It’s no wonder that the waves of the Boomer Generation exerted such pressure on the construction industry continent-wide, when one considers the 8,200,000 babies born in Canada during the post-war era that extended to 1964, and the 76,000,000 born in the U.S. Now the leading edge of that demographic cohort has turned 75, approaching the age where they are looking at accessibility issues in their homes or moving to senior-friendly apartments, contemplating assisted living facilities (where they can keep a level of independence in a safe environment and enjoy a social life) or long-term care (LTC) facilities (where they receive nursing care).

Those options represent new opportunities for the construction industry to meet the needs of the largest generation ever, whose life expectancy is longer than any generation before them but who may have longer periods of decreased mobility and declining health that we shall need to accommodate.

The PEW Research Centre in the U.S. says that of the 76 million Boomers born in the U.S., 71.2 million were still living in 2019, as compared with the Silent Generation (1928-1945) when 47 million were born, with only 23 million living in 2019. Canada has a similar proportion of Boomers still living. For the first time, in 2015, Statistics Canada announced there were more people over 65 than under 15.

However, those numbers may not translate into construction of more assisted living and LTC facilities. Numbers don’t lie, but they don’t always tell the whole story. While it’s a logical assumption that we shall build more residences specifically for seniors with varying levels of care, not that many of them, especially the younger ones, actually live in dedicated facilities.

According to the latest census figures available from Statistics Canada (2011) only 2.6 percent of the population over 65 lived in such facilities, with that number increasing to 29.6 percent for people over 85, with similar proportions in the U.S. And there are mitigating factors which may reduce, or at least not further increase, those percentages.

Aging in place
First, it’s the Boomers themselves. They were the Woodstock generation, the Vietnam War protesters, and overall, the best educated, most affluent, and most independent generation to date. They don’t take kindly to being told what to do or where to live.

Many prefer to remain in their homes where they are comfortable for as long as they can, and instead of moving to an assisted living facility when they do require assistance, prefer to receive it through community-based care.

The Report on housing needs of seniors, prepared for the Canadian Federal, Provincial and Territorial Forum for the Minister Responsible for Seniors by the Queen’s University Network of Aging Researchers (Kingston, ON) in 2017, agrees with the position of seniors who want to age in place. Not only does remaining in their own home provide a better quality of life, but it is also less costly for both seniors and the government.

The report also addresses the need “for communities to integrate an aging perspective into urban planning to create age-friendly spaces and environments.” Looking ahead the report recommends that, “new buildings and homes need to follow principles of universal design — spaces that are more easily accessible, with barrier free environments.”

A second factor that is driving the aging-in-place trend is the COVID-19 pandemic, which has ravaged LTC homes, especially ones where residents share rooms with inadequate ventilation. Added to the deadly consequences of an outbreak are the side effects of enforced isolation when families cannot visit and residents must remain in their rooms.

In his article, Time to re-think seniors housing and long-term care in Canada (April 3, 2020, iPolitics.ca), Alan Freeman writes, “Once this disaster is over, it will be high time to rethink the whole model of senior living. Healthy seniors are clearly best off in their own homes or in apartments in mixed communities of all ages. Corralling them all together is unhealthy for them and bad for society.

“Scores of nursing homes and residences across the country have been hit by the virus. LTCs with highly vulnerable populations are particularly at risk, but retirement homes are also problematic.”

When Freeman penned this, the pandemic was in its first wave; 18 months later, the fourth wave led by the Delta Variant continues to demonstrate the health risks associated with too many seniors in one complex.

But seniors wanting to remain in homes built before the 1990s face difficulty. Many of those homes lack good design and safety features and can’t accommodate the newer independence technologies such as motorized scooters or electric wheelchairs according to the Report on housing needs of seniors.

The good news, however, is that financial support is available to help seniors with renovations so they can stay in place, while governments, both federal and state or provincial, recognize the benefits of aging in place, including lower costs to the public purse.

Remodelling for accessibility
We spoke with Maurice Meagher, President and Owner of Case Design Remodelling–Halifax and Archadeck Nova Scotia, companies which are featured in this issue, to learn about the practical aspects of remodelling for seniors.

Meagher and several staff have received Aging in Place certification, something he decided to do when he saw an increasing demand for this service which accounts for 10 to 15 percent of his business.

“We decided we needed to be better informed and educated to provide effective solutions for clients and it can be very broad and individualized as people have unique needs and their home may have some unique challenges,” he said.

“Training for certification is about understanding how to gather all the information, the unique needs and requirements for each situation, and understanding the available solutions, whether it be for access to the home, bathroom, or to use the kitchen, a sight or ‘grasp-ability’ issue. A big part of it is not to make assumptions but to drill down and really understand what is unique to people’s needs and only then apply solutions that will make their lives easier, while making sure everything complies with regional code requirements.”

The most common remodelling jobs often involve wheelchair ramps or, when there’s no space to build a ramp that meets building code requirements, the installation of a lift to gain access to the house. In addition, doorways may need to be widened to accommodate turning angles and floors levelled.

Inside, safety and accessibility of bathroom functions can be vastly improved through the installation of grab bars, walk-in showers, tubs with seating, curb-less showers, eliminating a trip hazard, and glass partitions instead of hinged or sliding doors that challenge arthritic hands.

Other areas of the home can be remodelled to improve accessibility, or, with kitchens, easier meal preparation. Well-designed lighting can fill in shadowy areas; round door handles can be exchanged for levered handles or push-button entry; flooring, exterior pathways, and decks can be replaced or refinished with anti-slip products.

Meagher says that many of these features are included as a matter of course in new homes now and that homes of the future will focus more on universal design, including barrier-free entrances, and will avoid age-hostile design elements such as sunken living rooms.

He concludes, “People want to be independent and stay in their own homes for as long as they are able, and with the right remodelling solution, they can,” as satisfied clients have told him.

Alternative solutions
Nevertheless, staying in one’s own home is not always the best solution, especially in a location where essential services are difficult to access. A better alternative may be to move to a new apartment complex featuring universal design features, and offering essential retail, and maybe other helpful services at street level, along with access to public transportation.

That’s not to say that we won’t need LTC homes, and for Alzheimer’s patients, dedicated Memory Care facilities with secure exits, which may or may not be included in the same building, depending on differing state or provincial regulations. But as we learn lessons from this pandemic and construct new LTCs, it is to be hoped that shared rooms, unless for couples, will be eliminated and ventilation improved, and more, secure, outdoor spaces will be included in the design.

But there are alternative senior housing / care models that have not been explored in North America, according to the Report on housing needs of seniors, which cites Lifetime Neighbourhoods (UK), and Apartments for Life (The Netherlands) as examples of different arrangements.

Alan Freeman writes that, “Denmark has chosen to concentrate its health care investments on the home and community care sector, believing that the elderly are better taken care of at home.” In Denmark, he says, only 36 percent of the budget for senior health care goes to long term care, while the remaining 64 percent goes to home and community-based care, the opposite of what occurs in North America, where he calls the current policies “short sighted.”

“No new conventional nursing homes have been built in 20 years,” he writes, “but when they do build new, the Danes opt for small, independent apartment units, linked to a common kitchen and garden, where seniors can age independently in a protected environment.”

End of life care
For too long, too many have spent their last days in acute treatment hospital wards, with no privacy for them and their grieving families, or in shared rooms in LTC facilities with only a curtain between the beds.

In response to the work of Dame Cicely Saunders, who founded the first modern hospice in the UK in 1967, the notion of replacing end-of-life care in a sterile and sometimes dehumanizing hospital setting with something more comforting was introduced into the U.S. in the 1970s, and later, into Canada, although it wasn’t widely available in the early days.

Hospice or palliative care, which focuses on pain management and the psychological and spiritual needs of terminally ill patients (those with a prognosis of less than six months), was provided in the beginning in patient’s homes or in separate sections of hospitals or LTC facilities. More recently, hospices tend to occupy stand-alone facilities.

“End Stages”, an article by Nitin Abuja, MD (Places: The Journal of Public Scholarship on Architecture, Landscape and Urbanism, May 2018), offers interesting perspectives on the construction of such facilities, but cautions, “As hospice design becomes more formally ambitious and standardized, we should remember there is no universal model for dying well.”

Proponents of hospice care present what is “essentially an aesthetic argument that the standard physical templates of healthcare are bleak, sterile and dehumanizing.” As an alternative setting, Abuja says palliative architecture needs to replace the look of the busy, modern, efficient hospital with its long corridors and aggressive treatment with something more comforting, which allows for families to remain with the dying, while at the same time adhering to medical and building code standards.

But beyond that, he says the design agenda is variable. Early models adopted domestic ideals of comfort, resembling a middle-class home, but more recently, “we’ve seen spaces that employ dramatic design elements to facilitate a symbolic engagement with the end of life.”

In this regard he mentions the Hospice de Ark (1999) in The Netherlands, designed by Stan Neuhof, which “features an elliptical arrangement of inpatient rooms that’s meant to echo the shape of a womb.”

Other designs focus on colour (although there is no agreement as to whether pastels or bright shades are better), materials (exposed wood may have therapeutic value), room dimensions (it is generally agreed that rooms should be 20 to 25 percent larger than standard hospital rooms), ceilings with interesting designs and recessed lighting, and windows for natural light and fresh air, as opposed to overheated, poorly ventilated hospital rooms.

