It is impossible to turn on the news today without hearing about Canada’s housing crisis. There is an urgent need to build almost five million new homes by 2035, which represents between 430,000 and 480,000 new housing units every year. Although 2025’s housing starts reached 259,028 nationwide—up 5.6 percent from 227,697 in 2024—there has been a dramatic shift to building units for rental rather than for ownership, and the country isn’t even coming close to the units needed to meet demand for our population of almost 42 million.

Factors behind the shortfall include everything from high development taxes to unnecessary red tape, wildly different building codes (even in the same city), NIMBYism, and more. The lack of attainably priced homes is a multifaceted problem, requiring a multifaceted approach.

All three levels of Canada’s government must come together to solve Canada’s housing challenges, says Kevin Lee, CEO of the Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA), which represents some 8,500 builders, renovators, land developers, and others in the residential construction sector. For the past 13 years, Lee has been fully immersed in the challenges faced by one of the nation’s largest sectors and has led the charge in developing CHBA’s policy recommendations for the federal government on how to close Canada’s housing supply gap and help restore affordability for Canadians.

Some provinces stuck in neutral
Despite the urgent need for housing, some provinces have pulled ahead in housing starts while others have stalled. Recent Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) housing starts statistics reveal that Alberta—with a population of about five million—is pulling far ahead of 16-million strong Ontario. In the past five years, Alberta’s housing starts have jumped an impressive 71 percent, while Ontario’s have tumbled by over one-third. British Columbia isn’t faring much better. Significant differences in government-imposed taxes and charges in regions across the country have contributed to this discrepancy, says Lee.

“Ontario has become very expensive over time,” says Lee. “In the worst cases, government-imposed fees can now make up over 30 percent of the price of a new home.”

Across the country, municipal development charges (DCs) have increased by more than 700 percent over the past 25 years, says Lee, adding that they are a significant, yet often overlooked, factor driving up the cost of building new homes. For example, CHBA’s Municipal Benchmarking Study reveals that DCs have reached nearly $200,000 on a typical home in the Greater Toronto Area and almost $100,000 in the Greater Vancouver Area. By contrast, DCs make up less than $10,000 of a typical new home in smaller centres like Charlottetown.

In principle, DCs are intended to ensure that growth helps fund the infrastructure required to support it. However, over time they have expanded far beyond that purpose, says Lee. In many municipalities, DCs are increasingly used to help pay for broader infrastructure upgrades or to reduce pressure on property taxes for existing residents. As a result, those who buy new construction homes are often left paying for infrastructure that benefits the entire community, while also facing charges that are dramatically higher than those paid by previous generations of homeowners.

Lee believes the time has come to explore alternative funding models that distribute infrastructure costs more broadly across the tax base, as was more common historically. “There is a role for fee-for-use items such as water, wastewater, and transportation, and for allowing more municipal debt financing to occur. Instead, charges are put on the backs of new buyers on 25-year mortgages; they should instead be financed over the lifespan of the infrastructure—50 or 75 years—at the much lower interest rates that governments can secure, for example,” says Lee. “It’s time for a more balanced approach that would reduce the disproportionate burden currently placed on new home buyers, which would support increased housing construction and better reflect the reality that infrastructure investments benefit entire communities, not just those purchasing homes in new developments.”

Red tape and code changes add to home building costs
Many policies introduced at all levels of government—often without sufficient consultation with the residential construction industry—have added unnecessary complexity, delays, and expenses to the home building process.

While policy changes that strengthen building codes and regulations can serve important policy goals, they can also be costly, says Lee. In some cases, new requirements overlap with existing rules or impose measures that are not yet practical or cost-effective to implement. As these layers of regulation accumulate, they continue to drive up the cost of building homes, ultimately affecting housing affordability for Canadians.

To help prevent further pressure on housing costs, Lee recommends that all new policies and regulations be evaluated through a housing supply and affordability lens. This includes making affordability a core objective of the National Building Code and ensuring that regulatory changes that significantly increase construction costs are not implemented until viable, cost-effective solutions are available. In fact, at this point, CHBA has called for a full pause on changes to the national building code, and a revamping of the code development system. This is being done in Australia, which faces similar challenges, and needs to be done here too, says Lee.

Support needed for productivity improvements
Labour shortages have been an issue in the residential construction industry for years, and there are currently not enough construction workers to pursue federal housing targets, let alone meet the status quo. Recognizing this challenge, CHBA says support is needed in three areas: growing the domestic workforce; reforming Canada’s immigration system to welcome more newcomers with the skills to contribute to building more housing; and increasing productivity. Part of the problem is the federal government’s emphasis on Red Seal occupations and skills training for unionized labour, as well as its prioritization of highly educated immigration pathways.

“The fact of the matter is, outside of Quebec, 90 percent of the residential construction industry is not unionized,” says Lee, who is in talks with the federal government about recognizing the people who actually build houses and the skills required. Unions have their place, but Canada also needs to support the vast majority of the residential workforce, which isn’t unionized. The same goes for the apprenticeship system, which can be well-suited to non-residential construction, but so often doesn’t work for the workforce building housing.

“For example, the residential construction industry needs framers, who don’t have to be Red Seal carpenters to have very successful careers in the industry,” says Lee. “We need to revisit how we get those people trained, credentialed, and working. That’s a systemic issue we need to address.”

Lee further emphasizes the need for immigration reform. “In Canada, immigration works on a points system based on education and qualifications. At present, the people we need to bring in to build houses don’t score enough points in the current system, so they can’t immigrate to Canada, and this must be addressed.”

Another area of housing construction where there is enormous opportunity is factory-built construction. In 2017, CHBA launched its Modular Construction Council, which rightfully anticipated industry labour shortages and the need to increase productivity. While factory-built construction has its benefits—it’s faster, less labour-intensive, and reduces construction waste compared to traditional site-built methods—Lee says it’s part of the solution, but not a silver bullet. “Moving toward more factory-built construction is an important part of the future, but it’s not as simple as just switching over,” he says.

Among the barriers to scaling up, factory-built construction is often challenged by municipal building code interpretations, where the same house cannot be built twice across different municipalities, and sometimes even within the same municipality, depending on the interpretation of the individual building official. This is of course a huge barrier for site builders as well. “We really need to eliminate all those different interpretations and variances within cities,” Lee says. “We really need to get everything aligned. We can’t increase productivity when we are dealing with different rules [across or even within municipalities] like we are right now. Repetition is the key—to increase productivity, we need to be able to build the same units repeatedly—and right now, all the differences municipally make scaling up too difficult.”

CHBA’s Sector Transition Strategy well outlines the challenges preventing a widespread transition to factory-built construction and offers a multitude of actions governments can take to mitigate them and de-risk investments in these methods.

Come together
For sufficient housing to be built, all three levels of Canada’s government must be focused and aligned on the same strategies. “Should all these rules be aligned so we can scale? Absolutely!” says Lee. “We need to get everybody together to work on that—and it will have to come from all levels of government in coordinated fashion.”

In February, members of CHBA met with Members of Parliament in Ottawa for CHBA’s Day on the Hill. This saw CHBA delegates meet with 84 MPs about CHBA’s recommendations. One of the key issues was removing the GST on new homes, which, after extensive CHBA advocacy, finally came through in March for first-time buyers after nearly a year being stalled in Parliament, but needs to be extended to all buyers, says Lee. Another was attacking regulatory red tape at the municipal level and being more flexible on zoning. For the construction of new housing to speed up, it is critical that these issues and others are addressed.

“We need to deal with taxes at all three levels of government,” says Lee. “The federal government needs to remove the GST for all buyers of new construction homes (not just for first-time buyers) and renovations that create additional units of housing, like secondary suites and laneway housing. For those provincial governments that have PST on new construction homes, they need to remove it. Municipalities also need to dramatically reduce their DCs and find better funding models. We need that fast to turn the market around in Canada’s most expensive regions. Meanwhile right now, the industry is seeing substantial layoffs, particularly in Ontario, which will permanently scar the industry in terms of workforce capacity moving forward. All three levels of government need to work together on issues like taxes, alternative funding models to DCs, more rapid approvals, and being smart with the building code and not too intrusive. This industry needs support to turn the market around. We simply can’t double housing starts with so many policy barriers in the way,” he says.

“There is a lot of systemic, three-level collaboration that could happen to help move things along.” These kinds of improvements, CHBA believes, can’t come soon enough.

The post Homes Over Headlines: Addressing the Housing Crisis<p class="company">Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA) </p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

New home buyers tend to focus on aesthetics, like kitchen countertops and cabinetry, says Construction Manager, Jason Cabrelle. “A lot of people take energy efficiency for granted—until they see the savings on their hydro and gas bills.” In the past few years, Park View Homes has focused even more on its commitment to creating properties of the highest standards, and this includes what Cabrelle calls “behind-the-scenes” activity, like air barriers and mechanical systems.

Going “airtight”
Around 2022, Park View started as an ENERGY STAR^® for New Homes Standard builder. Only builders licensed by the Government of Canada “can promote themselves as ENERGY STAR^® builders and can apply to have their homes ENERGY STAR^® certified,” according to regulations.

