J.P. Cullen makes its name taking on tough jobs

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The UW Health Union Corners clinic. The Bucks arena and team training center. The Meat Science and Muscle Biology Laboratory. The Milwaukee Intermodal Station. And that’s just the beginning.

J.P. Cullen has made a name for itself taking on some of the most difficult projects in the state. That’s perhaps why company officials like to call themselves the “tough job experts.”

David Cullen, chief executive officer of J.P. Cullen and a member of the fourth generation of the Cullens to own and operate the Janesville-based company, said the company’s willingness to take on difficult jobs stems in part from its recognition that competitors will be more likely to stay away when the going gets tough.

“We seek out those kinds of opportunities because of complexity of the project,” he said. “We seek them out because we work very hard preparing the bid, but even harder, when successful (after winning the bid), in executing the project.”

For an example, you need look no further than the company’s work on the recently finished Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin Sports Science Center. The 77,500-square-foot building in downtown Milwaukee, which is used by the Bucks basketball team for training and recruitment purposes, opened in August.

Cullen said the project was under a hard deadline. J.P. Cullen, which has also been tapped to perform structural-steel work on the Bucks’ new $524 million arena , took the schedule seriously.

“We completed that and turned that over to the Bucks, so they could use it for their recruiting of players looking to do a free agency deal, as well as in time for the (2017-18) season,” he said.

When Bucks officials reached out to J.P. Cullen, they knew exactly what they’d be getting in a construction manager. Team president Peter Feigin noted at the grand opening of the training facility that the firm came highly recommended by the leader of another respected Wisconsin sports organization.

“I received a phone call from Barry Alvarez, who is the Athletic Director for (UW-Madison),” Feigin said. “He asked, ‘Can you do me a favor? As you start to look to build, give David a call.’ ” Of course, Alvarez was referring to Cullen.

“And the rest is history,” said Feigin. “David Cullen and his team have built a facility unlike any other in the world in a year period, which is a just incredible.”

Of course, there are countless other projects Cullen has done in recent years that have presented their own obstacles. There was, for instance, the Milwaukee Intermodal Station, which won a Top Projects award from The Daily Reporter.

In its most difficult requirement, that job had crews coordinate work around trains moving in and out of an active station.

“The key is to keep our people in the field productive at all times,” Cullen said.

The company’s success couldn’t have been achieved without extra time being devoted to preparation and consultation. Safety is also a priority.

J.P. Cullen recently introduced a policy called the Employee Safety Process after hearing about it from another contractor. The process, among other things, calls on employees to watch each other work and provide positive reinforcement if they observe something being done unsafely.

Since the policy has been adopted, J.P. Cullen has cut its rate of recordable incidents by more than 60 percent.

J.P. Cullen is now in its 125th year of operation. The industry has changed greatly during that time. For J.P. Cullen, though, some things will mostly likely always stay the same.

For one, the company has been owned by the same family for the entire time it has been in business. And it also has a loyal group of employees.

“That’s the key to any company’s success, is good people,” he said. “And we’ve got the best.”