PAGE OCR A4 – May 2008 – The Ontario Construction Report
OGCA Symposium a Benefit for all Attendees
people on the projects in
STAFF WRITER – The OCR Construction Report Special Feature
your area, your head office Dan Padden of Construction
The fifth annual Ontario province.) won’t save anything,” Safety Solutions demonstrates his
General Contractors Associ- Seminar themes at the Smith of EllisDon said.
company’s user-friendly interactive
ation Construction Sympo- Blue Mountain Resort in “Systems never cause suc-
training resource to Mike Moore
sium attracted a record 638 Collingwood covered topics cess. You either have good
of Mike Moore and Sons in Sault
visitors April 10 -12 to of interest to superintend
St. Marie, ON. After Moore
- people and set them free or
dozens of educational ses- ents, project managers, esti- you don’t.”
learned the modest cost of the
sions – along with enter
system that facilitates safety
- mators and owners. Motivational speaker
training, he expressed interest.
tainment and networking Participants learned about Jim Mathis said the domi-
opportunities. trends in Public-Private- nating things on your mind
OGCA Chair Dean Partnerships, the implica- are going to influence your
Drevniok, president of Fre- tions of the new standard life. “Before we can
con Construction Ltd. Ot- CCDC-2 contract language, achieve the life we want, we
tawa, said the Symposium and a new agreement with must think, act, walk, and
attracted the largest number the Ontario Realty Corpora- talk as if we were the kind
of industry sponsors in its tion to use CCDC-2 with of person we wish to be-
history. The sponsors, led standard addendum for fu- come,” he said. “Your atti-
by Platinum Sponsors ture projects. tude is the major difference
Gowling Lafleur Henderson At a special President’s between success and fail-
LLP and Travelers Guaran- Panel, Francis Pomerleau of ure.”
tee Company of Canada, Pomerleau, Inc., Fern and Comedians Stewart
subsidize the symposium Mike Moore from Mike Francis and Gerry Dee en-
costs, creating an appealing Moore and Sons Construc- tertained after dinner on
and cost-effective event for tion Ltd., Geoff Smith from Thursday and Friday night,
OGCA members and EllisDon Corporation and and Infinite Source Solu-
guests. (Sponsors also ben- Paul Cocker of McKay tions provided a Cyber Café sium, but especially at well- happens when a construc- Students participating in
efit from the recognition Cocker Construction Ltd. with Internet access for attended receptions and be- tion worker is critically in- the National Simulated Stu-
and ability to interact face- shared their observations members. Sponsors had tween symposium sessions. jured and the Ministry of dent Bid Competition re-
to-face with members, rep- and insights into the busi- display booths on two lev- The symposium con- Labour decides to lay ceived recognition at the
resenting general ness. els, which delegates could cluded with a mock trial de- charges against several Friday lunch.
contractors throughout the “If you don’t have good visit throughout the sympo- signed to show what workplace parties.
Sitting Down with Clive Thurston
MARK BUCKSHON – The OCR Construction Report Special Feature
“Don said: ‘I’m retiring. Can you come tractors, and middle-size contractors were
to the party – and, by the way, how would stuck somewhere in between.
Clive Thurston, president of the Ontario
you like to take my job? “I knew I had to come up with some-
General Contractors Association, is in the Your contracting business, what hap-
“Not quite believing it, I came back and thing to address that; working with Travel-
news often – speaking up for the interests pened?
did the interview. Curt Washer was the ers Guarantee and five or six major other
of the industry in advocating for a fair com- “We were members of the OGCA, and I
chair at the time. He and a number of the supporters, the symposium idea grew. We
petitive environment for the province’s recall we were one of the smallest mem-
OGCA executives interviewed me – I never knew that we had to make it different, so
general contractors, subtrades, and related bers. As the early 1990s recession deep-
expected they would offer me the job—but that every OGCA member could afford to
professional services. ened, one of our larger projects went bad,
I got it.” attend.
Near the end of the Fifth Annual OGCA and we couldn’t find additional work. So
“With help from the sponsors, that’s
Symposium, we spent a few minutes with the business failed. I didn’t declare bank-
How have you found things in your how we do it. Members pay a low regis-
him to learn a little about his perspective ruptcy – I met our creditors and paid them
seven years at the helm of the tration fee, which is subsidized by the spon-
and experience. what we could, and they forgave the rest.
OGCA? sors. And we knew we had to get the
“I believe they did not come after me
“Well, basically I’ve come full circle. sponsors there, interacting with the people.
Clive, can you tell us something because of my own personal reputation.
While my father wanted me to become a “One thing we try to do is use all our
about your background? Many of them remain friends today.
lawyer, and I ended up in construction, now sponsors at some point in time as speakers,
“I’ve had a varied experience in con- “I wasn’t alone. I was in good company
a lot of my job involves dealing with and we encourage them not to sit at their
struction. We came to Canada in the 1950s – a lot of companies went down in the re-
lawyers — arguing points of law – work- booths but to get involved in the sympo-
– I was five years old – when my father was cession, including many other OGCA
ing with the law to help achieve the inter- sium as a whole – it’s a very intensive cou-
transferred here by Wimpey (then a major members.”
ests of the industry. ple of days, and and works quite well.”
British general contractor). My whole life
“I have a lot of respect for the lawyers
has been tied to construction – every sum- Then where did you go?
working with the industry, and I hope they You advocate consultation not con-
mer I worked in the business, for Duron, “I went into the public sector – became
respect me.” frontation. How do you make that
Gilbert Steel and others. a building official for the City of Bramp-
work in practice?
“My father wanted me to be a lawyer, ton, and continued to learn more, becom-
The Construction Symposium, can “I’ve found that by working with the
but I wanted to be in construction – so from ing a mediator and arbitrator and municipal
you tell me how that came about? private sector and various public organiza-
a young age through school and everything, law enforcement offer. Throughout the
“When I started with the association, I tions, we are able to show them the advan-
I worked my way through a number of process I kept in touch with the industry,
sensed a disconnect between the members tages of working cooperatively with the
companies as foreman, superintendent, and ending up in Prince Edward County as the
and the association, and a disconnect be- industry – and of course we represent
estimator. Chief Building Official.
tween us and key stakeholders. The differ- everyone’s best interests. We’ve worked
“In the 1980s, I started my own com- “One day (in 2001), I received a call
ent participants didn’t feel they were part with municipalities and other public/private
pany – I had it until the early 1990s reces- from (then OGCA President) Don
of the same thing, that the interests of small
sion.” Cameron, and asked him ‘What’s up?’
contractors were not the same as large con-
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Please see page OCR A5
Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9