It is undeniable that the growing senior population presents opportunities for innovation in construction to at last satisfy a wide range of real needs. And Boomers are leading the way, as they have for 75 years.

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Conceptualizing and gauging this multifaceted concept is different for everyone since numerous factors inevitably come into play. Suffice it to say that a satisfying quality of life is something for which we all strive, even more so when aging creates restrictions on one’s independence and capabilities.

The WHO has reported that by 2050, approximately two billion people aged sixty-five and over will be inhabiting this planet, with over seventy percent of the total world population likely to be living in cities.

This presents huge challenges for growing cities that must adapt and provide for their citizens’ expectations, especially their seniors, who are often overlooked in city planning. These seniors will require consideration if they hope to live the rest of their lives with a good quality of life. This quality of life and age-friendly city responses to seniors’ needs dictates one’s longevity.

This is where the ‘smart’ city concept will prove to be instrumental in serving an aging population. The premise is one of senior inclusion rather than exclusion in the cities they call home. Cities worldwide have incorporated the smart city concept into their planning by creating, implementing, and promoting information and communication technologies (ICT) to meet the growing needs of their citizens – young and old alike.

The technologies will include software and communication networks such as the Internet of Things (IoT) to enable both communication and relevant data exchange with connected devices. Data collected is stored on servers or in the cloud to monitor where improvements could optimize efficiencies to benefit all city residents.

Aside from IoT implementation, technologies such as artificial intelligence, application programming interfaces, cloud computing and machine learning can be assimilated into this framework to aid seniors in growing cities. Some smart cities have made available apps that can be installed on a visually impaired or blind individual’s smartphone or tablet. Such apps enable city navigation through real-time environment descriptions, street intersections, and shorter routes to destinations.

Installing a specific app that aids in navigating busy pedestrian crossings, for example, will aid those with restricted mobility. IoT traffic light sensors monitor the pavement and can determine when an elderly or disabled person is about to cross. This smart traffic light monitoring system adjusts the timing of the signal to give a pedestrian more time to make the crossing safely.

Smart cities are also realizing the advantages of employing geospatial technology comprised of geographical information systems (GIS), global positioning systems (GPS), and remote viewing, all of which have improved substantially over the past decade. Those with dementia, Alzheimer’s, or some other form of cognitive or memory impairment can benefit from technologies that serve as a cloud-based GPS tracking platform. This can assist in locating a senior who wanders off and becomes disoriented. Police forces in cities can more readily locate missing people through their receiving equipment which uses radiofrequency technology to pick up signals. Dementia-assisting strategies like this are being invested in by several municipalities.

Various companies manufacture GPS trackers which can be placed in handbags, shoe soles, or ironed into one’s clothing. When trying to locate a lost and disorientated senior, time is of the essence. “More than sixty percent of those with Alzheimer’s or another form of dementia will wander. If a person is not found within twenty-four hours, up to half of individuals who wander will suffer serious injury or death,” according to the Alzheimer’s Association.

In the healthcare realm, sharing medical data via the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) app enables medical professionals to stay connected with patients and caregivers through remote viewing and monitoring of vital signs and medication schedules, for example. This can eliminate visits to doctors’ offices or hospitals for minor ailments. Consultation and prescriptions are made available through technology, and prescriptions can often be delivered to a home.

Virtual assistants allow seniors help when needed through apps for touch screen tablets, many of which come with automated voices. This gives the senior a sense of someone there to assist—a sense of community—particularly if they live alone.

For the most part, seniors tend to be less active and are encouraged to aim for daily exercise in their communities. Smart cities providing adequate infrastructure with a focus on creating age-friendly environments such as suitable walking routes will achieve this. Designing accessible city neighbourhoods with shaded bench spaces encourages seniors to walk, and walk further, knowing that rest areas are available. The focus needs to shift from a senior’s limitations to encouraging activity.

Striving to improve seniors’ health lends itself to more social interaction and engagement in their community. This, in turn, gives a sense of meaning and identity for the senior rather than a feeling of isolation.

Technological solutions are proving to be viable options moving forward, yet improvements are required in the all-essential public transportation infrastructure to suit a city’s aging population. Being housebound and inactive can result from not having easy access to public transit. It is a fact that seniors who are active daily are more mentally astute and physically healthier for much longer.

For seniors who no longer drive, public transportation is a good option, particularly for those who rely on bussing systems. Safety and accessibility will require some adjustments in the design phase for this form of transportation.

Some senior transit bus options can include door-to-door paratransit services utilizing mini-buses or vans. This gives seniors greater flexibility with scheduling and in getting the assistance required on either end of their trip. Buses equipped with camera systems assist drivers in determining that a senior is safely seated before resuming travel, especially on crowded vehicles. Bus stops should have stable and slip-resistant surfaces to accommodate boarding and exiting.

Passenger movement for those with mobility aids should be adequate for both entering and departing with sufficient sidewalk clearance. Also, bus benches with shelters can prove useful if the wait time for a bus will be longer than fifteen minutes.

Level-boarding buses that kneel at the curb-side or lifts that ease boarding will help both the driver and the aged passenger by providing easy and accessible boarding while reducing boarding time.

Improvements in bus transit access such as additional stops and redesigning routes for those neighbourhoods underserved are well underway in cities across North America. Smart cities are taking into account the needs of their seniors who may be challenged with vision, hearing, or mobility impairment.

Aside from the aforementioned, WHO’s Global Age-Friendly Cities: A Guide notes several concerns when it comes to planning, designing, and implementing strategies for the age-friendly city, three of which include a pleasant and clean environment, green spaces, and age-friendly buildings.

A city’s peaceful natural surroundings are appealing to its seniors who seek noise-controlled, stress-free environments. This is especially true for those with dementia or deterioration in hearing. Hearing loss has the most impact on these people since their ability to comprehend their sensory environment is seriously reduced and can lead to disorientation and falls.

One of the most important elements in age-friendly cities for seniors is having safe, sufficient green spaces in their communities. The spaces should be both accessible and walkable with age-friendly pavements and seating areas for resting. Green spaces provide not only the opportunity for physical activity but social engagement and an appreciation for nature. This, in turn, can help stimulate the mind and the senses.

There are times when seniors, who are living much longer, would benefit most by living in a senior living community or nursing home. But the majority of seniors want to retain their independence, remain lively in their social circles, and live a healthy active lifestyle while remaining in their homes as long as they can. Doing so will require some modifications in their living space where required.

Universal design in the building design phase is a concept that is rapidly growing. This concept ensures that building design considers all of life’s stages up to the preparation for living in the golden years and aging in place.

Smart cities are designed for everyone so that a good quality of life can be achieved. It is not an easy task but special considerations given to seniors in the designing, planning, implementation, and evaluation stages will assure that these cities are responding to the needs of all their citizens. And seniors must have a voice in age-friendly strategic plans.

By doing so, what people deem to be a good quality of life becomes reality.

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There were often vast differences in political promises, too – from building a million homes over three years and forcing the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CHMC) to slash mortgage insurance rates by 25 percent, to imposing an “empty home tax” on foreign investors.

For almost 80 years, the Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA) has served as “the voice of Canada’s residential construction industry.” With a strength of about 9,000 members including home builders and renovators, trade contractors, product manufacturers, land developers, lending institutions and related businesses, the CHBA plays a vital role in developing communities from coast to coast.

This includes conveying the needs and wants of homeowners to governments, and providing information for Canadians purchasing a new home, or renovating existing ones.

One of the Association’s most important roles is working tirelessly to see that Canadians have access to housing they can afford, an ongoing issue in the nation. Now, under CEO Kevin Lee, the CHBA continues to advocate on behalf of Canadians as it has since 1943.

Working for Canadians
Founded a few years before the CMHC, the Canadian Home Builders’ Association recognized that there would be a need for housing once World War II ended.

Back then, the industry was facing challenges, including a need to professionalize the industry, bring in good codes and construction standards, and have consistency among bylaws in different cities; many of these issues remain. There was also a need to keep developing construction technologies and work on the challenge of making housing affordable.

“Just like today,” says Lee. “Working all across the country as one voice to inform government is obviously a lot better than trying to do it on an individual or regional basis. The things that led to the formation of the CHBA then are priority items that we work on to this day.”

Long before taking on his current role as CEO, in 2013, Lee was committed to the building sector. Earning his Bachelor of Engineering (B.Eng) and Master’s Degree in Architecture from McGill University, Lee has spent much of his career in housing, including serving in the private sector in residential construction, and also serving the federal government in the area of residential construction .

He was deputy director at CanmetENERGY (Natural Resources Canada), and also director of the Housing Division for the Office of Energy Efficiency, also at Natural Resources Canada.

When the opportunity with the CHBA came up, it was the best of both worlds: a chance to work as leaders in best practice for a not-for-profit organization with great volunteers all across the country, with the objective of advancing residential construction, housing, and affordability for Canadians.

It also presented a challenge: taking a private-sector role and making a big impact for the industry, keeping abreast of not only what the industry was doing, but informing government and making recommendations to government for the betterment of homebuyers and homeowners.

“So it really checked off a lot of good boxes, and over the course of eight years it has proven to be exactly that,” he says. “It’s a challenging and rewarding position that I continue to enjoy a lot.”

With a deep background in residential construction, housing technology, and all the nuances of the sector itself – plus the qualification of having worked inside government – Lee’s experience in housing covers the practical to the political.

