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Veteran-owned Small Business Creates Jobs in Areas that Need It Most
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Through their partnership with Dominion Energy, a quality control and managerial service provider is stimulating economic growth in Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) Zones across the country.
Bernie Johnson retired from the U.S. Coast Guard in 2002, eager to find his next adventure. After years of providing quality control/quality assurance in shipyards for the Coast Guard, Johnson saw an opportunity for inspection companies to play a bigger role in supplying experienced inspectors to job sites.
With a combined 36 years of energy experience, Johnson and his brother, Marlon, started BJ Inspections Inc. (BJI) — a company focused on providing inspection and managerial services to the gas, oil, and power industry. They have since partnered with Dominion Energy and other companies throughout the country, creating jobs and opportunities.
BJI’s work with Dominion Energy started 14 years ago when welding inspectors were needed at Dominion Energy’s Cove Point liquified natural gas (LNG) facility in Maryland. The partnership has continued to grow over the years and is a testament to the importance of valuing and working with diverse suppliers.
BJI has grown substantially since its work at Cove Point began — the mighty team of two has expanded to almost 200 employees.
Bernie Johnson served with the U.S. Coast Guard and assisted at Ground Zero following 9-11
As a veteran, Johnson is highly aware of the need to provide quality services while also creating economic opportunity for others in his community. Veteran-owned companies like BJI are a catalyst for economic growth, specifically in Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZones). The HUBZone program helps small businesses in urban and rural communities by awarding federal contracts to small businesses that operate and employ workers in those areas.
“A lot of guys working out in the inspection world, truck drivers and all that, are coming from these small communities,” says Johnson. Fifty percent of the company’s employees have come from HUBZone areas.
Johnson believes that a person's word and a handshake symbolizes an agreement that you can count on. It is their promise that a relationship with BJI is like that handshake; a promise to be dependable and thorough. It is this philosophy that has allowed BJI to maintain a close-knit partnership with Dominion Energy. “BJI is only in business because Dominion took a chance on our start-up in 2008. I have to really thank them because they are the ones that really helped me get where I'm at now.”
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