Campito Plumbing & Heating Ltd.

Building from scratch

The heating and plumbing company was started by Frank Campito in 1940, which eventually became incorporated seventeen years later. Now, Campito Plumbing & Heating Inc. is one of the largest mechanical contractors in the Capitol District Area, covering a range of public and private work in a 75 mile radius around Albany, New York. From commercial office buildings, local school districts and colleges to large-scale computer centers, Campito plays an important role in the earlier stages of a new building as well as plans to renovate boiler room stations and chiller stations.

Area of growth

Indeed the real estate industry slumped to all-time record low when the market crashed last year. While there are some signs of recovery, the root problem of lacking regulation for creditors who literally gave away mortgages like lottery tickets has not dissipated. Nevertheless, those working in the trades have noticed some areas of growth. “We also have done work in an area that’s become quite big –in nanotechnology,” says Carol Henry, director of project management at Campito Plumbing & Heating Inc. The Center for Environmental Sciences and Technology Management (CESTM) is a large clean room for chip wafer research facilities on the State University at Albany campus dedicated to nanotechnology research, which has been built over several years. Campito was involved in the project, says Henry, but our area of specialty is really the hydraulic side, boiler rooms, chillers, design-build projects and plumbing system.

Green designs, big market

Henry admits the slow-down in development of buildings in the local area will continue on into 2010. “There is a lag time between what the design team and what the industry will feel, and what [the contractors] will feel because things that [architects] worked on in November have come out to bid, and that’s what we’re working on now,” says the director of project management for Campito. Henry adds that while the design industry felt a slowdown in November of last year, contractors have just started to feel the impact. “I expect we will also see that on the state-government side as well given that the slow down on state economy revenues,” adds Henry. Most recently finished a project for Empire State College which is an online and site-specific long-distance learning center for the state of New York. The project is also going for a LEED certification—another area of growth, she says. “We have worked on several other LEED projects over the past number of years but yes, you’ll be seeing more and more of green construction particularly at the state level,” says Henry who observes that the LEED jobs of late are taking the lead on green design–no pun intended.

Inter-module modeling, new technological advances      

Like everything else in the world, things seem to be going faster and faster and faster. “Particularly with the advent use of web-based file sharing and the increased use of CAD for the coordination of your drawings,” says Henry who observes the larger companies, construction developers and owners are starting to insist on building inter-module modeling which is new to their servicing area. “When I started out we used to use light-tables for coordination drawings you know, where everyone would sketch their drawings on layers and them put them on top of each other and see your conflicts,” she says, adding all of this is now done with CAD electronic layers that are passed around. With the kinds of versatile building materials now available, it allows construction projects to continue year-round including, the winter months.

‘A woman can do a job just as good as a man’

When asked if there was anything missed in conversation, Henry pipes up to add: “Yes, a woman can do a job just as good as a man.” The long-time member of the National Association of Women In Construction (NAWIC) who believes in mentoring others in order to enhance the success of women in construction. “Women should not shy away from this field,” asserts Henry adding construction is a very challenging but also a very satisfying career choice. Truly a great sign of a mentor is someone, like Henry, who gives back. “If you learn your job and you do it well, you will get the respect that is out there,” she says.

People skills trump the handy man stereotype

True, it definitely takes a certain kind of person to work in this field. Confidence, assertiveness, as well as general knowledge of construction go hand-in-hand with having interpersonal skills. “You can be called onto the carpet because what you do is so interdependent…what we do impacts the other trades,” she says, emphasizing the importance of team work in order to make a building function during the construction phase. “You have to have strong work relationships and the respect has to go both ways. Otherwise you will fall down on the job and you won’t meet deadline,” explains Henry.

 ‘Nice feather in our cap’

These days, the plumbing and heating company has secured a four-year hospital expansion project at the St. Peter’s Hospital in Albany. The $260-million hospital expansion project requires great lead times for specialized equipment and coordination amongst all trades. That’s why Campito has been involved before the shovel hit the ground. “It’s a very nice feather in our cap to be able to complete work on such a large hospital expansion,” says Henry.

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