Firm reclaims title of largest electrical contractor

For the first time since 2002, Sechler Electric has advanced to the top of the Book of Lists as the area’s largest electrical contractor. It’s a close race, and a look at rankings past and present prove just how close it can be: determined by number of employees, this year’s second- and thirdplace companies each reported 55 staff members – the exact number that put Sechler in the No. 5 and No. 4 positions in 2003 and 2004, respectively. One of the most significant influences on the growth of the company, and the industry overall, is the strong market in residential construction, Vice President Danny R. Downs said.
While Sechler’s workload is an estimated 50/50 split between residential and commercial projects, Downs said that residential work tends to influence employment numbers a little more heavily.
Part of this is because commercial projects are more likely to be bid jobs, and Downs can maintain a steady work pace by deciding not to bid for projects. In the often-negotiated residential business, a long-term client experiencing an increase in building numbers can augment employment numbers, Downs said.
While the expertise of the staff is fairly consistent with the residential/commercial split – most specialize in one area or another, although Downs said he has a few employees that can work on either type of project – he said that maintaining an even work flow is one of his biggest challenges.
That can involve looking six months down the road and hiring in anticipation of the workload that may be coming.
“Mostly, it’s a guess. But it’s been working so far,” he said.
Establishing and maintaining good working relationships – and a good reputation – among builders is another of Sechler’s “secrets” to success.
“We’re competitive on price, but a lot of builders use us because we’re large, we get in, we get out, and we’re there when we say we’ll be there,” Downs said.
Duane Prewitt, senior vice president of preconstruction services at Killian Construction Co., said Sechler Electric wins a high percentage of the company’s local bid projects. Sechler bids competitively, Prewitt said.
Some of Sechler’s most high-profile work, including Hammons Field, Chateau on the Lake and Holiday Inn Express, has been done with Killian, Downs said.
Prewitt said that another of the electrical contractor’s advantages is its service. “They don’t take on more work than they can handle,” Prewitt added.
Robin Newhart, project director at Morelock-Ross Builders, also works with Sechler Electric. “Danny is accessible to us, and they respond immediately to any problems we may have, or any concerns … . They’re very friendly, very knowledgeable … our clients like working with them, too,” she said.
Newhart, whose focus is on the commercial side of the business at Morelock- Ross, said that the projects she works with Sechler on are bid projects; Sechler wins an estimated 50 percent of the bids. On Morelock-Ross’ residential side, Newhart added, Sechler does all of the company’s electrical work.
Sechler Electric was founded in 1947 by Errett Sechler, who remains the owner of the business. Danny Down’s father, Ray Downs, began working for the company in 1958 and, in the early 1970s, made an arrangement with Sechler to take over the day-to-day operations of the business. Currently, Ray Downs is semi-retired, Danny Downs said.
Danny Downs came on board as an electrician, straight out of high school, in 1977, at the age of 17. He moved into the office in 1983, and took over the day-to-day operations in 1991.
Downs said that in its beginning stages, the company probably consisted of Sechler and one or two employees. He estimated that employment stayed within 10 to 30 staffers until the mid-1980s, when the company began to expand to its current numbers. Since then, Downs said the staff numbers have held fairly steady, ranging from 55 to 85 people.
The scale of projects didn’t increase overnight, but Downs said that Sechler Electric has been taking on large projects for at least 20 years. He recalled working on-site, as an electrician, on the University Plaza Hotel.
But there have been some notable changes since Downs began at Sechler. The company started an apprenticeship school in the early 1980s, Downs said. He estimated that half of Sechler’s current foremen were trained by the company.
The integration of technology into day-to-day business practices is another noteworthy change, one that Downs spearheaded after he took over the operations. Before, paperwork, including invoicing, billing, and inventory, was all done by hand.
Sechler’s future, including any plans for expansion, will continue to coincide with the markets the contractor serves, Downs said. And while the economy plays a direct role in the amount of work out there, Downs said he expects the company to maintain the same pace it’s been sustaining for the past several years, though he declined to provide company revenues.
As for the currently strong residential market that influenced the company’s growth, Downs said, “for the foreseeable future, I’d say it will probably stay the same.”