J.f. Cleansvendornametrait.phpbrennan Company, Inc.

J.F. Brennan Company, Inc., a fourth-generation family-owned specialty marine contractor based in La Crosse, Wisconsin, operates as a prime contractor on federal marine construction, lock and dam repair, and contaminated sediment remediation projects for civilian water-resource agencies. The company competes full and open across its prime footprint with no standard set-aside posture, though it holds multiple small-business set-aside vehicle positions at EPA Region 5 and the Army Corps of Engineers.

J.F. Brennan's customer concentration is heavily weighted to water-resource infrastructure. The top five funding agencies account for 77% of recent awards by count, led by the Department of the Army Corps of Engineers (144 awards, $970.3 million combined potential value) and EPA Region 5 (18 awards, $1.38 billion combined potential value), which together anchor nearly 97% of the combined potential value across all awards. This split reflects a dual mission: the Corps drives volume through numerous lock, dam, and navigation-system repair projects, while EPA Region 5 concentrates dollars in large environmental remediation vehicles. The top customers by dollar magnitude diverge from those by volume — EPA Region 5's 18 awards carry $1.38 billion in potential value, while the Corps' 144 awards carry $970.3 million, signaling EPA orders are substantially larger per award.

J.F. Brennan holds four prime indefinite delivery vehicles totaling over $1.58 billion across the Army Corps of Engineers and EPA Region 5. The $960 million Great Lakes National Program Office Remediation and Restoration Services II (GLNPO-RRS II) contract with EPA Region 5, awarded in January 2025 as a total small business set-aside and running through January 2029, is the largest vehicle. Recent task orders under GLNPO-RRS II include a $11.99 million delivery order for the Torch Lake-Lake Linden Remedial Action (awarded April 2, 2026, completion February 2027) and a $29.3 million Thomson Reservoir Remedial Action order (awarded March 2024). The $260 million Design-Bid-Build Marine Construction Lakes Districts contract with the Army Corps of Engineers (multiple award, no set-aside, through January 2028) funds lock, breakwater, and harbor repairs across Buffalo, Chicago, and Detroit districts. The $200 million Stoplog Slot Cuts Conversion MATOC with the Corps (multiple award, no set-aside, through February 2029) addresses structural conversion work on the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System. A $160 million Metal Fabrication, Refurbishment, and Installation MATOC with the Corps (total small business set-aside, through November 2027) procures castings, forgings, hydraulic cylinders, and gate components. Activity has been volatile — 19 awards in 2022, declining to 10 in 2023, then rising to 27 in 2024 before dropping to 14 in 2025 and 2 in the first quarter of 2026.

Representative prime work spans lock and dam infrastructure, environmental remediation, and marine construction. The $117.75 million Brandon Road Interbasin Project, Increment 1-A construction contract with the Army Corps of Engineers (awarded April 2026, completion April 2029, no set-aside, firm fixed price) deploys aquatic nuisance species dispersal prevention technologies at Brandon Road Lock and Dam near Joliet, Illinois. The $68.74 million Lock and Dam 22 Fish Passage Improvement Project with the Corps (awarded September 2024, completion February 2027, no set-aside) includes demolition, fishway construction, electrical systems, and site restoration at New London, Missouri. The $43.06 million Chicago Harbor Lock chamber floor and wall repairs contract (awarded September 2021, completion June 2027, no set-aside, firm fixed price) addresses structural rehabilitation on the Illinois River. The $21.7 million Webbers Falls stilling basin repairs with the Corps (awarded March 2023, completion January 2027, no set-aside) and the $21.97 million Lock 19 nose pier replacement contract (awarded September 2025, completion June 2028, no set-aside) exemplify ongoing dam maintenance work. On the environmental side, the $31.83 million Munger Landing Remedial Action delivery order with EPA Region 5 (awarded May 2022, completion November 2025, no set-aside, firm fixed price) addressed contaminated sediment removal in Duluth, Minnesota, while the $35.45 million Spirit Lake Phase III construction task order with EPA Region 5 (awarded May 2022, completion October 2027, total small business set-aside) involved sediment remediation in Duluth. J.F. Brennan also executes smaller port security barrier, vessel exclusion barrier, and acoustic deterrent system maintenance work for Naval Sea Systems Command and the U.S. Geological Survey, typically through purchase orders in the tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

SCI-reported invoicing across federal service contracts above the $150,000 threshold declined sharply year over year — $41.7 million across 51.2 FTEs in FY2022, $78.1 million across 50.5 FTEs in FY2023, then $15.6 million across 11.4 FTEs in FY2024 — reflecting a shift from labor-intensive phases of large remediation projects toward lower-labor phases or completion of prior-year work. Government-paid hourly rates on SCI-reportable prime contracts ran a wide spectrum: median around $583/hour, with senior labor pricing reaching $1,299/hour and lower-rate labor at $59/hour, typical of dredging and diving labor where rates vary by skill and operational context. Across SCI-reportable prime contracts, J.F. Brennan self-performed 100% of contractor hours with no subcontractor labor reported, indicating a build-to-own-team posture on these service engagements.

J.F. Brennan operates as a subcontractor to larger marine and construction primes on specialized work. Named sub relationships include Vigor Marine LLC (on USS Kidd and USS Cape St. George port security barrier day-rate work and PSB-T system repairs in Seattle, with day rates ranging $10,638 to $15,734 for four-person teams with small craft and diving capability), Manson Construction Co (diving and specialized services on Alcatraz wharf stabilization, lock gate repairs at Longview, Washington, and truss work), EA Engineering, Science, and Technology, Inc., PBC (environmental survey and Spirit Lake remediation support), Alutiiq Information Management, LLC (labor on environmental health and safety work), and Battelle Memorial Institute (multibeam survey services under Great Lakes remediation programs). The 9% sub-award share of total awards reflects selective use of the vendor as a dive and specialized marine-labor provider to primes managing larger design-build or A&E contracts.

Recompete pressure is significant — 13 awards with ultimate completion dates in the next twenty-four months carry combined potential value of $269.2 million, principally the large EPA and Corps vehicles anchoring most of the customer concentration. The vendor's award trajectory and the recompete cliff signal a mature, specialized contractor with established dominance in federal lock, dam, and Great Lakes remediation work but facing cyclical project completion and vehicle recompete within the near term.

Hydraulic Dredging, dewatering, and water Treatment of Contaminated sediments in Rivers and Ports.