Posts Tagged ‘egan service’

Attention to Energy Efficiency and a Family-Like Bond

Thursday, December 17th, 2020

Below the 2.4 million square foot office tower and retail building sits a tight-knit team, focused on energy efficiency and continuous monitoring.

Located in the “center” of Minneapolis, the 33 Tower / City Center building is a Class A high-rise. At nearly 40 years old, its unique layout includes a retail mall, skyways, parking garage, and tower–the fourth tallest in Minneapolis. Prominent tenants include Target Corporation, Korn/Ferry International, and many other well-known organizations and retail stores.

In the corner of the lower-level space hangs a fitting sentiment: “Hail to the Chief”. Chief Engineer Tim Stefans has been with the building since 1980. He, along with his team of engineers, is committed to world-class building management procedures for energy efficiency and water efficiency standards.

There is not another building of this nature in the city of Minneapolis,” said Stefans, “and with this building, everything we do is about quality.

Best of the Best Energy Standards

Being in a class of its own, 33 Tower / City Center quietly boasts two impressive accolades: Certified LEED Platinum and an ENERGY STAR® Score of 97.

The Certified LEED Platinum distinction is the highest mark of quality and achievement in green buildings. According to The U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) program, “LEED certification means healthier, more productive places, reduced stress on the environment by encouraging energy and resource-efficient buildings, and savings from increased building value, higher lease rates and decreased utility costs.” 

Additionally, 33 Tower is an ENERGY STAR® certified building. The certification, backed by The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is described as, “certified buildings save energy, save money, and help protect the environment by generating fewer greenhouse gas emissions than typical buildings.” 

Twelve years ago, the engineering team began benchmarking energy performance to measure and track the building’s energy, water, and/or waste and materials usage. It uses the ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager® tool, which has become the industry standard for rating a facility’s energy performance. 33 Tower’s 2020 ENERGY STAR score is 97, which means it’s more efficient than 97% of comparable buildings.

33 Tower has even received national recognition; two years ago, the building earned itself the title of “most energy efficient in the nation”.

Value of Team Longevity and Common Goals

33 Tower / City Center was ten years old when Egan Company (Building Control Group) was introduced to work on a small-scale project, in support of a desire to pay attention to energy and reinvest in the building.

Now locally managed by Ryan Companies, Inc, the building’s ownership went through a phase of rapid change. However, in the over 25 years working together, the building’s engineering team—along with the Egan team—has largely remained unchanged.

As long-standing partners, the teams at 33 Tower / City Center and Egan Company have a relationship built on trust and a shared goal: to improve the building’s sustainability and continuously evaluate building performance. Through this shared care about monitoring through the years, Egan trades have worked on systematic replacement of older systems and equipment, software/hardware updates, lighting upgrades, as well as technology design and function.

Among many who have worked with the team for nearly two decades, Egan Company Account Manager Brett Rasmussen started working onsite as a field technician in 2003. “Our long standing relationship has been built on understanding expectations and performing to them,” said Rasmussen. “Egan has a great working knowledge of this building and what is expected and needed for it to run efficiently. The building is not very forgiving, and a small error can translate to a big problem with such a large facility. But we also have some of the best field personnel in the industry. That, combined along with our experience and understanding of this building, whatever hurdle gets thrown at us, we make it disappear. Ultimately, we work hard to keep it running at a level that speaks for itself.”

The Egan team has become so much of an extension of the building team that at many times, there’s such a seamless level of work that Stefans and his team don’t experience disruption when Egan is working in the building. Referring to the latest project, Stefans adds:

I’ve got to tell you, we didn’t even know Egan was in the building. We didn’t even know—that’s how integrated this is. Now that’s phenomenal. I mean, if there’s a 10, these [Egan] guys are an 11. Rob LeMay, Ross Keane, Alex West, Aaron McDonough, Lawrence ‘Doc’ Bush, Jon Wall, and Dan Aberwald . . . they’re phenomenal. Ridiculously phenomenal.