“One of the biggest priorities is federal government advocacy, and so understanding how the federal government works is obvious a big asset when undertaking those roles,” he says of the CHBA which has a federated model of local, provincial and national associations, all working together.

How did we get here?
For Lee and his team at the Canadian Home Builders’ Association, the questions they hear most often are, why this? Why now? What brought Canada to this point where home ownership is out of the reach of so many young and new Canadian families? Although the recent federal election brought the issue to the attention of many, housing affordability has been a priority for the CHBA for a very long time; the election provided the motivation and opportunity for party leaders to share their views on how to address the crisis.

In 2017, a report from the CHBA focusing on the demographics of Canada noted a ‘baby-boomlet’ occurring among Millennials, which was expected to continue over the decade.

By the Association’s estimates, Canada was expected to be about 300,000 family housing-units short during this time because of the rising demographic. As a result, Canada had been challenged to build more homes over recent years, while experiencing some efforts to suppress demand through demand-side measures by government, making it much harder for Canadians to become homeowners at a young age.

Needing more from a home
Then, on March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a global pandemic. With many workers forced to stay home for safety reasons, dining room tables and spare rooms soon became makeshift office space and workout areas. After a few months of living in close quarters – and saving money on restaurants, shopping, and entertainment – many Millennials, younger and older alike, decided to purchase their first home, or move to a larger place.

Although an urgent need for housing has existed for years, COVID has accelerated the situation. So, a combination of Canadians saving money during the pandemic, lower interest rates (thus lower mortgage rates), and the need to upgrade to bigger premises to accommodate home offices, gyms, and a place to school the kids are all factors.

And perhaps the biggest is that many of us can now work remotely, connecting through Zoom, Teams, GoTo Meetings, and similar virtual platforms, fuelling an exodus from crowded cities to peaceful suburbs and areas even more remote.

“Through the pandemic, we saw the unleashing of this pent-up demand,” says Lee. “There weren’t enough houses in the market to begin with, and certainly not enough to absorb people coming onto the market. Add all that together and you have a perfect storm that really emphasizes the challenge we’ve been talking about for ages: that there are just not enough houses to go around.” Along with a factor making home ownership more difficult: accelerating house prices.

This year saw one of Canada’s big five banks, Scotiabank, publish the report Estimating the Structural Housing Shortage in Canada: Are We 100 Thousand or Nearly 2 Million Units Short? Produced by Jean-François Perrault, the report doesn’t pull any punches when it refers to “a chronic insufficiency of home supply” temporarily worsened by the pandemic, record-low mortgage rates, and a dramatic change in housing by type and location. Perrault asserts that “Past and future macroprudential measures are ineffective Band-Aids that do not address the underlying insufficiency of supply.”

Many of the findings in the report are discouraging, particularly that Canada has the lowest number of housing units per 1,000 residents of any G7 country, a figure that has continuously worsened since 2016 because of population growth. Most telling is that an extra 100,000 dwellings would have been needed “to keep the ratio of housing units to population stable since 2016 – leaving us still well below the G7 average.”

Thinking outside the housing box
The solution to Canada’s housing shortage is far from being a one-size-fits-all quick fix. Although the recently re-elected federal government can lead, local and provincial governments must be on board as well.

Fortunately, there are some solutions, including modular and laneway housing. A rapid housing initiative for social housing implemented by the federal government over the past few years identifies modular construction, which will get things done faster and cut through red tape, with quality of housing remaining high. This, says Lee, is exactly what is needed right now for market-rate housing as well.

“When we talk about affordability in market-rate housing and available supply, one of the biggest challenges we face is the ability to get through red tape, through all of the processes and zoning challenges and NIMBYism,” he says. “And I think one of the things the rapid housing initiative shows is, where there’s a will there’s a way, and you can get good housing built quickly.”

While so-called “tiny homes” measuring a few hundred square feet are also part of the equation, it is important to differentiate these types of housing from non-year-round trailers meant for different purposes. Today’s modular homes aren’t trailers – modular homes can be anything from a beautiful tiny home to a 6,000 square foot mansion, and anything in between.

For Lee and his team at the Canadian Home Builders’ Association, the Number One priority remains affordability, and ensuring that the business, policy, and mortgage environments are in place to enable Canadians to still become homeowners as we move forward. One of the biggest factors is getting more supply and market-rate housing online.

“In recent times, there has been an emphasis by the federal government on what is termed ‘affordable housing,’ which is actually social housing,” says Lee. “That is very important. We do need more social housing, but at times governments have sort of conflated affordable housing with housing affordability. Building more social housing doesn’t help the person who is worried about whether their children are going to be able to afford to buy a home – those are two entirely different discussions.

“The expectation for Canadians is that a young, hard-working, middle-class couple should be able to save up for a down payment and buy their first home. That should be a dream that is within reach. So making sure affordability is front and centre will be critical, and getting more supply is a big part of that.”

Coming together
And while the issue of building more Net Zero and energy-efficient homes remains important, this must be done in a way that doesn’t damage affordability and the process. All of this – including getting more affordable and energy-efficient homes on the market – is possible, but it requires all of industry and government to row in the same direction, so to speak.

A leader in energy-efficient homes, the CHBA was part of the founding group of the R-2000 program in the 1980s, which was followed by Energy Star, again something in which CHBA has been heavily involved; today, the Association has its own Net Zero home labelling program. Working with a council, the CHBA has labelled over 670 Net Zero and Net Zero-ready homes across Canada. Of equal importance is the need to help consumers make smart initiatives about renovating existing homes, and additional incentives.

“We are big proponents of mandatory home energy labelling at the time of resale of a home, just so that consumers have that information,” says Lee. “When you buy a new home, you know what you’re getting – the latest and greatest energy efficiency requirements that are already built into the building code, and you have a chance to do even more through Net Zero if you want to invest your money that way. With an existing home, it’s trickier to know what you’re getting,” he says.

“When you buy an existing home, chances are it’s not nearly as energy efficient as a new one, and even if it is, it’s hard to tell sometimes. So that’s why we need home energy labelling, and why we are really focusing on the existing housing stock as an important part of the climate change solution. Governments are starting to recognize that, but the pushing toward Net Zero regulation too soon – through the building code – need to be watched carefully to make sure Canadians can still afford to buy homes.”

Serving as an example of what can be done with housing, in 1997 Lee built his own advanced Victorian-style home that uses half the energy of an R-2000 home, and was featured on the Discovery Channel. He still lives in the house with his family.

“I thought it was important to show that any house could be energy efficient, and it doesn’t have to look like a spaceship. So it all worked out because here I am 24 years later in the same great home.’

The post Transforming a Crisis Into a Better Future<p class="company">The Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA)</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

In the small but vibrant mountain town of Revelstoke, British Columbia, Absolute Contracting exemplifies this highly specialized homebuilding market, able to provide attainable custom solutions on sustainable budgets. A member of the Canadian Home Builder’s Association (CHBA), Absolute has nearly two decades of building custom homes in Canada’s wildest terrain.

Absolute has enjoyed its position as Revelstoke’s largest home builder since beginning operations in town in 2007. This former industry town has had a new lease on life through its spectacular mountain scenery, which naturally lends itself to equally spectacular skiing and snow sports. A regular population of approximately 8,000 is reported to double during the winter months, evidence of the town’s status amongst lovers of snow sports.

But Revelstoke’s attractions go beyond its natural beauty. One of Canada’s first smaller communities to acquire fibre internet, growth swelled as professionals and entrepreneurs could now both experience Revelstoke’s quality of life and also perform their jobs.

As a result, the town is host to high-tech firms such as Sniper Action Photo and Cronometer, enabling residents to have it all, enjoying hectic downhill speeds in their adrenaline-fuelled private activities and still playing their part in a fast-paced modern economy.

Today, the husband-and-wife team of Sally & Scott Robertson lead Absolute as it, in turn, helps lead Revelstoke into a bold new future.

Coming from a background of building in the family, Scott recounts how he started his small company in 2002, relocating to Revelstoke five years later. As word got around of the company’s mountainside building expertise, business itself began to build. “One small job leads to a larger job,” he says. With new residents taking stock of their options in Revelstoke, Absolute was the natural choice to build their mountain dream homes.

The company’s success has enjoyed an even brighter spotlight in recent months: an Absolute home was a finalist in the Canadian Home Builder’s Association of British Columbia’s Georgie Awards in 2021. Absolute’s submission, a 3,200 square-foot two-storey custom home with 20-foot vaulted ceilings and custom designed Spanish archways, made the top five.

While it enjoys its position as Revelstoke’s largest home builder, Absolute is still subject to the constraints of a smaller resource pool, for both labour force and building materials, than even in nearby Kamloops or Kelowna.

Nevertheless, Sally says, Absolute manages as much demand as a larger company, but gets results with a smaller team and fewer available resources. “We have to be more strategic with our planning, and our hiring and execution, because we are in a smaller marketplace when it comes to hiring and sourcing.”

With Absolute’s smaller but very versatile team, the company has learned to adapt. “Over the years, we’ve developed a skill set of being self-sufficient,” Scott says. “You end up being qualified in a lot of categories.”

He and Sally both acknowledge how Absolute’s staff enables this small firm to punch way above its weight. “I really have to pinch myself, the staff that we have are exceptional. Both our field and office staff are top-notch,” Scott says. “The heart and soul of Absolute is our team members. They’re our family, our friends, and we wouldn’t be surviving as a company and organization without them.”

