CELEBRATING
40 YEARS OF BECL
by Rennay Craats | published Melissa Mitchell | photos by Rebecca Hardcastle PhotographySince the company was established in 1983, Bremner Engineering and Construction Ltd. has enjoyed slow and steady growth that took it from a small operation in Canmore to a leading construction organization in the Bow Valley and beyond.
“We started out with a couple of pickup trucks, a few dollars in one pocket and a ton of enthusiasm and optimism in the other, and it went from there,” says Richard Bremner, founder of Bremner Engineering and Construction Ltd. (BECL).
With the 1988 Winter Olympic games approaching, Bremner set up shop in Canmore to take advantage of the opportunities to build out the Olympic venues. After securing a contract to work on the Canmore Nordic Centre in 1986, Bremner purchased his first used excavator, a beat-up dump truck and some used equipment that would allow him and his team to get the job done. After the Olympic work was completed, Bremner ventured into infrastructure projects for various municipalities throughout Alberta and contracts with Parks Canada, earning the company a reputation for quality workmanship and exceptional service along the way.
With each subsequent job, his team gained experience and fostered relationships with clients, all the while expanding and upgrading the fleet to facilitate larger jobs. Today, BECL has more than 120 pieces of equipment ranging from excavators and cranes to haul trucks of various configurations and a staff of around 50 to service its clients, many of whom date back to the early days of the company.
As a heavy civil construction contractor, BECL specializes in industrial, utility and municipal infrastructure construction on projects encompassing new construction, restorations and rehabilitations along with transportation, underground utilities, development and environmental upgrades. The BECL professionals provide quality work on underground and site
utilities, excavation and earthworks, demolition, site remediation and a full scope of concrete construction and boasts expertise in clearing and grubbing, drainage, grading, underground utilities, structures and bridges, road and parking lot construction, trucking and hauling and aggregate material production.
“Our strengths are really our professionalism and versatility. Richard bids on jobs in the Bow Valley and I don’t think