Efforts to achieve energy efficiency, enhance connectivity and harden infrastructure are fueling an abundance of construction projects across the nation—data centers, solar farms, manufacturing and healthcare facilities, universities, schools and more.

Many such opportunities manifest as large and sophisticated projects not easily handled by just one electrical contractor. In such a business climate, the ability to cooperate and collaborate leads to success for companies of all sizes.

ERMCO Inc.

“A big job used to be around $30 million. Now, for the electrical and low-voltage integration scope, it could be in excess of $100 million,” said David Peterson, president and CEO of ERMCO Inc., Greenwood, Ind. “There’s a lot of risk beyond resources when you take on jobs of that magnitude, such as cash flow, bonding and manpower.”

Getting around that requires spreading the risk and sharing the wealth. 

“We think we’re a great partner,” Peterson said. “The size of these jobs is so vast, there’s not one contractor that can do them all.”

Peterson has served on ERMCO’s executive leadership team since 2009 and has helped grow the company to more than 135 administrative employees and 1,200 field staff. Under his leadership, revenue grew to $240 million in 2023. The company’s national presence continued to expand along with its services, which include installation, design, preconstruction, systems and controls integration and maintenance.

ERMCO is working on several $1 billion projects in the Indianapolis area while growing nationally with sports and entertainment venues, aviation, data centers and healthcare projects.

“We’re absolutely seeing the industry migrating to larger-scale projects,” he said. “There are so many mega jobs out there that the larger contractors are growing at an exponential rate. We’re seeing lots of mergers and acquisitions. In many cases, it’s generational change with owners and second generations selling or transitioning to [employee stock ownership plans].

“Smaller contractors have great relationships with core local contracts, but don’t have the resources and experience to manage the mega projects coming to their areas,” Peterson said. “Larger contractors like ERMCO offer an opportunity for smaller contractors to have access to the estimating depth and expertise as well as the project management and operational knowledge required for these big jobs. We also have the financial wherewithal, relationships with vendors, fabrication capabilities and field leadership to drive any size project.”

Established in 1962, ERMCO has operated nationally since the early 1980s. 

“That has created confidence and trust within the industry with construction managers, partners and owners,” Peterson said. “It shows we know how to travel, which is not the same as doing the work in your own backyard. There’s an art to it. It requires being precise with estimating, building relationships and picking the right partners. ERMCO has done these things hundreds of times with success, which sends a distinct message about our brand and capabilities.”

Taking on larger jobs involves special considerations. 

“We partner under many contract methods, including joint venture and prime subcontractor. It comes down to risk and resource availability,” he said. “The contracts are not as simple as they once were. There are more cost and fee projects now than traditional lump sum projects.” 

ERMCO hired a paralegal to help manage contracts and educate the operations team. The company also works with its peer group, the Electric Roundtable. Members regularly critique one another’s practices and share lessons learned.

“We’re always looking to learn from our partners,” Peterson said. “With each partnership, we’re interested in learning new ways to approach preconstruction and operations processes. And we’re happy to share best practices and lessons we’ve learned along the way.”

Frischhertz Electric Co. Inc.

An example of this style of collaboration played out at the Louis Armstrong International Airport in New Orleans. ERMCO brought its previous aviation and large-project experience to the joint venture with fellow Electric Roundtable member Frischhertz Electric Co. Inc., New Orleans.

Kevin Frischhertz is president of the company his grandfather started in 1951. Clients include owners of airports, hospitality venues, healthcare, lighting industry, manufacturing, office buildings, gaming, multifamily dwellings, theaters and more.

In addition to 50 office personnel and 250 field electricians, the company has a low-voltage division, service department and a subsidiary, Monarch Technologies, which operates as a separate IT company.

“For the airport project, we did a lot of subcontracting with minority­-owned businesses. Their participation is required for many of the city, state and even private contracts we handle. Also, when we’re working with a general contractor, there are certain requirements there,” Frischhertz said.

Frischhertz Electric gained its footing constructing larger projects in the 1990s, with a New Orleans convention center project that challenged its capabilities. Making it over that hurdle sent a message to general contractors about the company’s abilities.

“After that, more large projects became available,” Frischhertz said. “We would take a look, see if it would be a good fit and we’d attempt to go after it.”

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Frischhertz Electric rebuilt many electrical systems above flood level for multiple customers, including in new buildings. 

The Louis Armstrong International Airport in New Orleans gave ERMCO and Frischhertz Electric an opportunity to pool expertise.

“This allowed us to expand and enter a diversity of markets, including healthcare and municipal buildings,” Frischhertz said.

The company relies on a solid local labor force and uses prefabrication to increase efficiency and safety. It recently purchased an 18,000-square-foot warehouse space to expand prefab operations.

Frischhertz Electric was recently awarded a joint venture project to change the turbine controls for the Sewage and Water Board of New Orleans to a utility-powered system. The company continues to partner with contractors on projects in Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida and Alabama.

Lake Charles Electric Co. LLC

About four years ago, Frischhertz Electric partnered with Lake Charles Electric Co. LLC, Westlake, La., on a casino project three hours from New Orleans.

“We reached out to NECA field rep Dave Roberts, and he introduced us to Lake Charles Electric,” Frischhertz said. “It was a strategic decision to partner with them because we didn’t know the labor market, and Dave said they had done a lot of work with casinos and were familiar with having to ramp up.”

Lake Charles Electric normally employs around 50 electricians, but that number has fluctuated as high as 350.

For the job, Frischhertz Electric supplied a project manager and superintendent. It also expedited payroll and purchase of materials.

Lake Charles Electric supplied the foremen, subforemen and the rest of the labor force. Both companies supplied their expertise.

“As far as partnering on projects, you have to feel comfortable with doing it, and it’s not a good idea to do it if you don’t,” said Boo O’Quinn, co-owner of Lake Charles Electric along with his brother Robert, president. 

“We’re a local company and not large. Our sales have been anywhere from $5 to $20 million over the years. We have been able to handle some larger projects, but one reason for that has been joint ventures,” he said.

O’Quinn’s father, Earl O’Quinn, and two other electricians established the business in the mid-1970s, serving petrochemical refineries and commercial institutions. Now the company’s services include high-voltage wiring and repairs, inside wiring, installation and maintenance, site lighting, fire alarm, automated systems, low-voltage, video and voice and data.

“You don’t see lots of big concerns coming in here,” O’Quinn said. “We’re at the southwest corner of Louisiana, probably people come to the casinos from Houston.” 

Lake Charles is home to about 100,000 residents, five casinos, a racetrack, pools, water park, entertainment venues, restaurants and large hotels.

“We’ve done joint ventures four times in the last four years,” O’Quinn said, adding that working with other contractors can help mitigate financial risks.

“One JV we participated in was close to $60 million,” he said. 

Frischhertz and a contractor for a local electric utility bought materials and handled project management, he said, “which freed us up to do the work without headaches.”

As a family-owned business with no descendants interested in future ownership, Lake Charles Electric may one day join the ranks of smaller contractors merging with larger ones, O’Quinn said. 

“We’ve been offered to sell, nothing serious we would take just yet,” he said.

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