As we gear up for a very busy summer here at James CRAFT & Son it is once again time for us to open our apprenticeship program and fill available spaces with men and women who are ready and willing to accept the challenge.
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If you have spent time on our website or Facebook, you know James CRAFT & Son prides itself on providing “Quality CRAFTsmanship in Every Job” and being a contractor of the highest quality standards. This was once again proven at the Excellence in Construction Awards Gala for the Keystone Chapter of Associated Builders & Contractors for our work in 2017 on the Lancaster General Health Energy Center, Bell & Evans Hatchery and Fuch’s North America Headquarters.
On Wednesday, October 24th our team of employees accepted two (2) Excellence Awards and one (1) Merit award for our work on these projects. Our awards were:
Lancaster General Health Energy Center – Excellence: HVAC $1-$5 Million, Project of the Year Candidate
James CRAFT & Son performed the Mechanical Piping, HVAC and Plumbing installation for the renovation of Lancaster General Health’s existing boiler house and the vertical expansion for their new state of the art Energy Center. This nearly 18,500 square foot renovation and expansion, dubbed the “Energy Center of the Future” brought the hospital’s steam, chilled water and electrical services under one roof to allow for centralized control and more efficient operation, maintenance and monitoring of the environment.
The Energy Center Project had the goal of providing resilient power, steam, and chilled water for the expanding Lancaster General Hospital. With the vision of achieving these goals efficiently so that the hospital’s operating costs could be reduced all while limiting the overall impact of the project on the hospitals ongoing day to day operations. In the event of a utility provided power failure, this facility can power the hospital’s operations as long as they maintain access to natural gas service.
Bell & Evans Hatchery Plumbing & Utility Piping – Excellence: Plumbing Over $5 Million
James CRAFT & Son was hired to perform the Plumbing and HVAC installation for the new Chicken Hatchery for Bell & Evans. This new 160,000 square foot structure was built as the first organic certified and animal-welfare-focused chicken hatchery in the world. This state of the art facility can currently produce 1.9 million chicks per week while a planned expansion will increase that number to 3.6 million chicks per week.
Fuchs North America Headquarters – Merit: HVAC $1-$5 Million
James CRAFT & Son was hired to perform the Plumbing, HVAC, Controls, and Process Piping for the new headquarters and production facility for Fuch’s North America, a leader in the commercial spice & seasonings market. This 275,000 square foot facility was built to house their corporate offices as well as provide space for storage, production, and product testing. Not only did we work as the mechanical contractor for the project, but we also assisted in the design and budgeting process for over two years prior to the beginning of construction.
Over the course of the design, our long-time employee, Charlie Wolf worked hand-in-hand with the design team and the owner on the design and layout of the HVAC and Plumbing systems. Unfortunately, he was unable to see the project through to the end as he passed away shortly before the start of construction.
Thanks to our outstanding team of designers, estimators, project managers and experienced installers, we were able to help bring these projects in on time and under budget. Congratulations to the crews who worked on these projects. Your hard work is very much appreciated and our team is already on the lookout for next year’s ABC EIC entries!
James CRAFT & Son prides itself on providing “Quality CRAFTsmanship in Every Job” and being a contractor of the highest quality standards. This core value of ours was recently recognized at the 2017 Excellence in Construction Awards Gala for the Keystone Chapter of Associated Builders & Contractors. The project being highlighted was our work in 2016 on the Independent Living Apartment Building, The “Lodge” at Homewood at Willow Ponds.
On Wednesday, October, 25th, James P. Craft (Project Manager), Karl Arndt (Estimator) and Robert Krebs (Project Foreman) accepted the Excellence award on behalf of James CRAFT & Son at the Awards Gala. Our project was awarded this honor in the HVAC Over $5 Million category.
CRAFT was hired to perform the Plumbing and HVAC installation for the new Independent Living Apartment Building for Homewood at Willow Ponds. This new 278,00 square foot structure was built to serve the 55 and older community while providing a unique living option as compared to more typical condos or patio style homes. The 85 luxury apartment units of varying sizes are equipped with large windows and a spacious balcony allowing for spectacular views of the Catocin Mountains and the Homewood Campus. At the heart of the complex lies the community building which features a multitude of dining and shopping options for the residents as well as a spa, pool, fitness center and salon. The entire building sits on an indoor parking garage for the tenants.
