Archie Lawson, Lawson Mechanical Contractors' founder, started Lawson Sheet Metal in 1947 after learning the sheet metal trade at the Hunters Point Naval shipyard during World War II. The time was right for Archie to open a sheet metal shop since new building construction was booming during the postwar years. Lawson Sheet Metal began its operations out of a nine hundred square foot building in North Sacramento and worked in the residential sector installing heating systems in tract homes.  As Lawson Sheet Metal gained more experience and became more successful, Archie focused his company's attention towards commercial projects. He broadened Lawson Sheet Metal's scope of work to include plumbing and pipefitting.  In 1958, he changed Lawson Sheet Metal's name to Lawson Mechanical Contractors to reflect his companies newly expanded capabilities. Twenty years later, Archie's son, Rod Lawson, began managing Lawson Mechanical and became its President in 1981. Under Rod's guidance, Lawson Mechanical has continued to grow. In 1986, Lawson Mechanical left its North Sacramento roots for its current facility in South Sacramento. Today, Lawson Mechanical is one of the premiere mechanical firms in California.