Business Examiner Peace Cariboo Skeena - December 2015 / January 2016

JANUARY 2016

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–PAGE 9

PRINGE GEORGE Since 1956 Prince Sheet Metal has

Tax Strrategies for Business

been serving industrial and commercial clients across Northern BC

Peace Cariboo Skeena WWW.BUSINESSEXAMINER.CA

and beyond

Now in Prince Geeorge

Family business ‘Next Steps’ requires a proactive approach PAGE 14

PRINCE GEORGE Linden Fabricating has been developing innovative products for the sawmilling industry for more than 35 years

PAGE 25

INDEX News Update

2

Prince George

4

Quesnel

5

Sales

8

Bonnetts Energy

12

Movers & Shakers

20

Opinion

24

Family business and succession advisor speaks on the importance of planning

B

C – Renowned family business and succession advisor David C. Bentall, Founder of Next Step Advisors, recently sat down with the Business Examiner to talk about some of the longterm planning challenges facing today’s family companies.

“I’ve seen the best and worst of situations,” says Bentall. “The family enterprise dynamic is so unique and complex, it’s unlike any other form of business. I grew up in that environment and am very aware of the peaks and valleys that each employee and family member experiences.

“I feel that the successes I’ve been able to contribute to as an advisor have been a direct result of the challenges we’ve faced over the years as a family in our own business journey. My first experience with succession was very painful as the company ended up

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SEE NEXT STEPS | PAGE 4

PHOTO CREDIT: TRINITY WESTERN UNIVERSITY

BID Group of Companies: Serving The Sawmilling Industry Company operates manufacturing facilities in 14 different locations across North America

BY DAVID HOLMES

Contact us: 1-866-758-2684

David C. Bentall, Founder of Next Step Advisors, engaging a crowd on family business and succession planning

going through a major breakup, and it’s motivated me to help others avoid some of the mistakes that were made.”

Bentall was born into a third generation construction and development company, well known for the Downtown Vancouver Bentall Centre, Rogers Arena (formerly GM Place), and the Telus Corporate offices, among many others.

He is also an instructor for Institute of Family Enterprise Advisors, Business Families Foundation, the founding Chair of Business Families Centre UBC, and was involved with the successful domestic bid for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver.

One of the most important challenges Bentall identified was that many companies aren’t

P

RINCE GEORGE – The BID Group of Companies is one of North America’s leading providers of turn-key technological solutions for the sawmilling industry and thanks to a recent corporate acquisition it’s now even better equipped to propel the industry through the 21st Century.

The company, with production facilities strategically located at 14 key points around the continent

including Vanderhoof, Salmon A rm and Prince George, announced December 7 that it had acquired a California-based firm that specializes in the development of state-of-the-art edging and profiling equipment for use in sawmills.

“The majority owner of the company is Ron McGehee, a legend in this industry, a real innovator in terms of developing sawmill technologies. Over the decades, that innovation has played a significant

role in the competitiveness of the forest industry. He’s one of the most respected individuals in our business,” explained Alistair Cook, BID’s President and CEO. “We were very fortunate to not only purchase his company, but to have Ron join our team to play a significant role in the research and development of new technologies.

Adding a talent like Ron to our exceptional people within the BID Group should give our customers the confidence that we will continue

to innovate and develop industry leading technologies. He’s a guy that has the ability to bring it to market and exceed customer expectations.”

The BID Group, which has a North American staff of more than 1,000, has for more than three decades developed innovative systems that address all aspects of a sawmill operation, from production to project management.

“We try to be as vertically SEE BID GROUP | PAGE 6

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2 BARKERVILLE Barkerville shares in BC tourism Success One hundred and fifty years ago, it was the Gold Rush that had people from a rou nd the globe descending upon Barkerville. Now it’s a rush of a different kind, as visitors flock to Barkerville Historic Town and Park to learn about the Cariboo Chilcotin’s golden days.