Owing to the program’s exacting standards for new homes, there were some growing pains surrounding airtightness. “We air test every single one of our houses, which, at the end of the day, gives people more comfort in their homes,” Cabrelle explains. “We want to make sure that you’re as comfortable as possible in your house and that your house is as efficient as possible.” Some of the many advantages of airtightness include fewer drafts, greater comfort, a healthier and quieter home, reduced heating and cooling loads, and less energy waste.

Far from just talking quality, the company measures it, air testing every single house for potential leakage. “Testing each house keeps us accountable; we can’t get away from the results,” Cabrelle says. “We have to honour them. It’s not just that we say, ‘we are ENERGY STAR^®,’ it’s that we are tested, and we live up to it.”

To ensure houses meet rigorous standards, the company works with a third-party energy advisor on energy efficiency designs. Once homes are reviewed and signed off, they receive an ENERGY STAR^® sticker. And Park View has been featured several times on Homesol’s social media as a ‘Tight Home of the Week.’

“Because our homes are so energy efficient, it helps homebuyers qualify for green financing options,” says Cabrelle of the RBC Green Home Mortgage Program, where buyers have the option to extend their amortization period to up to 35 years (compared to typical amortization periods, which are usually a maximum of 30 years).

Attention to detail
Starting as a site supervisor and working his way up to Construction Manager, Cabrelle has seen plenty of changes to Ontario’s home-building sector over the past 14 years. Regardless of home model, location, or price point, all Park View homes are created with the utmost attention to detail and a tight build process.

“We take a custom home feel and quality and transfer that to all our homes, whether it’s a single home or townhouse. We pay the same attention to detail to all our products. It really raises the consistency of our final build quality and the comfort of our houses,” he says.

“People are extremely happy with us as a company and with our communication and attention to detail. We aim to exceed expectations, and number one is our attention to detail. We take pride in our homes and in ensuring the buyer is happy. For me, it’s about building relationships and making sure those homeowners are happy. I don’t think a lot of companies do that; they are just there to build the house and turn away.”

Bellamy Farm Phase III
Founded in 2001, family-owned Park View Homes focuses on secondary markets, which are largely more rural than urban. The company is proud to be part of the Greater Ottawa Home Builders’ Association (GOHBA), the Ontario Home Builders’ Association (OHBA), and the Lanark-Leeds Home Builders’ Association (LLHBA).

Much of the company’s marketing is in two significant categories: downsizers and first-time homebuyers. Believing that high-quality houses built without cutting corners should be within reach, Park View Homes properties are priced in the low $400s; some, like Bellamy Farm Phase III, start at $379,000, with just $5,000 down.

In the heart of Smiths Falls, Bellamy Farm Phase III is in an area known for its stunning natural beauty. Just an hour’s drive from Ottawa, Smiths Falls boasts small-town charm and nearby amenities like shops, restaurants, and medical facilities, without the stress of big-city traffic congestion and noise. Three home styles are available—Garageless Bungalows, Bungalow Townhomes, and Two-Storey Townhomes—all beautifully designed with ENERGY STAR^® efficiency.

Attainable bungalow townhomes have the option of one or two bedrooms. About 1100 square feet in size, bungalows have a finished basement and are completely freehold. Along with a driveway, the properties have sheds ideal for tools, recycling bins, and other items. Equipped with a heat pump, these homes run an 8kW backup electric heater as secondary heat in the system.

“Those specific buildings—with some changes in our paperwork—could be registered as Net Zero Ready homes,” explains Cabrelle. “The quality is exactly the same as in our $1.5 million homes, as far as finished quality goes.” Creating houses that balance craftsmanship and attention to detail with energy efficiency is a team effort.

Something for everyone
Along with Bellamy Farm Phase III, Park View Homes has two other main subdivisions underway in the Ottawa area: Russell Ridge estates in Marionville (just outside of Russell), and Merrickville Grove in the heritage village of Merrickville. Combined, these three subdivisions cover the varying tastes and needs of many different buyers, from singles to young couples looking for their first house, to families with children, to older empty-nesters seeking the peace of a laidback, rural lifestyle.

Established in 2021, the Russell Ridge community consists of spacious homes on three-quarter-acre country lots with nearby nature trails and quiet country roads. Available in three, four, and five-bedroom designs with optional finished basements, Russell Ridge embodies the finest in construction and efficient ENERGY STAR^® design.

With just 24 homes and no through streets, Russell Ridge is tranquil, secure, and exclusive. With nearby access to schools, shops, and restaurants, easy access to Highway 417, and a 25-minute drive from the east end of Ottawa, this community is perfect for hybrid workers and families alike. Built to order in about 12 months, the Sussex Craftsman Model measures 2,250 square feet and is priced at $1,069,000.

The company’s Merrickville Grove is an 83-home community near Merrickville’s historic Main Street. Known as the “Jewel of the Rideau,” the development is five minutes on foot from the Rideau Canal, coffee shops, quaint local stores, and restaurants. These bungalow townhomes and two-storey townhomes start at an attainable $499,900.

With nearby parks, schools, shopping, and safe, quiet streets, Merrickville Grove is the perfect place for young couples to raise a family and for active retirees who want the comfort of a home with low maintenance. It is a quiet place where homeowners can walk downtown, grab a coffee or a meal, browse shops, and say hi to neighbours. And, to give back to the municipality, Park View Homes hired a company to build a park with structures for everyone to enjoy. Most times, builders will save the park until the very end of the subdivision development; Park View did the opposite. By installing the park early in the construction process, buyers were able to enjoy it as their homes were being built, and locals could take advantage of the space. “We try to help out the communities we work in,” says Cabrelle. “Recently we helped put a new deck and accessible ramp on the public library in Merrickville at no cost.”

Living its values
For most of us, buying a new home is not only a big financial investment, but an investment in the lives of our families. Realizing this, Park View Homes treats homeowners and potential buyers with the utmost respect and integrity. “It’s all about things like that, the relationships we build with homeowners,” says Cabrelle. “We give everybody the same treatment.”

Focused on more than product, Park View Homes builds not only homes but entire communities, and the company’s team stands behind its proven track record of over 1,200 houses constructed to date. “For me, that’s an important thing, where we can help out and show that we aren’t a ‘big bad builder’ who doesn’t care about homeowners,” says Cabrelle. “Actually, it’s the complete opposite; what we care about is that the homeowner is happy with their home and community,” he says.

“We are super proud to be building in those communities, and proud of where we’ve come from. We’re proud to be focusing on home comfort and making sure that we exceed expectations while we try to give them the best experience, start to finish.”

The post Crafting with Care<p class="company">Park View Homes</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

From modern townhouses to traditional single-family homes, the Ridgeview team takes pride in seeing every project from their client’s perspective while going the extra mile to deliver every project on time and on budget. Thanks to vigorous growth, the builder is now also exploring multi-community expansion. And its custom support does not end with designing and building; the company also helps new arrivals to its service area making the transition from their cities of origin to the Waterloo Region.

Established in 1997 by George Mouradian, Ridgeview Homes has built over 1000 signature homes stretching from Kitchener to Woodstock and London to Stratford. And, as quality never ages or goes out of fashion, its timeless designs make for homes that people genuinely relish living in. “Our homes are thoughtfully designed for the way people live today, creating spaces that balance beauty, comfort, and functionality for modern lifestyles. While a dedicated drafter creates the drawings, the overall design is a team effort. We are creating a product that people love and enjoy for years to come,” says Aleena Kabajouzian, Office Manager.

As a result, the company’s products are extremely popular, often being snapped up almost as quickly as they can be built. A recent project in Cambridge’s Moffat Creek community illustrates this momentum perfectly—entire blocks of townhomes were purchased in what felt like the blink of an eye. Buyers can visit the Moffat Creek Sales Centre & Model Home at 210 Green Gate Blvd in Cambridge, Ontario to experience the community firsthand.

In Westwood Village, the same excitement surrounds a subdivision of single-family detached homes. Demand remains strong, with a new model home opening soon for prospective buyers.

The company is also seeing great interest in its Heathwoods community in London, Ontario. Homebuyers can explore the Sales Centre & Model Home at 6973 Heathwoods Ave in London, Ontario, where thoughtfully designed homes offer modern comfort in a growing neighbourhood.

Lucky for customers ready to secure their dream home, even more developments are on the horizon. For more information on all of Ridgeview’s communities and upcoming developments, visit www.ridgeviewhomes.com.

While the company’s business model appears at first to focus on an “exclusive” approach, this is really just a great way to ensure that the team builds real, in-person connections with those who reach out to its expert sales teams. In this way, Ridgeview’s approach provides discerning locals with architecturally refined homes that are thoughtful and inclusive, especially considering the attention to detail the company puts into its efforts.

The approach is working. Ridgeview’s reputation has cultivated a loyal following, with many new clients discovering the builder through referrals from friends, family, and colleagues who have experienced its homes firsthand. In addition, property owners often seek out the company to develop land they own, resulting in a steadily growing list of prospective clients. With its sister company, Studio 334, handling interior design and décor, Ridgeview offers all-around contemporary excellence. To deliver an optimally comprehensive service, it also shares its showroom with Tricity Wholesale Flooring. The showroom offers a one-stop shop with a wide selection of outstanding flooring, home décor, small furnishings, bathroom fixtures, vanities, and tubs. There is something to suit all tastes, and this service comes with complimentary quotations.

