Posts Tagged ‘Egan Mechanical Services’

Fire Impact Requires Rapid Response from Egan Trades

Monday, December 28th, 2020

For over 75 years, Egan Company has committed to providing exceptional service and keeping our promises to our customers, no matter the time of day nor the severity of the need. When a fire destroyed part of Burnett Dairy Cooperative’s Grantsburg, Wisc. plant this summer, Egan was consulted immediately to develop a plan to get the plant fully operational as soon as possible. 

UNDER AN ‘AS SOON AS POSSIBLE’ DEADLINE

Known for producing award-winning, high-quality cheese products for over 120 years, and with customers waiting for products in their stores, the need to get the plant fully operational as soon as possible was of utmost importance. Working around the clock, multiple Egan crews comprised of six different trades partnered with Burnett Dairy and additional contractors to demolish and rebuild the infrastructure that was damaged in order to get the production lines back up running.

“We’ve worked with Burnett Dairy for the past few years and have formed a strong relationship,” said Dan Reintjes, Egan Company Project Manager. “When the call came in that we were needed to help after the fire, we were there as fast as possible to get the infrastructure and  production lines in perfect working order again.” 

The fire is believed to have started in the boiler building, which will require a complete rebuild. In the meantime, a temporary operation was conceived and constructed to ensure cheese production and assembly continued.  Egan’s process controls team worked late into the first night getting power to three of the plant’s electrical services and started a complete demolition of the fourth 2000 amp 5-section service gear which was then designed, built, installed and operational in nine days. The ammonia compressors were also powered up with generators on the first day in order to get Burnett Dairy’s warehouse coolers running to save all the products that were  already produced. Egan’s Mechanical team worked to make damaged piping safe and get temporary water piping installed as well as planning for a temporary boiler installation.

Egan was one of the contractors that was onsite within 18 hours of the fire trucks leaving the scene and didn’t leave until the plant was fully operational,” said Dave Gaiser, Burnett Dairy Cooperative CEO.  “With their help, Burnett was able to get our retail store back open within a few days so we were able to open for the weekend after the fire.  Within seven days, they assisted with getting one of our packaging lines operating so we could package cheese from other manufacturers and begin shipping to our customers. Egan worked 24/7 coordinating with other contractors to get Burnett running within two months of a fire impacting all utilities servicing the plant.

Beyond the initial scope of work that was completed to get the plant operational, additional projects were finished in order to restore complete operation to the plant. Egan engineers designed and programmed a new control system for the milk transfer and CIP systems that were lost in the fire, and additional electricians were tasked with installing new power distribution panels and feeders as well as installing the new milk transfer and CIP control panels and interconnect wiring.

Working alongside the controls electricians, Egan’s Mechanical trades were tasked with setting up the temporary, 900 horsepower self-contained boiler.  The team was also responsible for hydro testing and repairing all existing piping to ensure functionality and safety due to the fire.

BACK UP AND OPERATIONAL

The plant was back up and operational in 62 days, processing milk from 150 farms, and bringing 300 people back to work.

Burnett Dairy is currently operating with a temporary boiler trailer in place and due to the work of many contractors working within a tight timeline. Next steps for the plant include the design, engineering, and construction of the new boiler building; Egan’s full-time maintenance presence at the plant will continue, and any additional help the site needs as it starts the process of rebuilding from the fire.  

“Egan is a valuable business partner and the accomplishments of the past couple of months would not have been possible without them,” said Gaiser.

MULTI-TRADE PROJECT TEAM

  • 35 Egan onsite electricians
  • 15 Egan controls and mechanical engineers contributed to the needed design and engineering
  • 31 Egan plumbers, pipefitters, and sheet metal workers were onsite
  • 5 limited energy technicians delivered network installations with all new data cabinets and cabling for the plant
  • 10 control panel technicians built eight U.L. 508A control panels on a tight turnaround

KEEPING OUR PROMISES AS ONE EGAN COMPANY

Wednesday, July 8th, 2020

If you’ve been in the industry a while, you may remember a few of our former names – Egan Companies or The Egan Companies. If you’ve really been in the industry a while, you might recall our original name, Egan & Sons Plumbing and Heating Company which was founded by Joseph Egan and his sons Bill and Costney.

For 75 years, Egan Company has offered an array of specialty trades and professional services across the industry; and for many of those 75 years, the diverse skills and trades were divided into a number of individual companies and brands. Egan Company as we know it today is only 15 years old!

Over the years, Egan diversified and merged with existing mechanical, electrical, automation, technology, controls, and a number of other specialties. Each specialty then had its  own unique brand. The brands below consolidated to one corporate identity Egan Companies, Inc. in 2002 before evolving to simply become Egan Company years later:

  • Egan Mechanical Contractors, Inc.
  • Egan-McKay Electrical Contractors, Inc.
  • Egan Automation, Inc.
  • InterClad, Inc.
  • E&S Insulation Co.
  • The Egan Companies

This consolidation and positioning triggered an opportunity to develop a new brand promise and logo that would encompass all of Egan’s specialty trades and services—and represent the only company in our local markets with capabilities and services that are unmatched by anyone.

