The Association of Union Constructors (TAUC) presented the fourth annual Joseph R. La Rocca Union Project of the Year Award to Barton Malow Company and its partners with the Michigan Building Trades Council for efforts on the Lansing Board of Power and Light’s (LBWL) Delta Energy Park project in Lansing, Michigan. TAUC presented the honor as part of its annual Leadership Conference in May.
This award recognizes outstanding work performed under labor-management cooperation. Projects are judged by the following criteria: collaboration/teamwork, construction quality and craftsmanship, project execution/scale, and safety.
This project involved the setting and installation of all major equipment for a new combined cycle power plant, including heat recovery steam generators (HRSGs), gas turbines, and a new steam turbine. This state-of-the-art steam turbine captures exhaust from the gas turbines to efficiently maximize the plant’s energy production capability.
The project team was helmed by long-time leaders within the Barton Malow Family of Companies, including Directors Tom Garza and Tom Goolsby, Boilermaker General Foreman Marty Lewis, and Project Manager Colin Gillis. For the project’s duration, this team maintained a culture of flexibility and collaboration. When faced with unique challenges and coordination requirements, including a global pandemic, it developed solutions to ensure the project was delivered safely with industry-leading quality and productivity.
Combined cycle power plants have fallen out of favor within the energy market partly due to their relatively high initial cost. However, with the goal of becoming the largest utility in Michigan to generate coal-free power by 2025 and reduce carbon emissions by 80%, LBWL partnered with Lansing Power Constructors, a joint venture between Barton Malow and Clark Construction, to develop the Delta Energy Park.
The TAUC awards recognize outstanding work performed under labor-management cooperation and were named in honor of a true pioneer in the union construction industry. Joseph R. La Rocca served as Executive Vice President of TAUC’s predecessor organization, The National Erectors Association, from its inception in 1969 until his retirement in 1986.
