NECA Contractor J&M Brown Company Powers Boston’s Newest High Rise, One Congress
Congrats to NECA Boston member J&M Brown Company (JMB), headquartered in Dedham, MA. This month, the company celebrated the substantial completion of the complex core and shell electrical construction of One Congress, the tallest high-rise to breach Boston’s skyline in 40 years.
Designed by internationally acclaimed architectural firms Pelli Clarke Pelli and CBT Architects and rising to 600 feet, the new 43-story, 1,006,500 square-foot office tower is the centerpiece project in Boston’s Bulfinch Crossing and will serve as the headquarters for State Street Corp. One Congress is LEED Platinum certified.
JMB’s comprehensive electrical project scope entailed installation of the building’s primary and emergency power systems, electrical distribution, interior and exterior lighting, and lighting control systems, as well as the building’s state-of-the-art fire alarm and life safety system. JMB also provided electrical infrastructure for the building’s AV, security, and tel and data systems.
The project specs are impressive: Approximately 200,000 linear feet (more than 37 miles) of conduit and 500,000 linear feet (more than 94 miles) of wire installed. The building’s interior lighting package features more than 6,000 LED light fixtures and drivers, controlled by an advanced multiple-zone Lutron lighting control system. Exterior lighting at One Congress features customizable, color-changing facade uplighting.
Primary power is provided via a 13.8KW/480V transformer and electrical distribution system. For emergency and standby power, the building is equipped with five rooftop generators: a 1,750KW generator for the base building and four 750KW generators for tenants.
The project commenced on November 19, 2019, ahead of the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. At peak construction, JMB managed a field crew ranging upwards of 50 IBEW Local 103 journeymen and apprentice electricians. The NECA contractor’s crews worked more than 165,000 man-hours to meet scope and timeline requirements despite stringent COVID-19 construction safety protocols and significant supply chain challenges.
Heading the JMB team were project manager Ed Zipper, project supervisors Wayne Lucas and Daryl Weiss, and foremen Mark Nicolas, Bill Patterson, and Eamonn McDonagh. JMB worked in close coordination with the general contractor, Winchester-based John Moriarty & Associates, and a cadre of skilled subcontractors.
Outstanding work, JMB!