Overall Performance for Construction and Material Services Honoree: MZI Group, Inc.
A passion for construction led Arthur Zayas Miller to create the MZI Group, Inc., in 1999. Nearly two decades later, ComEd honored the MZI Group with the Overall Performance for Construction and Material Services award at ComEd’s 2nd Annual Supplier Diversity Awards on April 27.
The annual awards event is an opportunity for ComEd to honor and celebrate successful minority, veteran and women-owned suppliers that are helping to drive community and economic development across northern Illinois.
Arthur, MZI’s president and chief executive officer, says he recalls his company first working with ComEd through another supplier in 2007 on an infrastructure development project. The Chicago-based MZI Group, Inc. specializes in electrical and mechanical construction, energy infrastructure and utility projects, as well as design build and facility services. MZI started working directly with ComEd in 2011.
Arthur says he appreciates that ComEd works with small, diverse businesses to nurture them and help them grow. Although MZI has facilitated projects around the Midwest and across the nation, he says MZI regularly works with diverse suppliers, contractors and consultants.
“We are going back and giving back to the communities that we are serving,” Arthur says.
In 2016, the MZI Group helped ComEd celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month through ComEd’s Solar Spotlight Program. The program presents Latino high school students with the opportunity to learn more about solar energy and career opportunities in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math). Students measured energy output from solar modules they created as part of their hands-on activities. MZI helped install solar lighting in three Chicago neighborhoods and Aurora to commemorate the students’ work.
ComEd’s relationship with the MZI Group is an example of ComEd’s commitment to helping diverse companies be successful. In 2016, ComEd added 132 diverse suppliers to its program – a 26 percent increase – for a total of 516 certified-diverse suppliers. Since 2011, ComEd has injected more than $5.52 billion into its supply chain in Illinois, largely driven by the smart grid program created by the Energy Infrastructure Modernization Act (EIMA), according to a report filed in April with the Illinois Commerce Commission.
Watch the video for more information about the MZI Group.
