CHICAGO - The Mechanical Contractors Association of Chicago (MCA Chicago) named John Stern of Dahme Mechanical Industries Inc. as the new president at the association’s annual meeting, June 13 at the Ritz-Carlton, Chicago.

Stern succeeds David Weiner, president of Advance Mechanical Systems Inc., who served as president of MCA Chicago from 2006 to 2008. “We thank David for his hard work, guidance, and inspiration,” said Stephen Lamb, executive vice president of MCA Chicago. “During his administration, the association made great strides in government relations, educational programming, and the advancement of green building.”

Lamb added, “While following in David’s footsteps won’t be easy, we are confident that John will provide the same kind of progressive leadership to the association. The expertise John brings to his new role as president is both extensive and remarkable. His background in mechanical contracting includes working as a journeyman pipe fitter, earning a degree in business management from Indiana University, holding leadership positions with major contractors, and serving in numerous positions with the association. Everyone at MCA looks forward to working with John.”

MCA contractors work with the pipe fitters and service technicians of Pipefitters Local Union 597 to build powerhouses to generate electricity for the community; to install and service heating and air conditioning systems in homes and buildings, and to install industrial piping wherever it is needed - from oil refineries to pharmaceuticals to food-processing plants.

Stern served as estimator, project manager, and vice president at Bert C. Young & Sons Corp., of Bellwood, Ill., where he oversaw the company’s daily operations. In 2007, Stern joined Dahme Mechanical Industries, in Arlington Heights, Ill., as project manager.

Stern’s career includes a wide array of mechanical contracting projects. For Chicago’s McCormick Place, Stern supervised the running of all temporary underground gas piping for the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, including 4,000 feet of 4-inch gas main. With a two-week completion time, this project posed unique challenges, as it involved excavating around the perimeter of a building that is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

At O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, he supervised the installation of underground fuel and glycol de-icing systems for United Airlines.

For V.A. Hines Hospital in Hines, Ill., he supervised the installation of an underground steam distribution system to replace a system that had become inoperable. This restored heat to two facilities in the middle of winter with a three-week turnaround time.

Stern oversaw the installation of an HVAC system for the Department of Defense Information Technology Center, in Maywood, Ill. - a facility that serves as a redundant backup to the U.S. government’s main computer facilities in Washington, D.C.

Stern has been actively involved with industry organizations. He has been a board member of both the Certified Welding Bureau and the Chicagoland Better Heating Cooling Council, and served as president of the Council from 2006 to 2007. He is also a member of the Management Methods Committee for the Mechanical Contractors Association of America (MCAA).

He has served MCA Chicago in a number of different roles: as a member of the Executive Board and the Management Methods Committee, and as chair of the Financial and Technology Committees. He also has served as a mentor for the MCA Student Chapter at Illinois State University.

For more information on MCA Chicago, visit www.mca.org.

Publication date:07/07/2008