UMC, Inc.

Few construction firms have made a bigger impact in Western Washington than UMC, Inc. 

UMC’s story began in 1920 when two brothers — Frank and William Granston — opened University Plumbing and Heating right next to the University of Washington. The company grew steadily, becoming a general purpose mechanical contracting firm in the 1960s and changing its name to University Mechanical Contractors. In the same decade, UMC handled all the plumbing and mechanical work for the Space Needle, which was built from the ground up in a staggering 400 days for the 1962 World’s Fair. 

Fast forward to 2018, and you’ll find UMC’s hands all over another iconic structure in Seattle — the Amazon Spheres. The company’s experience with 3D modeling is a big reason they got the nod to handle plumbing and mechanical for this “outside the box” project in the center of downtown Seattle. In the ’90s, UMC was one of the first construction firms in the country to use the technology for project design and engineering, recognizing its potential to solve problems virtually before they manifest physically. 

UMC President Steve Brooks said the company has always been full of curious people who like to solve problems. As result, UMC gravitates to challenging projects, like designing, engineering and installing discreet yet robust mechanical systems in three giant glass domes filled with a menagerie of finicky plants — and a full staff of office workers.

UMC’s been a SMACNA Western Washington member since 1999, the same year Brooks came in the door with a fresh mechanical engineering degree from Seattle University. He jokes he’s had five different careers with the same email address — working in engineering, project management, as a site superintendent, in business development and in 2021 the board gave him the keys to the big office. That office oversees 500-plus employees spread across several branches in the Pacific Northwest. 

“We’ve built a team of experts to try and have in-house solutions for as much as possible,” Brooks said. “Engineering, modeling, pre-construction help, financial planning for capital improvements. We want to be able to solve problems with a kind of holistic solution to make the building function better and be easier to manage.”  

“We can provide turnkey solutions to anything a customer needs to hit their targets,” Brooks said.

UMC recently expanded its operations to include a sister company to help them practice what they preach. Rainer Metal Works is UMC’s in-house duct work and sheet metal product manufacturing arm.

UMC will use all their resources to tackle another project that redefines Washington State, the massive overhaul of long-beleaguered Western State Hospital. The legacy mental health facility is the largest in the state.

The $612 million Western State Hospital project will add 350 beds of forensic mental health services to Western Washington. UMC was brought on early to help the design team with modular construction planning.

“We’re trying to have as much off-site manufacturing done for that facility as possible to optimize efficiency, minimize impacts on the currently operational campus, and manage public money,” Brooks said. “It’s a public project and we want to save taxpayer dollars, which also means designing these facilities to be as energy efficient as possible.”

Helping the state bolster its public mental health system is a kind of paid community service, but UMC does more to give back to the community than that. Formed in 2009, the UMC Charitable Foundation is an employee-directed fund with a primary focus on childhood illness, disease and underprivileged youth. Brooks said the Foundation has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to non-profits and charitable organizations over the years. He also noted UMC’s Day of Giving, which offers employees an extra paid day off to do volunteer work.