WILMOM Telecommunications, Inc., Totowa, N.J., has been named an Outstanding Minority Business Enterprise by the U.S. Department of Commerce's Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA).
The agency presented the award to Dewyne Barnes, chief executive officer, at the 19th Annual Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Week gala reception at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York.
Founded three years ago, WILMOM is a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 164, based in Paramus, N.J., as well as Locals 3 (New York City), 98 (Philadelphia) and 134 (Chicago).
“It is truly an honor to be recognized by the U.S. Department of Commerce, as well as our peers, as a leading full-service telecommunications provider specializing in project management and deployment of central office installations,” Barnes said. “Offering expertise in a wide range of carriers, WILMOM is dedicated to being a progressive company committed to keeping pace with the evolving technology.”
Among WILMOM's installation and maintenance services are central office switched networks, structured cabling solutions, fiber rings and OC facilities, internal ethernet, local area networks (LANs), wide area networks (WANs) and turnkey solutions. Additionally, the company provides project management, network infrastructure builds, long-range demand and traffic analysis.
WILMOM also specializes in network engineering design and concepts, site preparation studies and equipment construction management and maintenance. Its carriers include Qwest, Broadwing, Nortel Networks, Level 3, Ciena, Avaya and Tellabs.
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The New Jersey chapter of the Independent Electrical Contractors Inc. (IEC) recently bestowed Lifetime Achievement Awards upon Eugene Mini of the Morris County Association of Electrical Contractors, Fred Hiemer of the Bergen County Electrical Contractors' Association and Michael Merola of the Union County Electrical Contractors' Association.
“Lifetime Achievement Awards are given to individuals who have made a significant contribution to the electrical contracting industry in New Jersey,” said Steve Ripley, IEC New Jersey Executive Director. “We don't typically distribute more than one Lifetime Achievement Award each year, but this year, we had to make an exception because these hard-working guys are model contractors and exemplify what the Lifetime Achievement Award is all about.”
Lifetime Achievement Award winner and IEC National Senior Vice President Eugene Mini is a two-time Past President and long-time member of the NJECA.
“It meant very much to me to receive an award from my peers,” Mini said. “I enjoy the work that I do, and it feels good to be honored for doing something that I like to do anyway.”
Lifetime Achievement Award winner Fred Hiemer was a prime mover in creating the Bergen County Electrical Contractors' Association (BCECA), the New Jersey Electrical Contractors' Association (NJECA) and the New Jersey Electrical Contractors' Licensing Act nearly 47 years ago. In 1962, Hiemer established his own electrical-contracting business, Hiemer Electric in Tenafly, N.J.
Lifetime Achievement Award winner Michael Merola obtained his electrical license in the mid-1970s. He was elected UCECA President in 1984/1985. Merola became active in NJECA in the early 1980s, was elected to their Executive Committee in 1985 and designated NJECA President in 1989.
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