“One of the best things about my job is working closely with the team in the field on a day-to-day basis and create lifelong friendships with them and office personnel.”
Meet Ian Wilson, a Mechanical Project Manager with Egan for over four years.
When Ian isn’t busy running jobs around the state, he enjoys taking time to go Muskie fishing in “God’s Country”, hiking the North Shore with his girlfriend, and going to his cabin.
FUN FACT: Ian makes custom guitars and has played in the same band since he was in 7th grade!
Our company is shaped by who we are, not just what we do. Together, we are Egan.
It’s been nearly 365 days since the groundbreaking of The Berkman Apartments, a 14-story luxury apartment and mixed-use building near Mayo Clinic in Rochester. The Berkman marks Egan’s first integrated mechanical and electrical project in the Rochester community.
But, MEP isn’t the only Egan offering that has expanded in Southern Minnesota over the past year. Also added, and growing rapidly, to the list of trade offerings is technology/system integration. Although Egan (previously operated as Nietz Electric until 2017) has served the area for over 80 years, much of this work has been tied to electrical.
In 2018, as a complement to electrical services, technology began as a team of one. Today, with a team of more than a dozen, the group continues to grow with local talent.
“Much of our technology group has a long history of industry experience in Rochester,” said Jeff Young, Egan Company Vice President. “It’s been very well received by our customers, in particular, Mayo Clinic. Other general contractors and building owners have also shown interest and are excited about it.”
Overall, Egan has added 130 employees in Rochester alone since the start of 2018. Large-scale, multi-trade projects like The Berkman and Destination Medical Center’s Discovery Square have played a role in this growth.
We’re looking forward to continuing to grow these expanded areas of business. Taking on new opportunities with our existing customers, as well as adding new ones, is a challenge we’re ready for.
“Getting to work with the great people at Egan is what I like most about my job.”
Meet Bradey Perrigo, an Electrical Journeyman with Egan for six years.
One thing people might not know about Bradey is that he really enjoys skiing. And, when he has time to relax, he likes to spend it with his family and friends.
He says the best piece of advice he’s ever been given is to, ‘work hard and stay humble’. We like that advice.
Our company is shaped by who we are, not just what we do. Together, we are Egan.
Observe an Egan jobsite or walk into our shops, how do you recognize innovation? Whether you see it in the form of tools or technology, safety practices, better processes, posters or signage… we are continuing to change the way we build.
Recently, a customer shared feedback about how they believe their projects with Egan have been successful due to focused service, very fast responses, and innovative approaches. In response, thank you. We’re grateful our customers recognize this. Applying innovative practices happens intentionally. Delivering on this approach takes diligence.
In 2018, we leaned heavily into innovation and Lean practices. If we can provide further value with our trade offerings, increase the efficiency of a service, or shorten timelines all together, it’s our promise to do so.
Our newest Lean practices embrace our futuristic mentality to always be improving while maintaining our aggressive commitment to safety:
Implementing 5S Methodology: the 5S system is a Lean manufacturing process designed to improve efficiency through organization; this practice has been most recently implemented in all our shops and warehouses.
Promoting My Good Idea: through Egan’s formal innovation program, My Good Idea, there have been over 200 business improvement ideas generated and shared within the first nine months of the year.
Eliminating Waste and Applying 30/30: waste is found in everything we do – at work, home, and play. There are eight types of waste we address: defects/ rework, over producing, waiting, not using employee talent/ideas, transportation, inventory, motion and extra processing. Most recently, the 30/30 Rule was applied on our jobsites. 30/30 is a method for eliminating waste that reminds us to have our tools, materials, or equipment within 30 feet or 30 seconds for efficiency.
By disrupting the status quo, we embrace innovation as an essential. Through the development of a continuous improvement mindset and fostering an environment where new ideas and efficiency improvements are welcome, innovation has become a part of the daily value we provide with our work and to our customers.
In recognition of Construction Safety Week, we highlighted a few topics that inspire, educate, and shape us to Stay Safe in all that we do.
