Bill Zahner made a tough call shortly after taking charge of the family business in the late 1970s, shifting the focus of the A. Zahner Co. from siding and deck work to metal fabrication.

He shaped an architectural powerhouse whose work now adorns skyscrapers, museums, and artwork around the world. Among its current projects is construction of the facade for an elaborate, $130 million aquarium scheduled to open this year in Fortaleza, Brazil. Locally, the company created the distinctive “sky station” sculptures atop Bartle Hall and the corkscrewing, stainless steel spire on the Reorganized Church of Latter Day Saints Temple in Independence.

Zahner sits down for a public conversation with Library Director Crosby Kemper III in the latest installment of the Library's Kansas City: Cradle of Entrepreneurs series.