Team Tuesday: Kesler De Ruyter Named an Autodesk 40 Under 40 Champion of Construction

Kesler De Ruyter, Aambe's Vice President of Construction and Project Development, has been named one of Autodesk's 2026 40 Under 40: Champions of Construction.

The global recognition celebrates 40 rising leaders who are helping shape the future of architecture, engineering, and construction. Autodesk's profile identifies Kesler as Owner and President of The Apex Group and highlights his work with Tribal Nations to bring thoughtful design, modern construction technology, and healthcare operations together.

For Aambe, this Team Tuesday is an opportunity to congratulate Kesler and recognize something larger: a healthcare facility is not successful simply because the construction is complete. It succeeds when the building, technology, people, and operational plan are ready to serve a community together.

What Is Autodesk's 40 Under 40 Recognition?

Autodesk describes 40 Under 40: Champions of Construction as an annual global program recognizing both established and emerging architecture, engineering, and construction professionals who are making a meaningful impact.

Now in its eighth year, the program considers professionals under age 40 who demonstrate leadership, create significant results in their roles, and use technology to improve projects and organizations. Autodesk says hundreds of peer nominations were reviewed by an independent panel before the 40 honorees were selected.

Kesler appears as No. 33 on the 2026 list.

The recognition is significant because it celebrates more than technical skill. Autodesk's 2026 class reflects leaders who are improving collaboration, solving difficult problems, modernizing construction, and raising expectations for what the industry can accomplish.

Building More Than a Healthcare Facility

Autodesk's profile of Kesler begins with a goal that closely reflects the work Aambe values: creating healthcare facilities that continue strengthening communities long after construction is finished.

That requires a broader view of the project.

A clinic or pharmacy must function as a complete healthcare environment. The design has to support patients, providers, pharmacy teams, technology, safety, accessibility, and the day-to-day movement of people and information. Construction decisions must account for how the facility will actually operate, not simply how it will look when the keys are handed over.

Autodesk credits Kesler with connecting design, construction, and operational planning into one coordinated model for Tribal clinic and pharmacy development.

Using Technology to Solve Practical Construction Problems

Autodesk highlights an 18,000-square-foot clinic and pharmacy project in New Mexico where Kesler incorporated 3D concrete printing to help accelerate construction and reduce costs.

The profile also points to his use of modular construction, LiDAR scanning, and building information modeling, commonly known as BIM, to improve design accuracy and make project delivery more efficient.

Each tool addresses a real project question:

• Can the team understand site and building conditions more accurately before work begins?

• Can design conflicts be found earlier, when they are easier to correct?

• Can parts of the project be delivered more efficiently without losing sight of quality or community needs?

• Can architects, engineers, contractors, suppliers, and healthcare leaders work from better information?

Technology creates the most value when it helps people make clearer decisions, reduce avoidable problems, and deliver a facility that works as intended. That practical connection between innovation and execution is central to the work Autodesk recognized.

Designing for the First Day of Care

One of the strongest details in Autodesk's profile is its emphasis on operational readiness.

Kesler's work connects facility planning with healthcare systems such as automated pharmacy technology and electronic health records. Those systems cannot be treated as an afterthought. They influence space planning, infrastructure, workflow, security, equipment placement, connectivity, and staff preparation.

When construction and healthcare operations are coordinated early, a project has a better chance of opening as a functioning care environment rather than as a finished building that still needs months of correction and adaptation.

That is what readiness from day one means: the physical space and the systems inside it have been planned to support the people who will provide and receive care.

Why This Work Matters in Indian Country

Every Tribal Nation has its own leadership, culture, geography, priorities, and healthcare needs. There is no universal facility plan that should simply be copied from one community to another.

Autodesk's profile recognizes Kesler's ability to navigate design, geography, regulations, funding, construction, procurement, and healthcare operations while keeping the larger community purpose in view. It also emphasizes the goal of helping establish fully operational, tribally led healthcare businesses rather than stopping at the building itself.

That distinction matters.

Thoughtful healthcare development can support access to care, create local opportunity, strengthen Tribal decision-making, and build infrastructure intended to serve future generations. The facility is important, but the lasting value comes from what the community can do through it.

Meet Kesler De Ruyter

At Aambe, Kesler serves as Vice President of Construction and Project Development. His experience spans construction, surveying, project estimating, business development, and client engagement.

He works across the many moving parts required to move a project from an early idea toward a usable facility, including design coordination, contractor and vendor planning, construction delivery, and alignment with healthcare operations.

That combination of practical construction knowledge and forward-looking problem solving is especially valuable in Tribal healthcare, where each project must respond to a distinct community and a complex set of operational realities.

Congratulations, Kesler

Being named one of Autodesk's 2026 40 Under 40 Champions of Construction is a meaningful recognition of Kesler's leadership, innovation, and commitment to building healthcare environments that can serve communities well beyond opening day.

We are proud to have Kesler as part of the Aambe team, and we congratulate him on this well-earned honor.

Read Kesler's profile in Autodesk's official 40 Under 40: Champions of Construction 2026 list.

To learn more about Aambe's work supporting Tribal healthcare development, visit Aambe Health.

Quick Questions

Who is Kesler De Ruyter?

Kesler De Ruyter is Aambe's Vice President of Construction and Project Development and the Owner and President of The Apex Group. His work spans construction, development, healthcare facility planning, and project delivery.

What is Autodesk's 40 Under 40: Champions of Construction?

It is an annual global recognition for architecture, engineering, and construction professionals under age 40 who demonstrate impact, leadership, and meaningful use of technology.

Why did Autodesk recognize Kesler?

Autodesk highlighted his work connecting design, construction technology, and healthcare operations in Tribal clinic and pharmacy projects, including the use of 3D concrete printing, modular construction, LiDAR, and BIM.

What does day-one readiness mean for a healthcare facility?

It means the building, technology, workflows, equipment, and operational plan have been coordinated so the facility is prepared to support patients and healthcare teams when it opens.