Fun Facts:

  • Egan’s old familiar logo was the letter “E” constructed of two triangles and three rectangles.  Depending on the entity, the logo was either black, red, green, blue, or maroon and was the Egan brand for almost twenty years.
  • The base of our current Egan logo was formed by three grids that represent the mechanical, electrical and systems business functions. This joined frame structure emphasizes the fact that each of our business groups is dependent on the others working together and doing its separate and combined job to support the Egan brand. Supported by this grid base, EGAN stretches across all three grids linking them together as one.
  • To ensure our dedication to our customers and community was highlighted as well, a new tagline was added, Building on Promises Kept. This reflects our long history of building in the Midwest and our commitment to keeping our promises, always. It serves to remind us to focus on the integrity of doing what we say we will do and when we will do it each day. It also serves to communicate to everyone who sees our logo that Egan stands behind our word, our promises.

Highly Specialized Project Completed in Crunch Time

Friday, September 14th, 2018

High-rise buildings are the distinguishing trademark of cities around the world. And, being the 16th largest metropolitan area in the country, Minneapolis and St. Paul are no different.

As a specialty contractor, Egan has played a role in helping to build, remodel, and maintain many of these high-rise buildings that help shape the Twin Cities’ skyline. While these projects have included scopes of all sizes, this past spring brought forth a very unique high-rise venture.

Egan’s team was utilized for a highly-specialized project in downtown St. Paul, Minn. The scope included the replacement of four massive cooling towers located on the rooftop of Galtier Tower – a staggering 31 stories from the ground.

Galtier Tower is one of two high-rise towers that make up the city block called Cray Plaza. The plaza also includes two other commercial buildings. Together, the block boasts hundreds of apartments and luxury condominiums, a small preparatory school, YMCA facility, and an assortment of other retail space – all of which fully rely on these cooling towers to air condition their buildings.

Overall, the project would require the tallest crane in Minnesota, in-house design and prefabrication, and even more pre-planning and coordination to complete the job within the compressed schedule.

Navigating a Tight Schedule

The project was officially awarded to Egan by Bigos Management in late March. From the start, Egan’s team knew the new cooling towers would need to be “flown” up to the top of the building. To do the “flying”, Egan began coordinating and pre-planning with a local crane company, Vic’s Crane and Heavy Haul.

An in-depth, engineered lift (or often called “pick”) plan was created while Egan’s team began designing the piping and support systems for the towers. A structural engineer was also hired to design the steel platforms for beneath each cooling tower based on the drawings provided by Egan.

Vic’s crane, standing at 410 feet tall, was tasked to hoist these four new cooling towers onto Galtier. However, driving a monster crane into a heavily populated urban city isn’t the most practical of tasks.

In the weeks prior to setting up the crane downtown, the city of St. Paul removed a light pole, cut down a tree, and approved and coordinated road closures. Vic’s also obtained multiple permits, clearances, and police support. Once complete, the crane took 12 hours to set-up on the street.

Another unique aspect of this project was that the new piping system for the cooling towers utilized Aquatherm – a fairly new type of system that is an environmentally friendly alternative to metal. Though extremely lightweight (and vibrantly colored!), Aquatherm pipe is one of the longest-lasting and most chemically inert piping material available.

Egan’s fabrication shop prefabricated all of the Aquatherm piping system for this job. It was also specifically designed so it could fit into the 7’7” elevator and transported to the rooftop of Galtier.

The Race to the Top

Although there was two feet of snow on the ground when the project started, Minnesota’s infamously, unpredictable spring weather found itself over 85 degrees just a few weeks later. With the previous cooling towers entirely off the building, the countdown was on to get the first new cooling tower operational in order to start cooling all of the buildings within the city block.

At the top of Galtier, Egan’s team worked with a subcontractor to set up an extensive amount of scaffolding so the team of pipefitters, electricians, and controls electricians could safely access the work. All of the prefabricated Aquatherm and structural steel platforms were also set before the crane could “fly” the cooling towers to the roof.

The first weekend of May, less than six weeks after being awarded the project, Egan’s team, alongside Vic’s, successfully lifted and installed all four cooling towers onto Galtier. The compressed schedule… accomplished.

Egan installed a majority of the piping after the cooling towers were set and officially completed the project in July.

Core Project Team: Bigos Management, Vic’s Crane and Heavy Haul

Services Provided: Cooling towers replacement, pipe fabrication, pipefitting, electrical controls, electrical installation

Video Series: We Are Egan Sheet Metal Workers

Thursday, April 26th, 2018

Each month throughout 2018, one of Egan’s 13 specialty trades is featured to showcase its expertise and highlight the wide-scope of offerings we provide. This month, all eyes are on our expert Sheet Metal Workers!

Take a minute to watch and learn more about our Sheet Metal Workers and fabrication shop. And, in case you’ve missed any of our previously featured trades, all of them can be found here: Millwrights, Iron Workers, Glaziers, Pipefitters, and Limited Energy Technicians.

Video Series: We Are Egan Pipefitters

Wednesday, February 28th, 2018

Throughout 2018, we’re highlighting each of our skilled tradespeople and the wide scope of offerings our company provides with our Trade Video Series. This month, the spotlight is on Egan’s expert Pipefitters!

And, in case you missed our previously featured trades, you can still check all of them out here: Millwrights, Iron Workers, and Glaziers.