Complementing Ridgeview’s offerings, Studio 334 turns renovation visions into reality, providing a seamless, full-service experience from concept to completion. From initial design consultation to project management and final finishes, the team ensures every detail is carefully executed, delivering homes that are as functional as they are exceptional in style. Studio 334’s impressive showroom, located at 334-A Manitou Drive in Kitchener, offers an inspiring destination for homeowners, designers, and builders alike. The thoughtfully curated space invites clients to tour and experience unique home décor pieces, premium bathroom fixtures, stylish vanities, and quality flooring—each display designed to spark inspiration and help bring every design vision to life.

Ridgeview Homes provides end-to-end service, handling structural design and permitting to deliver a truly streamlined and stress-free building experience. Each home also comes complete with a comprehensive design meeting where every detail, from flooring to cabinet finishes, is discussed and decided upon. To ease the process, a selection of harmonized design packages offers distinct styles that help save time and make the experience less intimidating for those looking for expedited style. “Clients have the opportunity to personalize every detail from start to finish, with our project coordinators, Erin and Katrina,” Kabajouzian says.

While many new homeowners are wary of what appears to be a daunting process at the outset, they have the reassurance of being supported every step of the way by the Ridgeview team—all while being protected by a new home warranty, backed by Tarion. “We all try to follow the Tarion Home Warranty Guidelines to make that transition easy for homeowners,” Kabajouzian continues. With expert guidance tailored to suit every client’s vision and investment goals for their home, there is simply no room for hesitation when working with this formidable team.

Focused on expansion, the company’s team has welcomed the recent second phase of developments at their Westwood Village site in Cambridge, which is well underway. As one of its highly desirable communities, many of the buyers here are returning customers who already live in the area. On the flip side, newer buyers also favour the Moffat Creek site, especially for its strategic location in Cambridge, conveniently located near urban amenities and the 401 highway.

To truly appreciate Ridgeview’s quality and design, prospective homeowners are invited to explore the company’s meticulously staged model homes, where every detail reflects the firm’s commitment to excellence. The most recent is a fully-staged, detached four-bedroom model home in Westwood Village, Cambridge, containing everything its standard homes would include, featuring an intentional floor plan that delivers exceptional value. Homes like these have brought the company significant recognition when it received the Builder of the Year WRHBA Grand SAM (Sales and Marketing) Awards of Distinction from the Waterloo Region Home Builders’ Association in 2020 and 2021. Winning Most Outstanding Two Storey Design; Most Outstanding Bathroom in a Home; Most Outstanding Indoor or Outdoor Living Space; Most Outstanding Home Renovation or Conversion; Best New Homes Sales Office/Presentation Centre; and Best Interior Decorating – Model Home/Suite, the team has made its mark on the local construction industry, proving that its skills and expertise are second to none. It even won an award for Model Home/Suite Under $30,000 when a unit called The Forest House took the limelight a few years ago.

The team is not all work and no play, however. Beyond being a close-knit group that spends ample time together outside of work, it also enjoys a good celebration, and so the company’s 25^th anniversary was celebrated in style with a memorable gala where suppliers, stakeholders, and trade partners joined to toast the great achievement.

As a committed part of the Waterloo Region Food Bank’s support network, this team also takes great joy in gathering donations around the holiday season. In this way, it has collected more than 400 meals for community members in need, and is also a collection point for its local toy drive.

With its noteworthy legacy in an ever-evolving construction landscape, Ridgeview Homes is dedication personified. From its office staff to its field teams, people here aim to please—no matter how much time and effort that takes—an attribute the company acknowledges with great appreciation for the people behind the work. “We have great site supervisors who really do work around the clock to make sure everything gets done in a timely manner for clients,” Kabajouzian says. As a company where establishing authentic connections and real-life experiences are more important than simply doing business as usual, nobody is ever reduced to a number at Ridgeview Homes.

The post Over 25 Years of Designing, Building, & Achieving<p class="company">Ridgeview Homes</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

Located in Minden, Ontario, Quantum Passivhaus prides itself on its prefabricated panels and energy-efficient building design, with construction techniques to help accelerate the North American construction industry’s shift to net-zero building standards.

The company was founded in 2017 by President and CEO, Abby Xerri, and his wife, Angie Horner, Vice President and COO, and the couple’s commitment to sustainability and innovation has created a client-focused company built on empowering people through a collaborative culture that is strategic, hands-on, and deeply invested in making “green” building accessible.

“They make a really good team,” says Eddie Faria, Head of Marketing. “Together they’re a good synergy of people.”

Xerri’s extensive construction background coupled with Horner’s passion for sustainability resulted in embracing Passive House construction as the way forward. “It was a good marriage of both their skills,” adds Faria. “They’re big on the Passive House principles, energy savings, and building in a way that’s future thinking, while also seeing the pitfalls of traditional construction methods.” With rising energy costs and the onset of tighter constraints and building codes—along with keeping in mind Canada’s 2030 net-zero goals—this was the perfect venture to tackle, he says.

Quantum Passivhaus analyzes construction needs at its factory in Minden, where it builds panelized walls that meet the absolute highest criteria of energy sustainability achievable in the world at two different levels: net-zero ready and above, and Passive House, the absolute best. “Three of our panels are Passive House certified, and in terms of sustainability, we’re not only focused on energy conservation, but also just green building in general,” says Faria.

Because Quantum can build panels in a factory and ship them to the site, there is far less site waste compared with conventional construction, allowing the company to construct on even rural sites with a minimal environmental footprint. “We’re really conscious of not disturbing the surrounding environment in a build site,” says Faria. “A lot of our clients appreciate that.”

In fact, much of the decision-making in terms of going with a Passive House stems from conscientious clients who don’t want to disturb the natural environment, and Quantum is able to mitigate that impact, a huge bonus in terms of energy costs. While perhaps not as noticeable—yet—in larger cities where natural gas is affordable, in rural communities, fuel sources can be much more prohibitive.

“Passive House just makes sense in terms of where the future is going, because the building envelopes are so airtight and well insulated that even a home up north loses very little heat,” Faria says. “The systems required to heat it are so minimal and highly efficient, there’s very little energy waste.”

Quantum, he adds, is focused on conserving as much energy as possible in the building envelope. Panels built in the factory are precision-engineered, whereas stick building adds to the framing time and risks exposing the building envelope to the elements for weeks or months on end. “Ours are precision-engineered and thoroughly tested before they go on to the site and are installed. Additionally, Quantum panels have minimal embodied carbon in them.”

While a Passive House purchase seems a natural—and smart—choice these days, education of both builders and the general public remains challenging in terms of cost, affordability, and benefits, both now and for the future. “It’s not really widely well-known yet. There’s still a lot of education that needs to happen in this space,” Faria says. “People hear Passive House and think it’s very expensive and only for people who have a lot of money. That’s just not the case, especially with panelized construction.” Quantum can assemble on site within a three- to seven-day span, which reduces costs and trade coordination in erecting the building envelope, making projects on par with standard construction.

“People don’t know enough about it, and some traditional builders are wary of it because it’s a completely different building methodology,” Faria says. “You have to think about airtightness first and getting a tight building envelope; that’s the priority. With all the techniques that come along with that, for traditional builders, there’s a bit of intimidation in terms of the learning curve and how to properly install Passive House.”

However, interest is rising as building codes keep tightening and energy costs go up, he adds, with more conversation now around energy efficiency and green building. And whenever Quantum does work with interested builders, the company trains them on site in how to properly install the building envelope.

“Expansion is definitely on the horizon,” Faria says of Quantum’s capabilities. “It’s a very exciting time for this because we’re seeing an increased interest, so it’s forced us to grow as a company pretty rapidly.”

Interest and education, of course, start with Quantum’s employees themselves, and how quickly they realize the benefits and advantages of Passive House building. “I learned as I worked here, and the light bulb came on. When I build my house, I’m definitely going to build this way. You get excited about it because you start seeing that this is a really high-quality product. They’re onto something here, especially on the panelized side of things and the speed and the efficiency at which construction happens. It’s really game-changing.”

Quantum’s panels comprise a floor, wall, and roof system, with all components built right in its factory, precision-engineered to a certain thickness that meets Passive House standards. Top quality material in terms of airtight layers and the membranes used ensures that moisture passes through the wall efficiently.

“The best way I can describe it is like Lego® pieces,” Faria says. “We build the pieces in the factory, and then we assemble a building on site using a crane so it goes together very quickly, again, because it’s essentially built in a factory beforehand.”

That being said, there is an extensive plan made out well ahead of time, he stresses. “This is a very technical field. There’s a lot of science and math that goes into everything we do compared to a normal code-minimum home. It’s very precise in terms of the calculations that go into a highly energy-efficient home.”

But the results are nothing short of amazing, he adds, with a focus on the end user’s comfort and overall experience. “A lot of what we’re hearing is the comfort aspect,” he says. “When you walk into one of these homes, you immediately feel a sense of deep peace because of how quiet it is, how much external noise is eliminated because of the quality of the insulation. A lot of our homeowners say that, when they have guests over, people sleep really peacefully.”