The owners are very happy with their new building. Our relationship with the owner’s facilities manager is an example for how happy they are with our work. He has continued to call on our expertise to help with system questions and for new work within the facilities. When asked why he calls us, it’s because he knows we will do it right the first time and not cut any corners.
Thanks to our outstanding design team and our experienced installers, we were able to help bring this project to completion on time.
Your efforts and diligence are very much appreciated,and we are already on the lookout for next year’s ABC EIC entries!
Below are some photos of the project at key intervals…
If you have spent time on our website, you know James CRAFT & Son prides itself on providing “Quality CRAFTsmanship in Every Job” and being a contractor of the highest quality standards. This was once again proven at the Excellence in Construction Awards Gala for the Keystone Chapter of Associated Builders & Contractors for our work in 2015 on the Holy Spirit Hospital – Crums Mill Urgent Care Center.
On Wednesday, November 2nd, James P. Craft (Project Manager) accepted the Merit award on behalf of James CRAFT & Son at the Awards Gala. Our project was awarded this honor in the HVAC Under $250,000 category.
James CRAFT & Son was hired to design and perform the Plumbing and HVAC revision of their newly acquired medical office space. This older space was purchased with the intent of providing the community with a new urgent care center backed by the quality and outstanding reputation of Holy Spirit Hospital and Geisinger. James CRAFT & Son has long been a partner with The Norwood Company and Holy Spirit Hospital, this existing relationship led us to be the clear choice in a partner who understood the needs of the customer and could work hand in hand with their staff.
Our project team began with the detailed review of the existing plumbing and mechanical systems in order to determine how to best use the existing Plumbing and Mechanical systems to fit the new office layout and reduce costs to the customer. Because the existing heating & cooling system was still in good shape and adequately sized to handle the owner’s needs, we were able to come up with a design that allowed us to re-use much of the existing ductwork as well as the existing controls system. This allowed us to greatly reduce the cost of the project as there was no new equipment needed to achieve the owner’s goal.
Thanks to our outstanding design team and our experienced installers, we were able to help bring this project in on time and under budget. Congratulations to the crew who worked on this project. Your hard work is very much appreciated and our team is already on the lookout for next year’s ABC EIC entries!
If you have spent time on our website, you know James CRAFT & Son prides itself on providing “Quality CRAFTsmanship in Every Job” and being a contractor of the highest quality standards. This was once again proven as we recently received an Excellence Award from the Keystone Chapter of Associated Builders & Contractors for our work in 2014 on the Brew House and Restaurant Plumbing for Wyndridge Farms.
On Wednesday, July 22nd, Vicki Kearns (CFO), Mike Kearns (Estimator), Eric Miller (Project Manager), Randy Doxzon (Field Superintendent), and Ray Fertig (President, Ray Fertig Construction) accepted the award on behalf of James CRAFT & Son at the Awards Gala. Our project was awarded this top honor in the Plumbing $250,000 to $1 million category.
James CRAFT & Son, Inc. was hired to perform the plumbing work on a tasting room and event space for Wyndridge Farm. The Dallastown PA hard cider brewer decided to expand upon their recent success in the emerging hard cider industry and create a one of a kind event space by renovating and expanding upon the barn on the Owner’s farm. In addition to the tasting room project, the owner was also preparing for their entry into the beer market and with that, came the design and construction of their Brewhouse.
Our team worked closely with the owner’s brew master to create a state of the art brewery. While facing a tight schedule, multiple redesigns and material supply delays, our team worked diligently to put together a one of a kind project!.
Congratulations to the crew who worked on this project. Your hard work is very much appreciated and our team is already on the lookout for next year’s ABC EIC entries!
Putting Technology to Work for You!
Cell phones, laptops, tablets…from a technology standpoint, a lot has changed in the construction industry in the last 10-15 years. Communication is constant and information is now at our fingertips. While there are pros and cons to this from a productivity standpoint, one thing is clear – putting the right technology in the hands of employees allows them to better serve our valued customers.
