PWC fines national.

Nearly 27 years ago, a dozen enterprising business and professional women working in the male-dominated construction industry formed Professional Women in Construction, or PWC, to help them combat the biases they faced daily on the job. That, it turns out, was just the beginning.

Fast forward to 2006: PWC NY, the national headquarters based in Manhattan, is flourishing with well-attended monthly meetings, nearly 600 members, a constituency of over 10,000, sponsors that include construction and real estate development titans plus leading public agencies, supporters from the highest ranks of industry and government and a website that counts close to 20,000 visitors a month.

Today, the organization's success is not only attracting attention, but begetting offspring. A New England branch is going full throttle in Connecticut, and a Capital Region (Washington, DC-based) and a New Jersey chapter are being launched. Plans have just taken root in Scranton for PWC PA.

To PWC president Lenore Janis, one of the original dozen founders, the only surprise is that the expansion didn't occur sooner:

"Through the years, we've seen interest from across the nation and the globe. We've had visitors from California, letters from as far away as South Africa. We always knew that we were on the right track, and are delighted that others want to emulate PWC's positive agenda."

Will PWC NY help the new kids on the block? Absolutely, said Janis. "Chapter organizers can count on our assistance to get the ball rolling in their communities."

They already have. When Vinesha Clark, owner of a woman and minority-owned business enterprise (W/MBE), Clark Construction Consulting Services, Inc., sought an organization to help her shake hands with the right people in DC, she discovered PWC on the Internet.

An email query sent Friday night: "Ever thought of a DC chapter?" received a weekend response from Janis, "Could you put together ten women in a room?" Clark's first call was to friend and colleague, JoAnn Coleman, P.E., vice president and owner of Construction Dispute Resolution and Support Services, a DC consulting firm. Coleman agreed to head the organization and immediately contacted several top industry people in the area.

Said Coleman, "The response was amazing. Everyone was open to the idea. As a team effort we can be much more effective at promoting our businesses."

Thanks to legal help donated by PWC member and sponsor, Peckar & Abramson, PWC DC is now incorporated. It held a kickoff meeting in October, and has a 13-member board that includes two men.

Kimberly Salvatore and Susan Labas, CPSM, president and vice president of PWC CT, the organization's New England branch, approached Janis over two years ago, stressing that the area needed an organization that focused on professional women in construction, according to Labas, senior associate and director of marketing for van Zelm Engineers.

Working closely with a PWC board member and general counsel Linda Christensen, esq., of Tishman Realty & Construction Co., Inc, a Vassar classmate of Labas, the chapter soon had eight board members--including two men. Monthly dinner meetings with a highly targeted institutional sector focus attract over 100 guests, 40 to 60% men, mostly senior management level industry executives from points in Connecticut and the Boston area.

Said Salvatore, assistant project manager with Fusco Corporation and a self-proclaimed "trailer bear," "We want to be the relevant source for the construction industry and showcase the new and rapidly changing trends."

The formula is working. "It has surpassed all our expectations," said Labas.

Longtime PWC member Norma Tempel, the owner of Etched in Stone, a stone fabricator specializing in puzzle fitted artwork for walls, floors and logos, explained that a New Jersey chapter is needed because of the large amount of construction in New Jersey, especially in Newark, Jersey City, the Meadowlands, Bergen Mall, Princeton, New Brunswick. "We need a group centered where the work is," she said.

An introductory PWC NJ meeting drew mostly women owners of small businesses from Northern and Central New Jersey.

This is a dynamic group seeking to make our companies grow by partnering with mid-sized to major firms and getting larger contracts," said Tempel. As the board forms--it will include men--she noted that the first step will be "building our base and creating momentum. This is all unchartered territory."

Said Janis, "The officers have created their formulas for success and are off and running! We're behind them every inch of the way."

For more information on PWC NY, the national headquarters, contact 212.486.7745, visit www.pwcusa.org or email [e-mail]. For PWC CT, visit. For PWC DC, contact [e-mail], for PWC NJ, [e-mail].