JP CULLENS & SONS 9/17/07 8:42 AM Page 26

J.P. CULLEN & SONS

explains. Five high- Since the project’s inception and as a

WORK IT OUT speed lifts hoist
Here’s a look at how J.P. Cullen & Sons had met material to the
upper levels. In
work force participation requirements for the restora-
addition, 1.2 million
tion of Milwaukee City Hall as of July: pounds of scaffold-
■ 31.3 percent – Total project construction hours worked by ing anchored to the
minorities exterior ensures the
■ 26.8 percent – Amount of participation by the city’s residence
safety of the pedes-
preference program trians as well as the
contractors.
■ 77 percent – Minorities who represented the total number of
Given the magni-
apprentice hours
tude of the project,
■ 23 percent – Total project construction dollars contracted by J.P. Cullen relied on
emerging business enterprises its close working
Source: Prism Technical
relationship with a
skilled team of sub-
lem,” Watson explains. As a result, J.P. contractors. Hitting tight delivery sched-
Cullen rented a nearby storage facility ules, although challenging, is made possi-
for the subcontractors to keep tools and a ble by emphasizing productivity. At the
limited amount of material. The next project’s peak, Watson estimates 15 sub-
step was to display a large calendar at contractors will be on site at one time. As
the site office where the team could see the state of Wisconsin’s only ISO
when material deliveries would be made 9001:2000 certified contractor, it is bank-
and how the project would progress. ing on is quality methodologies to deftly
“A lot of the time the materials being manage the trade participation process,
delivered will go right up to the scaffold- as it did for the multi-phased State
ing where work is being done,” Watson Capitol restoration project.
part of its quality management process,
J.P. Cullen has hosted monthly partnering
lunches where the craftsman, contractor
and even city officials can converse about
the project.
Based on the company’s proprietary
methods, J.P. Cullen also taught subcon-
tractors process improvement on the job
site. To catch crews in action, J.P. Cullen
video recorded subcontractors in various
stages of construction between two and
three hours. Management then reviewed
the video with the owners of the trade
companies to determine where mistakes
were being made and where productivity
could be improved. In many cases, boost-
ing efficiency on the job site was a mat-
ter of getting workers the right tools. After
it reviewed the video of onsite perform-
ance, productivity almost doubled for
one subcontractor on the project.
“Instead of looking at how to make the
schedules more productive, we look at
how to make the worker more produc-
tive,” Rocole explains. If the project pro-
gresses as anticipated, the renovation will
be completed in November 2008. ■

DIVERSE IN contractor must ensure that by

SO MANY
WAYS
The Milwaukee City Hall renovation
represents more than the typical
renovation. Along with customized
work, the project is also investing
in and revitalizing a new set of con-
tractors within the Milwaukee com-
munity.
According to the 2005 estimates
by the U.S. Census Bureau, of the
city’s population, an estimated
37.3 percent are African-American,
12 percent are Hispanic, 2.9 per-
cent are Asian and 0.9 percent are
American Indian. In many cases,
minorities are underrepresented in
the construction industry.
Recognizing the need to provide
opportunity to the local and minori-
ty work force, Mayor Barrett along
with the city’s Common Council
were committed to requiring local
participation from key groups of
subcontractors. The City of
Milwaukee Department of Public
Works identified work force partici-
pation requirements for the
restoration project. The general
project’s end in November 2008,
the following requirements are met:
■ A minimum of 18 percent of the
contractual and change-order dol-
lars paid to J.P. Cullen must be
awarded to businesses certified as
emerging business enterprises
(EBEs) by the city’s emerging busi-
ness enterprise program.
■ A minimum of 25 percent of the
hours worked on the renovation on
site must be completed by those
certified under the residence pref-
erence program (RPP).
■ At least six apprenticeships,
working a minimum of 10,000
hours, must be employed from
trades such as bricklayers, glazers
and roofers.
J.P. Cullen is proving that it, too,
is committed to the project’s diver-
sity, and has made significant
strides in meeting and thus far,
even exceeding the participation
goals, says Larry Rocole, vice
president of its Milwaukee division.
“The whole reason for the
RPP/EBE program is to give indi-
viduals who have not had opportu-
nities to gain employment [in con-
struction] that opportunity,” Rocole
says.
“If you’re going to get involved in
something like this, you don’t do it
to create numbers; you’re in it to
create jobs and careers.”
With experience completing
jobs for Milwaukee Public Schools,
which had similar work force par-
ticipation goals, J.P. Cullen was
more than confident that it would
be able to meet and exceed such
goals. The firm is required to sub-
mit monthly EBE payment reports
and quarterly RPP participation
reports. J.P. Cullen has also agreed
to collect, measure and share the
restoration’s RPP performance on
a monthly basis, ensuring accurate
and tight control over the participa-
tion performance.
Working with BIG STEP, the
Building Industry Group Skilled
Trades Employment Program, J.P.
Cullen was able to recruit a diverse
subcontractor work force for the
restoration. BIG STEP was
launched in 1976 as a joint effort
between the Milwaukee Building &
Construction Trades Council and
Milwaukee Public Schools to help
attract more minorities and
younger workers to the trades.
Many referrals are based on
word-of-mouth or through commu-
nity groups, church and other
organizations, Rocole notes.
Prism Technical, a Milwaukee-
based consulting and marketing
group, is the firm responsible for
tracking J.P. Cullen’s progress in
meeting the participation goals.
President Randy Crump says that
as of April 30, 15.7 percent of pay-
ments received had gone to EBE
contractors; 26.8 percent of the
work done was completed by RPP
contractors; 31.3 percent of the
total project construction hours
were completed by minorities; and
minorities represented 77 percent
of all apprenticeships.
J. P. Cullen sees diversity per-
formance as something that is in
everyone’s best interest. “In order
for the Milwaukee metro area to be
successful, we need to have a
successful inner city,” Rocole
asserts. “It is that kind of attitude
which makes a restoration project
like the Milwaukee City Hall an
opportunity for personal and pro-
fessional success in so many peo-
ple’s lives.”

26 ■ CONSTRUCTION TODAY ■ OCTOBER 2007