Whether constructing additions, renovating plants, automating equipment or upgrading power systems, remodeling commercial facilities requires specialized skills. That's why construction managers, general contractors, and owners and managers of industrial firms have relied on Roman Electric since 1929 for skilled design and construction when remodeling.
Roman electrical engineers and designers can provide customized electrical power, production and lighting systems to fit your needs and desires. Then Roman's highly trained commercial electricians install the new or renovated systems.
Electrical remodeling by Roman includes the most effective distribution of power, maximum safety, use of highly efficient materials and tooling, compliance with all local codes, and complete customer satisfaction.
Wyndham Rebuilt Into Posh Intercontinental Milwaukee Hotel
With a major refurbishment, Marcus Corporation has converted the Wyndham Milwaukee Center into the posh Intercontinental Milwaukee Hotel. The luxurious 220 room hotel is downtown on the corner of Kilbourn and Water Streets.
The extensive renovation included major upgrades in all the guest rooms, the common areas, 12,000 sq. ft. of meeting spaces and 11 meeting rooms, the lobby with its floor to ceiling windows, and the inviting bars and restaurants. Marcus Corporation hired Roman Electric to handle power and lighting, a $500,000 job.
"Good at tough jobs"
Craig Rambo, Marcus corporate director of engineering, said Roman's work was challenging. "We asked the impossible for scheduling, which is what Roman usually gets handed," he said. "They handled it very well. They always do. That's why we do business with them because they're good at dealing with the tough jobs we throw at them! They do good work."
Old Bank Turned into Beautiful, New Facility
The old First National Bank Building, constructed in 1915, has been converted into an opulent new jewel, The PrivateBank at 743 N. Water St. The bank's beautiful new look combines historical restoration, high-end fixtures and finishes, and high-tech electrical and data wiring. Plus it still has the eye-popping 90-year-old impenetrable vault downstairs.
Building owner and manager Compass Properties LLC completely rebuilt the building's first floor for the bank. The general contractor was Selzer-Ornst Co. Roman Electric handled the electrical work.
"Impeccable Attention to Detail" "Great Job"
The understated elegance of the office areas, the high-ceilinged lobby with original marble and ornate lighting, and the refurbished vault are fitting for a bank that targets those with incomes in the top 3% of the population. "The beauty, detail and high quality finishes were unusual for a bank," said Robert Ornst Jr., president of Selzer-Ornst. "Roman really did a nice job helping us achieve that impressive look. Their lead electrician Erich Eirschele was very, very good and had the impeccable attention to detail we needed."
Mark Lemke, managing director of The PrivateBank, also liked Roman's work. "Gabe Rose and his people really did a great job," he said. "Their lead electrician Erich proved to be skilled, knowledgeable and experienced. He's good. Roman delivered."
Sheldon Oppermann, regional manager for Compass Properties, said they had a window of about 60 days to build 18,000 sq. ft. of upper level office space for tenants prior to building out the bank. He said, "Roman was instrumental in getting that accomplished.
"Retrofitting existing buildings is extremely difficult. There's always unknown conditions and Roman responded to each challenge every time we ran into one. Roman's guys are fantastic. They're a great example of a contractor who belongs in commercial construction."
New Uninterruptible Power Supply Supports ATC Data Systems
For American Transmission Co. of Pewaukee, standby power is critical to its continuing operation. ATC owns, builds, maintains and operates the high-voltage electric transmission system powering portions of Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota and Illinois.
Electricity cannot be stored easily or cost-effectively, so the amount of electricity created each moment must be matched to the amount being consumed. From its two system control centers, ATC operators monitor electricity flow on the network for safety and stability, and respond to problems on the system 24/7.
Because its Cottage Grove center was constructed in the 1980s, ATC needed to modernize the Uninterruptible Power Supply supporting its data systems. So it hired Roman Electric to install two new UPS systems for redundant standby power.
Jason Shaver, ATC system operations project manager, said Roman did ample pre-planning with ATC to successfully manage and limit the number and length of power outages during installation. Roman also performed a detailed arc flash analysis coordination study to insure system reliability and safety.
"Remarkable…Patient…Skilled"
"What Roman achieved was quite remarkable," Shaver said. "Roman's approach was most suitable to what we wanted to do." He said much of Roman's work had to be done late in the evening when there was less activity on their system if an outage was required. Then the facilities would have to be quickly re-energized. Roman replaced ATC's older UPS equipment with two new identical UPS systems which facilitate power transfers. When one is activated, power is transferred to the ATC system in milliseconds so the switch is not even noticeable.
"Roman was very patient and highly skilled," Shaver said. "We're extremely happy with the work they did for us. With multiple generators and two new UPS systems, we now have a very impressive, very redundant electrical system with a higher level of reliability."
New Lights at Great Height
When exterior lighting on the 100 East building needed replacing, it was a standard job for Roman Electric. Except the lights were on the 10th and 32nd floors! The 549 ft. tall downtown building at 100 East Wisconsin Ave. is the second highest in the state.