The air quality, he adds, is exceptional. “You get really high oxygen content, so you just feel good in the house—you’re able to concentrate longer and it’s dust-free. I’ve walked into four different homes, and the experience was immediately the same in every single one of the homes.” Every room is consistent in temperature and comfort, with no temperature swings and a “substantially” lower monthly energy bill owing to the combination of all Passive House principles.

“Owners are really impressed with how efficient the home is in terms of costs. We had a giant ice storm last year that knocked out the power in our area for about five or six days, and people were scrambling for generators; their homes were immediately cold. But in Passive Homes, people lost maybe three degrees over the course of six days.”

As time goes on, people will realize we’re all going to need these at one point and that they make the most sense, he adds. “That’s why it’s exciting to be in this field, because we can see the trajectory going in that direction as energy costs rise and code tightens.”

Faria—and the entire Quantum staff—works by the philosophy of CEO Abby Xerri, he adds, which is, ‘Everybody should have this.’ “At Quantum, we want everyone to have these homes. It’s not an elite-tier thing that only a certain demographic can afford,” he stresses. “Our goal is to make this available for everybody, and that’s why we also focus on those sustainable developments and affordable housing.”

The company also partners with and works closely with NRCan, with many of its panels going through rigorous testing in their envelope testing facilities. “They test how long our panels can sustain the wind and rain. They have facilities to do that,” Faria explains. “We work really closely with the government to develop the best possible product we can to help meet those energy goals in the future and rising energy goals in Canada.”

And it is the company’s panelized applications that help make its Passive Houses as accessible as possible, Faria stresses. “Not a lot of people know about the panelized approach and how it can save money down the road,” he says. “If you’re building a home you’re going to potentially stay in for the rest of your life, why not look at Passive House, which is the highest building standard in the world in terms of energy efficiency, and do it right? As energy costs rise, build a house that’s actually going to help you out in the future.”

The post Going Green for Good: Passive Housing Made Manageable<p class="company">Quantum Passivhaus</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

This project, constructed during the height of COVID-19 disruptions, exemplifies Blueline’s philosophy: pushing the boundaries of design and craftsmanship while delivering uncompromising quality. Over the past decade, the Squamish-based custom builder has earned a reputation for creating architecturally ambitious, high-performance homes that blend precision engineering and extraordinary attention to detail.

At the center of it all is Adam Smith, President of Blueline Contracting, whose unconventional career path, from professional hockey and firefighting to fine carpentry and entrepreneurship, has shaped the company’s culture and relentless pursuit of excellence.

Smith’s story begins not in a boardroom or business school, but on construction sites, where he first learned the trade as a teenager. “I started banging nails when I was 13,” he recalls. “Dragging rebar around in muddy holes, figuring out pretty quickly that I should probably learn the full trade.”

That early hands-on experience laid the foundation for a career that would later take several unexpected turns. In his 20s, Smith played professional hockey, followed by a decade in the fire service, two fields that demand intense discipline and resilience.

Throughout those years, however, carpentry never left his life. During off-seasons and between shifts, he continued building, gradually taking on small projects and assembling a modest team. Eventually, Smith faced a pivotal decision: remain in the security of a public-sector career or commit fully to construction. “Jumping two feet into the construction world was a leap of faith,” he says. “The fire department was an amazing job and very secure, so it definitely felt like diving into the deep end of the pool.”

That leap came roughly a decade ago. Smith walked away from stability to invest fully in Blueline, channeling all his energy into growing the company. What began as a small operation handling a couple of projects per year soon evolved into one of British Columbia’s most respected luxury custom builders.

The company deliberately attracts clients who value craftsmanship and architectural distinction rather than speed or budget construction. “We tend to attract clients who want to build an amazing project,” says Smith. “We have a staff of amazing craftspeople who wake up ready to just go crush it every day, and that requires projects with like-minded clients who value that passion and dedication.”

That alignment is intentional, as Blueline’s leadership believes exceptional results are only possible when builders, designers, and homeowners share the same vision and the same standards.

Today, Blueline operates with a staff of roughly 20, including five office-based professionals managing project coordination, finances, and administration, and two to three carpentry teams in the field. Unlike many builders, Blueline self-performs much of its construction work, including forming, framing, cladding, and finishing, an approach that enables greater quality control and fosters a deep sense of ownership among team members. The continuity allows craftspeople to fully invest in each build, cultivating accountability and pride, and junior carpenters gain exposure to all phases of construction, building a comprehensive skillset that enhances their long-term career development.

“Our model is to self-perform everything we possibly can,” Smith explains. “It creates ownership of the project and pride in the work when staff stay on a project from the first piece of wood to when we hand the keys over.” The company complements this approach with trusted trade partners for specialized systems such as mechanical, electrical, and drywall, ensuring expertise without sacrificing quality.

One of Blueline’s greatest challenges lies in balancing bespoke design with operational efficiency. Each home presents unique architectural demands, often with highly complex details. “Our typical architectural drawing set is 45 pages, not five,” Smith notes. “Every project has its own nuances.”

To manage this complexity without sacrificing precision, Blueline has invested heavily in systemizing every aspect that can be standardized—workflow, communication, scheduling, budgeting, and documentation—freeing up time and energy to focus on design innovation.

Smith also employs a collaborative leadership model that brings the company’s most experienced professionals into key decision points across projects. “I call them ball carriers, the people who will run the ball to the end zone regardless of what’s in their way,” he says. “Instead of one small team handling one project, we bring all the ball carriers together at critical moments so decades of experience flow into each build.” This horizontal management approach allows collective knowledge to shape outcomes, resulting in higher-quality decisions and smarter construction sequencing.

Blueline has emerged as a leader in high-performance residential construction, particularly in Net-Zero energy homes, dwellings that produce as much energy as they consume annually. Unlike traditional passive house standards, which impose strict design limitations, net-zero construction offers greater freedom. Blueline leverages advanced insulation strategies and solar energy generation while preserving architectural creativity.

“The advantage of net-zero is flexibility,” explains Smith. “Passive is very prescriptive. Net zero gives us more freedom in wall assemblies, energy systems, and features like air conditioning and expansive glazing.” This flexibility is crucial for discerning clients who expect luxury finishes and amenities alongside environmental responsibility. For Blueline, sustainability is not about compromise; it is about innovation, and recent projects demonstrate that energy efficiency and architectural ambition can coexist, even thrive, together.

Blueline’s dedication to quality has earned consistent recognition, including multiple Georgie Awards and national accolades for custom residential construction. Two Whistler projects stand out in particular: the iconic cliffside A-frame and a net-zero residence renowned for its extraordinary finish carpentry. And another project, the Whistler Emerald development, required Blueline to design and fabricate a proprietary weathered steel cladding system to meet the architect’s aesthetic vision. “We developed the entire cladding system in-house,” says Smith. “Working with envelope engineers to make it happen was super rewarding.” These projects highlight Blueline’s engineering ingenuity and craftsmanship at the highest level.

Looking ahead, Smith sees significant opportunities for technological advancement, particularly in renewable energy systems and building materials. Solar panel efficiency continues to improve, but he believes battery storage technology will be the next major leap. “The cost, space requirements, and technology of battery storage need to improve. Once that happens, we’ll see true energy independence become mainstream.”

In parallel, innovations in insulation materials, providing higher thermal performance with less thickness, will allow builders to create more energy-efficient homes without sacrificing interior space or architectural proportion. These advancements, Smith believes, will further push the industry toward sustainability without compromise.

Blueline’s current portfolio reflects evolving homeowner priorities, particularly the desire to integrate wellness features directly into residential spaces. “We’re seeing more spa experiences being incorporated—saunas, cold plunges, steam rooms,” Smith notes. “What’s trending on Instagram is finding its way into our builds.” These elements reflect a broader shift toward wellness-focused design, blending luxury, comfort, and holistic living. For Blueline, adapting to such trends is not about novelty, but about elevating how people experience their homes.

Despite rising demand and national recognition, Blueline has made a deliberate choice to avoid aggressive expansion. “We want to maintain exactly what we’re doing: high-level quality projects with amazingly talented staff,” shares Smith. Blueline’s leadership prioritizes craft and sustainability over scale, and Smith believes rapid growth risks diluting standards and overextending talent pools, particularly in the highly specialized market Blueline serves.

Like many in the construction industry, Blueline operates within broader economic headwinds: rising material costs and increasing pressure for higher-density housing solutions. “There’s a huge push to build as much housing as possible,” Smith acknowledges. “Many of those initiatives are positive, but they’re not our niche.” Blueline remains firmly committed to custom single-family construction, resisting the temptation to pivot into high-volume production building. Instead, the company focuses on refining efficiencies and ensuring long-term sustainability, both financially and culturally.

Behind the company’s technical excellence lies a deeply human ethos. Smith credits his team, affectionately including Frank, the company’s beloved staff dog, as the emotional heart of the organization. “Frank’s our emotional manager,” he jokes. “He looks like a bill collector but he’s just a softy.”

Humor aside, Smith emphasizes that emotional intelligence and mutual respect are just as important as engineering precision. The company’s collaborative culture fosters loyalty and creativity, traits essential to navigating complex builds.

