12 year-old Safety Calendar artist Annalie’s April 2023 submission reminds us all that the the risk is too high. Texting while driving involves all three primary distractions: Manual – Visual – Cognitive – and increases your chances of a negative outcome.
Ask yourself – is it really worth it?
McPhee was instrumental in the buildout of two very important facets of the new University of Connecticut 2,600-seat, Toscano Family Ice Forum on the Storrs campus in the state’s quiet corner. McPhee first partnered with Metropolitan Interactive of Oxford, CT to provide all the necessary cabling, terminations and installations of the audio/video infrastructure and components necessary to support the new arenas sound system, video systems and live broadcasts.
Project Foreman Kevin Zbyk says “a combined 32 miles – 170,000 linear feet of audio/video cabling was installed to support the facilities speakers, video displays, touch panels, Bluetooth receivers, cameras, audio tie-lines, microphone inputs, assisted listening antennas and live broadcast connectivity. In addition, the project required the installation of approximately one hundred fifty (150) ceiling/wall/pendant mounted speakers, eight (8) large arena speaker arrays, thirty-five (35) wall/pendant mounted displays and multiple remotely controlled PTZ cameras,” Kevin concludes.
McPhee also with long-time partner Daktronics Corp of Brookings, SD to provide the electrical and low voltage infrastructure for their large scale LED video displays. “We furnished and installed all necessary wiring to support the connectivity and power to the arena’s 25’x25’x15’, 22,000lb center-hung video display and self-climbing hoist. A fifty foot (50’) along with two (2) one-hundred twenty foot video ribbon displays compliment the 15’x 10’ stairwell mounted video wall,” says site foreman Kevin Riley A state-of-the-art AllSport scoring system provides singular control of the new scoreboard, goal lights and twenty (20) game clocks that are positioned throughout the arenas offices, locker rooms and training areas.
Phalcon participates in a Specialty Trades Insurance Company (STIC) and was recently honored with one of six Awards of Merit out of 44 companies participating. Mike says: “the award is based on a combination of proactive items, trailing statistics and engagement/participation and is a direct reflection on our commitment to safety and ensuring that our employees get home safely at the end of the day.” Factors like OSHA Recordables, Lost Time Injuries and Risk Control all go into the achievement of this award.
Thanks to Mike for accepting this award our our behalf and Keep up the great work!
Recently, McPhee Electric and Daktronics Corp of Brookings, South Dakota have partnered up again to construct and install one of their state-of-the-art LED displays. Their latest ‘score’ is the Fairfield University Convocation Center’s new center-hung video display to provide game scoring and statistics for both men’s and women’s basketball. Chris Lappen, McPhee’s Project Manager says, “various McPhee teams are currently engaged in the construction and assembly of the center-hung video display, assembling and wiring the self-climbing hoist and installing/terminating wiring for electrical and signaling connections at the roof.”
The grand opening of the new 85,000 square-foot, 3,500-seat Arena is set for November of 2022. “An additional 2’ tall LED ribbon display mounted on the fascia between the concourse & club levels will encircle the entire center and provide a continuous loop of advertising, scoring and encouragement for both players and fans,“ Chris concludes. For more than 15 years, Chris’ team has installed and serviced hundreds of LED scoreboards, highway traffic signs and electronic billboards across New England for Daktronics resulting in this strong partnership and continues today.
The Utility Division of McPhee recently completed this Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) project in Provincetown, MA at the tip of famous Cape Cod. “We performed the engineering, major component procurement and installation of the 25MW / 45.8MWh system which operates in parallel with the local distribution system. The systems battery racks, inverters, control systems, pad mounted transformers, and a 25 kV switchgear all interconnect to the existing distribution system adjacent to the facility“ says Jake McPhee, Director of Utility Estimating.
Serving more than 5,000 customers, this BESS provides back up power should the area lose their traditional power sources. A summer tourist mecca and literally at the ‘end-of-the-line’, a loss of power to Provincetown can turn critical very quickly and this system provides a state-of-the-art approach to increasing reliability for customers. “This is a good example of the type of leading-edge projects that McPhee has always excelled at – working collaboratively with the client and solving new problems that help bring innovative technologies to life,” Jake concludes.
At an elevation of approximately 400 feet above the ocean surface, Tony Recanati (L) and Joe Aurora (R) of McPhee Electric stop for a moment take in the view from atop one of the wind power facilities east of Block Island, RI. Under the annual PowerHawke contract, Tony and Joe spent 5 days between the five towers performing the annual electrical preventive maintenance and inspections for the low voltage systems as well as a number of related repairs identified in previous inspections. Tony and Joe also recently completed the new globally recognized GWO Basic Safety Training prior to mobilization.
Almost 450 company employees, spouses and guests gathered on June 4th at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington DC to celebrate our collective history, accomplishments and partnership at the 2022 Phalcon Teddy Awards. After opening comments from the Phalcon partners – Mike, Marcus and Ed – and a video highlighting the history of Phalcon, gifts of appreciation were presented to Ted McPhee, founder of McPhee Electric and to Joe Richards, founder of Richards Electric.
“We owe so much to people like Ted and Joe for their leadership and vision. We stand on the shoulders of these industry giants’ as we move in to the future and cherish the legacy that they have provided us with ‘Grit & Gratitude.'” says Mike McPhee, CEO of Phalcon.
The Teddy Awards have been an annual tradition that started at McPhee more than 20 years ago and has been expanded over the years to now include the entire Phalcon family. The annual Phalcon Teddy’s Awards celebration takes time to reflect on our collective accomplishments and to honor and thank those who have contributed to our successes. The night was followed by dinner, dancing and plenty of time for Phalcon team members across the operating company locations to enjoy conversation and time together.
Colleagues from across all Phalcon companies recently came together in West Hartford, CT for this special leadership summit. Special thanks to our meeting partners at Next Academy and to Legrand North America for hosting us in May.
This year the offices of McPhee set out to spread Christmas cheer through collections for local Toys for Tots campaigns.
The Connecticut office donated over 200 toys to the Hartford County Plainville, CT Toys for Tots Campaign and the New Jersey office donated over 150 toys for the Metuchen, NJ campaign.
Our offices celebrated our collections with a joint ugly Christmas sweater competition prior to the holidays, all in good fun.
This effort was brought by the McPhee Green Team, our Connecticut office’s sustainability committee. The Green Team focuses on furthering sustainability within our business practices including impacts to the environment, our corporate governance and the community. As part of our community endeavors, McPhee is looking to make local impacts in the neighborhoods in which we work. What better way to spread holiday cheer than through collecting toys for those in need!
Toys for Tots, a 70-year national charitable program run by the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, provides happiness and hope to less fortunate children during each Christmas holiday season. The toys, books and other gifts collected and distributed by Marines and volunteers offer these children recognition, confidence and a positive memory for a lifetime. We believe it is such experiences that help disadvantaged children become responsible citizens and caring members of their community. For more information, visit www.toysfortots.org
This holiday season McPhee is hosting a toy drive to benefit the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots program. Across our three office locations in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Jersey our employees are taking part in helping bring the joy of Christmas to children less fortunate.
We invite donations of new, unwrapped toys for ages 0-14 between now and December 11th.
There is no wish list for specific items, we only ask that the following guidelines be adhered to:
We’ll close out this festive giving event with an Ugly Sweater contest for employees hosted on Friday, December 20th.