June 2017

108 BUILD / June 2017 , Don’t Gloss over the Details Caprioli Painting is a fully insured painting company, that has been undertaking quality commercial and residential restoration as well as new construction inNewHampshire and neighbouring states since 1989. We interviewed the firm’s Lorrianne Caprioli to learnmore about their commercial, residential, industrial andmilitary painting work. Caprioli Painting is a commercial, residential, industrial and military painting company. Having been in business for 29 years, they offer all kinds of painting including anti-graffiti coatings. While they are small, they do big work and are family owned. Lorrianne Caprioli explains what sets the firm apart from other companies in the industry and the changes they have seen and how they have adapted to them. “The most difficult changes have been in the workforce. We are family owned and I think that goes a long way, because we treat all our employees as a family. Our core crew has been with us for over seven years and between us all, we have a combined experience of over 200 years. “I believe that the quality of our work stands out, plus the fact that the firm is small, but we take on big work. We always answer the phone; indeed, we don’t make you go to voicemail unless we are closed. We try to answer questions on the same day and provide pricing as quickly as possible. The customer always comes first. We are not the cheapest painter out there, but our prices are reasonable and we always do it right the first time. “After the crash in 2008, many companies got out of the trade which in some respect is good, with less competition faced. The difficulty here of course, is finding qualified help. The workers that have the most experience are close to retirement age. The current generation is not interested in the trade and there is just no one in between now. This can be really difficult - because you hire in the spring as you start to get busy - but while we are willing to train it is hard to take on larger jobs with help when you are training on the job.” When undertaking a new client or project, the firm has a specific approach to ensure the best possible outcome, as Lorrianne explains. “We like to meet with new clients and give them a brief history of our company. We want them to feel comfortable and know who we are. As far as any new project is concerned, we ensure that the scope of work and the schedule is understood by both us and the client. “We also prepare crew leaders, set expectations of what needs to be accomplished and suggest how long each task must take. We discuss safety issues that may arise and deal with that aspect of our work, before we tackle the task concerned.” Lorrianne then provides an overview of the wider industry, how the firm has overcome challenges that have come their way and their overall aims and strategies. “I would have to say that our biggest challenge is the work force. I believe that recent generations don’t know what the painting trade consists of at this level. There is much more to it than merely swinging a brush. There is more to it than just painter’s job for opportunities in this industry, especially if you work for a commercial company like Caprioli. There is estimating, safety management, accounting and project management to consider as well. “Our overall aim is to get work! We pick and choose the kinds of projects we want to do and who we want to work for. We go after those jobs at bid time. Our strategies are to get the best pricing on materials, be knowledgeable about those, so we can talk about them and why we want to use them. We are clear in our scope of what we bid and we ensure we cover the bases as far as how that will work. That is important because we are the last trade out. “We also have used a consultant in the past, for team building, helping our company as a team and to write our vision, mission to define the culture of how we want to work together. I think this solidified our core group, so when we get new candidates applying to work for us, they think it is very cool to have a vision, mission and culture.” Lorrianne then details the firm’s most successful project to date and what they have learnt from this. “We have had several, but the most recent one that we are extremely proud of is the State Capitol Dome (in Concord NH). This was a highly dangerous project, on a very tight schedule with lots of attention from the public. It came out beautifully, so we are proud to have been a part of that project team! I would say that in the circumstances of this case study, communication was the key to its success. With a schedule that was tight, this was a high visibility project that was constantly in the public eye. There was tight security because it was the capitol of NH, so it had to be perfect!” In terms of the future, the firm has several new projects on the horizon, indeed much of their work is currently on display at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. In terms of the future of the painting industry, Lorrianne offers some honest and thought-provoking reflections on this, after which she ends the interview on a positive note. 1705BU09