As Blueline enters its next chapter, Smith reflects on how far the company has come, from modest carpentry jobs to nationally celebrated architectural landmarks. After a decade of relentless effort, the firm has reached a point of clarity and confidence. “We’re doing exactly what we set out to do,” he says. “And we’re proud of it.”

For Blueline, success is not measured by square footage or revenue alone, but by the enduring quality of its work, the strength of its relationships, and the pride felt by every individual who helps bring each home to life. In an industry often driven by speed and scale, Blueline Contracting stands apart, quietly proving that craftsmanship and culture can still define the highest levels of construction excellence.

The post Excellence Over Expansion: Crafting Exceptional Homes with Precision and Purpose<p class="company">Blueline Contracting</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

“One of the things we’ve kept consistent through the different ownerships of Bercum, and even more so for us now, is quality over quantity,” says owner Bruce Young, who, after serving as both Site Supervisor and Construction Manager, purchased the company in 2022. “We’re not a high-volume builder; we’re very particular about our quality, and we attract clients looking for high-quality projects.”

Building a team with an impressive skill set to handle high-quality materials is vital for this approach and has proven invaluable. “We’ve been in business for so many years because of keeping the attention to detail,” says Young.

Allowing clients their privacy is imperative but can be challenging when it comes to advertising finished products, he adds. But it’s not about the Bercum brand; it’s about building for clients, such as NHL players relocating or retiring to the Okanagan; lawyers, doctors, business owners, and executives, some of whom are building second and third homes; or retirees moving into the Okanagan from different parts of Canada or the world.

“The Okanagan is quite a playground for those who like to be outdoors in the winter when we have good snow, mountain biking, hiking, or visiting wineries,” says Young.

When asked about the company’s advertising model, he says he doesn’t really have one, and that word of mouth has created a loyal customer base that gives Bercum what it needs to thrive exactly where it is. “We’re doing four houses every two to three years, and some renovations in between. But for the most part, we’re not looking to expand. Our clients expect a certain level of service. It’s very difficult to provide that service on a high-volume production building.”

At the moment, Bercum comprises Young and his wife, who own the company, and a staff of nine. “We work together, it’s manageable, and I can still have a life,” he shares.

Working with leading professionals, consultants, envelope engineers, and structural engineers has created a collaborative approach that also enhances education, especially as building codes continually change in Canada. “I’ve learned over the years that we’re continual learners,” says Young. “We look to improve on every project. One of our mottos is we’re never satisfied. We learn something on every project, and then we implement that into upcoming projects.”

Sustainability is another point of pride for the company, particularly when building amidst nature. As Bercum is often working on lakefront properties, the team takes great care to protect the water.

“Almost everybody on the team either mountain bikes or skis or likes to be out in nature,” Young says. “We build a lot of lakefront properties or mountain properties, and we are invested in them enduring for generations.”

This means providing, whenever possible, renewable energy—with the easiest being solar panels—but also harvesting rainwater and greywater out of the house, recycling it, and using it for irrigation and fire suppression. “Fire has always been an issue for us out here,” says Young. One particular project involved burying two large cisterns to collect water year-round and store it for use in both outdoor irrigation and supplemental city water to fight potential fires.

The company is also a net-zero builder and strives to provide those qualities whenever possible. “Our biggest attribute is we try to build really efficient homes,” Young says. Even in non-certified net-zero homes, there are still excellent insulation values.

“We love to be sustainable, but one of the things that gets a bit lost is that we can build a really efficient home now more than ever, and it doesn’t need to be done with renewable resources per se. If we use fewer resources, like less gas and less electricity, it’s actually much better for the environment.”

Bringing in employees who feel just as passionately about these attributes is a mainstay for Bercum, and one that has kept the company flourishing. “We’ve really tried to adopt a culture where people feel valued, and we’ve been able to retain our staff after we bought the company.”

Maintaining a positive culture includes getting together outside of work for ski days, mountain bike days, or winery days, along with a “pretty fabulous” Christmas party every year. “We really value our staff,” stresses Young. “We all live in the Okanagan because we want to live here, and we enjoy it. We value family time, so we don’t work weekends, and that’s non-negotiable with our clients.”

For Young, having a healthy staff and a healthy life is more valuable than being solely driven by the dollar, which only serves to burn people out. It’s an approach that calls for supporting staff as much as possible, whether that’s providing parental leave, supporting career growth, or encouraging clubs and teams; it’s all about creating a place where people want to be. “Work is hard enough, and I think this creates a sense of community,” he says. “I’m really proud of that. I was a cabinet maker, I’ve worked in the industry my whole life, and I’ve worked for some challenging people. I expect a lot of our staff, but I don’t do it in a way that’s demeaning. I always want to bring them up to the best of their ability.”

On every project that reaches the rough-in stage, all of Bercum’s staff participate in a walkthrough to share their thoughts and observations, fostering ideas from different perspectives and helping to create an ongoing collaborative environment.

Bercum is also fully committed to building to the client’s wishes. With homes ranging in size from 3,500 square feet to 11,000 square feet, there is certainly a wide variety, but most have a view of either mountains or lakes. Everybody wants large windows or sliding wall panels, and making those homes efficient is a unique challenge that Bercum is always up for.

“We’re legitimately a custom home builder,” Young says. “Our client comes to us with drawings already done, or with no drawings and we help them find an architect or house designer. For us, it really doesn’t matter what the design is; we don’t have a preference. We enjoy building all styles.”

Some of the biggest challenges the company has faced recently include building and coordinating complex homes with multiple challenges; working on building sites with steep slopes and bedrock; making expansive homes, with many large windows and sliding doors, as energy-efficient as possible; working with out-of-town clients; changing codes and requirements for home building in BC; building homes with unique elements such as rammed earth and gabion basket exterior walls with unique cladding materials; and the development of green roof systems within the workable parameters of the envelope. “We build a lot of lakefront properties that are on steep slopes, so we’re dealing with bedrock and challenging sites. We are working with a product called rammed earth, a natural building material made by mixing soil and cement powder and using a pneumatic rammer to compact the materials; this has been invaluable in the building process.”

As Bercum looks to the future, the company aims to continue doing what it does best, which means meeting and exceeding clients’ expectations; streamlining its process from the initial client meeting to the occupancy and turnover of clients’ homes; deepening relationships with trade partners; continuing to improve the culture; and developing strategies to ensure clear project parameters for each stakeholder from tender through to completion.

“What’s really important to me is continuing to meet and exceed our clients’ expectations,” Young stresses. “That’s a mainstay of the Bercum model. Our clients often ask us to do challenging things, so we take the time to figure it out.” Clear lines of communication from the office to the site to the client are made possible by Bercum’s taking on only a few projects at a time, affording the opportunity to provide every client with the care and attention they deserve.

Bercum’s clients hold the company to a high standard, and 99 percent of the time, their expectations are met. Young says it’s about doing your part, reading people quickly, and understanding what they want. “We’re the facilitator of building our clients’ dreams, but it’s our trades and suppliers that really do the heavy lifting of the project,” says Young. “It’s collaborative.”

It’s not all about Bercum, he adds; it’s about meeting clients’ expectations and ensuring the finished product is ideal, all while maintaining a company culture that matches the Bercum model. “That’s really important to me. Work takes up a lot of your life. We all have bad days, but if every day is a bad day, you should find something else to do.”

The post Quality Over Quantity: Building Better Homes in BC<p class="company">Bercum Builders</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

Over the past 11 years, Verdon has helped transform Extreme Kitchens from a modest regional cabinet shop into one of the Greater Moncton Area’s leading kitchen manufacturers, fabricating and installing more than 1,000 kitchens annually while supporting nearly 100 local contractors. Alongside that growth, he and his partners launched Extreme Homes, a residential construction company now known for its custom-designed houses and distinctive neighbourhood developments.

Yet the story behind this success isn’t one of overnight wins or corporate formulas. It is a story built on craftsmanship, loyalty, thoughtful leadership, and an evolving sense of responsibility, both inside and outside the business.

Verdon’s journey into construction began more than two decades ago, long before executive titles or business ownership were part of the plan. A trained cabinetmaker with hands-on experience across multiple disciplines, he spent his early career moving between cabinet shops and job sites in Edmundston, Bathurst, Dieppe, and beyond, traveling extensively to install custom millwork and kitchens.

Those early years exposed him to the full spectrum of construction, from shop fabrication to on-site problem solving, and helped shape a practical understanding of both craftsmanship and workflow.

It was during his time at Atcan Industries that Verdon met Michel Leblanc, a partnership that would ultimately change the trajectory of his career. Together, they took on major commercial projects, designing and building custom pieces from the ground up. Their collaboration blended technical precision with creative problem solving, forming a professional dynamic built on trust and shared standards.

At the time, Extreme Kitchens, where Leblanc had once worked, was undergoing restructuring. The company’s founder was preparing to retire and a group of shareholders, many with construction backgrounds but limited cabinet experience, were seeking leadership. Leblanc agreed to take on the role only if Verdon joined him.

Together, they left Atcan, driven by a shared determination to build something better, not just operationally, but culturally. “We told ourselves we needed to be better bosses,” Verdon recalls. “We needed to treat people better, lift them up, care more, and try harder. That became our foundation.”