A Strong Culture of Safety
We’re eager to showcase why ensuring the highest standard of safety on every jobsite and within our shops and offices is our number one priority. Check out this cool video (1 min.)!
Educating for Safer Roads
While
driving may be perceived as a routine activity, attentive driving is critical
to your safety, the safety of other drivers, and personnel who work on our
roadways.
PPE – what is it and why do we wear it?
With the potential hazards of a construction site, personal
protection equipment (PPE) is considered a primary line of defense when it
comes to crew safety. Each item is designed to minimize exposure to certain
risks of injury or illness, and the damage caused by those hazards in the event
of a mishap.
Egan upholds a 100% PPE policy on all of our jobsites.
Why We Work Safe
Often times, taking shortcuts on the job can have ripple-like consequences, which is why making safe choices every day is essential. Choosing to work safe benefits everyone. We all want to go home at the end of the day to see the people that matter most and do the things we love.
Downtown Minneapolis continues to grow in size as more high-rise buildings have joined its skyline in the last year. Former parking lots have converted into 20+ story apartment buildings in seemingly expedited fashion.
Egan Company’s InterClad team has played a role in adding to the exterior and interior beauty of multiple new construction high-rises. Last year, the team finished its scope of work on three luxurious apartment and condominium buildings throughout different downtown neighborhoods – and, even more high-rise work is kicking off for 2019.
“High-rise housing is a major draw for us right now,” said Todd Fechner, InterClad Operations Manager. “With our team’s experience, we’ve been able to build some great relationships with a few of our customers who are taking on these projects. In turn, we’re getting to partner with them again and again.”
Though high-rise housing and hospitality isn’t new for Egan, having simultaneous scopes of such massive sizes is – and, has become the new normal. With this, honing in on specialized glass handling equipment like SmartLifts has helped the team execute multiple big projects efficiently and safely.
Over the past year, Egan has invested in six SmartLift glass handling machines that have played a role in reducing soft tissues injuries on the job, as well as help speed up overall installation time.
“Throughout last years’ projects, we’ve learned how valuable these [SmartLifts] are,” said Fechner. “We strive to continue pushing the envelope when it comes to using innovation within our industry and utilizing SmartLifts have allowed us to remain cutting-edge. We’re excited about what the future looks like using them on upcoming projects.”
365 Nicollet
A 30-story, multi-family and retail development located on historic Nicollet Mall. This contemporary, urban living space includes 10,000 square feet of street level retail space and 370 high-end apartment units.
SCOPE:
16,000 square feet of glazed aluminum curtainwall system
120,000 square feet of pre-glazed windows and terrace doors
Custom metal panel system: reveal seam wall panels, flush seam soffet panels, and composite wall panels
All curtainwall and metal panels were prefabricated in Egan’s shop
The Legacy
This lavish condominium complex overlooks the Mississippi River in the Downtown East neighborhood of Minneapolis. It is complete with a 17-story tower, eight-story midsection, and 14-story riverfront tower that boasts 374 total units.
SCOPE:
116,000 square feet of pre-glazed windows
400 terrace doors
Custom profile flashing at each opening
All curtainwall was prefabricated in Egan’s shop
Rafter (Opening Summer 2019)
Adding more depth to the Northeast neighborhood of Minneapolis, this 26-story apartment building is complete with 283 units and 6,000 square feet of street level retail space.
SCOPE:
47,000 square feet of pre-glazed windows and terrace doors
7,400 square feet of glazed aluminum curtainwall and storefront
20,000 square feet of insulated metal panels
28,000 square feet of metal siding panels
Glass handrails and miscellaneous interior glazing
All curtainwall and storefront frames were prefabricated in Egan’s shop.
“I truly enjoy the people that I work with each day – Egan has some very talented people.”
Meet John Gorg, a Senior Project Manager with Egan for 31 years.
When John is away from the office, his favorite way to relax is to spend time with his granddaughter. He claims that “being a grandpa is the greatest gift!” (awwwwwe). He also likes to spend time fishing and hunting.
Fun Fact: John and his wife, Wendy, are planning to bike 150 miles through the Bike MS: MS 150 Ride this upcoming summer.