Here at James CRAFT & Son, we constantly look at ways to put technology to use for our customers. From the addition of our laser layout system to mobile tablets that many of our field personnel now carry, we have always endeavored to remain a leader in the mechanical construction industry. Even now we’re in the midst of a companywide Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software upgrade. Upgrading these systems will allow our project teams, service personnel and support staff to have more control over their projects with real-time data at their fingertips. The completion of this project will push James CRAFT & Son, Inc. to the forefront allowing us to better serve our valued customers for many years to come!
As mentioned in last month’s blog…on October 18th & 19th James CRAFT & Son proudly sponsored four employees competing at the ABC Keystone Craft Championships. Three plumbing apprentices (Shawn Haugh, Michael Hunt & Kasey Koltes) and one sheet metal apprentice (Nicholas Miller) took part in this year’s event.
After two days of fierce competition, sheet metal apprentice Nicholas Miller walked away as our lone representative to this year’s ABC National Craft Championship. All three plumbing apprentices fared extremely well in what was the closest competition in recent history.
*For more photos, visit our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/JamesCRAFTSon
On Tuesday, April 29, representatives from construction firms across the state of Pennsylvania (including members of the James CRAFT & Son, Inc. team) gathered in Harrisburg for the second annual Associated Builders and Contractors, Free Enterprise Day. The group had the pleasure to be educated on critical issues on the state level, which negatively affect their firms, by a panel of political experts. After which, they received a visit from Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett, who took the time to discuss the progress made in the state by his administration, and even gave a few minutes for Q&A.
Following the Governor’s talk, individuals in attendance broke into groups to visit the state capitol and discuss pressing issues such as Paycheck Protection, House Bill 1154, and updating PA Apprenticeship and Training Laws. Thanks to the efforts of the attendees, the group was able to make stops at the offices of all state Representatives and Senators. Days like this remind us that while it’s easy to focus on what affects us at a National level, it is also imperative that we communicate with our State and Local governments, since they often have the largest impact on our daily lives.
You’ve heard it before…”Get into politics or get out of business!”
In the past I’ve spoken primarily about being active when it comes to national issues, but how about taking care of things on the home front?
On October 8th, 2013, four members of the James CRAFT & Son Family Leadership Team (Vicki Craft Kearns, Steven Kearns, Nicole Bazdar, & James P. Craft), along with Legislative/Legal Rights committee member Mike Kearns, joined nearly 200 other individuals representing the four Pennsylvania ABC Chapters (Associated Builders and Contractors) in Harrisburg.
The goal? To reach out to ALL 253 Pennsylvania State Legislators and spread one uniform message, “Free Enterprise is the best way to bring economic prosperity to the broadest group of Pennsylvania workers.”
After gathering to hear Governor Tom Corbett speak, and a panel discussion on Free Enterprise’s benefits to Pennsylvania, participants broke up into groups of 5-10 individuals. This allowed us to get in front of every member (or their staff) of the state House/Senate.
Long term employees, it’s something that every company strives for. Low employee turnover keeps training expenses down and helps develop continuity within the organization. However, with the daily hustle of working in a business, you often forget that many of the people around you have been actively working with the organization for a long time. James CRAFT & Son, Inc. has had an incredible run with maintaining long term employees. In fact, we currently employ 32 individuals who have been with us for at least 15 years and in the past five years have had 10 employees retire with 15 or more years of service under their belts. We are reminded of how lucky we are when we see those long term employees reach that blissful stage in their life that we are all working towards, you know what I’m talking about…RETIREMENT!
Earlier this month we had one more member of our staff join the ranks of those lucky individuals. Ruth Beveridge began her career with James CRAFT & Son back in October of 1989 and worked at various positions in the company throughout her 23 years of employment. In more recent years she settled into a position as a purchasing clerk and did a wonderful job building relationships with our vendors/suppliers and holding down the fort as various individuals transitioned in and out of the purchasing department. We would like to wish Ruth a happy retirement and one last time thank her for her years of service!
