Bridging Communities by Tony Hernandez

Two major projects started in Spring of 2019!

The first is a replacement of the 118-year-old N. Washington Street Bridge. J.F. White Contracting Co. is the general contractor, and Prime Coating will complete the painting for this $177 million project. The project is to be completed by August 2023, but the City has committed to pay $7.2 million as an incentive to complete the work six months early, and J.F. White faces fines of $40,000 for every day the project runs late.

Construction on the Chelsea Viaduct Bridge, which is a joint venture of Skanska, McCourt Construction, and L & L Painting, began the first week of April, and we currently have 14 members on site.

As a helpful notice to all Bridge Painting contractors: the Massachusetts Department of Transportation and the National Water Resources Association require that 6.9% of work hours go to women workers. We have had experience with contractors that are not aware of these requirements in advance and have to scramble to meet the 6.9% threshold. If the requirement is not met, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts may withhold payments. There are also opportunities that require workers to have United States citizenship, complete a background check and have a Coating Application Specialist (CAS) certification.

Wayne Cummings and the Training Department have gone to great lengths to ensure all members complete the exams to receive CAS level 2 and C-3 certifications. Members should be aware of these requirements and complete the exams! With more training, our members will have more work and greater opportunities.