The transition was far from smooth. Suddenly responsible for everything from sales to operations, Verdon stepped into unfamiliar roles, learning quickly through necessity and sheer determination. Despite the steep learning curve, the company began growing almost immediately. Within weeks, Verdon had secured significant commercial projects, including an eight-unit apartment complex and a major contract with Subaru of Moncton.

Growth followed quickly, and the company expanded into retail partnerships, including placements in Kent Building Supplies stores across the Maritimes and a showroom partnership with Ritchie’s Flooring. But as revenue increased, so did complexity. Managing multiple retail relationships introduced staffing challenges and operational headaches that eventually led to strategic withdrawals. “We realized that growth alone doesn’t equal value,” says Verdon. “You have to be careful where you expand and why.”

That insight prompted a series of deliberate shifts, stepping away from national retail and committing almost entirely to the local market. The goal was simple: deepen relationships rather than stretch operations thin.

A turning point arrived when Chris and Jeff of Window World invited Extreme Kitchens to open a showroom within their Halifax Street location in Moncton. Until then, Extreme Kitchens operated out of Saint-Paul, a rural area nearly 45 minutes outside the city, limiting exposure to urban residential and commercial development. The Halifax Street showroom changed everything. Suddenly positioned in the heart of Moncton, Extreme Kitchens gained direct access to homeowners and contractors. Verdon took full ownership of sales and customer engagement, while Leblanc took full ownership of the shop and production, keeping everything running smoothly from start to finish.

The company’s growth accelerated dramatically. Home show appearances increased brand recognition, larger showroom displays elevated the client experience, and staffing numbers expanded. Within a few years, Extreme Kitchens outgrew the Halifax Street space, prompting a move to current headquarters on Baig Boulevard, a multi-unit commercial building now largely occupied by Extreme Kitchens and Extreme Homes.

Over nearly 12 years, the business has grown tenfold, now employing close to 40 staff members across multiple divisions. Yet despite the scale, Verdon insists the company’s heart remains unchanged. “We never chased size; we chased service, quality, and relationships. Growth just followed.”

After years working alongside contractors and witnessing firsthand the patterns and shortcomings of residential development, Verdon saw an opportunity to build something different. During the height of COVID disruptions, he partnered with Michel and Claude Leblanc to launch Extreme Homes, a residential construction company focused on architectural creativity and distinct neighbourhood identity.

Verdon envisioned homes with personality, designs that stood apart from the repetitive layouts saturating the market. And with the help of Melanie Vautour’s guidance, design expertise and hands-on support, the vision took shape. The company developed 10 original home designs, each carrying its own identity, and has since built over 35 homes in unique developments that consistently attract attention.

“We wanted to stand out,” Verdon says. “And when builders started showing up at Extreme Kitchens asking us to build cabinets using our own Extreme Homes plans, we knew we were onto something.”

Growth accelerated further when Denis Bastarache, a gifted electrician by trade, joined as a business partner and Project Manager, allowing Claude to transition into other projects while still maintaining an advisory role. Since then, Extreme Homes has grown into designing entire neighbourhoods and shaping new developments, carving out a reputation as a forward-thinking force in the region. With Denis and Melanie serving as leaders in their respective fields, they have been integral to Extreme Homes’ growth and success.

Behind the scenes, meanwhile, Extreme Kitchens has undergone constant reinvention. What began as a modest workshop attached to a seniors’ club has evolved into a highly efficient manufacturing operation. Over the past five years alone, the company has completed several major renovations and expansions, doubling its production capacity and enhancing workflow efficiency.

Verdon credits much of this operational precision to Michel Leblanc’s leadership, noting that their constant communication between sales forecasting and production planning allows the business to scale responsibly without sacrificing quality. “Our growth is calculated,” notes Verdon. “We don’t expand unless we know we can maintain service.”

Future plans include additional production lines, expanded CNC capabilities, and further showroom enhancements, all aimed at reinforcing Extreme Kitchens’ reputation for craftsmanship and customer experience.

In an industry often marked by labour shortages and high turnover, Extreme’s workforce stands out for its stability. Over time, employees have built lasting careers, rewarded not just with financial compensation but with a work environment that values and invests in them. “You don’t need to wait to become a millionaire to start sharing success,” Verdon says. “If you can help your staff, you should.” Extreme has distributed profit-sharing payments for several years and says it will continue the practice while the business remains successful, part of a longstanding commitment to ensuring employees benefit directly from the company’s growth.

This philosophy has created a workplace culture rooted in loyalty and mutual respect, a model Verdon believes directly impacts productivity, craftsmanship, and client satisfaction.

Throughout Extreme’s evolution, one principle has remained constant: support local. Nearly all materials and subcontractors are sourced within the region, as Verdon and his partners believe that investing locally creates a reciprocal cycle of quality and shared growth. We’ve been very lucky to find like-minded partners in incredibly community-minded local companies, such as Unique Glass, Countertop Creations, among many others. We know we can always count on them to go the extra mile for us and our customers. “We discovered early on that when you support hardworking local people, they pay it forward. They care more. They try harder.” This approach has not only strengthened quality control but also reinforced community resilience, particularly as larger national developers enter the Moncton market.

For much of his career, philanthropy existed only on the margins of Verdon’s life, limited to occasional sponsorships and donations. That changed profoundly after meeting his wife, Rebecca Davis. With more than 15 years of leadership experience in the charitable sector, Davis introduced Verdon to the deeper realities of community need.

Rebecca’s experience and background lead Stephane to participate in his first ever charitable events which opened Verdon’s eyes to systemic gaps and to the profound impact of local charities. That led to the creation of the Extreme Dream Foundation, a nonprofit initiative dedicated to supporting local causes through large-scale fundraising events.

Its flagship project, the Extreme Dream Golf Tournament, will launch June 25 at the Moncton Golf Club, bringing together builders, suppliers, tradespeople, and business leaders. The goal: to raise over $20,000 for three local charities in its first year, with ambitions to raise money for different charities and non-profits every year.

“This isn’t about recognition,” Verdon says. “It’s about creating a movement where businesses see that giving back is part of success, not separate from it.”

At present, Extreme Homes is completing a major Moncton development and preparing to launch a large project in Riverview this summer. In parallel, negotiations are underway for a mixed-use neighbourhood featuring single-family homes and community infrastructure. To support these initiatives, Extreme will soon launch two new divisions: a land development company responsible for full infrastructure construction and a rental housing enterprise designed to address long-term housing needs.

Verdon sees these ventures not as expansion for expansion’s sake, but as a chance to shape sustainable, well-planned communities. “We don’t want to be the biggest,” he says. “We want to make the biggest impact.”

When asked what message he hopes readers take from his journey, Verdon doesn’t hesitate. “That success doesn’t need to be built on the backs of underpaid, miserable employees. That supporting local matters. That service should always come first. And that businesses can grow while lifting everyone around them.”

Stephane Verdon’s journey from cabinetmaker to community builder shows a different kind of leadership, one that values people and integrity as much as results. Beyond kitchens and homes, Extreme has built a culture that values giving back and letting purpose lead the way.

The post Transforming Spaces and Lives in Greater Moncton<p class="company">Extreme Kitchens and Extreme Homes</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

As CEO of Stratton Homes, Newman has helped shape a company that quietly challenges how residential construction is approached in Ontario’s cottage country and beyond. Alongside Director of Operations, Morgan Shaver, and the steady onsite force behind the builds, Stratton Homes has grown into a builder known for Net Zero Ready construction and a deeply intentional approach to people, from tradespeople to homeowners.

Together, Newman and Shaver balance the big picture with the day-to-day realities of building, blending long-term vision with practical, onsite experience.

Stratton Homes officially began in 2014, shortly after Newman and his wife Kristin returned to the area. Not long after launching, Newman was offered a partnership opportunity with a high-end luxury home builder, an experience that, while professionally valuable, ultimately clarified what he didn’t want.

“I realized I wasn’t building the things I loved or leaving the legacy I wanted to be part of,” Newman explains. At the same time, life outside of work was changing. With young children at home, the demands of large-scale operations and constant pressure left him feeling disconnected from the moments that mattered most.

In 2019, just before the pandemic reshaped the world, Newman made a decisive move: he sold his ownership stake and stepped away. COVID provided an unexpected pause, time to reassess and rethink what a home-building business could look like if it was designed intentionally from the ground up.

Forging a team
The connection between Newman and Shaver didn’t begin in a boardroom. It started with families crossing paths through casual conversations about building and mutual curiosity. Shaver, a hands-on builder with deep technical knowledge, had been quietly constructing his own home, largely on his own, an effort that immediately caught Newman’s attention. “There’s no way,” Newman remembers thinking when he first heard about it. But it was real—and impressive.

During the pandemic, a simple social media post asking for help with tile work led Newman back onto a job site. One project turned into conversations. Conversations turned into a spec build. And that build became the real beginning of Stratton Homes as it exists today.

Shaver now serves as Director of Operations, spending most of his time on jobsites working directly with trades, supervising builds, and ensuring the company’s standards are upheld from foundation to finish. “I’m not the silent partner,” Shaver says, “but I’m definitely the one on the ground.”

