April 8, 2010

By Rick Winterson

Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating has its base in South Boston.  They recently received a “Best of Boston 2010” for heating and cooling from Boston Magazine in that journal’s Home section.  It’s always a pleasure to write about a local firm that is both entrepreneurial and is recognized for high quality service.

by Rick Winterson

Boston Standard Plumbing & Heating’s operations are centrally located in an industrial building on D Street between Old Colony and Dorchester Avenue.  It’s 7:30 Monday morning; their fully-equipped service trucks are ready to go.  It will be a busy day.

Joe Wood (Mass. Lic. #15216) is the founder and owner of Boston Standard.  He drove in from Randolph, where he and his wife live.  Joe started up Boston Standard 21 months ago, after seven years working for well-known plumbing and heating firms in the area. 

His mother Mary Lou travels over from Dedham to handle the administration and paperwork from an office in Joe’s home in Randolph.  Boston Standard’s craftsmen are from all over.  Chris came in from Wayland; Harry is from Easton.  Pete lives nearby in Dorchester; Jeff has the longest haul – all the way from North Attleboro.

Boston Standard specializes in residential service.  Their “niches” (to use the business school term) are the smaller, “nook-and-cranny” jobs, as Joe puts it.  Those include small commercial establishments as well, where, for example, a reliable and continuous supply of hot water is essential.  They have true, 24-hour emergency service – one of the Boston Standard craftsmen is always on call, and will answer the phone personally (no answering service gets in between).

Joe Wood started up Boston Standard in June of 2008.  Despite a worsening economic climate, he has grown from an initial staff of himself and one other to five full-time plumbers.  When asked why he went out on his own, Joe replies, “I wanted to go in a different direction, focusing on smaller tasks that emphasize customer satisfaction.”  He adds, “We’re as good as anyone in techniques and craftsmanship.  Boston Standard has to excel in service.”

Apparently, Joe’s approach works.  In just 21 months flat, he and his crew have achieved a “Best of Boston 2010” (home services) ranking, which is no small feat.  In fact, it’s quite the accomplishment.  Just google up some of the comments about Boston Standard online, and you’ll see for yourself.

About a third of Boston Standard’s business is in South Boston.  Their repeat business, even though they are less than two years old, is about a third and growing.  Part of the business is concentrated in Dorchester and Jamaica Plain, but Boston Standard is equipped to handle residential and small commercial projects anywhere inside of Route 128.

On the personal side, Joe’s father John installed underground drain systems and two of his brothers are plumbers – it’s in the family’s blood.  His hometown is Mansfield, but he spent some time in Arizona.  Joe is married to Laura Hallisey, who is from Durham, New Hampshire.  They met while waitstaffing at Yoken’s (remember that place?), which is the New England version of Hollywood’s boy-meets-girl story.  Joe and Laura are expecting, with a due date of Halloween, October 31.  They’ll wait for the birth to see whether it’s a boy or girl.

A new business avenue Boston Standard is pursuing is efficiency, “green” practices - for example, fixtures that conserve water or oil-to-gas conversion burners that squeeze the last few percentage points of thermodynamic efficiency out of the gas flame. 

Contact Joe and his crew at Boston Standard, (617)288-2911, or obtain complete information on Boston Standard at http://www.bostonstandardplumbing.com