This tourism hot spot is celebrating an attendance record with more than 60,000 people that walked through its gates between May and September.

That’s a 20 per cent increase over last year. Hotel occupancy rates in the Cariboo Chilcotin Coast region are also up meaning a positive impact for local businesses.

While summer tourism numbers are something to celebrate, local businesses are encouraging British Columbians to staycation and take in winter act iv it ies i n a l l of BC’s regions. Barkerville is gearing up for more crowds for its OldFashioned Victoria Christmas event in December. It’s a reminder to British Columbians to enjoy what the region provides year-round.

Staycations are a good way to keep your vacation dollars circulating in B.C.’s economy.

By visiting regional events and venues, you’re not only supporting local businesses, you’re also helping sustain important jobs in the tourism sector.

B.C.’s tourism sector is strong and growing and a key sector in the BC Jobs Plan. As an economic driver in the province, it employs 132,000 British Columbians, almost one in every 15 jobs in B.C. in 2013.

In 2014, 4.65 million international travellers came to B.C. That is a 5.8 per cent increase and a quarter of a million more visitors than we welcomed in 2013. A s wel l, so fa r i n 2015 year-to-date (January–September) international visitors arrivals are up 7.6 per cent over the same period last year.

FORT ST. JOHN Peace River Hydro Partners Awarded Main Civil Works Contract For Site C Project BC Hyd ro a n nou nced t h at the Peace R iver Hydro Partners proponent group has been awarded the contract for the main civil works portion of the Site C Project. T he partnership consists of CLAC signatory Petrowest Corporation as well as ACCIONA Infrastructure Canada Inc. and Samsung C&T Canada Ltd. Pet rowest w i l l prov ide a

NEWS UPDATE significant portion of the labour for the project. The contractor has already been working on Site C, in partnership with CLAC, since the summer of 2015.

“This project will provide long term employment opportunities for our members, residents of the Peace River region, First Nations peoples, and skilled tradespeople throughout the province,” says David Prentice, CLAC BC director.

CLAC established an office in Fort St. John in 2006 to meet the needs of members throughout t he Pe ace R iver R eg ion work i ng on such projects as Cabin Gas, Saturn Sister Plant, and the Fort St. John Hospital.

“Our members have completed some of the largest projects in this province and are prepared to bring their skills to the Site C Project,” says Josh Pastoor, CLAC regional director in Fort St. John.

The CLAC Training and Jobs Teams have a strong history of providing key support in communities throughout the province, assisting with recruitment a nd sou rci ng prog ra m s to ensu re that loca l applica nts can capitalize on such career opportunities.

“Our partnerships with trainers, industry, and communities throughout the province, i n c lu d i n g t h o s e w i t h F i rs t Nations, enable us to offer essential skills and safety traini ng as wel l as f i na ncia l a nd practica l support to tradespeople, apprentices, and those seeking to enter the trades,” says Larry Richardson, CLAC Training, BC director.

“This is an exciting time for CL AC memb ers a nd sk i l led tradespeople throughout BC,” says Prentice. “They’ll be constructing the largest project in the history of the province.”

BC November Home Sales Second Strongest on Record T he British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCR E A) reports that a tota l of 8,032 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in November, up 34.5 per cent from the same month last yea r. Tota l sa les dollar volume was $5.38 billion, up 56.4 per cent compared to the previous year. The average MLS® residential price in the province rose to $668,317, up 16.3 per cent from November 2014.

“Housing demand last month was the second strongest ever recorded for the month of November,” said Cameron Muir, BCR EA Chief Economist.

“You’d need to look all the way back to the frenetic market of 1989 to find more homes trading hands in November.”

T he la rgest i ncrease i n

consumer demand occurred in the Fraser Valley, where home sales climbed over 60 per cent from November 2014. Vancouver and Chilliwack experienced an increase of over 40 per cent, wh i le K a m loops home sa les were up 30 per cent.