The result is a firm embrace of the ‘jack of all trades’ trope, ensuring the team retains its edge through meticulous internal training. “We’ve invested heavily in the development of systems and protocols to guide us through each phase of construction, from client engagement to completion,” Scott says. “Our stages are comprehensive and our team is engaged in the development and management of these stages.”

It is this small team which provides Absolute’s proven model of custom home building. While some custom homes begin with a vague plan, this can lead to potentially massive overruns in time, money, and building materials. But thanks to its experience in custom home building, Absolute is able to provide clear, defined results, on time and under budget.

These results embrace all aspects of home and building construction, including design services, land preparation, concrete, septic design and installation, and equipment rental for more specific projects.

A system of six intricate stage-gates helps develop each project over the stages of project inception, design, estimating, planning and procurement, construction execution, and commissioning and warranty.

From a project’s outset and throughout all steps in the process, Absolute’s team meets with clients to discuss every aspect of their new home. Within the construction phase alone, ten distinct milestone events provide rigorous and precise tracking of all processes. With this solid plan in place, Absolute’s process-driven method ensures all projects will remain on time and within budgetary constraints before construction begins.

In addition to this strategy of precise staging, Absolute manages a ‘low-anxiety’ environment in the naturally stressful process of homebuilding. The client meetings outline all project aspects, plus estimates, with what Scott terms “forensic” levels of diligence. Clients are put at ease before ground is even broken.

Constant communication provides regular client updates, and internal communication – from morning ‘tool-box’ meetings to weekly companywide project-manager and site-supervisor meetings – help Absolute’s team share and collaborate on project progress, systems, and shared resources.

Despite the strains on global supply chains and the resulting scarcity in building supplies, Absolute is again able to leverage its versatility to do more with what it has. In addition, being a part of the engine in the progress of Revelstoke, the company is fortunate to work closely with the town’s Chamber of Commerce.

But, once again, Scott returns to Absolute’s versatile team, crediting it with surmounting the challenges of modern homebuilding. “Having the broad skill set amongst our staff has been helpful, and has helped us weather those challenges,” he says.

In addition to its considerable portfolio in custom homes, Absolute is branching out into multifamily homes. In the fall of 2019, BC Housing named the company official contractor on two new affordable housing developments in Nakusp, approximately 100 kilometres south of Revelstoke.

19 units across 20,000 square feet provide homes for low-income seniors and community members, promising independent living on modest budgets. The projects complement existing developments in the area built in 1971 and 1981, and opened to residents in early 2021.

Although the project might have been given to a larger builder from a similar but larger community like Kelowna or Kamloops, Scott says Absolute was selected for its experience in more remote areas. With its knowledge of not only the terrain but of the logistics of managing teams and projects over a long distance, Absolute was the natural choice.

A previous project at the nearby Halcyon Hot Springs resort, just 35 kilometres from Nakusp, gave the company the specific area and logistical expertise it needed to land the contract.

Both Scott and Sally believe the Nakusp project will open new doors. With Absolute handling all aspects of contracting, from site preparations and civil work to completion, this project will showcase the company’s skills to a much larger audience and gain Absolute valuable experience in multifamily homes.

With most of Absolute’s record having been in custom homes, Scott remarks that a little formula and repetition is a welcome change of pace. “It’s nice to be able to repeat the process,” he says, and notes that this project will generate a new and consistent market for Absolute.

Sally anticipates that the Nakusp projects will provide the company a new avenue for fighting a continental crisis. “For us it’s exciting, because we’re able to participate on a level where we’re contributing to affordable housing,” she remarks, “and whatever our small contribution may be, we’re at least making an impact on the housing crisis in our area.”

Finally, Scott relates how Absolute hopes that by doing more affordable-housing construction, it will help stabilize a wildly fluctuating local market. “A lot of the motivation for us to get into multifamily work is to get the price point down to where an average person can afford to buy their own home,” he says.

In addition to affordability, Absolute is also working to ensure its buildings are more energy-efficient. As part of the company’s focus-driven philosophy, Scott explains how a home’s energy usage is part of the discussion from a project’s outset.

“In our builds, the energy performance of the building is a conversation with every client,” he says. “It’s definitely a large part of our strategy when we go into discussions with new clients.”

All new buildings are at least a Level 3 or 4 on BC’s Energy Step Curve, indicating that they use a minimum of 20 percent less energy than previous models, according to BC Housing’s own materials. New materials such as Insulated Concrete Forms, or ICF, further help Absolute save energy and materials during the construction process itself, helping reduce the company’s carbon footprint.

As an integral part of Revelstoke’s continuing community development and transition, Absolute sees itself as helping new residents realize their dream homes. “A lot of people come to Revelstoke for the lifestyle, or they come for the job because of the lifestyle,” Sally remarks. “It’s all connected to lifestyle in Revelstoke.”

Thanks to its wealth of experience in custom homes, now leveraged into providing affordable housing for many more, Absolute intends to improve the lifestyle of its clients for years to come.

The post Building the Perfect Mountain Getaway in Canada’s Pacific Province<p class="company">Absolute Contracting</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

Continuous improvement. That is what drives the Claxton + Marsh ethos. Based in Guelph, Ontario, the company builds anywhere from eight to twelve net-zero homes annually, averaging anywhere from $24 to $60 million in revenue. Propelled by the talented pair of Eve Claxton and Shawn Marsh, the firm puts a fresh and sophisticated slant on the modern components of designer homes – such as the integration of alternative energy.

To name but one example, solar power does not need to be unsightly, with the Claxton + Marsh team obscuring the panels in the cleverest of ways. “Making everything we do better and more efficient the next time we do it has been one of our biggest keys to success,” says Marsh. The result of this approach is that the firm’s experts are not shy to develop new and improved ways of working. To illustrate, one staff member recently registered a patent on a brilliant new piece of carpentry equipment that significantly improves the way he works.

A leader in Canada’s design and sustainable building industry, the formidable husband and wife team is joined by their daughter, Tasha Claxton. Marsh admits to being sceptical about expanding the team at first. “I enjoy [construction.] As builders, we tend to think we know everything about custom building. But when I stepped aside and let my wife take over she took [the business] to heights that I never could have,” he says with a smile. He tells the story of their first meeting soon after putting his first custom home up for sale.

He met Eve Claxton, a new agent then, after the home spent two years on another agent’s books. Marsh allowed his future business partner and wife to market the property, and the rest is history. “Today, when somebody has a better way of doing things, we’re all ears. It’s exciting to watch,” he says proudly. Blessed with that rare x-factor and with a large number of awards attributed to her, Claxton remains the icon behind the visionary designs that have become synonymous with the sought-after Claxton + Marsh signature style cresting the region’s skylines. Today, Claxton continues to lead the company’s real estate department.

The firm’s sister company, Timberworx, is also often recognized by the local Guelph & District Homebuilders Association (GDHBA), the provincial Ontario Homebuilders Association (OHBA), and the national Canadian Homebuilders Association (CHBA) for its sterling contribution to the region’s homebuilding and high-end renovation quality. As a result, Claxton + Marsh has developed a great relationship with all levels of the national and local home builders associations. It is also a member of the CHBA’s Net Zero Council of Canada, with Marsh heading up the Guelph Homebuilding association as President in 2017. Today, he continues to represent the GDHBA on the OHBA’s technical committee.

One of the firm’s greatest claims to fame is building Canada’s first labeled luxury net-zero home, a project that landed it the glamorous Avant-Garde – Certified Net-Zero Award for homes completed in Canada in 2017. The 4,600 square foot marvel with its 73 “invisible” solar panels and a bespoke, first-of-its-kind furnace design, is set on one acre of private land in Heritage Lake Estates, Guelph, and offers superlative net-zero luxury living like never seen before.

And to ensure that their clients get only the best out of their new net-zero homes, the family decided to live in the first house themselves to get a feel for its merits and how the technology blends with the demands of daily living. “We wanted to understand how it works first, which turned out to be the best decision. It is a gorgeous house. We [received] a lot of recognition, a lot of awards. It was one of our proudest accomplishments. We decided to make it our base home,” Marsh says.

Initially, the net-zero concept was not as well-received as expected, with the cost of insulation and other sustainability factors often being prohibitively expensive for many, even for high-end buyers. Some of the original issues included the price of extra insulation, an extra layer of glass in each pane, improved heat pumps, and more. But now, after some time spent raising buyer awareness, and with prices beginning to come down, even the biggest sceptics in the industry become, as Marsh puts it, “the proudest net-zero owners you’ll ever see.” He also points out that to put solar panels on any roof still means having to plug into the main grid, which is challenging without the necessary infrastructure, which can also be a challenge at times.

Based on this stark reality, Marsh describes the company’s superb timing concerning adding service capacity to its sites for both past and existing net-zero projects as “very fortunate,” making all of these properties unique. They are also unique in the generous use of glass throughout and the HVAC systems that are zoned on each floor. “We don’t talk about heating homes anymore. [Our homes] are so airtight and energy-efficient, it has, to me, been ridiculously affordable. The expensive air in a home is electrically conditioned air,” says Marsh, who points out that Ontario’s hydroelectricity is heavily subsidized.

