Greenup Industries Successfully Installs 15 Thousand Smart Water Meters in St. John the Baptist Parish

St. John the Baptist Parish (St. John) is now in possession of some well-needed water meter upgrades thanks to the efforts of Greenup Industries Inc. (Greenup) with partner Aclara Technology. Greenup was awarded a $5.27 million contract from the Louisiana Parish in December 2019 to install 16,491 residential smart water meters, 382 commercial meters, and 10 fire hydrant meters. Greenup reports that installation on 15,000 residential and commercial smart water meters were completed despite numerous setbacks (COVID, 2020's most active Hurricane Season since 2005, Global Supply Chain Impacts, Hurricane Ida causing extensive damage to LaPlace and damaging some of the installed equipment). St. John Parish officials issued a resolution on March 28 to issue a Change Order on the existing contract and have the remaining 2,600 meters installed at a later date.

The new smart water meters feature more accurate leak detection and improved residential and commercial services. Residents can use a Customer Portal on their computer or mobile device for utility maintenance, such as setting up alerts for their water consumption, monitoring leak detection in real-time, and viewing live data to keep their water bill down. The water meters are networked into the St. John Parish data management system, allowing the parish to bill customers more accurately and monitor any potential infrastructure issues. “This new smart water meter system allows us to efficiently detect and minimize water loss for the residents and businesses in the parish,” said Rodney Greenup, CEO of Greenup. “It is more responsive infrastructure which enables us to pinpoint and respond to potential problems before they happen."

The St. John Parish Council agreed that the benefits of the “state-of-the-art” water meter outweigh its costs as it will provide for water usage readings to be taken every hour and transmitted to base stations that are built on the parish's water towers. Customers can access their water usage online in real-time, and the meters will send out alerts when their batteries get low. With the ability to monitor water usage daily via a computer or smartphone, the new system will eliminate estimated reads, provide customers with consistent billing, ensure smooth revenue collection, and reduce calls to customer service representatives. The new smart water meters also provide real-time leak detection alerts, allowing more accurate readings. Individuals will also be able to set up alerts for water consumption that exceeds a certain threshold. Part of the installation involves attaching a data collector to track water usage to the billing system. “We program the smart meter to transmit its location to the Parish's data collector. This lets us know how much water is being used immediately, every second of every day. This lets us know how much water is being used immediately, every second of every day. The previous meters had to be read manually," Greenup said. “The new meters allow the parish to respond to any leaks or potential infrastructure issues in real time."

Greenup faced adversity as it neared the completion of the St. John Smart Water Meter Project. In addition to the devastating effects of the supply chain crisis, ongoing disruptions from COVID, and hurricane damage slowing down installation efforts, Greenup said rolling layoffs in 2020 affected communication with Greenup Industries' subcontractors. The shipping delays from tech suppliers were a significant challenge the company had to overcome. "This project revealed our resiliency and can-do attitude, as our company faced setbacks time and time again. What we learned from this experience is that Greenup's team is experienced and willing to go beyond what is expected of them and to overcome obstacles to get our projects completed in a timely and efficient manner. I am so proud of them," Greenup said.

The construction phase broke the parish into six areas, or “water cycles.” Each cycle was completed before moving on to the next one. After the DCY network and installation routing plan were completed, training on the installation and smart meter software began in September 2020. The initial installations began in October, and by the beginning of 2021, Greenup had already completed several thousand installations. Recognized by Parish officials for their professionalism and communication throughout the project, Greenup expressed pride in being able to help solve a problem that affects so many people.

The St. John water meter project is one of several successes this year for the growing construction and maintenance firm. Greenup is nearing the end of its clay excavation efforts in the Bonnet Carre Spillway as part of the West Shore Lake Ponchartrain Project and have excavated 100,000 cubic yards of material for the LaReusitte to Myrtle Grove Levee and drainage canal, placing them ahead of schedule for the joint project with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Cajun Industries of Baton Rouge, LA.

Based in Kenner, Greenup Industries offers contracting and specialized construction services for industrial, commercial, and municipal clients. From refurbished roads and bridges to industrial construction and maintenance, the company is behind countless projects across the Gulf South that contribute to the region's growth and vibrancy. Since its start in 2012, Greenup has experienced unprecedented growth, becoming a leading construction contractor and provider of maintenance and third-party procurement services. President and CEO Rodney Greenup is a New Orleans native who began his career as a mechanical engineer and project manager with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. "There's a lot of growth potential and work to be done throughout the region," said Greenup. As we continue to grow and diversify, we owe our success to our relationships with our employees, clients, and vendors.

For more information on Greenup Industries, visit www.greenupind.com or email info@greenupind.com.

Rodney Greenup Featured as Speaker in Black Enterprise Member Seminar with his Presentation "How I Won a $100 Million Dollar Contract"

On March 2, 2023, Rodney Greenup, the Founder and CEO of Greenup Industries, presented, “How I Won a $100 Million Dollar Contract” to the Black Enterprise’s Black Directory ALL Members-Only Zoom.

The US Army Corps of Engineers, Vicksburg District, awarded Greenup Cajun JV, LLC, a fixed-price construction contract to build hurricane protection structures and move levees and drainage canals in Louisiana's Plaquemines Parish.

