In order to build a multi-generational company, a number of elements need to be in place. Skill, dedication, and a commitment to serving the client are key. With that in mind, it is no surprise that Lighthouse Electric are enjoying such sustained success. Lighthouse Electric is an electrical contractor mainly focusing on mission-critical data centres, including Light Industrial (battery plants, automotive), Healthcare, Service and Accounts. Anton Mikec, President of Lighthouse Electric Company, explains that, from the beginning, the company has focused on bringing the highest quality service to its clients. “The unique thing about what we do, and I think that we do differently is we are providing power and energy to people, and we like to look at the end user and focus on how we are serving – not only just the construction industry but how are we serving the end client?”
Lighthouse Electric Company was founded in 1984 by Anton’s grandfather and his three sons. As Mikec explains, the company began as “a very simple project comprised of two light poles in a church parking lot.” However, the company has used versatility and flexibility to grow and develop across multiple sectors. “Since that moment, that first job, we’ve experienced steady growth and the company has transitioned in our focus and our business focus several times since that point. We grew to bidding on public projects and did multiple school projects. Then we transitioned to more private work and now focus on three primary lanes.”
Understandably, safety is a huge priority for the company. It is a key component of its process and lies at the heart of Lighthouse Electric. Andy Hatcher, Director of Business Development and Marketing explained how safety is a core tenet of the company. “Everything starts with safety; this runs the lifecycle of everything we do.” Safety sits alongside a number of other processes which include scheduling, Earned Value Management (EVM), Estimating, Engineering and Planning. Speaking about EVM, Hatcher explained: “This is one of our newest Core Processes that is putting us in a new category for financial responsibility. We are able to have a firmer understanding of the health of projects earlier which is a win for us and our clients.”
Lighthouse Electric has seen a huge amount of success in recent years. For Hatcher, this stems from a highly skilled workforce out in the field. Without this, he says, the company may not have reached the heights it has. “For us, it starts in the field – without a strong field the beforementioned would not have a leg to stand on. The strong field has allowed leadership to take what some would consider risk and execute them at the highest level above industry standards.”
Mikec echoes this viewpoint, eager to discuss the huge impact the team has had on the company’s success. “I would say that our key to success is having excellent team members on our team that truly care to serve the customer. That serving mindset [along with] always building and growing, creating something new, working on a new process, something to make the system better, to serve the customer better.”
Never one to rest on its laurels, Lighthouse Electric Company is also investing in the area of prefabrication which will involve an element of building off the job site in a controlled environment. Called kits, the team creates work packages that are built off-site and shipped to projects. This development has helped to accelerate schedules and has alleviated pressure in high labor-demand areas. Mikec added, “It helps to spread labour out so we can build here in Pittsburgh and then ship to ship to different areas in the country.”
“Everything starts with safety; this runs the lifecycle of everything we do.”
Since its foundation, the company has hit many milestones, having worked with a range of large brands and companies. One of the recent projects completed by Lighthouse includes a new campus for a large microprocessor fabricator in Columbus, Ohio. The company also worked on a battery plant for General Motors, and another for Ford Motor Company. Both of these serve the industry of electric vehicles to “change the architecture of how we drive, how we live and work and play – the whole evolution of electricity,” Anton explained.
He added, “The Ford battery plant and the General Motors plant really got us into that space, and it got us into a place where we are working on a growing industry, and it will continue to grow.”
Lighthouse Electric has developed over time to become an industry leader in its field. However, it is not finished yet. It has huge plans for continued growth and expansion, with Hatcher explaining, “We continue to explore where the market wants to take us, we keep eyes wide open with trends in our 3 focused verticals. It is an exciting time for the industry as the rate of growth in these markets is unprecedented… The proverbial Gold Rush of our times!”
Speaking about what’s next for the company, he simply stated, “Responsible, sustainable growth with some new opportunities in fabrication. “We’re continuing to grow and expand our leadership in the field and at the C-Suite level and that’s very exciting for us. We have a lot coming up the next two quarters. We’ve got several jobs that we’ll be announcing with key clients.”
One of the more interesting things coming up for the company is the creation of a bus that will travel around recruiting partners and clients, travelling to job sites, universities, events, conferences, and events “to say thank you to the people that helped us get to where we are,” Hatcher explained.
Mikec believes that, as the industry grows further, so does the need for companies to adapt and develop. Within the context of the omnipresent labor shortage, Lighthouse Electric needs to dig into its well of innovation and flexible thinking to navigate the years ahead. “We need to have a growing company and that includes just getting better, improving how we connect with the ever-changing industry, and it also includes growing in numbers. One of the most challenging things that I see across the nation is the need for electrical workers and we partner with the IBEW, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and we have an excellent trained workforce and we’re always looking for more trained workers in different areas of the country. We’ll continue to grow in numbers as the industry grows – a lot of these larger projects are driving the need for additional employees and our team is always looking for the best.”