“[When the day comes that hydroelectricity bills run into four digits for normal households] net-zero will become huge because we’re able to eliminate those massive [monthly electricity charges]. The climate is changing. It’s getting hotter in southern Ontario,” he adds. And, as net-zero technology and insulation measures like triple-glazed glass panes are difficult to install post-construction, buying a net-zero home that comes ready-made is advisable.

While Claxton + Marsh homes may be pricey for most, the designers are conscious of curbing cost while upholding the highest quality and value. One of the firm’s most interesting and unique approaches is how it dealt with glass in its first net-zero build. Due to very high cost, not every window in the house has triple-glazed glass. Instead, the team uses highly engineered panes and a scientific approach that considers several factors including the orientation of each window, coating options, as well as different gasses, considerations that saved around $100,000 on the final cost. “I call myself a fiscal green,” says Marsh. “We’ve always had a philosophy that we will not do anything in a client’s home that we wouldn’t do in our own. Fast forward a few years and triple glaze is more mainstream [and cheaper as a result.] Now everything we do has triple glazed glass.”

These truly ingenious pioneers contributed hugely to Canada’s luxury net-zero building methods as the necessary materials and furnace designs were not readily available when they started out. Every game-changing element had to be custom designed and often invented. And Claxton + Marsh took an active leading role in the process. Now, as a result of rising adoption rates, costs are coming down, making net-zero a lot more affordable and therefore, attainable for more people. “It’s wonderful. My hat’s off to all the smaller builders that went out there and got this going. With one more price drop – which I see coming – everybody will do it. Why wouldn’t you?” Marsh says. “A lot of people, like CHBA members, builders, and the energy advisor spent a lot of time figuring out how we could get [here]. They were passionate about it,” he adds.

The company works very closely with the CHBA and the Net Zero Council, and Marsh praises the association’s contribution to identifying and solving issues in the industry alongside the government. As the field of building regulation is becoming increasingly complex, its work toward streamlining the administrative side of construction for those in the industry is indispensable – even for larger firms.

“I’m a big fan of the association. It’s one of few places in life where you get more out than you put in. The depth of knowledge and expertise is top-notch, and the willingness to share in formal and informal talks is inspiring,” Marsh says. “There’s a joke in our association that says ‘you won’t live long enough to make all the mistakes by yourself,’” he adds, laughing.

The company gives its staff members (presently around 30) the space in which to think and contribute to its constructions creatively – which explains their long tenures. Leadership also understands the value of apprenticeship and training young talent. “We have really creative people here. I ran our framing crew for [around] twenty years,” Marsh tells me. “The young fellow who is running the crew now [started with us as an apprentice] when he had just turned sixteen. He has [now] taken our framing so much further than I did – and I thought I was sharp! Watching this guy go, I’ll be the first [one] to shake his hand,” he adds, describing the simple yet ingenious 12 foot long and 40 inch wide coverings said framing manager designed to save time and protect staircases during construction. The company is proud of all its employees because it knows how hard they work and that they excel at their jobs.

For young people looking to make a good living, Claxton + Marsh recommends joining the construction industry – despite being all but ignored by student advisors. Because, as Marsh points out, its merits were most visible during COVID-19 with work continuing as normal, albeit with advanced safety precautions. “With the decline of gas and oil [in Canada], construction is the number one employer in this country. We still build the best homes in the world because [we] have to. We’re still a polar country,” he says, highlighting the need for a national strategy for tradespeople to protect and continuously improve the standard of Canadian workmanship.

In terms of house prices in the overall market, the construction expert says he is sad to see how unattainable property has become for most young people. “I don’t like to see what we’ve done to our children. [High house prices are] a big problem for this country,” he says, referring to 2017 when house prices started climbing and the government did not support youngsters with home loans. The result, Marsh tells me, was that investors took the gap, buying what would have been starter homes for the next generation of private homeowners. He describes how investors are now renting out the same properties to the same would-be buyers for more money than the original down payment would have been, creating a downward spiral for aspiring first-time buyers.

“At the same time, nobody’s really complaining about it because two out of three Canadians own a house. But what about when the system is broken, you don’t have a first-time starter home? That’s what starts the whole chain reaction. It’s so bad, we’re at the point where the kids have just about given up,” Marsh says, further referring to the opportunity his generation was given by the one before.

“We are the government. We messed this up. And it’s on us to fix it. I look at my parents in the sixties. They raised hell. The Vietnam war, segregation, women’s rights – they didn’t take it. They went out and demonstrated. And they made big change and became the most successful generation in history,” he says. “We have to find the political will to fix the situation. And that all comes down to education, I believe. It’s vitally important to the country,” Marsh says.

As Claxton + Marsh moves forward, the team is looking toward developing net-zero commercial properties and condominiums. “Our success is not a magic formula; we come in and we work harder and smarter. Continuous improvement always seems to get us to where we want to go. There are not too many days in my life that I have worked. I enjoy myself so much,” says Marsh, pointing out that his career has been a lot of fun – especially working with many incredible craftsmen and other great folks. Having all the knowledge needed to shine in a commercial net-zero environment, this brave and stalwart leader looks forward to the next chapter in the incredible Claxton + Marsh story. And frankly, so do I.

The post Pioneering Net-Zero Luxury<p class="company">Claxton + Marsh</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

SalDan has spent the last forty years building communities in Ontario. Highly regarded for its quality work and attention and commitment to doing a job well, this is a company that strives to bring true value to its customers. Today, it asserts itself as a well-known and trusted business, with a real reputation for delivering on promises.

Speaking with Vice President Joey Biasucci, the second generation of Biasuccis in the business, you quickly sense the family pride in the company’s growth as well as the optimism that permeates the company, where it seems that the ruling belief is anything is possible.

“SalDan Developments started in the 1980s and it was strictly residential. There we did some low-rise construction projects as well,” says Biasucci. “Then we incorporated SalDan General, which is our commercial wing, around 1994, and that kind of opened up another realm for us,” he shares.

“We ended up joining the carpenters’ union and that was the first kind of expansion that allowed us to take on large projects and get into some mid-rise buildings.” Among these, and cited as an example by Biasucci, was a large commercial-retail project in Ottawa.

Joey, along with his father current President Sam Biasucci, oversaw the 100,000 square-foot project personally for nearly a year. It was a great success, attracting brands such as LCBO, Shoppers Drug Mart, TD Bank and Staples among others.

Biasucci notes that, “our main area has been Sault Ste. Marie and Sudbury, throughout southern Ontario and into the Ottawa region, and all points in between.” That’s quite a lot of territory for what began as a small contractor run from a basement in northern Ontario.

Further to expanding its ability to take on projects of this size, SalDan identified a gap in excavation and civil servicing capabilities in the construction sector, a situation which the company enthusiastically set out to rectify with the opening of JBX in 2007. As a kid Biasucci always loved heavy equipment and it seemed like a natural fit for him and the company. To this day he describes JBX as “his baby.”

“We opened in 2007 which allowed us to service ourselves for all things excavation, sewer and water. Now, that’s kind of taken on its own wings, and we even excavate for some of the other builders in Sault Ste. Marie.”

Biasucci makes clear the reason for the company’s continued expansion in services, capabilities and geographic market reach, and it’s simple: perform quality work, own your work, and you will be rewarded. Integrity is a big part of the SalDan Construction Group’s outlook on business.

“Our customers see the attention we give each job,” he says. “We give our attention to detail, to quality, to commitment, and I think that has spread from customer to customer to customer over the years. It’s afforded us the opportunity to do more work, to do bigger jobs.”

When asked to reflect on the company’s four decades of success, and whether or not his family ever imagined that the family business could grow to this scale, Biasucci smiles. “It’s a proud moment for us and my dad. It’s quite the accomplishment, especially with how difficult this industry is, how challenging and demanding it is.”

Surviving some devastating economic downturns to expand its market presence across the province was no easy feat, but surely that’s partly because this is a construction company where the president shows up to the job site each and every day. The same commitment is true of the vice-president who learned well from his father and holds to that legacy of quality and attentiveness.

The achievements and reliability of the company are recognized by its customers, but also generally across the market. With organizations like BILD, Canadian Home Builders Association, the Ontario Home Builders Association, and Holmes Approved behind it, it’s clear that the company’s integrity and ability has been stringently vetted and it is considered as a trusted provider of quality construction.

As Biasucci noted, “It means we’re established, and we know what we’re doing. Holmes Approved, they don’t affiliate with bad contractors. They stick you under the microscope and they comb through everything that you do,” which demonstrates to customers, in particular in the highly competitive southern Ontario market, that they are going to do what they promise.

Perhaps one of the most impressive traits of SalDan Construction Group Ltd. is its determination to not only do quality construction and renovation, but also to build communities in the cities it calls home.

In addition to participating in Habitat for Humanity projects, one of its most notable efforts is with the Algoma District School Board’s homebuilding program. For eighteen years, SalDan has been participating in this program to bring up the next generation of construction professionals.

Biasucci furnishes some insight into the program, “We provide the land, we provide the materials, we provide the industry knowledge and home warranty guidance, and ADSB provides the carpentry teachers and the staff for recruitment. It allows the students to essentially build a home on-site on the ground, apron on and pounding nails.”

The program has produced an average of three full-time young construction workers per year, many of whom end up on the SalDan Construction Group team. In fact, the company’s health and safety coordinator is a graduate of that program, and has been an important part of the team, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic and SalDan’s continuing efforts to keep its people safe.

