52 BCBusiness Month Year Photo Credit
C O N S T R U C T I O N + G R E E N B U S I N E S S
S P E C I A L F E A T U R E
Building for the Future
As B.C.'s construction sector continues to evolve,
companies are elevating their services to meet
industry's growing standards
W
henever a cyclical industry
such as construction is
on the upswing, as was
the case in B.C. in 2015,
not only is it good for the
economy overall, it often
triggers a domino e•ect
of investors trying to get a jump on one
another by fast-tracking projects that were
previously put on hold.
According to a BuildForce Canada
BC forecast for 2014 to 2024, strength is
gathering across most markets and will lift
employment each year within this time
frame. Engineering activity will lead, with
increasing demand requirements from 2015
to 2018 as projects come on stream and
reach peak levels of activity.
But two challenges intensify as the
construction sector gains momentum:
the need for companies to provide added
value to clients (in order to prevail in a
competitive market) and the need to recruit
and retain new talent.
Companies such as Houle Electric,
which for decades was famous as an
electrical contractor as well as a design-
build specialist, added value—and became
a 21st century trailblazer—by excelling in
technologies integration. Today, Houle
is regarded as a solutions provider in the
security, building automation and data
network realms, and for its pro‹ciency
in seamlessly integrating these and other
services for a single client.
Wales McLelland Construction, which
has been operating in Vancouver for over
40 years, provides added value by being
a one-stop shop. For example: being
pro‹cient in a variety of building delivery
methods (general contracting, design-build,
construction management, sustainable and
LEED building); providing due diligence
data to assist clients' development and
feasibility decisions; o•ering permits and
The three-storey, 13,500-square-foot office
building for the
BCGEU in Prince George
is the fourth project Wales McLelland has
built for the BC Government Employee's
Union
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