Roman electrician Steve Spaude, working from a long swing stage hoisted up to the fixtures, carefully removed the old lamps and put in new lamps in 32 fixtures located on all four sides of the building. He worked over a period of several days spread out over four weeks during those times when wind conditions permitted safe access.
Dennis Kelly, Chief Engineer for REIT Management & Research, said they were replacing original light fixtures installed when the 100 East building was constructed in 1989. “Building architects originally chose high pressure sodium lighting,” he said, “because the color worked well with the limestone and concrete building materials. Roman put up temporary lighting to show us how others lamps would look, but we went with high pressure sodium again because it still has the best look.”
Kelly said, “Roman’s been doing electrical work in the building for 20 years or so. They did a fine job.”
Custom Light Fixtures Illuminate Hilton at Night
In one of the finishing touches on the 20-story addition to the Hilton Milwaukee City Center, 509 W. Wisconsin Ave., Roman electricians installed nine custom-made exterior light fixtures. The 300 lb. decorative brass fixtures were designed to match the ornate lamp-holders on the long-time downtown landmark.
The attractive fixtures were lifted to a 20" height and fastened to the exterior of the building. Each fixture contains three 70 watt High Intensity Discharge lamps.
Roman also installed rooftop landmark lighting to illuminate the hotel at night. Roman crews installed power and lighting systems in the completed addition.
Downtown YMCA Constructed Above Grand Avenue Mall
You won't notice it at street level, but there's a new 40,000 sq. ft. YMCA laid out in an oval above the Grand Avenue Mall.
The impressive facility is located at 161 W. Wisconsin Ave. on the completely renovated fourth floor of the 19th Century Plankinton Building. The Y also has 10,000 sq. ft. of remodeled office space on the fifth floor.
With double the space it had a few blocks east, the expanded Y features state-of-the-art fitness equipment, a cardiovascular area, family center, aerobic studios, steam and sauna rooms, whirlpool, 23 ft. high rock climbing wall, 1/6 mile running track (second largest indoor track in the metro area), and much more.
Electrical Planning
Dan Davis, senior project manager for construction manager C.G. Schmidt, said, "The job was a design/build for Roman Electric. They helped us value engineer the electrical design to meet the Y's budget. They redid the lighting design, added some unique features, and did a very nice job. Renovations of buildings that old are real electrical challenges."
One of Roman's creative features was curved, polished, ceiling-mounted metal reflectors to direct light in the locker rooms. Another was insulated low-voltage steel cable strung across the lobby ceiling so light fixtures could be clamped wherever needed.
Roman project manager/designer Phil Rose worked with a crew of up to 25 Roman electricians.
Major Relighting Enhances Brightness and Appeal of Grand Avenue Parking
If you've recently driven on I-794 past the downtown area at night you may have wondered if the brightly lighted parking structure to the north is something new. That shining jewel is Grand Avenue mall's refurbished Plankinton garage.
Polacheck Property Management Corp., which represents Grand Avenue owner New Arcade LLC, a subsidiary of Northwestern Mutual Life, is redoing parking deck lighting, painting, graphics and signage. Roman Electric handled the sizable relighting job.
Polacheck president Joe Weirick said, "Roman did a nice job. We've received a lot of positive comments on the improvements. We switched from high pressure sodium lights to metal halide. The light is whiter, brighter and shows color more realistically because metal halide has a much broader color spectrum. For example, a green sweater looks black under high pressure sodium light. The garage is now a much more pleasant place to be."
Roman upgraded 1002 light fixtures by replacing the 100 watt high pressure sodium lamps with 150 watt metal halide lamps. Roman project manager Mark Holter worked with president Gerv Rose to design the job. Then Mark put up a variety of sample fixtures and optics to help Joe Weirick choose the best match for the look he had in mind.
Roman also upgraded the electrical service to handle increased fixture size and power load. Roman foreman was Dave Emery.
The Grand Avenue mall parking structure runs west from Plankinton Ave. to beyond Second St.
Dierks Expands Food Refrigeration Warehouse
Dierks Waukesha Foods, 900 Gale St. in Waukesha, substantially expanded its food refrigeration warehouse. The growing company built its plant in 1973 and constructed additions five times since 1983. Roman installed the electrical systems each time.
Dierks' newest addition of 20,000 sq. ft. expands the food storage facility to 182,000 sq. ft. The addition features 16,000 sq. ft. of extra cooling space and 4,000 sq. ft. of refrigerated docks.
Roman account manager Jeff Kubiszewski said this addition was a bit more difficult because the expansion was added to the west side of the plant where a transformer had to be relocated to make room. Dave Krahn was Roman foreman on the job.
Dierks VP Kevin Musser said, " Roman did a good job. They know our building well and always do good work. Jeff is easy to work with and Roman electrician Dane Nielsen, who does most of our electrical work, we like tremendously. He's outstanding."
New Lighting Saves Money
Roman also replaced every light fixture in the facility, including challenging work in bitter cold freezers. Older high pressure sodium and metal halide lamps were replaced with more energy-efficient high bay fluorescents at ceiling heights of up to 30 ft.