SalDan Construction Group Ltd. is facing the shortage of skilled labour head on, training its own to ensure that the next generation of builders has a career pathway and the tools and resources to be successful. This extends to all youth, but also to increasing the presence of women in the industry, which has long been a priority of the company.

“I’m living proof that there is no better way to learn this business but to get into it,” says Biasucci who, after a number of years playing hockey at competitive levels, easily transitioned into the family business. Eighteen years later, it has proven to be a sound decision with a great pay-off: he is keeping the family business strong alongside his family by continuing to provide exceptional construction services.

With countless exciting projects on deck and a great deal of land development taking place in the Sault Ste. Marie, Sudbury, and Toronto markets, there is no shortage of work for SalDan Construction Group Ltd. Or of opportunities to deliver value to its customers.

From single family homes in high-end subdivisions to new and renovated school projects, long-term care, and retirement facilities and commercial-retail projects, SalDan Construction Group has established itself as a real contender in the markets it serves. It recently sold out a subdivision in preconstruction for the first time ever in its northern Ontario markets, indicative of the strength of the market.

But regardless of market strength and ability to deliver on its promises, what is especially impressive about SalDan Construction Group is that while the business is generational, so too is the customer base.

Biasucci noted that SalDan is now building homes for the children who were born and raised in the first generation of SalDan homes from the 1980s, which is greatly pleasing to the company, as Biasucci points out.

Because, just like the homes it builds, SalDan Construction’s relationships with its customers are built to last.

The post From Their Family to Yours<p class="company">SalDan Construction Group</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

As it turns out, both Case Design Remodeling–Halifax and Archadeck Nova Scotia have fared very well indeed, due to a combination of factors including the pandemic, which itself has presented unique opportunities as well as challenges, according to Maurice Meagher, President and owner of both franchises.

“We have been very fortunate in Nova Scotia, because the province kept the [COVID-19 case] numbers low, for which we are very thankful, and it has allowed us to be productive,” he told us.

At time of writing, Nova Scotia, with a population of nearly one million (979,449) has had one of the lowest rates of COVID-19 infections in Canada, with just over 6,000 confirmed cases in 18 months, and currently has 60 cases and no hospitalizations.

These numbers have gone a long way to attracting migrants from hard-hit provinces such as Ontario and Alberta. As happens, some of these newcomers are purchasing older homes and looking to renovate, creating opportunities for both of Meagher’s companies.

Better homes for that stay-at-home life
Most of the remodeling work happening in Nova Scotia, and the rest of North America, however, is a result of stay-at-home orders and social distancing. “People weren’t going out or travelling,” Meagher says. “Instead, they were locked down and putting more of their budget, that might have gone into travel, into improving or creating their outdoor living spaces.”

Archadeck Nova Scotia, which focuses on outdoor living, experienced a sizable increase in business. Homeowners wanted decks and patios, or if they already had them, they wanted them remodelled to function better. They wanted retaining walls, screened porches, sunrooms, outdoor kitchens, shade structures, and outdoor lighting, all designed to make them believe they really were on vacation, or at the very least, enjoying a relaxing ‘staycation.’

With many offices, schools, universities, and restaurants closed, families were also spending more time inside their homes, working, studying, and cooking, leading to the realization that their homes really weren’t functioning well, in this new work-from-home reality, which for some shows signs of becoming permanent. Fortunately, Case Designs was prepared to come to the rescue, ready to assist with everything from kitchens and bathrooms to additions, basement renovations, exterior makeovers, and even total house renovations.

Should anyone doubt the two companies’ ability to completely transform a house and make it fully functional for today’s needs, they should look no further than the office on Windsor Street, located in a completely renovated house, originally a family home, which predates the Halifax explosion of 1917.

“Renovating it gave us a firsthand taste of how it goes, and helps us appreciate what clients go through,” Meagher says. Moreover, he notes that house values are particularly strong in the Halifax area, along with a lot of aging housing stock in good locations, so that any work done well and smartly, can add value.

In addition to creating robust outdoor living spaces, functional design-based interiors, and complete renovations, he recognizes the importance of fulfilling specific, unique requirements, which could be anything from maintaining the integrity of a heritage building, to providing eco-friendly, green solutions, or accessibility for people with mobility issues.

In fact, both Meagher and several employees have a Certified Aging in Place designation, and can offer assistance to seniors who want to remain in their own homes for as long as possible.

Solid business practices
But while the recent increase in business was driven by the pandemic, Meagher’s companies couldn’t have met consumer demands had they not been founded on solid business practices developed over twenty years, which include strong relationships with vendors. This turned out to be especially crucial during the pandemic when supply chain issues led to lengthened lead times.

To briefly recap the company history as outlined in our November 2017 issue, Meagher grew up in Port Hawkesbury, NS where he was introduced to the construction industry by two uncles who were builders.

After obtaining a degree in information systems from St. Francis Xavier University, and working in St. Louis, MO for a few years, he was contemplating a return to Nova Scotia when he was introduced to Archadeck, North America’s largest deck and porch building company, established in 1980 in Richmond, VA.

Impressed by what he saw, he negotiated with them to establish a franchise operation in Halifax, which opened in 2002.

In the way that one thing leads to another, homeowners, pleased with the exterior work done by Meagher’s team at Archadeck — Nova Scotia, started requesting interior remodeling, which led to the establishment of a second franchise operation, Case Design–Halifax, in 2007.

The parent company, which describes itself as a “a family of designers, project managers, craftsmen and dreamers,” was founded by Fred Case in 1961 in Washington, D.C. Like Archadeck, it has an enviable reputation for expertise and quality which Meagher has been able to leverage to make his franchises the successes they are.

Both companies offer a proven formula which begins with an exploration of free, downloadable design guides and a complimentary meeting with a design consultant who understands style, respects budgets, and listens to clients.

This is followed by a meticulous step-by-step process, which includes a fixed price contract, and is a process in which designers, architects, project managers, and Red Seal trades work as a team, with the stakeholders, to ensure a turnkey project.

Preparing for the future
Applying these well-grooved and effective practices and processes, Meagher has been expanding the team in the last few years to improve capacity and meet an increasing demand for remodeling which began even before the pandemic.

“We’ve been adding steadily,” he told us. “Even this year we are adding more project managers, estimators, designers, draftspeople and of course skilled tradespeople, to do the work. We still have dependable long-running subcontractors that we work with, but we’ve also built up a good roster of in-house employees – trades people, and project and construction managers. It all ties in with our efforts to provide quality service in a timely manner.”

Another key element is communication. One of the things Meagher did, even before the pandemic limited face-to-face communication, was to invest in cloud-based technology systems that allow people, when they are working remotely, to access all the information they need and to communicate more effectively with team members, vendors and clients.

“Clients’ expectations are very different from when we started twenty years ago, or even fifteen years ago. People have smart phones and tablets in their hands all the time and their expectation regarding access to information is different,” he says.

New systems
“We are answering that by adopting systems that provide scheduling portals, tracking monitors, and the key metrics we need to run our business. We have been investing heavily in those technologies and training our team to use them.”

What this means is that a client is able to move more quickly from an enquiry to design proposals, and then proceed smoothly from a selected design to the project start-up with all the permits in place, and with the construction manager and trades getting in and out of the job site without delays.

While supply chain issues, especially during the pandemic, could cause delays, the companies mitigated this problem by planning scrupulously and placing orders well in advance of start dates and checking orders, before going on site.

In addition, more project coordinators have been hired “to make sure we are pushing for deliveries, because the businesses we buy from are also busy. We try to work with the mindset that we are accountable to our clients regardless of what happens with the supply chain. They don’t know what’s going on behind the scenes, but we are accountable to them, so we push to make sure we get things done in a timely manner,” shares Meagher.

“We want to be accountable to our clients and improve communication with them, and also improve our internal communication with our team and suppliers, so that is really a focus for us. That, and making sure our team is being challenged, staying passionate, and getting the right training because we feel if we are providing the right opportunities for our team, they will be fully engaged for our clients.”

Sidebar:
Recognizing Excellence
Since the beginning, both companies have been garnering awards. Here are some of the awards and recognitions they’ve received since November 2017 when we last highlighted them.

Archadeck Nova Scotia
• Consumer Choice Award, 2021 — 7th in a row
• Best of the Best, 2021 by Refined Magazine
• Renovator of the Year, 2020
• Best of Houzz Service, 2021
• Best of Houzz Design, 2021
• Internally, within all 45+ franchises of Archadeck across North America, the Nova Scotia franchise took 1st Prize in these quarterly awards:
o Porch/Roof Structures (Q1, 2021)
o Combo Project (Q1, 2021)
o Under $25K project (Q1, 2021)
o Deck project (Q2, 2021)

CASE Design/Remodeling-Halifax
• Kitchen & Bath Design Award, 2021
• Best of the Best 2021 by Refined Magazine
• Best of Houzz Service, 2021
• Qualified Remodeller Design Award, 2020
• Peak Awards, Most Outstanding Renovation — Bathroom, 2019
• Peak Awards, Most Outstanding Renovation — Whole House, 2018

The post Your Home, Your Way<p class="company">CASE Design/Remodeling-Halifax and Archadeck Nova Scotia</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

This company specializes in geothermal solutions, going below the surface of the earth to tap into a stable, constant source of energy storage to heat and cool buildings through an array of underground pipes installed prior to construction. Founded seven years ago, the company designs, installs, owns, and operates its energy infrastructure, making it akin to a utility company.

