Anthony James Plumbing, Maintenance and Construction Services Limited

From Classroom to Caribbean: How One Teacher Built a Multi-Island Plumbing Business

A 43-Year Journey Reveals How Family Values and Smart Technology Can Transform a Local Trade into a Regional Leader.

In 1982, when Anthony James left his teaching career to launch a plumbing business with nothing but a Hillman Hunter car and determination, Trinidad and Tobago’s construction industry was vastly different from today’s sophisticated market. What began as one man’s leap from education to entrepreneurship has evolved into a cornerstone of the Caribbean plumbing sector, operating across multiple islands and serving clients from government ministries to five-star hotels.

“Anthony James Plumbing was founded by Anthony James, who is my dad. We’re a family business,” explains Anton James, the company’s current director. “He left teaching in 1982 and decided to go around with his Hillman Hunter, a popular car at the time, doing plumbing and maintenance. Then he got into bigger projects with the state and made his name in the private sector in Trinidad.” The transition from classroom to construction site proved prescient, positioning the company to capitalize on the nation’s infrastructure boom.

Today’s Anthony James Plumbing is a member of the Trinidad & Tobago Contractors Association, operating from locations in Belmont and Tobago. The family structure remains intact with Anthony James as managing director and licensed plumber, his wife serving as director and company secretary, and their sons Anton and Brent handling different operational aspects. “We’ve done projects in Barbados, St. Lucia, and Grenada Hotels through Nicholas Development, including Radisson and Crown Plaza Hotel,” Anton notes, highlighting the company’s regional expansion beyond Trinidad’s 1.5 million population market into the broader Caribbean construction landscape.

Three Pillars of Success

Anthony James Plumbing operates through three distinct business segments that have positioned the company as a comprehensive service provider in the Caribbean market. The contracting division handles major commercial and industrial projects, while maintenance services provide ongoing support, and a recently launched supply operation serves the broader plumbing community.

“The operation is Anthony James Plumbing, and we do plumbing maintenance, plumbing contracting, and plumbing supply,” Anton explains. “The plumbing supply is a supply house that we’ve opened just over a year now in May 2024. That’s another business segment because we are looking at changes in the business environment and realizing that sometimes you’re a victim of your own success.” The supply division addresses a strategic challenge: as the company grew, it became less competitive for smaller projects but could now support emerging contractors who needed materials and guidance.

The contracting portfolio reads like a tour of Trinidad’s most significant infrastructure. “We’ve refurbished the Parliament, done the Government Campus Plaza buildings, which are 23-story towers including the Ministry of Legal Affairs and the TTIR Tower,” Anton details. “We’ve done the teaching hospital in San Fernando, refurbished sporting facilities like Dwight York Stadium in Tobago, the Brian Lara Cricket Academy, and Skinner Park facility.” These flagship projects point to the company’s capabilities in complex commercial plumbing systems, while the maintenance contracts with institutions like Parliament and RHAND Credit Union provide steady revenue streams that stabilize cash flow between major construction projects.

Tech-Forward Traditions

Anthony James Plumbing has embraced digital transformation through FieldPoint software, a field service management platform that streamlines operations from work orders to inventory tracking. “We use FieldPoint service applications, and we’re happy with them. We’ve been using FieldPoint since 2021, which is one of the enhancements that came out of Covid,” Anton explains. “Even though COVID was so difficult, it was an opportunity for us to look and see where we could do better… And this is one of those areas.”

“We can share information with the customer in real time. We can load up work orders, and our team doesn’t have to get a written work order from the office before they leave. They can pull it up and get a notification that says, ‘Okay, you have a new work order, we need you to get to this job, and this job is a priority.’ And then somebody at the office admin can even change it up and say, ‘okay, we need to reschedule this job,’ and that happens all in real time.”

“We also have a rigid snake camera because here in the islands, we have to go and see what’s going on in sewage lines. So, we have that CCTV capacity as well. We have machines to clear any chokes, we use Pro Press coupling,” Anton notes. The marketing approach balances modern digital presence with traditional networking.

“We have Anthony James Plumbing on Facebook and Instagram, and we’re using the supply side to reverse engineer business for maintenance. People come to buy from the supply side and then say, ‘Hey, can somebody come install this for me?’ And we install that for them.” This hybrid strategy leverages their 43-year reputation while expanding reach through social media platforms.

Culture, Safety & Strategic Partnerships

The company’s internal culture centers on what Anton calls being “a family in service,” a philosophy that encompasses employee relations and supplier relationships. This approach aligns with industry trends where relationship-based partnerships help smaller plumbing businesses compete against larger franchises, which command less than 5% of total market share despite their visibility.

