As sustainability has come to the forefront of customers’ and business owners’ minds, many need help ensuring they are meeting their environmental goals.
That’s what BCX Energy Inc. does.
“Sustainability is part of the fabric of business in this modern age in the last 10 to 15 years,” said Michael Cahill, owner of BCX Energy.
Larger companies may have a sustainability manager or a department charged with overseeing carbon emissions and making sure the company meets its target, but unless the institution is especially environmentally conscious, it usually relies on agencies such as the R.I. Department of Environmental Management to give institutions guidelines for the allowable limits of pollutants such as greenhouse gases, dust, nitrogen oxide and unburned hydrocarbons, Cahill said.
However, these guidelines and regulations can be complicated to understand, even for an environmental engineer or firms that don’t have an air quality specialist. So, they turn to companies such as BCX Energy that specialize in air quality challenges.
Cahill says BCX Energy is often subcontracted by what he refers to as “friendly competition,” or other environmental engineering firms without an air quality business.
“It’s a small-business sector; not just environmental but the air quality, so there’s a lot of collaboration going on,” Cahill said.
Cahill founded BCX Energy with his business partner and friend, Keith Boivin, in Providence in 2010. The business originally had both an air quality and a solar energy unit.
But when the COVID-19 pandemic struck, the solar business dwindled because customers were typically residents, and lockdown and social distancing orders meant BCX Energy couldn’t do as many home visits for residents.
The company still has interest in its solar business and has partnered with Fall River-based Isaksen Solar to handle inquiries, Cahill said.
Despite the dwindling solar business, the air quality unit stayed strong, as BCX Energy served essential businesses such as health care institutions.
Cahill and Boivin started the company from ground zero, though they were able to lean on their contacts to grow the business.
“It goes back to if you do good work, answer the phone and respond to emails in a timely manner, then you’ll get business,” Cahill said.
Among BCX Energy’s clients is ExxonMobil Corp., which specializes in natural gas transfer. BCX Energy does emission testing for ExxonMobil, Cahill said. BCX also consults with Iroquois Gas Transmission System to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions through testing and calculations.
And the business appears to be doing well, as BCX Energy’s revenue grew by about 15% in 2024.
Cahill believes that this growth has come from the company consistently producing good work for its clients on a timely basis, and he hopes the business reaches another 15% to 25% revenue growth in 2025.
Part of Cahill’s plan to grow the business includes improving its use of customer relationship management, such as HubSpot, and hiring more employees.
“We want to make better use of the modern approaches, coupled with the older word of mouth,” Cahill said.
OWNER: Michael Cahill
TYPE OF BUSINESS: Environmental engineering consulting firm with a focus on air quality
LOCATION: 276 Gano St., Providence
EMPLOYEES: Two
YEAR FOUNDED: 2010
ANNUAL REVENUE: WND
Thx for featuring us in ur great newspaper. As I was telling your journalist Ms. Castellani, I’ve been a long time fan of PBN. It’s so great to be included in this issue! ~ Michael Cahill engineer/pres of BCX Energy, Inc.