Room to Improve Energy Efficiency

To further improve energy efficiency in 2020, the plan was set to migrate legacy technology to 21st century controls.

“For as long as I’ve ever been doing this, there’s never been a more complex job than what we’ve done in the last year. Really, nothing has ever been this complex and working through how to marry this new system,” Stefans shares, referring to the interactions between technology, building systems, the geometry of building, and the connected structures (skyways and newly-built hotel). 

As equipment moves toward obsolescence, Egan looks for opportunities to bring new technology and design to the table. As a result for 33 Tower / City Center, this year’s project was a large-scale retrofit representative of the need for modernization. And while projects like this provide a long term solution to a hardware problem, they also provide a means to improve efficiencies to positively impact the bottom line.

Read more about Egan’s recent project in upgrading the 33 Tower / City Center’s building automation system from I/Net controls to EcoStruxure >

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.

NAIOP 2017 Awards of Excellence

Monday, October 8th, 2018

Among this year’s NAIOP Awards of Excellence are multiple projects of which the Egan team was proud to have worked. We are honored to get to partner with some o f the best in the business! Egan’s scope for the following awarded projects include:

AC Hotel

AC Hotel – InterClad

Downtown East – Building Automation

MacQueen Equipment – Electrical, Technology, Fire Alarm

OATI – Electrical

T3 – InterClad

For more information about NAIOP and the full list of award winning projects, see here.

EGAN COMPANY ELECTS MARK BROADWATER VICE PRESIDENT

Thursday, December 21st, 2017

MINNEAPOLIS, MN (December 21, 2017) – Egan Company, a Brooklyn Park specialty contractor, announced the promotion of Mark Broadwater to Vice President. In this role, Broadwater is responsible for leading the day-to-day operations, financials, and overall strategy and business development for the building automation, technology integration, and service teams.

Broadwater has over 22 years of experience in the electrical and construction industry, and joined Egan this fall. Throughout his career, he has held many roles including: Low-voltage Technician, Project Manager, General Manager, Vice President, and President of All Systems Installation, Inc. He has experience in the healthcare, financial, and education industries, and has worked closely with Wells Fargo and Mayo Clinic for many years. He graduated from Riverland Community College with a degree in Electrical Construction.

The Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal highlighted Broadwater’s promotion in its People on the Move feature.

About Egan Company
Egan Company is a privately-owned, specialty contractor providing building trades to general contractors, engineers, building owners, property managers, and facility engineers. Specialties include: electrical, mechanical, curtainwall/glazing/metal panels (InterClad), millwrights, building technology, controls and system integration, and 24/7 service. Egan serves every stage of a building and provides in-house expertise in planning, design and engineering, construction, and maintenance.

# # #

Media Contact:
Jessica Johnson
jkjohnson@eganco.com // 763-595-4310

Attn: Calling All Old Phone Services

Monday, December 11th, 2017

Your building’s reliance on analog phone services could be costing  you money — and risking the integrity of your communication in an emergency.

What’s your other option? IP/Cellular Communicators continue to replace old phone technologies and will also continue to grow in 2018. Egan’s trained technicians can test current systems, provide recommendations, and install IP/Cellular Communicators in your building.

Many advantages with this new communication system include:

  • COST SAVINGS: see a return on investment in a short period of time with no more monthly landline costs
  • RELIABILITY: accurate monitoring and diagnostics — connection check frequently throughout the day instead of once every 24 hours
  • TIMELY: upgrades can be completed in one day

Ready to upgrade your building? Call 763.762.5636 or email us at service@eganco.com.

Optimize and Winterize Your Building’s Systems

Tuesday, November 7th, 2017

The health of your mechanical systems can directly impact the profitability, safety, and productivity of your building. Avoid unplanned downtime with maintenance from Egan.

From boilers to furnaces, trust our technicians to improve your heating systems. We can help:

  • Ensure occupant comfort and safety
  • Optimize efficiency and increase energy savings
  • Extend equipment life
  • Prevent potential problems
  • Improve indoor air quality and temperature control
  • Recommend system improvements and upgrades
  • Replace filters and belts as needed

Prepare your building for the coldest time of the year by scheduling an appointment with one of Egan’s trained HVAC technicians. Call 763.762.5636 or email us at Service@eganco.com.

