Business Spotlight: Connelly Plumbing Co. and Connelly Mechanical Inc.

Owners: Daniel Edwards and Dave Embrey

Founded: 1949 and 1997

Address: 1719 W. Mt. Vernon St., Springfield, MO 65802

Phone: Connelly Plumbing, (417) 866-2256; CMI, (417) 866-2262

Fax: Connelly Plumbing, (417) 866-2053; CMI, (417) 866-6006

Web: www.connellyplumbing.com and www.connellymechanical.com

E-mail: info@connellyplumbing.com and info@connellymechanical.com

Services/products: Commercial and industrial plumbing, HVAC, residential service and sheet metal fabrication

2007 Revenue: $10 million (combined)

Employees: 85 (combined)

In 1949, John F. Connelly began a plumbing business in a small building on West College Street in Springfield. He had six employees, and paid an average wage of $1.50 per hour to licensed plumbers.

That small undertaking has grown into a pair of separate businesses that produced combined annual revenues of $10 million in 2007. Three generations of Edwards family expertise and 35 years of Dave Embrey’s heating and air conditioning know-how contributed to that growth.

Best of both worlds

Connelly Plumbing had been in business for 12 years when John Edwards, father of current owner Daniel Edwards, bought it in 1961. But it didn’t really take off until shortly after the purchase.

Part of the reason for that sudden growth was the frantic push to complete construction of Battlefield Mall in the early 1970s.

“Things were really crazy then,” recalls Daniel Edwards, who joined his father’s business in 1971 and became company president in 1994. “Everybody in town was working there, but I’m not sure anybody really knew what was going on. My father was called to the mall to do a job on one building. When he got there, somebody else was working on his job. So he looked around, met a lot of people, and picked up some other work.”

Edwards, a “lifelong plumber” who holds both master plumber and pipe fitter certifications, says some of those contacts helped bring in other new business.

Dave Embrey entered the picture in 1997.

Like Edwards, who is current president of the Springfield Contractors Association, Embrey had been in the same business all his life. But Embrey’s business was heating, air conditioning and sheet metal fabrication. Embrey brought with him 25 years of experience and the knowledge gained in running his company, Emco Mechanical, since 1983. Edwards and Embrey had known each other for years and worked together on a variety of jobs.

“Combining our services under two separate businesses seemed to be the most efficient and logical way to work,” Embrey says.

The two joined forces and founded Connelly Mechanical Inc. That union turned out to be a good move, says CMI co-owner and general manager Embrey, noting that “a lot of our customers contract for both plumbing and HVAC at the same time.”

Separate but connected

Although Connelly Plumbing, owned by Edwards, and Connelly Mechanical, owned by Edwards and Embrey, are two separate businesses, they operate out of the same location.

In 2002, both businesses moved into 33,000 square feet at 1719 W. Mt. Vernon St.

Connelly Plumbing has had a part in building area public schools, hospitals, manufacturing facilities, grocery stores and homes. It works on commercial, industrial and residential construction and renovations, sewer and water service, and plumbing jobs such as drain cleaning, backflow testing and water softeners and heaters.

CMI works in the commercial, industrial and residential fields of construction and fabrication, including heating and air, ventilation systems, ductwork and fittings, and computerized plasma cutting. CMI is an authorized dealer for Trane, Carrier and York equipment. It does not handle residential installation, but does provide 24/7 residential service.

The two companies have combined on projects including Jordan Valley Innovation Center, Gillioz Theatre, Hammons Field, Central High School, Hamra Plaza, Wesley United Methodist Church and Dameron Color Labs.

Additionally, CMI has installed kitchen exhaust systems in Maria’s Mexican Restaurant, Mille’s Café, Schultz & Dooley’s, Fuddruckers and Springfield Brewing Co.

The partnership works well for Carson-Mitchell Inc., one of Connelly’s largest construction customers. President Kit Carson says, “Sure, it’s convenient to have the two businesses in one location. When you need one, you’re very likely going to need them both. They handled the plumbing and HVAC for us at the Branson Recreation Center, and CMI took care of the mechanical work on the big Northrup-Grumman demolition project at the airport.”

Another advantage of the two-in-one location, according to Jerry Hackleman, president of contractor Dewitt & Associates, is job coordination. “For instance, when the ductwork is done, they’ve always got somebody ready to move in with the (HVAC) equipment, so there’s less dead time,” he says.

“Two of the bigger recent projects they’ve worked with us on are the Jordan Valley Innovation Center and the College Station parking mall.”

Times Three

A third generation Edwards came into the Connelly Mechanical business five years ago. Daniel Edwards’ son, Matt, says he wasn’t really sure what he wanted to do after graduating with a business management degree. “I worked in my dad’s business all through high school and college, but then tried a few other jobs before coming back here,” he says. “I learned the ropes through field work.”

Today, the younger Edwards serves as service manager for CMI, where he handles marketing, customer service and job scheduling.[[In-content Ad]]