Newman’s experience managing teams of 60 or more taught him an important lesson: scale doesn’t automatically equal efficiency. In fact, too many internal layers often pull attention away from what actually matters: the build itself. Stratton Homes thus operates with a tight group of site supervisors and a carefully selected roster of dedicated trades and vendors. Many of these partners work exclusively with Stratton, a decision rooted in trust, consistency, and shared standards.

The analogy Newman often uses is hockey. “You can take the best players in the country and put them on the ice together, and at first it’s a mess,” he says. “But give them time, and suddenly they’re passing without looking.” That familiarity pays dividends in quality, efficiency, and morale. Tradespeople know that when the Stratton team says a site is ready, it’s ready. Schedules are tight, sites are organized, and payments are fast, net 15 via direct deposit, an industry rarity. “We hear it not just from business owners, but from their employees,” Newman says. “They’re excited to come to our sites.”

Building with—and for—nature
At Stratton Homes, Net Zero Ready construction isn’t a premium add-on; it’s the starting point. Rather than reinventing the wheel on every project, the team uses a standardized building envelope and wall assembly across all builds, regardless of budget or client type.

“Whether you’re a $5 million client or we’re building for Habitat for Humanity, the wall assemblies are the same,” Newman explains. This consistency simplifies execution and ensures predictable performance. High-quality triple-glazed windows, carefully designed insulation systems, and airtight construction are integrated by default, not upsold later.

Shaver has lived the difference firsthand. “The performance gap between good triple-glazed windows and lower-quality ones is night and day,” he says.

Beyond operational efficiency, Stratton Homes is increasingly focused on embodied carbon, the environmental impact of materials, from production through installation, and actively evaluating materials that sequester carbon rather than emit it.

In Muskoka, landscape is everything; lakes, granite, forest, and elevation define the region’s identity, yet too often, homes are built by clearing first and designing later. Stratton takes the opposite approach. Before a single tree is cut, Newman and Shaver walk the site together, identifying rock formations and critical trees worth preserving. Homes are designed around the land, not imposed on it. “It makes the build harder,” Shaver admits. “It can add weeks to logistics. But when the house is finished and the trees are right there, you can’t buy that.”

For Newman, the math is simple: trees take decades to grow. Removing them prematurely is a missed opportunity both aesthetically and environmentally.

Clever customization
The Stratton team understands that customization can be one of the most overwhelming parts of building a home: hundreds of decisions; endless options. Fatigue sets in quickly.

Stratton’s solution is its pre-sale interior design program: seven curated design packages, all priced the same, all built from the same trusted brands and suppliers. “Pick your vibe,” says Newman. “That’s it.”

Developed in collaboration with interior designer Carolyn Wilbrink and Stratton’s internal team, the packages allow homeowners to personalize their space without the stress of designing from scratch. Shaver likens it to buying a vehicle. “You can get an F-150 in different trims: Lariat, King Ranch, Tremor,” he says. “You’re still customizing, but you’re not rebuilding the truck from the ground up.”

From an operational standpoint, the benefits are significant. Once a client selects a package, purchase orders are issued immediately and materials are ordered, warehoused, and ready, eliminating delays and supply chain surprises.

Aiming for efficiency
Trends, according to Shaver, are shifting away from excess. “People are leaning toward smaller, smarter homes,” he says. “Less square footage, more efficiency.” Shaver himself recently downsized from a 3,300-square-foot home to 2,100 square feet and wouldn’t go back. “Our utility bills are about $160 a month, year-round,” he notes. “I can leave for two months, and the house just runs.”

Low-maintenance materials and thoughtful design are replacing size as the true markers of comfort. One standout example: Shaver’s slab-on-grade home. Instead of installing in-floor heating, long considered essential, he added six inches of insulation beneath the slab. “It feels like a regular subfloor,” he says. “But I don’t have to maintain it for the next 50 years.”

Perhaps the clearest expression of Stratton Homes’s mission is its work with Habitat for Humanity Ontario Gateway North. Convincing an affordable housing organization to pursue Net Zero Ready construction required careful justification, but the math spoke for itself. “If you spend $30,000 more upfront and save that in monthly operating costs, it’s not an upgrade,” Newman explains. “It’s responsible.”

The result: Habitat for Humanity Ontario Gateway North’s first Net Zero Ready homes, compact and efficient units designed to minimize long-term costs for residents.

The future of housing, according to Newman and Shaver, lies in efficiency at scale. Recent visits to advanced prefabrication facilities revealed AI-driven systems capable of optimizing entire builds in minutes, minimizing waste and dramatically reducing labor requirements.

“They uploaded a floor plan,” Newman recalls. “In under a minute, the system had optimized every component.” Robots don’t build the homes outright (yet), but they fabricate components with astonishing precision. Offcuts are repurposed and waste is nearly eliminated. Homes can be assembled in hours, not weeks. For a country facing a housing shortage, the implications are enormous.

Interestingly, one of Stratton’s fastest-growing areas wasn’t part of the original plan at all: sustainable resorts. From Net Zero glamping communities to spa-integrated forest retreats, developers are increasingly seeking builders who can deliver low-impact, high-performance structures in sensitive environments. “These projects let us show there’s another way to build,” Newman says. “Even for high-net-worth clients.”

Ask Newman what ultimately drives him, and the answer isn’t growth for growth’s sake. “It was never about owning an island,” he says. “It was always about building attainable, sustainable homes,” ones that feel normal, comfortable, and beautiful but quietly perform better, last longer, and cost less to operate.

With Shaver anchoring operations onsite and a company culture rooted in trust and purpose, Stratton Homes is proving that thoughtful building isn’t just possible; it’s scalable. And in an industry ready for change, that might be the most important foundation of all.

The post A Lean Team by Design<p class="company">Stratton Homes</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

While Norseman remains firmly rooted in renovation and residential construction, Potts’s work increasingly sits at the intersection of construction and technology. His initiatives, ranging from prototype buildings to industry think tanks, reflect a belief that the construction sector is approaching a pivotal shift.

“There’s a massive movement happening around construction technology right now,” Potts says, “but very few people are actually documenting how hard it is to implement these changes or what it really takes to move them forward.”

Norseman Construction began in 2005, shortly after Potts returned to Canada following several years working overseas in commercial diving operations. Those experiences had taken him across the Middle East and into projects tied to oil industry infrastructure and military contracts during the early years of the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts.

When he returned home, Potts found himself searching for a new direction. An entry-level maintenance job eventually led him into the construction industry, and from there, the opportunity quickly took root.

Within its first year, Norseman had grown to approximately 25 employees and generated roughly $1 million in revenue. Potts credits that rapid growth to an early focus on efficiency and organization, particularly within the complex environment of high-rise construction projects in Toronto. At the time, large condominium developments often faced a familiar challenge: occupancy deadlines were approaching, but certain floors still required finishing work or deficiency repairs. Developers needed those floors completed quickly so financing milestones could be met.

Potts saw an opportunity. “We would get called in to finish entire floors that other trades couldn’t complete in time,” he says. “Our team worked around the clock to get those spaces ready for occupancy.”

This period also sparked Potts’s early interest in applying technology to construction management. Long before cloud-based project management platforms became common, Norseman developed a system designed to track building deficiencies and assign responsibility for repairs. The system, called CRS, short for Cost Recoupment System, recorded issues across multiple job sites and connected them to the trades responsible for resolving them. Field staff entered information using handheld devices, which was then transmitted to a central service desk for tracking and analysis. “It allowed developers to see exactly what was happening in their buildings,” Potts says. “For the first time, deficiencies were being documented and tracked in a structured way.”

The technology eventually attracted the attention of several major developers, who adopted the system for their own projects. For Potts, it confirmed something he had already begun to suspect—that construction could benefit significantly from better data and process management.

By 2008, Norseman Construction had grown to about 45 employees and was working on projects across downtown Toronto. However, the global financial crisis soon slowed development activity throughout the region. With many high-rise projects paused or cancelled, Norseman faced a dramatic drop in available work. The company was forced to reduce staff and reassess its direction.

Rather than stepping away from the industry, Potts repositioned the business toward residential renovation and smaller-scale construction projects. That shift allowed the company to rebuild its client base and stabilize operations. Over time, the firm gradually expanded again. Today, Norseman operates primarily in the Greater Toronto Area and generates between $15 million and $20 million in annual revenue.

Although the core business remains focused on renovation and residential work, Potts has continued exploring ways technology might reshape construction in the future. He began paying closer attention to emerging construction technologies around 2018 and 2019. At the same time, he observed broader changes affecting the industry, including labour shortages and rising development costs.

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated many of those pressures. Supply chains tightened, financing conditions changed, and developers struggled to move projects forward. “Construction took a major hit during that period,” Potts says. “It forced a lot of people to rethink how projects could be delivered more efficiently.”

That reassessment led Potts to become involved in a collaborative think tank called Build Forward Canada, which brought together roughly 30 organizations to explore strategies for improving housing delivery. The effort brings together builders, technology providers, and housing organizations to examine how industrialized construction techniques could help address housing shortages. “The goal is to combine different innovations into a system that allows housing to be built more quickly and more consistently,” Potts says.

