Riordan Brothers Integration: Boston Electricians Turn a Happy Accident into a High-Tech Niche
Sometimes the most fortuitous business decisions aren't decisions at all.
For brothers Tim and Paul Riordan, owners of Riordan Brothers Integration, a chance request from a homeowner nearly 30 years ago opened the door to an entirely new world —one that would take the family business from traditional electrical contracting to a specialized, innovative niche dedicated to automation and system integration.
"It was a mistake," Paul Riordan says with a laugh, recalling the moment back in the mid-1990s when a homeowner who had hired the brothers to wire his expansive custom house made an unusual request.
"The homeowner says, 'Hey, I don't want to see any light switches. Can you do that?' Of course, we said ‘yes,’” Paul recalls. "Actually, we had no idea what he was talking about."
Rather than walk away from the challenge, the brothers schooled themselves and found a solution. They discovered an emerging lighting-control platform, taught themselves to install and program it, and successfully delivered what the client wanted — no click-on/off switches, all smooth surfaces, a seamlessly integrated lighting system.
"That's really what started it," Paul says. "It wasn't that we looked for this opportunity. Somebody asked us to solve a problem, and we did it."
What began as a single project quickly led to a bold new direction for the company. Tim Riodan explains:
"My brother and I started out as electricians; we still carry our master's electrical license. But around the year 2000, we transitioned from a strictly electrical, line-voltage company to a low-voltage automation company. Right now, we specialize in lighting control and audio-video automation, whether that's sports bars, high-end residential, or hospitality markets.”
For residential clients, the company designs and supports integrated smart-home systems that bring together lighting, audio, video, climate control, motorized shades, networking, security, and surveillance. These systems are typically controlled through a single interface, such as a touchscreen, mobile device, or dedicated control panel.
“The client wants to be able to pull up his iPad, go to an app, and control his lights, his audio, his video, his shades, everything,” Tim says. “What's unique is that we can do that from one singular application. We can overlay all of these systems into a single app. The client can control his entire home, whether he's there or traveling. We can take all this technology and merge it into a single application, making it intuitive and really easy for the end user.
The vibe is futuristic and stylish, and decidedly not for every pocketbook.
The company’s impact is felt more widely in the commercial space, where it specializes in lighting control, conference room technology, audiovisual systems, building automation, and energy management solutions. Its work includes integrating multiple building systems into centralized control platforms that can be monitored and managed both onsite and remotely.
That combination of electrical expertise and programming knowledge has enabled the company to build an impressive portfolio stretching well beyond the Commonwealth. Paul points to the brothers’ partnership with Creston Electronics, a full integration manufacturer, as a crucial catalyst.
“Once they found out that we traveled to do work, they started hiring us for their lighting systems,” he explains. “We did StratCom at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska. We did Wrigley Field. We staff the USTA Center in Flushing, New York, during the U.S. Open to ensure all campus house lights stay on and to coordinate with ESPN broadcasts. The company just took off.”
The Riordans remain deeply rooted in Boston, and their union and trade ties run through the business. Both brothers are longtime members of IBEW Local 103, and the company belongs to the Boston Chapter of the National Electrical Contractors Association, staying active in its programs and industry initiatives and providing direct work and services to the NECA Boston office, the IBEW Local 103 union hall, and the JATC training facilities, a full-circle relationship with the institutions that shaped the company.
And the company is currently upgrading public-space lighting systems at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and recently completed a comprehensive AV and lighting modernization at the W Boston Hotel, encompassing the lobby, restaurant, conference facilities, and other public areas. Riordan Brothers has also managed lighting and audiovisual systems at Westin Copley Place for 20 years and has provided automation and lighting control solutions for Jake n Joe’s Sports Grille locations throughout the region.
The projects reflect the breadth of the firm's expertise and its longstanding role in helping Boston-area institutions create smarter, more connected environments.
Despite the high-profile nature of many projects, the Riordans say their success comes down to something simple: reliability.
"Predictable, reliable results are what they want," Paul says of their clients. "Where you really shine is that it works. Day in and day out, it just works. That's the win."
That philosophy extends beyond installation and commissioning. Unlike many contractors whose work concludes when a project is complete, the brothers pride themselves on maintaining client relationships over the long term, sometimes for decades.
"I've met clients' kids when they were babies,” Tim says. “And at this point, they have kids of their own. That's how long we've worked with some of these clients."
Paul describes it as a concierge-style approach to service.
"Especially on the residential side," he says. "Quick response times. Answering their questions. If something goes sideways, fix it quickly. Solve the problem. Nobody's really interested in why there was a problem. They just want to know that it was solved."
Given the scale, reach, and diversity of these projects – and the work required to maintain and service them year after year – you might expect Riordan Brothers to have a deep roster of technicians on staff. Nope. This is a four-person family operation that can support a national client base with remarkable efficiency.
“The key to managing the workload is remote access,” Paul says. “The most effective way to provide service is to be able to log into a client's system remotely and make changes, fix things, and diagnose issues. I can sit in my office, log in to Northwestern Medical in Chicago, then close out and log in to the USTA in New York, and solve their problem.
"It's amazing how few people you actually need to manage these systems if you can address issues without driving to the location. We manage 90 percent of our service calls from a PC.”
As buildings become smarter and owners expect more integrated technology, the Riordans believe the demand for their specialized expertise will only continue to grow. Even so, the brothers are confident that automation will never advance beyond their electrical roots.
“Once you start living with technology, it's really hard to go back. People are accepting technology because it works,” Tim says. “But at the end of the day, you're always going to need boots on the ground. Wires need to be pulled. It's not magic. You still need skilled technicians to do the work in the field, and you need really good, certified programmers on the back end to make all that work come to life.”
It's a perspective that bridges the traditional and the emerging sides of the electrical industry, a balance the company has maintained ever since that unexpected request from a homeowner decades ago.
What started as a job they didn't quite understand became a specialty they helped pioneer.
"We weren't looking for it," Paul says. "It just happened."