Our company is shaped by who we are, not just what we do. Together, we are Egan.
Complete control system for a trash burner at HERC
During the annual fall shutdown, Egan Company was involved in upgrading the four burners that continually burn trash to produce energy. After 20 years without burner upgrades, Egan controls engineers, electricians, millwrights, and pipefitters were tasked with designing, programming, and installing a newer and more efficient process for the four burners.
“The most challenging aspect of this integrated project was the very tight timeline,” said Randy Kalthoff, Egan Company Project Manager. “We had four weeks to upgrade and connect all four burners so that they were fully operational and continuing to burn and produce energy.”
Fabrication of key components ensured the project was completed on time. Piping components were fabricated in Egan’s Mechanical Shop.
The four control panels, designed, fabricated, and programmed in Egan’s UL 508A Panel Shop, were installed by Egan electricians and can be remotely controlled from GRE engineers in the control room of the facility.
Next up at HERC, Egan electrical and mechanical teams will be partnering with HERC, GRE, and a number of other contractors during the upcoming spring shutdown to replace the large conveyors and the ash handling units.
Egan helped us take a system that was over engineered and more complex than we needed and create an intuitive system for everyone. It’s always great working with Egan and the multiple trades that we utilize every project.
– Eric Freitag, Maintenance Leader at HERC
Core Project Team: Hennepin Energy Recovery Center (HERC), Great River Energy (GRE)
Services Provided: electrical and mechanical demolition and installation, control panel fabrication, field device wiring, design, engineering, and programming of electrical controls, millwright services, pipe fabrication
To be successful in the construction industry is no different than being successful in any feat, it requires consistency. Success demands day in and day out preparation, proper tools and effective training, equipment, and conditions. When it comes to safety, this recipe for success is the same.
From our company leaders to our
field leaders and all of our employees in between, we believe the key to being
safe is being proactive and consistently engaging our people with safety in
everything we do. At Egan Company, safety is everyone’s job. It’s everyone’s
job to make sure our safety policies and procedures are being consistently
executed. It’s everyone’s job to help us achieve our goal of ZERO injuries and
to come home to our family and friends at the end of the work day.
Through much hard work and a
refined focus, Egan achieved its Total Recordable Incident Rate goal of <
2.0 for 2018. Our incident rate for the year was 1.87 (down from 2.42 in 2017) which is substantially below the
average rate for specialty trade contractors in Minnesota (4.70). This was
accomplished with over 1.8 million hours worked.
“Moving the safety needle in 2018 was a great achievement for us as a company,” said Reid Romer, Egan Company Safety Director. “Our safety incident rate is a direct reflection of the time and energy we’ve invested collectively to minimize risk and protect our people. This progress comes from specific safety initiatives we committed to improving over the past few years and we are now seeing rewarding results.”
An example of one of the changes
made in 2017 was within the new employee on-boarding process. This process was
specifically addressed after recognizing a pattern that new employees were
consistently getting injured within their first six months on the job. Egan
acknowledged this, invested in changing it, and elevated it on its priority
list. As a result, new employee injuries have significantly decreased.
Though we are proud of this progress
in 2018, Egan has no plans of slowing down its drive to be the best-in-class
when it comes to safety. Utilizing employee and peer group feedback and
experiences from last year, the bar is set even higher for 2019.
“Our goal is to continue to engage
with our employees and do everything we can to keep this injury reduction track
trending in 2019,” said Romer. “We’ll continue to fill the information and
training pipelines, as well as remain diligent with planning in both the
pre-mobilization and throughout our jobs. This, along with a team approach, will
continue to give us an opportunity to lead the way for safety on our projects
this year and in the future.”
“I really enjoy working at Egan – I think my favorite aspects are having a variety of work and good customer relationships. Both of those things are important to me.”
Meet Dave Horazuk, an Electrical Field Leader with Egan for over 15 years.
In true Minnesota fashion, Dave’s favorite way to spend the weekend is to get outdoors. He can be found fishing, camping, snowmobiling, and ATV riding in his free time.
Our company is shaped by who we are, not just what we do. Together, we are Egan.