Kevin Musser said they are saving $5,000 per month with the new lighting because the occupancy sensors only turn the lights on when someone enters the aisle. The company also received a rebate of almost $30,000 from Focus On Energy and a federal tax deduction of $0.60 per sq. ft. (Section 179d).
Historic Grain and Stock Exchange Building Converted to Condos
The historic Grain and Stock Exchange building downtown at Milwaukee and Mason Streets is being converted to condominiums. The 10 story Art Deco building will feature 30 condos and underground parking.
Choices will range from a 931 sq. ft. unit for $193,400 to a two-story 2753 sq. ft. unit for $760,590. The gracious condos offer impressive features including hardwood floors, French doors, complete appliances, ceramic tile in designer colors, walk-in closets, carpeting, custom cabinets and vanities, outdoor balconies and expansive views.
Electrical systems were installed by Roman Electric on a design/build basis for general contractor Selzer-Ornst Co. Burke Properties is the developer.
Working with Miller Architectural Group, Roman designed and installed a new 1600 amp service to power and light the remodeled office building. Roman also designed a new transformer vault for an existing space beneath the sidewalk on the Milwaukee St. side of the building, and installed a fire alarm system.
For the voice, data and TV systems, Roman TechNet installed 16,000 ft. each of voice and data cable and 240 jacks each for voice, data and CATV.
Bruce Howard was Roman project manager on the electrical work and Scott Archie was TechNet project manager.
A Crew of Highly Skilled Electricians
Continuous Training with an Emphasis on Safety
A fleet of 50 Service and Bucket Trucks
A staff of Professional Engineers, Designers and Technicians
Full Service Design/Build Capability
Wisconsin's Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Experts
Whether constructing additions, renovating plants, automating equipment or upgrading power systems, remodeling commercial facilities requires specialized skills. That's why construction managers, general contractors, and owners and managers of industrial firms have relied on Roman Electric since 1929 for skilled design and construction when remodeling.
With a major refurbishment, Marcus Corporation has converted the Wyndham Milwaukee Center into the posh Intercontinental Milwaukee Hotel. The luxurious 220 room hotel is downtown on the corner of Kilbourn and Water Streets.
The old First National Bank Building, constructed in 1915, has been converted into an opulent new jewel, The PrivateBank at 743 N. Water St. The bank's beautiful new look combines historical restoration, high-end fixtures and finishes, and high-tech electrical and data wiring. Plus it still has the eye-popping 90-year-old impenetrable vault downstairs.
Building owner and manager Compass Properties LLC completely rebuilt the building's first floor for the bank. The general contractor was Selzer-Ornst Co. Roman Electric handled the electrical work.
For American Transmission Co. of Pewaukee, standby power is critical to its continuing operation. ATC owns, builds, maintains and operates the high-voltage electric transmission system powering portions of Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota and Illinois. 
When exterior lighting on the 100 East building needed replacing, it was a standard job for Roman Electric. Except the lights were on the 10th and 32nd floors! The 549 ft. tall downtown building at 100 East Wisconsin Ave. is the second highest in the state.
Dennis Kelly, Chief Engineer for REIT Management & Research, said they were replacing original light fixtures installed when the 100 East building was constructed in 1989. “Building architects originally chose high pressure sodium lighting,” he said, “because the color worked well with the limestone and concrete building materials. Roman put up temporary lighting to show us how others lamps would look, but we went with high pressure sodium again because it still has the best look.”
In one of the finishing touches on the 20-story addition to the Hilton Milwaukee City Center, 509 W. Wisconsin Ave., Roman electricians installed nine custom-made exterior light fixtures. The 300 lb. decorative brass fixtures were designed to match the ornate lamp-holders on the long-time downtown landmark.
You won't notice it at street level, but there's a new 40,000 sq. ft. YMCA laid out in an oval above the Grand Avenue Mall. 
With double the space it had a few blocks east, the expanded Y features state-of-the-art fitness equipment, a cardiovascular area, family center, aerobic studios, steam and sauna rooms, whirlpool, 23 ft. high rock climbing wall, 1/6 mile running track (second largest indoor track in the metro area), and much more.
If you've recently driven on I-794 past the downtown area at night you may have wondered if the brightly lighted parking structure to the north is something new. That shining jewel is Grand Avenue mall's refurbished Plankinton garage.
Dierks Waukesha Foods, 900 Gale St. in Waukesha, substantially expanded its food refrigeration warehouse. The growing company built its plant in 1973 and constructed additions five times since 1983. Roman installed the electrical systems each time. 
Roman account manager Jeff Kubiszewski said this addition was a bit more difficult because the expansion was added to the west side of the plant where a transformer had to be relocated to make room. Dave Krahn was Roman foreman on the job. 
The historic Grain and Stock Exchange building downtown at Milwaukee and Mason Streets is being converted to condominiums. The 10 story Art Deco building will feature 30 condos and underground parking. 
