Local contracting companies, from air conditioners to electricians, have teamed up to form a group called Mechanical Optimizers to help local nonprofits with the upkeep of their operations.

The newly formed group creates, for the first time, a single point of contact for an audit of a nonprofit’s building’s situation and help with the budgeting and finding grants and funds for the project. All of this, remarkably, is done free of charge for the area’s churches, mosques and many other private institutions.

A nonprofit alliance of contractors recently completed a $200,000 renovation project at the Interfaith Hospitality Network of Greater Cincinnati in Walnut Hills.

The project updated the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system for The Interfaith Hospitality Network of Greater Cincinnati, which provides services and shelter for homeless families.