“We are a family in service and internally we want to invest in our people. Unlike any family, there are conflicts and disagreements, but there’s warmth and harmony and taking care of each other,” Anton explains. “People want to work with us because they know we are going to take care of you, we take care of each other, and they know that at the end of the day, this is family.” The company maintains connections with former employees who have started their own businesses. “I’ve had a call from that guy a couple of weeks ago saying, ‘Hey, do you have this material? Can I come buy it, or do you have this piece of equipment that you can lend to me?’ And it’s like, ‘Yeah, sure, it’s not in use.'”

Safety protocols include job safety analyses and method statements, while the company provides uniforms and appropriate equipment for different tasks. The supplier network operates on similar relationship principles. “We are very relationship-based. That family energy does not extend internally only, it’s also external,” Anton notes. Porters Agri-Industrial is a key partner.

“That’s a company that deals with pumping equipment, and they’ve done a lot of projects with us. They’ve done the Ministry of Legal Affairs with us, and they’ve always extended to us any technical assistance we need,” Anton explains.

“If we have an issue with a pump and want to know what the best solution is, their engineers always recommend something to us. Or if we have reservations about performing and meeting the requirements of a building. Porters Agri was there to say, ‘Okay, listen, this is what we think needs to happen.'” The relationship has weathered financial challenges, with Porters providing extended credit facilities during cash flow difficulties on projects.

“We definitely appreciate Charles Porter and his family, as it’s also a family business over there. But regarding pumping equipment and supplier support, he’s done a lot. And he’s been around as a supplier and a key part of our supply chain since I entered the business in 2008, so, it’s definitely a long-standing relationship that we’ll continue to move forward with.”

People, Equipment & Infrastructure

Anthony James Plumbing’s capital allocation strategy focuses heavily on human resources development, mirroring broader industry challenges where skilled labor shortages affect plumbing companies globally. The company has expanded employee benefits significantly, moving beyond basic compensation to comprehensive support packages that address healthcare and professional development needs.

“For this fiscal year, we are investing in our people. We are adding a fringe benefit when you work, we will add extra money to your pay packet as a bonus because we appreciate attendance. We’re adding group healthcare because we understand that for people, their health is their wealth,” Anton explains. The training investments include formal education support. “I’ve just had a member of staff embark on an introductory project management course that the company sponsored. So, we are really making an effort to invest in our people.”

Equipment expansion targets the growing maintenance segment, which provides consistent cash flow between larger projects. “We are experiencing growth in our maintenance segment of the business, and we intend to invest in another self-contained maintenance vehicle so that we are more responsive to customers because we have locked in a few contracts with KPIs that include a response time of two hours from the trouble call,” Anton notes. The supply division is also receiving equipment upgrades. “We want to add fabrication services where customers give us measurements and we will thread it, groove it for you, and charge you accordingly for that service.”

Regional Ambitions & Manufacturing Dreams

Anthony James Plumbing’s future strategy capitalizes on Trinidad and Tobago’s position as the second largest consumer market in the English-speaking Caribbean, with plans to become a regional supply hub. The company aims to leverage partnerships with international suppliers to serve the broader Caribbean construction market.

“In the next two to five years, we are making a big thrust on the plumbing supply side of our business. We are going to service suppliers to the Caribbean region, and we are going to do that through partnerships with our US suppliers and international suppliers,” Anton explains.

This regional expansion will be personally led by Anton himself, indicating the strategic importance of this initiative. The maintenance services will also expand with more aggressive pursuit of private sector contracts. “We want to continue to get proposals especially in the private sector to provide plumbing services in terms of preventative maintenance on a fortnightly or monthly basis.”

The long-term vision includes manufacturing capabilities that would capitalize on Trinidad’s strategic shipping location. “One of our longer-term goals is that Anthony James Plumbing as a group would look into manufacturing some type of plumbing part, maybe simple gaskets for your toilet or something like that. Because Trinidad and Tobago is a really nice place in terms of shipping, so if we can get manufacturing done, we can ship to the world,” Anton reveals. “But that is a long-term goal, like a five-to-ten-year plan.”

From a single teacher’s entrepreneurial leap in 1982 to a multi-faceted Caribbean operation with manufacturing aspirations, Anthony James Plumbing exemplifies how family businesses can evolve while maintaining their foundational values, adapting to market changes through strategic diversification and technological adoption.

AT A GLANCE

WHO: Anthony James Plumbing, Maintenance and Construction Services Limited

WHAT: Full-service plumbing company operating across contracting, maintenance, and supply divisions, serving commercial, industrial, and residential clients with projects ranging from Parliament buildings to hotel installations

WHERE: Headquartered in Trinidad and Tobago

WEBSITE: www.jamesplumbing.wordpress.com

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