Bechtel contract to draw new jobs

This story was published 11/16/02

The newest member of the family of companies providing goods and services to the Hanford vitrification project is about to make a big impression on the Tri-Cities.

Intermech, winner of a major contract to build and install ductwork for the waste treatment plant's heating, ventilation and air-conditioning, or HVAC, system, will develop a fabrication center in the Tri-Cities and employ up to 275 people, chiefly union sheet metal workers.

On Friday, Bechtel National Inc., lead contractor for the multibillion-dollar Hanford Waste Treatment and Isolation Plant project, awarded the contract with a potential value of more than $70 million to Intermech of Winston-Salem, N.C.

Intermech is owned by Zellweger Luwa Group, a Swiss company with $750 million in annual sales.

The contract calls for Intermech to fabricate ductwork for the HVAC systems serving the treatment plant's four main buildings -- the high level waste building, the low activity waste building, the pretreatment building and the on-site laboratory.

The ductwork will total about 4 million pounds, which translates to two to three miles of ducts.

Hugh McPherson, Intermech president, said his company will set up a 35,000- to 40,000-square-foot fabrication shop in the Tri-Cities, most likely in Richland. Company leaders have toured several prospective sites.

The company plans to begin the process of leasing a building, equipping t and hiring staff in December. The startup phase will continue through the first quarter of 2003.

McPherson estimated the plant's payroll will average 150 to 180 people, a figure that could climb to 275 during peak production.

The plant is needed because the nuclear waste plant calls for a different kind of ductwork than can be bought commercially. The plant requires heavier gauge metal and specific welding procedures.

The award followed a competitive bid process in which Bechtel looked at bidders' qualifications as well as costs.

Intermech is certified under the Nuclear Quality Assurance program.

Intermech will truck the finished ductwork to the Richland facility Bechtel uses to marshal construction materials before delivering it to the work site on Hanford's Central Plateau.

Mark Swager, a subcontracts manager for Bechtel National, said the ductwork contract is standard for Hanford projects. Intermech will be reimbursed for its costs and will receive a fee based on meeting certain targets. Specific tasks will be assigned to Intermech over the course of the contract, with a completion date set for December 2005.

Intermech intends to keep the plant open after if finishes its work on the treatment plant.

"One of the things that really excites us about this area (is that) the skill sets and the work ethic in the Tri-City area are second to none," McPherson said. "We're not planning on leaving."

The contract award comes two years after Intermech acquired Thompson Mechanical. The two companies worked together on a project at the Umatilla Chemical Depot in 1998. McPherson said Intermech liked Thompson's work ethic and thought the two companies would be a good fit.

The acquisition also gave Intermech a much-desired presence near the Hanford site.