P1 Group has been serving the healthcare community both locally and nationally with single-source facility solutions for many years, and our recent work on the Saint Luke’s East Hospital Flex Capacity Expansion is no exception. The SLE Expansion project will address the hospital’s need for growth by expanding the emergency department. It includes a small renovation of the ER waiting room, but the bulk of the job is the construction of additional ER patient rooms.
P1 is putting virtual design and construction, fabrication, and mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and technologies construction (MEPT) capabilities to work, all while navigating new safety mandates and challenges due to COVID-19. Although P1 has done MEPT projects before, this will be the first MEPT project in the Kansas City metro area. The project has only been underway about five months, but Senior Project Manager Eric Affolter has already noticed a difference in the efficiency with which the project is progressing. “Having all trades within the company working together has really increased the level of communication and efficiency you just can’t get when you work with multiple entities,” Eric said. “Especially with all the COVID-19 guidelines we are now required to follow.” The SLE Expansion project is scheduled for completion in April of 2021.
What do you do when your 500-ton capacity silo needs to be modified from a tapered, oval shape to “true round”? It’s not something most of us will ever face, but it’s exactly the type of challenge P1 Group Millwrights are highly trained to solve.
When Central Plains Cement in Sugar Creek, MO, needed to change the shape of its 500-ton capacity silo to accommodate a new material, P1 Group was chosen as the prime contractor to design, fabricate, and execute the modifications of the silo and also allow the install of a new 34,000 lb. flange-mounted rotary feeder.
Due to COVID-19, P1 Group was not able to have our typical summer intern program, but we are excited to introduce you to the following students who have joined our Lenexa and Las Vegas offices for the summer. Here’s a little bit about who’s getting some hands-on experience at P1 this summer!
NINA ZEPEDA UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS, MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
You don’t have to be a an HVAC expert to guess that increasing your building’s intake of fresh outside air is beneficial during a pandemic like COVID-19.
P1 Group values safety above all, and in order to follow CDC interim guidelines, has increased outside air (OA) rates during the pandemic at the company headquarters in Lenexa. In addition, P1 Group offers this service to customers as part of our Healthy Buildings initiative which includes options for UV-C treatment and surface sanitization as well.
With warm weather on the doorstep, attention is turning toward that time-honored tradition of the summer vacation. We plan, save money, look forward to new scenery and time with our family, and just plain relaxing. But with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic that has impacted the entire globe, many are opting not to travel this summer.
When physical travel isn’t desirable, our age of technology puts that vacation “virtually” at your fingertips.
There’s just something about electrical things that appeals to P1 Group Electrical Preventative Maintenance Manager Jeff Gardner.
Jeff says he originally became an electrician because enjoys working with his hands. He finds great satisfaction in doing something tangible, so it is no surprise he also spends his leisure time in an equally fulfilling manner.
When Chart Industries called upon P1 Group as a trusted ESP (Engineered Systems Partner) to do the LN2 (liquid nitrogen) installation/replacement at Aisin Light Metals, Project Manager Nick Lawless knew there would be challenges.
Through the ESP Program, Chart helps P1 Group by bringing regional opportunities to our attention. In turn, P1 Group supports Chart by promoting their product and sharing opportunities with them as well.
The most challenging components of this project were:
Measuring new piping while the equipment was in use and the new components were not in place
Installing a new system while existing system was running, with limited down time
Overall, P1 Group installed 400 feet of new rigid piping and final connection hoses.
“In order to replace the system, I had to go out and field measure for new components being added while the equipment was up and running,” Nick explained.
Nick said that besides the equipment being in use while he was measuring, new sub-coolers were being added at a later date and were not yet in place, forcing the team to “best guess” final valve locations.
The team had to be nimble as well. During installation, the equipment was still up and running, producing parts. As each piece of equipment came off line, new piping was installed, requiring P1 Group to work quickly in between those production intervals.
Nick says Brock and Trace went the extra mile to ensure the success of such a challenging project.
“Not only were Brock and Trace able to make sense of the layout as I had intended, they had to make some on-the-fly adjustments to some pretty unforgiving piping,” Nick said.
“Since the system is engineered to order and it takes 4-6 weeks to produce, they had to be innovative in making the new system fit while the old system was still in play,” he explained. “While working safely, they had to crawl all over the equipment to place hangers and coordinate limited downtime for the more difficult-to-reach locations.”
“We did a similar project at Honeywell, but this was the first time we were called upon for an ESP installation outside of the Kansas City Metro area,” he added.
This meant the team was in an area with limited resources (compared to a metro area like Kansas City) and had to overcome obstacles in procuring parts installation.