Discover Egan: Drain Cleaning

Friday, September 22nd, 2017

Clogged drains are common in commercial and industrial plumbing systems, but can lead to unexpected downtime and costly repairs. With routine cleaning, costly drain clogs can be a thing of the past for commercial and retail businesses.

Using state-of-the-art cameras, Egan Company’s plumbing and drain cleaning experts can visually examine hundreds of feet of piping to find the root of the problem. In addition, with our customized preventative maintenance plans, a trained technician can be dispatched regularly to ensure drain clogs don’t slow down business operations.

DRAIN & SEWER SERVICES

  • Blockage clearing using cable machines equipped with augers and root cutters
  • High pressure jetting to scour the walls of your piping system
  • Pipe inspection with digital camera and high resolution monitor
  • Digital video to document defects and obstructions
  • Pumping services
  • Grease trap installations
  • Maintenance programs

PLUMBING SERVICES

  • RPZ backflow preventer testing and repair
  • Piping system repair
  • Pump overhaul and replacement
  • Water heater installation and replacement
  • Fixture, faucet, and flush valve repair
  • Plumbing retrofits
  • Water softeners, carbon filters, and filtration
  • Rain water/roof drain installations
  • Maintenance programs

Learn more about Egan’s 24/7 Service.

School District Goes off the Grid

Friday, April 21st, 2017

As a customer for nearly 10 years, Mound-Westonka Schools rely on Egan Company for a number of maintenance needs, including boiler tune-ups and electrical outages. In summer 2016, Mound-Westonka High School had suddenly lost power, and a member of the school’s facility management team noticed smoke in the building. As Egan regularly works on various schools in the District, Egan’s Service team was called to the site.

The Fire Department, utility company, and an Egan technician were all dispatched out to the high school to assess the situation. Before anyone could enter the building, the Fire Department needed to clear it of smoke and verify it was safe to enter. They then had to await the arrival of the utility company to disconnect the school from the utility grid so they could safely evaluate the problem.

“As we were standing outside the school, we could hear the electrical busbar underground shorting and failing in the underground tunnel,” said Darrell Blazevic, Egan Company Account Manager. The school’s main electrical supply failed in a tunnel underneath the school, so smoke needed to be evacuated from there as well before we could begin investigating.”

Once the Fire Department and utility company had completed their work, Jason Lindula, Egan Company Safety Coordinator, reviewed the site for any potential hazards. Because all the electrical work needed to be done in an underground tunnel, any employee on site was required to be trained on Confined Space and Air Monitoring Systems before entering the tunnel.

Major Disruptions

Although classes were not in session, this power outage caused major disruptions, not just to the high school, but to the entire Mound-Westonka School District.

The main power had a catastrophic failure, and power was completely cut off throughout the school. And since the District’s fiber-optic network and communication server is held at the high school, they also had lost access to all methods of communication.

In addition to the entire District losing access to the server, there were also numerous activities still happening at the high school. Temporary power needed to be set up in order for them to resume as soon as possible. Within one week, Egan electricians had set up temporary power with a 480 volt generator the size of a semi-trailer. Temporary fiber cabling was also put down to provide an immediate solution to the loss of the District’s server.

Egan Company acted quickly and made us feel like they had a good handle on the problem.

-Phil Smith, Director of Facilities at Mound-Westonka Schools.

Digging in to Find a Permanent Solution

Knowing that the permanent power needed to be replaced as soon as possible, Egan’s team worked methodically and safely to get the District back on the grid. The main problem was the service entrance feeder had failed and heated up the electric busbar, causing the failure in the electrical feeder and fiber optic.

Earth excavation outside the school opened up a wall below grade to gain access to the tunnel and repair the damage from the failure. The utility company’s transformer, service entrance power supply, fiber optic cabling, and all the wiring in the tunnel had to be repaired. With a new transformer, more than 6,400 feet of cable was installed to reconnect the service entrance conductors to the main electrical switchgear. New fiber optic cabling was installed to regain access to the District server.