“The key to Diverso Energy is that we’re not just a contractor; we own the system,” says Chief Executive Officer Tim Weber. “We’re taking full responsibility for all aspects of the success before, during and after construction. We’re essentially a financial partner, investing in the project. That changes the risk profile because the accountability has shifted from the developer to us. We also have hundreds of projects demonstrating we have the track record of success required to guarantee performance,” he shares.

The company’s geothermal systems replace boilers and cooling towers and do not interfere with existing underground cables and pipes. Once in place, a Diverso solution can reduce a building’s greenhouse gas emissions by up to one hundred percent.

Real-estate developers–who make up the bulk of the company’s clientele–sometimes express reservations about geothermal energy systems based on their experiences with traditional contractors who perform a task, then depart with no guarantee of success. Diverso aims to overcome such wariness by offering a full suite of services.

“We are the only firm—from soup to nuts—that has proven how to execute this business model and this technology for mid- to high-rise residential buildings. We are the only firm that has experience taking projects from the design through to contract, constructing the actual borefield, working with the construction team, transitioning over to the condo board, and, ultimately, managing the system and verifying it’s working effectively. Nobody in North America has ever done it before except for Diverso Energy,” states Chief Operating Officer Jon Mesquita.

Diverso was previously profiled in the December 2019 edition of Construction in Focus. At the time, it mostly worked with small-to-medium-sized developers but has broadened its range since then to include national accounts and some very tall buildings.

“We’re doing some pretty exciting projects. The size and scale of the projects have changed. We’re drilling a sixty-six-storey tower in Mississauga that will be the tallest geothermal building in North America—a building where the heating, cooling and ventilation is one hundred percent served by our geothermal system,” says Weber. This project, called the Exchange District Condos by Camrost Felcorp, is based in the rapidly-growing city of Mississauga, just outside of Toronto.

The company has taken on another big assignment at the Queen & Ashbridge condominiums in downtown Toronto. This “is significant because it’s the first project we’re doing with RioCan,” he says of the real estate giant. “They are a tier 1 national REIT.”

Geothermal solutions offer three core benefits to real-estate developers. These include “meeting policy mandates,” and, for larger clients, “showcasing corporate responsibility… The third reason is more of a practical concern; geothermal eliminates conventional equipment, freeing up additional space on the roof for either amenities space or additional real estate for lease or sale,” states Weber.

Toronto Green Standard Version 4 (TGS V4) is an example of the kind of policy mandate that will have an impact on future building development. Coming into effect May 1, 2022, the newest version of the standard imposes regulations designed to lower energy use and greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) in new buildings.

One way to abide by such parameters is to use low-emission, renewable energy sources for heating and cooling. Unlike solar power (which relies on sunny skies) or wind power (which depends on steady breezes), geothermal energy offers a reliable, consistent on-site source of energy, making it an appealing choice. There are no moving parts that need maintenance or can fail over time.

Diverso works chiefly in the office, retail, institutional, and multi-family residential markets. Of these sectors, multi-family residential brings in the most revenue—a reflection of the huge volume of condominium and apartment construction happening in the Toronto area. It has worked on projects in Kingston, Barrie, Kitchener, and other Southern Ontario locales as well.

The company is also “pursuing opportunities in the United States,” particularly in the north-eastern states that are also imposing emission restrictions on existing buildings and new construction alike, says Mesquita. Diverso would eventually like to have a presence on both the American and Canadian West Coasts.

Constructing large-scale, multi-family residences is a “very high-risk endeavour with a lot of variables that need to be managed,” notes Weber. This is another reason geothermal energy—a solution that is still relatively new in the Canadian market—has not been more widely embraced, he says. With new mandates looming, developers are taking a second look at geothermal energy. This is great news for Diverso and not just because the company excels at geothermal systems installation.

“Our process is focused on new construction. We have done retrofits and it does work, but with the market focus on new construction, it hasn’t been a main part of the business,” explains Professional Engineer and Chief Technical Officer Sergio Almeida. “We work at street level and drill from that surface down six or eight hundred feet. We install a pair of plastic (high-density polyethylene) pipes and then fill that hole up with a bentonite slurry to seal it from both an environmental standpoint and for thermal performance. That borehole with the two pipes is basically a heat exchanger that exchanges energy with the ground.”

It is a relatively simple premise, but to be successful, a geothermal installation needs to be properly integrated into the building systems. “The geothermal is only as good as the mechanical system it’s connected to. It’s only as good as the building built around it. Those all have to be designed for each other,” notes Almeida, who co-founded Diverso with Weber and Mesquita and co-owns the company with them.

Proper installation is required to maintain the integrity of the system and prevent leaks. Good installation practises include working with experienced companies, using reliable technology, and performing continuous quality control checks.

There are misconceptions about the geothermal heating and cooling processes. One such misconception is the notion that “in Canada, every building is heating dominant, so we need boilers to balance the geothermal system. That couldn’t be further from the truth,” says Almeida.

In fact, some tall condominium towers in the Toronto area with lots of tenants and glazing have “huge cooling loads. The concern we have from a design and operations standpoint is managing cooling. Many people are putting boilers in and that will create problems,” he continues.

Similarly, geothermal system procurement needs to be treated differently than the procurement process for other building technologies. These systems are not “set it and forget it solutions,” but require monitoring and maintenance to avert problems, according to Almeida.

A Diverso system will last the lifetime of the building, but only when properly looked after, so the company manages the borefield long-term as a part of its business model. “I have not met a single property manager or building maintenance contractor that knows how to operate geothermal independently because there isn’t the volume out there, and they don’t have the expertise,” notes Almeida.

As a demonstration of its commitment and confidence in its methods, Diverso offers customers a long-term performance guarantee. “It’s written in our contract. We have a thirty-year agreement with the building owner or condo corporation. It’s a contractual obligation that the geothermal borefield will deliver adequate heating and cooling at rates and volumes that are predetermined for the life of the contract. If we don’t deliver, we don’t get paid, and there’s financial recourse for the condo corp. That’s putting a lot of accountability on us,” Weber says.

Presenting such unique terms is par for the course at Diverso, which prides itself on offering more than just pipes and installation services. The team is well-versed in all legal and contractual aspects of geothermal installations.

“There are a lot of nuances to this business model,” notes Weber. “The legal aspect of the arrangement alone is a significant part of this that is often overlooked.”

What makes the company unique is “understanding the entire process and making sure we are integrated in all the right aspects at the right time to ensure the client gets the best experience. When I say ‘client,’ I mean the developer, design team, construction team, and ultimately the condo corp,” says Mesquita.

The company also benefits from an ongoing partnership with Eolectric Capital of Quebec, a firm that supplies funding for renewable energy projects.

In addition to expanding its geographical reach, Diverso continues to “look at opportunities in the downtown Toronto market,” says Weber. “We’re looking at integrating other technologies to make geothermal more viable for the fifty- to seventy-storey towers.”

“We’re pushing the envelope as far as we can with solid, reliable data and technologies that will work. Our goal is to make sure every building that gets built in Ontario can be geothermal and can be done within our model, removing the capital cost barrier… We want to be synonymous with the word geothermal in North America. So, when developers think geothermal, they think Diverso Energy,” adds Mesquita.

The post This Geothermal Firm is Fired Up to Expand Its Reach<p class="company">Diverso Energy</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

“We concentrate on projects where we can use our nearly fifty years of experience and managing expertise,” says Executive Vice President Steven Nienke.

Midwest offers a variety of services centered on design-assist; prefabricated, light-gauge, panelized walls; commercial insulation and drywall; floor, roof, and ceiling systems; load-bearing light-gauge and non-load-bearing light-gauge framing. It serves the student housing, hospitality, multifamily residential, government, religious, warehouse/industrial, entertainment, and retail markets.

MWD has an in-house quality assurance program and provides comprehensive training for foremen, supervisors, and project leaders on how to make quality top-of-mind among workers.

In the mid-1980s, Midwest began utilizing a prefabricated panelized wall system for the first time, during the construction of a residence for seniors, and went on to become a leader in the prefabrication field. MWD operates a manufacturing plant in Wichita for prefabricated exterior bypass panelized walls and load-bearing panelized walls, among other items. The plant uses compression tables and welds panels to optimize durability and strength. Prefabricating its components provides Midwest more control over the final product.

Such work currently represents “about twenty-five percent of our overall business,” according to Nienke.

Midwest takes a unique approach to design-assist. “We’ll utilize anything in the industry to drive the building costs down, while increasing efficiency of the overall project, without limiting your building design,” states the company website.

Midwest recently expanded its footprint with a new operational office in Austin, Texas in addition to existing offices in Tulsa, Oklahoma; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Denver, Colorado; Harrison, Arkansas; Dallas, Texas; and Wichita, Kansas. The company takes a measured approach to expansion by establishing offices in places where it is already doing work.

“The Austin market was really buzzing. We started with a couple of very large jobs about eighteen months ago. We just opened an operational office there three months ago,” says Nienke.

The company was contracted to work on the new Travis County Civil and Family Courts facility in Austin. Abundant rain in the region—which has led to recurring water remediation issues—has not made the assignment any easier. In spite of this, the nearly 450,000-square-foot courthouse is scheduled to be completed late next year.

MWD is completing another exciting project involving the construction of a luxury resort at the Spanish Peaks Mountain Club, an exclusive golf course and ski community located in Big Sky, Montana. It is a significant job that comes with a unique set of issues.

