Ford Motor Company’s Chicago Assembly plant is the motor giant’s oldest continually operated manufacturing plant. Opened back in 1924, it has produced Model Ts, armored cars for the U.S. Army during World War II, Thunderbirds, and currently manufactures Ford Explorers and Lincoln Aviators.
It is a massive facility, spanning multiple buildings across 113 acres. Decades ago, Ford decided to turn to local contractor Korellis to take on the challenge of updating and maintaining the thousands and thousands of square feet of roofing on the aging facility. At the time, it was a big step for Korellis as the company was just beginning to step into flat commercial and industrial work.
“It was the largest project that the company had ever done,” said Zakary Green, project manager for Korellis. “They won the job and it went so well that we started doing flat work from then on, so it really changed the dynamic of the company.”
Ford was so satisfied with Korellis’ initial work that the motor giant started turning to them any time Chicago Assembly needed roofing work – a relationship that continues to this day.
“Ford has very high expectations in terms of timeliness and the quality of the roof,” Green said. “Yet with the process that we have in place both in the office and with the foreman and crew on site, it’s honestly pretty easy. When you have all the right people and processes in place, it’s not a hard project to manage.”
That foreman’s name is Jim Booker. Few, if any, at Korellis are as familiar with Chicago Assembly as Booker – if Ford calls and needs work done, odds are high that he will be the one leading the project.
“My career at Korellis has been 30 years, and I’ve been coming to Ford for 30 years,” Booker said. “The Ford team over here is awesome, just awesome. They’re very knowledgeable about the plant, and if they have a problem, they always come to us. They’re great people and always easy to do work with.”
Booker said that constant communication is one important key to Korellis’ relationship with Ford. When the Korellis team is working on a project, no one is left in the dark.
“Throughout the whole project, everyone is on the same page,” he said. “Everybody is informed, knows what’s going on and what’s expected. It’s a good, stern, working relationship, and their safety team is the best I’ve worked with. They’re on top of their game 100%.”
Green pointed to one fact that highlights the strength of Korellis’ work and the success of their relationship with Ford.
“In all the years we’ve done work for Ford, I don’t think we’ve missed a single deadline,” he said. “We always have to work within a shutdown period when we’re tearing off a roof system for them. No matter the size of the roof or the length of that shutdown, which is typically two weeks, we’ve never missed the mark.”
Jayson Jeffries, facility maintenance supervisor at Ford, praised how communicative, efficient, and reliable Korellis has proven to be over the years.
“I pretty much just speed dial Jim whenever I need anything,” Jeffries said. “With all of these big projects, we can be relatively hands off. We don’t need to dedicate our time to supervise Korellis. They get in, do their work, and get out without us needing to worry about them. Their work is 10 out of 10, there’s no other group I’d rather have here.”
To learn more about Korellis and to see their portfolio, visit korellis.com.