Greenup Cajun JV, LLC, presented the lowest bid of four for the "New Orleans to Venice 1st lift levee and drainage canal relocation project, La Reussite to Myrtle Grove, Plaquemines Parish". The project will consist of clearing, grubbing, excavating new drainage canals, placing culverts and drainage structures, building new T-walls and levee ramp crossings, placing levee embankments, geotextile work, turf establishment, and surfacing. The estimated cost of the project is $102,452,461.00. The project has an expected completion date of November 30, 2026.

Greenup Cajun JV, LLC is a joint venture partnership that features the skills and experience of Greenup Industries (Greenup) and Cajun Industries, LLC, based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Greenup was awarded a portion of the West Shore Lake Pontchartrain Project (WSLPP) in January 2020, a major hurricane and storm damage risk reduction project benefitting a three- parish area in southern Louisiana. The company’s scope of work includes excavating, processing, and stockpiling clay material and other work within the Bonnet Carre Spillway. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reported that levee construction is expected to require 7 million to 9 million cubic yards of clay material. The Bonnet Carre Spillway has roughly 3.5 million cubic yards available, while the rest of the clay is to come from commercial sources. The $20,520,000 WSLPP contract ("Stockpile II) included excavating, processing, and stockpiling of 1.5 million cubic yards of clay from the Bonnet Carre Spillway to two stockpile sites.

Greenup Industries provides a full range of onboarding solutions, maintenance and design services, and specialty construction services to our diverse set of clients. We offer effective onboarding, reduced costs, accountability, and consistent vetting of vendors. Greenup Industries has clocked over 500,000 plus safe work man-hours and is the recipient of several awards for safety, including the Gold Medal Award, presented by Shell/Norco, the Contractor Safety Award, presented by CAST, and the Safety Excellence Award, presented by Gulf South Safety Council.

Updates on Two of Our Projects with USACE

Despite some setbacks from weather, our work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on the West Shore Lake Pontchartrain Project (WSLPP) has seen significant progress in the past few months. Greenup's primary role has been excavating, processing, and stockpiling clay in two piles within the Bonnet Carre Spillway. By the end of the project, an estimated 1.5 million cubic yard of clay will be removed from the Spillway.

Construction manager Steven Keen provided these updates on the two stockpile sites:

"Stockpile 2 - PROJECT IS COMPLETE! Final testing of materials, coring samples of the stockpile, and as-builts are all that remain on this project. This is a major milestone as it was Greenup's first Corps of Engineers project of what is now three in total.

Stockpile 1 - This project is continuing to ramp up production, but stockpiling of clay is being hampered by rain. We are continuing to haul clay when the weather permits. We are also working on days we can't haul by excavating clay from the borrow pit in the Spillway and processing the material (allowing it to air dry). We are also improving the haul roads in the spillway and at the stockpile location in LaPlace. This project should be complete in mid-late spring of 2023."  

Keen also reported progress on the La Reussite to Myrtle Grove Levee Plaquemines Parish project, a joint venture with Cajun Industries alongside the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The project is a fixed-price construction contract to build hurricane protection structures and move levees and drainage canals in the New Orleans area. 

"This large (4 mile long) project, over $100M, is moving out very quickly," Keen said, "We have already built, or improved, 8,000 LF of access roads so that equipment can safely access the project site, cleared vegetation from over half of the project footprint, excavated 100,000 CY of material for the drainage canal, and built over 100 LF of concrete pipe culverts to facilitate drainage. This project is ahead of the required completion date of June 2025."

Greenup Industries provides a full range of onboarding solutions, maintenance, design, and specialty construction services to our diverse clients. We offer effective onboarding, reduced costs, accountability, and consistent vetting of vendors. Greenup Industries has clocked over 500,000 plus safe work man-hours and is the recipient of several awards for safety, including the Gold Medal Award, presented by Shell/Norco, the Contractor Safety Award, presented by CAST, and the Safety Excellence Award, presented by Gulf South Safety Council. To learn more about the benefits of having Greenup Industries work for you, please contact us today by calling (225) 283-4843 or visiting us online at www.greenupind.com.

Greenup Industries Participated in LED's Small Business Mentor Program

Rodney Greenup, of Greenup Industries, was proud to be included in the Louisiana Economic Development Mentor-Protégé Program For Small Businesses held on July 28-30, 2020. The partnerships that emerge from the program aim to help emerging small companies succeed in Louisiana's economy.

Several Louisiana businesses, big and small, have become textbook cases in a push to encourage growth and closely help integrate second-stage businesses into a mutually beneficial sharing of networking resources. In July, Louisiana Economic Development, in coordination with the Edward Lowe Foundation, founded The American Academy of Entrepreneurs to strengthen networking and communication within and outside second-stage businesses.

Second-stage businesses employ roughly 10 to 100 people. The Mentor-Protégé Program For Small Businesses’ goal is to help these companies build and retain an effective team, decide which strategy is best for long-lasting growth, and discover how to locate and zero in on targeted opportunities.

Via Zoom Meetings, the program paired second-stage businesses with other participating firms to create Mentor-Protégé relationships. The intensive, retreat-focused approach was designed to discover the value of companies' relationships and how they can be strengthened. Following the retreat, the company pairs will continue to hold monthly meetings to collaborate and focus on company objectives.

The LED staff understands that the assistance from programs such as these helps us better maintain quality at the intersection of opportunity and intervention. Continued dedication to quality through cooperation across the industry provides solutions and other positive benefits for the entire industry.