“The contract will complete for an amount greater than $25 million,” says Nienke. “It started almost 24 months ago and presented significant challenges including manpower, material shortages, and price increases, and the overall winter weather conditions in the area.”

COVID-19 was another hurdle. Last summer, there was a significant outbreak of the virus at the Spanish Peaks’ construction site involving over one hundred reported worker COVID cases—one of the largest outbreaks in Montana at the time.

In addition to reducing the available workforce, the coronavirus created project management headaches. Prior to the pandemic, staff would gather in Bozeman and ride buses for the forty-five-minute trip to the mountainous construction site. This made transporting laborers to the remote project site a complicated task. The bus system was cancelled, and workers were required to commute in individual vehicles. Drivers were told to only take one passenger at a time, to lower the risk of transmission. Despite this huge hassle, work continued, and Midwest is scheduled to complete its part of the project later this fall.

In response to COVID, management also temporarily arranged for 50 percent of office staff to work from home, and health protocols were put in place to reduce the potential for infection in the field.

Safety precautions are par for the course at Midwest, which strives to maintain a safe work environment. To achieve an experience modification rate (EMR) of .80, the company’s safety staff members work “under the watchful eye of our safety manager,” says Nienke. “The safety staff are present on our job sites every week, auditing what they see, training when the need is there, and reviewing current accident issues.”

Past projects, also conducted in a safety-first, high-quality manner, include The Venetian hotel and casino in Las Vegas. MWD was given responsibility for building exteriors and over 100,000 square feet of interior facades. The company used glass-fiber-reinforced concrete, plaster, drywall, and exterior insulation and finish systems to complete this multi-million-dollar assignment.

At present, MWD has roughly 400 staff on direct payroll, “and Midwest has a long-term relationship with the United Brotherhood of Carpenters who provide ongoing training to increase the skills of the workforce,” states Nienke. “We want our employees to have a great attitude and be honest and trustworthy. Benefits include health/hospitalization plans, 401(k) with matching contributions, vacations, et cetera,” he says.

“The field craftsmen, management, and leadership all work hard and set goals to achieve as we move forward. We are a team and always looking for ways to assist each other and achieve cost-efficient, successful results on each project completed,” he continues.

When COVID hit, Midwest enhanced its website and social media presence and started producing an online version of its popular lunch-and-learn sessions, focusing on topics such as the benefits of prefabrication to audiences of general contractors, engineers, architects, and other interested parties. The company is slowly returning to pre-pandemic norms and has re-launched in-person lunch-and-learn sessions, for example, to complement the virtual sessions.

Leadership of the company is undergoing a major change as Nienke prepares for retirement. He joined Midwest Drywall in 1973, the year after it was founded, and eventually became president and chief executive officer. Nienke recently transitioned to Executive Vice President as part of the company’s succession strategy.

“We’ve had our succession plan in place for several years now,” he says. “Marvin Hartley has already assumed my position of President and CEO, and Lisa Henry has assumed the Chief Financial Officer position from my partner Denis Dieker. Both of these people have been with MWD for over twenty years. Denis and I intend on working for a time in the future to assist in the transition and continue to mentor this leadership team.”

The biggest change from the time he started to the present day is technology. “It’s probably computers and what we do with them today, as far as estimating and project management. Management and administration are tech-savvy, and virtually all of our lead field people, including foremen, have tablets and other mobile devices,” he says.

In 2018, Nienke and Dieker implemented an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) that transitions the ownership of Midwest to an ESOP Trust for the benefit of the non-CBA employees. Shares are held in Trust but allocated to employees inside a tax-advantaged retirement plan. Nienke says this plan is one of the secrets to Midwest’s success, noting that the ESOP “has helped us retain and search out new, key employees and managers.”

The ESOP is not just a nifty employee benefit; it is also a spur for further growth. “An ESOP functions well when the company is profitable. Leadership, management and employees understand that maintaining and increasing revenues and profits will directly affect the values of their ESOP and other benefits. Employees understand these concepts make us go and make us grow,” Nienke says.

Three-quarters of MWD clients are repeat customers, and a loyal client base has also been instrumental in the company’s success, he says. Other keys to MWD’s impressive longevity include “outstanding field and office managers, our employee benefits, and being fair and above board with all our employees,” he adds.

According to Nienke, the company’s biggest challenge is adapting to price increases and shortages of needed materials such as steel, drywall, insulation, and specialty products. Still, he offers a rosy forecast.

“In five years, we will be approaching $130 million (and possibly as much as $150 million) in annual volume, but more than anything else, it is our goal to provide a great place for our employees to work and for them to be able to balance and enjoy time off with their families. We want to provide a stable work environment, appealing to the present and future generational needs,” states Nienke.

The post Approaching the Mid-Century Mark in a Power Position<p class="company">Midwest Drywall Co., Inc. </p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

As a result of assembling a team of like-minded individuals at every level, the company has exceeded its own expectations while doing much the same for its clients. To date, the firm has contributed ten million square feet of construction across its project portfolio.

Derek Robbins sports an extensive background in the field of design-build construction. In this type of process, architecture, engineering, and contracting come together under one contract, and this is a cornerstone of the company’s approach to both construction and client-contractor relationships.

Robbins says that the company looks at all its projects not just from the contractor’s point of view but from the viewpoint of future expansion and growth on all parts. The question that propels Robbins and his team forward on any job is: ‘How do we set up projects for both today, and growth down the road?’

The company frequently assesses its construction materials and will offer suggestions for changing those materials when needed, especially with price increases occurring across the market for the majority of 2021. A primary goal is always to help the customer find a better economic advantage in a project, an approach that benefits Robbins Construction in turn.

“We consider ourselves partners on any project [along] with the architect and ownership,” Robbins continues. “It’s not a three-legged stool… We will be a good partner and team member and help all parties figure out the best solution for a project.”

Robbins Construction always researches to find to add value to projects and reduce costs for its clients. Every move is done within a customer’s margin with every step taken to find the best price for them, a philosophy that applies to any size or type of client.

The firm does have experience in dealing with larger businesses in its short life but, whether a thousand-square-foot upfit project with a large distribution facility or a one-million-square-foot building, the company will provide the same oversight, management, and communication that it would anywhere else.

Robbins extols the efforts of his team which includes his son, Thomas, the team’s business development manager. According to Derek, Thomas spends his time finding establishing new relationships with developers and is often the first line of communication to new customers. “We wouldn’t have the opportunity to propose a lot of these projects without his efforts,” Robbins proudly affirms, nor without the input of each member of the Robbins Construction team.

Although a young company in construction, Robbins has not failed to make an impression on its clients and the industry at large. Clients frequently want Robbins Construction to return to work on other projects in industries from retail to automotive, industrial, manufacturing, medical, or education. Being favored by its clients is considered by the company to be a significant milestone. Derek Robbins feels that the quality of clients the company has and many repeat customers, speaks a great deal toward the firm being not just a one-and-done solutions provider, a role which he has always sought to overshoot.

In more physical developments of company growth, it was recently able to construct its first industrial flex warehouse, a nearly 50,000-square-foot shell building, for a developer from the Northeast. In this ongoing project, Robbins is currently upfitting three tenant spaces for the customer as of print time.

Even in a state of global and industry-wide upheaval, Robbins Construction kept moving ahead safely and securely. Since Construction in Focus first featured the company in 2020, COVID-19 safety procedures have continued at varying intensities throughout North American businesses and operations. As far as Robbins is concerned, protocols and procedures within the company will remain unchanged since it still reported outbreaks internally in mid-2021. Work-from-home measures were taken by employees who reported symptoms of coronavirus either within their families or themselves, and quarantine measures had to be taken from time to time as well on job sites where subcontractors tested positive for COVID. Thankfully, all known cases resulted in recovery.

Robbins admits that it is challenging to get projects completed while overcoming these outbreaks, but such is the way of doing business in the current climate. In addition to these ongoing issues, the entire industry is facing supply chain problems with construction materials being difficult to obtain due to both scarcity and price. This, in turn, makes the company’s work in procuring materials and securing price protection more difficult.

Despite these varied challenges, Robbins sees the construction market as standing quite strong, particularly in the Southeast, including the Carolinas, as many developers are showing activity and building projects in that region. Robbins notes that morale in the company is strong, especially resulting from the new additions of a project manager and senior construction manager, and it will endeavor to bring on additional workforce additions including project managers and superintendents into 2022.

Robbins was also recently notified that it had been voted number one commercial contractor in the Charleston, South Carolina area for the second year in a row by Charleston newspaper The Post and Courier.

The company is on track for further significant growth over the next year and more, with Robbins predicting that it will soon outgrow its current office space, necessitating a need for a new office altogether. Robbins also predicts more work to become available to the business within the next one-to-three-year span, which would open the possibility of adding a satellite office in another area, potentially upstate South Carolina or into North Carolina.

“I’d love to establish a second office,” Robbins notes. Listening to Derek Robbins speak on the continued advances of his firm is to know the anticipation he and his team feel as the company grows in size, technology, and in wisdom. The future is very exciting indeed for the business and time will tell if its commitment to customer savings and satisfaction will hold true through ongoing industry challenges. If the past near-three years are any indication, there will be much to keep appraised of from Robbins Construction in the years to come.

The post Committed to Client Needs<p class="company">Robbins Construction</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.