Among the technologies Potts has explored most closely is 3D concrete printing. This process uses robotic systems to extrude specialized concrete mixtures layer by layer, creating structural components or entire building elements. Norseman has partnered with other Canadian construction technology companies to test mobile printing equipment capable of producing structural components directly on site.

Norseman imported one of the first mobile 3D concrete printers operating in Canada, a system capable of printing structural elements in relatively short timeframes, becoming the first construction company in Canada to own and operate the MaxiPrinter, a mobile “crawling” 3D printer.”

While some demonstrations have focused on printing entire houses, Potts sees the technology as particularly useful for specific structural components. “One of the most interesting applications is foundations,” he says. “If you can print a basement in 24 hours and have it ready to build on shortly afterward, you eliminate a lot of the delays associated with traditional concrete curing.”

In conventional construction, concrete foundations typically require several days before structural loads can be applied. Accelerated curing methods used in 3D printing may reduce that timeline. Potts believes combining printed foundations with modular housing components could significantly shorten construction schedules.

Indeed, the modular construction industry has grown steadily in recent years as developers look for ways to reduce construction timelines and improve cost predictability, and Potts suggests that integrating modular construction with digital tracking systems and automated fabrication processes could further streamline housing production.

The approach resembles industrial manufacturing more than traditional site-built construction. “You’re building components in a controlled environment and assembling them efficiently on site. That’s where construction begins to move toward scalable production.”

One concept he has explored involves temporary factory structures that could be deployed near major development sites. These facilities would produce building components locally, reducing transportation costs and accelerating assembly. Finished modules could then be delivered to prepared sites where cranes install them onto foundations or structural bases.

Alongside physical construction technologies, Potts has also focused on improving data visibility within construction projects, using, for example, a software platform that incorporates QR code scanning and digital asset tracking. Working in collaboration with researchers at Western University, the platform is being expanded to track construction materials across job sites and supply chains. By scanning QR codes attached to materials or components, contractors could track where specific products are located and how they are being used on site.

The system may also connect to accounting platforms and project management tools, allowing contractors to monitor costs and productivity in real time. “Construction is one of the few industries where you often lose visibility once materials arrive on site,” Potts says. “Tracking systems can help companies understand exactly where resources are going.” In the future, he believes digital tracking could extend further into supply chain management and procurement systems.

Beyond construction projects themselves, Potts has launched a media initiative aimed at documenting the evolution of building technology. His YouTube series, Construction Disruption, follows Norseman’s experiments with new technologies and explores challenges facing builders as they attempt to adopt them.

The series includes behind-the-scenes footage of prototype projects, interviews with engineers and developers, and explanations of emerging construction systems. “We realized that a lot of these innovations were happening in isolation,” Potts says. “There wasn’t really a place where people could see the process and understand what’s involved.”

Episodes are designed to make complex engineering concepts accessible to a wider audience, and Potts frequently uses diagrams, animations, and step-by-step breakdowns to explain how new technologies function.

While technology continues to advance, Potts says one of the most significant barriers to innovation remains regulatory approval. Construction projects must comply with municipal zoning rules and permit review processes, systems that can vary widely between jurisdictions. “Innovation often runs into approval capacity and regulatory uncertainty,” Potts explains. “You can develop new technologies but getting them approved for real projects is another challenge entirely.”

He points to housing initiatives such as multi-unit infill developments as examples where policy discussions sometimes move faster than implementation.

Even when governments promote certain housing types as solutions to supply shortages, local approval processes may still delay projects. “The construction industry understands how to deliver projects,” he says. “But we need systems that allow new approaches to be evaluated and approved more efficiently.”

As construction technologies evolve, Potts believes training programs must adapt as well. New building methods may require skills that combine traditional trades knowledge with digital tools or advanced manufacturing processes. “Electricians, plumbers, and other trades will still be essential,” he says. “But their work will increasingly interact with automated systems and digital infrastructure.”

He encourages young professionals entering the industry to look closely at the intersection of construction and technology. “Understanding how construction systems integrate with robotics, software, and advanced manufacturing will become increasingly important,” he shares.

Despite the complexity of the challenges facing the housing sector, Potts remains optimistic about the industry’s ability to adapt. He sees construction entering a period of rapid experimentation, where builders test new technologies and methods to improve efficiency. Norseman’s own work, including prototype projects and technology development, reflects that broader exploration.

For Potts, the future of construction lies in combining practical building experience with technological innovation. “It’s about building better systems,” he says. “If we can improve how projects are designed, approved, and constructed, we can create housing more efficiently while maintaining quality and safety.”

As the industry continues searching for solutions to housing shortages, those experiments may play a role in shaping the next generation of construction practices.

The post Rethinking the Future of Construction<p class="company">Norseman Construction</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

David Huggins, head of National Pre-Construction Business Development, initially worked with the company as a consultant. In 2020, he transitioned from an entrepreneurial consulting role to fully joining Menard, seeing it through the current decade. He describes Menard’s role on a given construction project as one that “has everything to do with the soil.”

No matter the type of stakeholder—developer, geotechnical or structural engineer, or general contractor—when one is trying to purchase or build on a site with a challenging soil situation, Menard is called on to look into the difficulties the soils present and the capacities needed for it to support a structure, using design-build solutions as part of its detailed approach to ground improvement. The formula is essentially such that, if a structure is under 20 storeys and has deep compressible soils from two metres and deeper, Menard can deliver strong value.

This decade, so far, has seen Menard Canada capitalize on its momentum. Huggins says that, from the waning days of the COVID-19 pandemic up to 2024, the industrial sector was quite active, with the company completing numerous projects. Now, the market has paused, leading to a switch toward project in transit and infrastructure. Recently, Menard worked on a project for a maintenance facility for the under-construction Ontario Line in Toronto, part of the province’s new transit expansion. The team has also been involved in mining—specifically, support for a tailings dam project in northern Ontario.

Menard typically does not deal in high-rise developmental work simply because its systems are not built for those kinds of projects. Instead, it has been able to capture the market in mid-rise developments as well as communities dealing with old fill sites and deep, soft soil that needs to be strengthened before building new structures. Affordable housing has also been a hotter market for Menard, with a 15-person team undertaking a series of projects for Habitat for Humanity in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).

During the early 2020s, the warehouse market was a big driver of the company’s revenue; however, the market for building industrial warehouses to specification is not as vigorous now. Huggins says that this is due to ongoing political uncertainty, as well as a scramble throughout COVID to establish last-mile setups for warehouses. Now, one of the more dynamic segments surrounds the boom in AI data centres, one of which Menard worked for in 2025. There has also been a push toward building public spaces such as community centres and hockey arenas.

The diversity of sectors in which Menard excels demonstrates its flexibility in applying its ground improvement systems and solutions. The beauty of the business is that it operates in a sector-agnostic fashion, says Huggins. This means that the type of structure does not matter, whether hospital, warehouse, data centre, or mid-rise building; if the soils are not good and a customer wants to avoid either a costly deep foundation system or a large replacement program, Menard has the answer. “We can be across all different sectors because we deal in the dirt,” he says.

Thanks to the breadth of work that can be found across different market segments, Menard has grown and opened new offices across Canada in the last five years. Since the company operates in a decentralized manner, with each office essentially operating its own business unit, it has been able to expand its teams and provide opportunities for its staff. “In an economically uncertain environment, people are looking for value,” says Huggins, and if people are motivated to build but are in need of cost-effective foundation solutions, Menard exists in that sweet spot.

As agile as the company has been inside the construction space, its role is still not as well-known as one may think. When compared to larger earthworks programs or piling/deep foundation systems, the area of ground improvement is still relatively new in terms of knowledge base and acceptance within the design community. To counter this, the company has been hosting lunch-and-learn talks with geotechnical engineers to get the word out about ground improvement. These talks cover topics such as excess soils, structural design codes, and why ground improvement makes sense on construction sites.

While keeping eyes open with respect to the rest of the year, Menard Canada will be taking a more cautious approach to operations. The business has grown substantially over the past five years, with things stabilizing in 2025, and this has allowed operations to catch up and ensure that the company is able to complete its volume of work under the right corporate structure. As Prime Minister Mark Carney announces major infrastructure projects, the company has been keeping active in areas like long-term care and getting good repeat business out of it, a trend it hopes to extend. It is also keeping its eye on transit expansion, especially in the GTA, with new highways, embankments, and associated works being built.

Menard is also monitoring housing projects closely, as many investment decisions are currently on pause. Developers are waiting for decisions on additional federal support—particularly the removal of certain charges and fees—to help improve project viability. While Menard is typically involved early in the construction process to offer ideas and solutions, investment in these capital-intensive developments has slowed over the past 18 months and as a result, some projects have been delayed or pushed into uncertain timelines.

In response to these market conditions, many developers are shifting away from high-rise condominiums toward larger, lower-density housing formats—a trend that aligns with Menard’s vision.

“We pride ourselves on our safety record and our approach to risk management,” Huggins says. Being owned by a large, publicly-traded European conglomerate, Menard Canada has both a great depth of resources and the nimbleness of local offices, teams, and yards. This results in a best-of-both-worlds situation for the company in delivering tailored solutions to its clients, as each project brings its own constraints that determine the best course of action. Menard Canada is more than ready to go from a project’s secret weapon to being an irreplaceable part of the construction process.

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