In less than two weeks, the entire school was back on permanent power and operating as normal.

“There were multiple things going on at once, and if we had taken time to contract it all out ourselves, the whole process would have taken way longer,” Smith said. “We were very satisfied with the way Egan took the bull by the horns and kept everyone in the loop, including the School Board.”

GET YOUR HVAC EQUIPMENT IN SUMMER SHAPE

Wednesday, April 5th, 2017

As the temperature increases, so does the need for air conditioning in facilities. Winter can be rough on HVAC equipment, and without routine maintenance, the longevity of equipment is greatly reduced.

By planning ahead, Egan’s team of trained technicians can complete a spring startup to avoid costly repairs and equipment replacements for any facility.

Egan’s spring startup process includes: 
Replace all filters

Power washing condenser coils

Test cooling operation of units

Check for any refrigerant leaks

Check cooling contactors, fans, coils, economizers, compressors, and refrigerant levels

Clean condensate traps

Submit electronic service report with inspection results and recommendations

Want to receive routine updates about Egan’s service capabilities? Join our email list!

Emergency Response Helps to Avoid Costly Property Damage

Thursday, March 12th, 2015

Egan History Image 2Since the 1960s, Egan Company has provided operational support for buildings and their internal systems. Egan’s in-house 24/7/365 call center dispatches qualified trades personnel to service building infrastructures and controls.

Our emergency response is a service many of our customers find valuable. The League of Catholic Women, a local nonprofit organization, found this service useful this past New Year’s Eve when the boiler in their unoccupied Minneapolis building was not running, causing the temperature to rapidly drop to the mid-30s.

“We were two weeks from closing on the sale of the building in Downtown Minneapolis, and the waterline ruptured,” said Fran Rusciano Murnane, Co-President of the League of Catholic Women. “Chaos would have ensued were it not for the commitment, perseverance, and ingenuity of [Egan’s] Nick Millette, Dale Bocan, and Tony Lawrence.”

The City of Minneapolis had shut off the water two days prior because of the break in the main water line. As a result, the boiler ran out of water and stopped running.

Rusciano Murnane received a recommendation to install 30 space heaters throughout the building. However, the cost to deliver 30 heaters on New Year’s Eve would have been incredibly cost prohibitive, let alone the likelihood of finding a bulk quantity of electric heaters on a holiday.

van00srevisedPromises Made

Egan determined that the best solution was to try to get the boiler running. A tool was created that extracted water from the water heater into the boiler. The boiler ran for the next three to five days so water could continue to be forced into it.

Once a sufficient amount of water was fed into the boiler, it was safely turned on and the building began heating again. However, it was soon determined that another city waterline had ruptured that hadn’t yet been discovered. As a result, the waterlines inside the building were not draining, so the potential for additional burst pipes throughout the 20,000 square foot facility was very probable, resulting in extensive property damage.

Egan drained the water from the building fixtures and waterlines, but soon encountered a new problem: these two ruptured waterlines had caused water to leak through the exterior wall into the electrical room near the electrical panel.

As a result, the electrical components needed repair, but the situation was deemed unsafe with water still over the electrical panel.
Once the City shut off the waterline and the environment was safe, all damaged electrical components were repaired within five days of the initial service request.

Promises Kept

The League of Catholic Women was able to successfully close on the sale of their newly purchased building and avoid any costly property damage.

“I am in awe of the professionalism, skill, intelligence, and kindness of Nick, Tony, and Dale. Each of these gentlemen demonstrated the utmost concern in dealing with a dire situation on New Year’s Eve,” Rusciano Murnane said. “In an era of decreasing concern for the customer, these three concerned individuals exhibited the best training and outcomes that anyone could hope or expect.”

(The Egan team mentioned here includes: Nick Millette, HVAC Service Pipefitter; Dale Bocan, Plumber; Tony Lawrence, Electrician.)