Stories

“I wanted that challenge,” says Frank. “I wanted to do more than just regular plumbing. More than fixing toilets. I started to seek out niche work that I could sink my teeth into, and I built my career on that. I worked for a company that developed underground gas and oil tanks, and for a while I specialized in doing all of the plumbing for dentist offices. I got involved with installing double wall piping - which most plumbers don’t do. Once you find that niche, you can command a price, and people trust you to get the work done right because you’re the specialist.”

But after nearly 30 years, the daily grind of running his own business was starting to get to Frank. One day on a jobsite, Frank happened to meet Senior Vice President Ryan Polizzo, who mentioned that Loureiro could use someone like him to help out their Industrial Services team.

“It couldn’t have happened at a better time,” Frank says of meeting Ryan Polizzo. “Working for Loureiro has been a great thing for me, and I think it’s been great for the company as well.”

As Field Operations Manager, Frank applies his 40 years of experience in the plumbing and heating field on projects he undertakes for his clients. Since taking on this role in 2019, he oversees the operation and maintenance of various wastewater treatment systems and assists Loureiro’s multidisciplinary engineering teams with any project challenges they bring to the table. Frank views his role as a supportive one – working collaboratively with all the other divisions to expand the company's reach and to bring in work that Loureiro would have historically relied on subcontractors to perform.

“Running my own business for 30 years, I’ve dealt with a lot of people and a lot of different situations,” says Frank. “I made a living on creating relationships with clients and contractors. At Loureiro, I’ve brought my experience in the private sector to the corporate world, applying my people skills and construction background to help our team launch jobs and deliver successful results.”

Despite working for more than three decades in the business, Frank cites the fact that he’s always learning as what he loves most about his career - something he’s found to be particularly true about Loureiro given the company’s diverse engineering, environmental and construction offerings.

“We have so many different types of people working for us, and we have the whole package,” says Frank. “If there’s something I don’t know or something I need assistance with, there's always someone around that I can ask, there’s always someone who is more than willing to help me figure out what I need to know. I’ll go to engineering, I can get a blueprint drawn. We have a big support group here.”

For Frank, there’s nothing more rewarding than returning the favor - when someone calls him for advice, even if it’s just a friend who needs some direction regarding a plumbing issue in their home. It all nods to an overall philosophy that has always rung true – honesty and hard work pays off.

“My very first boss once told me that it doesn’t take much longer to do it right than to do a sloppy job,” recalls Frank. “I try to instill that in my team to this day. Let’s go out there, do a high quality job. There’s a lot of mediocrity out there – let’s go beyond that and do things right. I take a lot of pride in building a team and seeing them go about their work. It’s very rewarding for me.”

Even though Frank’s four children are grown up, there’s still plenty to do to keep himself busy and balanced outside of the office. You can find him out on the golf course with his wife. Avid fans of live music, you’ll often catch them at a concert. Frank also keeps his hands in his old business, occasionally taking on some small side jobs – work he still finds gratifying to this day.