following heart surgery at the University of Michigan Hospital in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Tim O’Brien joined the O’Brien Construction team in 1974, working beside his father, Ed O’Brien, who founded the company in 1962. Tim attended Michigan State University (MSU) and graduated from Lawrence Tech University (LTU) before heading to work in the oil fields of Texas and New Mexico as a field engineer. He returned to O’Brien Construction and worked as a superintendent, estimator, project engineer, project manager, Vice President and President. He is registered in the State of Michigan as a Professional Engineer and as a Licensed Builder. Tim has also served on numerous non-profit boards and committees with a concentration on the youth in Detroit.

Tim is currently Principal at O’Brien Construction, which is celebrating its 60th year in business working to enhance the quality of our communities through its expertise as team builders and constructors. For 27 years, until 2021, Tim was President of O’Brien Construction. Under his leadership as President, O’Brien Construction was recognized by Crain’s Detroit Magazine four times as one of the 50 Fastest Growing Companies in Metro Detroit, eight times as one of the Largest General Contractors, and four times as one of the Top 200 Privately Held Companies. Additionally, O’Brien Construction has been named one of the top places to work by the Detroit Free Press and by Crain’s Detroit Magazine. O’Brien Construction has developed a specialty in construction and renovation of multifamily housing projects, recently completed the renovation of the famous Eddystone Hotel in Detroit, one of over 60 projects O’Brien Construction has completed in Detroit over the last 20 years.

Tim is a National Director of the Associated General Contractors (AGC) of America and the past President of the AGC Detroit Chapter. He also previously served on the Board of the Building Industry Association of Southeast Michigan.

Tim has a long history of non-profit partnerships, having previously served as Board Chair for Life Directions Detroit, Advisory Board Member of the Detroit Catholic Pastoral Alliance, Chair of EcoWorks (formerly WARM Training Center), Board of Directors for Michigan Chamber of Commerce, President of Fox Manor Senior Living, Board of Directors of Lourdes, Inc., Advisory Board Member for the Opportunity Resource Fund, Building and Grounds Committee Member for Judson Center, and Past President of the Board of Directors for Christmas in Action in Pontiac.

Tim enjoys golfing, running, attending MSU football games in the fall, and spending time with his wife of 37 years, Debbie, and their two children and grandson.

Eddie O'Brien was a licensed engineer and believed in the unique benefits of a contracting firm owned and operated by licensed engineers. His innovative ability to apply value engineering to over-budget projects breathed new life into many projects that would have otherwise been abandoned. Eddie was committed to the best interest of his clients and took a teamwork approach to each job while delivering quality results. The scope of the company’s early work included both the usual and the unique. O’Brien Construction built and renovated schools, office buildings, and many municipal sites. The company also built the Washington Boulevard Trolley Line in Detroit, as well as the Detroit Zoo’s Aviary House which was awarded the prestigious American Institute of Architects Award for Outstanding Design and Construction.

More than 50 years after its inception, O'Brien Construction continues to offer a diverse selection of services. As markets and trends have shifted over the decades, our privately owned construction firm has expanded both its geographical reach and its expertise. Although multifamily housing and mixed use projects have dominated O'Brien Construction’s portfolio in recent years, the company has delivered projects in virtually all markets including education, municipal, community development, religious, historic and renovations. Our wide assortment of clients has included General Motors, AT&T, US Department of HUD, US Postal Service, Corp of Engineers, Walgreens and numerous Southeast Michigan Cities, Townships, School Districts and Universities. In recent years, we are proud to have added such respected Community Development Corporations as Southwest Housing Solutions, CSI Support & Development Services, Community Housing Network, Volunteers of America Housing Services, Norstar Development Corporation USA, Presbyterian Villages of Michigan, U-SNAP-BAC, Detroit Catholic Pastoral Alliance and Messiah Housing to our list of clients. We have gained an excellent reputation among these and other clients for high quality work, meeting budgets, and completing projects as scheduled. By continuing Eddie O'Brien's legacy of a teamwork approach and placing the highest priority on building quality relationships with our clients, repeat business has become the foundation of our firm.

Originally named Waterford Construction Company, Eddie O'Brien founded the firm in 1962 with a small office and just a few tradesmen in the field. The initial company name reflected its earliest base of operations in Waterford Township, Michigan. The fledgling business grew steadily and, in 1982, we relocated the headquarters to a larger facility in Pontiac and the family name was added. "Waterford Construction" became "O’Brien Waterford Construction" and proudly provided service under this title for another 20 years. In 2006, “Waterford” was removed from the corporate name to give us our present name of "O’Brien Construction Company, Inc". The change was made to more accurately reflect the progress and direction of the company which had grown to serve all of Detroit, Southeast Michigan, and beyond.

In 2012, O'Brien Construction celebrated its 50th Anniversary by constructing a new, award-winning, super energy-efficient headquarters in Troy, Michigan. 

As O’Brien Construction celebrates its 60th Anniversary in 2022, the name has changed a few times, but the same personal service on which Eddie O’Brien built the business in 1962 is still the core of our company today.