In addition, Nick noted there was no way to make field alterations once the pipe was fabricated by Chart, leaving little room for error.
Stepping in to work while production is in full-swing and getting the job done right is what P1 Group is known for, and the Aisin Metals project was no exception.
“Brock and Trace really brought this one home for us,” Nick said. “Working right up until Christmas, away from their families, they put a nice big bow on the entire package.”
Not so long ago, Heather Richards-St. Clair headed off to the University of Central Missouri (UCM) with the dream of becoming a reporter and traveling the world. But when graduation came on the heels of a huge economic recession, she found herself following a different path.
Armed with a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism, she looked for what was available and was able to secure a position with a maintenance management company selling commercial janitorial and minimum maintenance service.
P1 Group was recently featured in The Fabricator magazine for our streamlined processes and innovations in fabrication, particularly our new WM-36 3D pipe cutting system.
"Sometimes meetings and proper scheduling can take you only so far in a fabricating operation. As business grows, maintaining that correct balance of flexibility and on-time delivery gets tougher if the same number of people have to tackle the increased work load in the same amount of space.
In the midst of social distancing and staying at home to slow the spread of COVID-19, it’s more important than ever to do our part to reduce, reuse, and recycle. In June of 2018, P1 Connection brought you a story about the recycling efforts of P1 Group and one of the program’s biggest champions, Manpower Coordinator Assistant Emily Barber.
Even though we continue to provide our regular services during regular business hours, P1 Group has temporarily closed offices for those personnel not deemed “essential” in compliance with government and state COVID-19 stay-at-home orders.
Some of us have jobs that allow us to work remotely with very little change to our actual work. But for most of us, we still face the very big difference of not reporting to an office, seeing our co-workers face-to-face, and the routine that goes with actually working on site.
You may not realize how much of what you learn, and the daily resources you use as a P1 Group associate come from Vanessa Taylor, IT Special Projects.
Most of us have touched base with Vanessa at some point with an IT issue or task, and solving our various conundrums is exactly why Vanessa chose a career in IT.
One of the most common challenges P1 Group faces on the job is working around unforeseeable conditions, such as weather or busy facilities that can’t be shut down for construction. In many instances, our field teams have to think quick to come up with rescheduling solutions and demonstrate extreme care working around staff and facility users, sometimes in critical environments.
Such was the case with the recent 8,000 sq. ft. sterile processing addition to Lawrence Memorial Hospital (LMH).
The January weather is cold and the Science at Play outdoor exhibit at Science City stands empty most days, but inside, preparations are being made to open two new exhibits, Creative Corner and Let’s Play.
Union Station in Kansas City is a celebrated historical landmark and home of the internationally awarded Science City.
Above, right: P1 Group’s EPM team graduates from CurrentSAFE training in Youngstown, OH. Pictured, from left: Kiley Taylor, CurrentSAFE NFPA70E Instructor; Jeff Gardner, EPM Manager; Clint Hines, EPM Technician; Branner Gordon, EPM Technician; Derek Baldomino, EPM Technician; Daniel Farnan, General Manager; Sean Samson, CurrentSAFE Vice President of Dealer Development; Kevin Dickey, CurrentSAFE President
When your values line up, it makes certain business decisions easier.
P1 Group isn’t the only group that embodies “The Expertise of Many, The Power of One.” P1 recently welcomed a group of 16 electrical and low-voltage technicians who have worked together for decades, putting aside rank, varying expertise, and barriers to work together as one.
The successful man was out and on the job long before opportunity came a-knocking. And this same opportunity is often disguised as hard work." ~anonymous
Service Technician Jeremy Alexander is no stranger to hard work. As a teenager, he started working for his dad’s company pouring concrete and eventually moved on to remodeling homes. Although it provided steady income, there were no benefits and when he found out he had a daughter on the way, he knew he needed to find something better to support his family.
While trial by fire can be a good way to learn, no one likes the anxiety that comes with a brand new job, project deadlines, and all new software and systems to learn.
That’s where P1 University comes in. P1 Group goes above and beyond to train new project managers so they get up-to-speed about the company and their job function as soon as possible.
A multi-dimensional flag appears to ripple right off the wall at P1 Group’s Lenexa headquarters. The piece was created by our own Architectural Metal Division at the 32,800 sq. ft. Architectural Metal shop in Kansas City, MO.
The flag was unveiled at P1 Group's 100th Anniversary Celebration in September.
P1 Group works with P1 Service, LLC to provide HVAC, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing service, performance solutions, and preventative maintenance. P1 Service, LLC has locations in Lenexa, KS, Wichita, KS, Topeka, KS, St. Joseph, MO, and Ankeny, IA.