T he year-to-date, BC residential sales dollar volume increased 35.4 per cent to $60.7 billion, when compared with the same period in 2014. Residential unit sales climbed by 21.5 per cent to 95,927 units, while the average MLS® residential price was up 11.4 per cent to $632,209

BC ‘Growing Forward 2’ Invests in BC Agriculture British Columbia’s agrifood i ndu st r y i s receiv i ng about $900,000 for 16 new projects that support a broad range of innovative products, practices and technologies of direct benefit to the sector.

The projects include: T he development of “sushi quinoa” – a type of quinoa with a sticky consistency to supply the sushi market with an alternative to rice.

Testing the effectiveness of a new pest-bird control product.

If successful, the product could be an ideal option for cherry, grape and berry growers in B.C. Testing a foliar spray to help reduce premature fruit drop and increase blueberry yields.

M o n i to r i n g p a t h o ge n s i n cherry orchards and storage facilities with wireless technology that will help B.C. cherry growers become more competitive for the Asian markets.

B u i ld i n g on a n e a rl ier i nnovation-funded project that focused on the development and marketing of a cloud-based food safety program.

The funding comes from the govern ments of Ca nada a nd British Colu mbia’s com m itment under the Growing Forward 2agreement to provide up to $13.4 million between 2013 and 2018 through the CanadaB.C. Agri-Innovation Program.

So far, 95 projects have shared almost $8 million in funding.

Fu nd i ng is sti l l ava i lable to support the commercialization and adoption of innovation projects that benefit individual enterprises and positively impact the B.C. agriculture and agri-foods sector as a whole.

Growing Forward 2 is a fiveyea r ag reement lau nched i n 2013 that provides a $3-billion, federal-provincial-territorial government investment in innovation, competitiveness and market development.

KITIMAT Terminal A Extension project granted

JANUARY 2016

environmental assessment approval Environment Minister Mary Polak and Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Todd Stone have issued an environmental assessment certificate to Rio Tinto Alcan for the Terminal A Extension project in Kitimat.

T he decision was made a fter considering a review led by British Columbia’s Environmenta l A ssessment O f f ice.

The ministers have issued the cer t i f icate w it h lega l ly enforceable conditions that have given them the confidence to conclude that the project will be constructed and operated in a way that ensures that no significant adverse effects are likely to occur from the project.

A record of the factors that the ministers considered in making their decision can be found in the Reasons for Ministers’ Decision at: http://tinyurl.com/ qdnubhd T welve cond it ion s a re attached to the environmental assessment certificate. Design requirements are specified in the certified project description. Each of the conditions and the certified project description are legally-binding requirements t h at R io T i nto A lca n must meet to be in compliance with the certificate.

T he cer ti f icate cond itions were developed following consultation and input from Haisla Nation, government agencies, communities and the public.

The project is the extension of the existing Terminal A wharf by up to 250 metres to accommodate bulk carriers. It will replace existing facilities for the import and export of bulk materials.

In addition to the wharf extension, the project includes a ba rge ra mp, tug dock a nd laydown area. The project will i nvolve d redg i ng over th ree years, with a dredge disposal site for contaminated dredged sediments and laydown soils and disposal at sea for other sediments. Construction is expected to take over three years, with the extension in operation for over 50 years.

PRINCE RUPERT Port of Prince Rupert Invests in Childhood Learning T he Por t of P r i nce Rup er t is strengthening the foundations of early learning in the c o m m u n i t y w i t h i t s l a te s t Community Investment Fund contribution.

With a $9,000 contribution from the Fund, the Prince Rupert Grow ing Space Society was able to replace its supply of play mats. The centre’s

f loors, well-worn due to the centre’s popularity, require an extra layer of padding to ensure children have a safe landing for inevitable trip-ups.

The Society welcomes more than 200 visitors a week to its Ocean Centre Mall location, where they learn new skills by using the indoor playground, crafting area, and diverse collection of toys and books.

“We were able to replace the mats we purchased more than seven years ago with more durable, safer flooring that will meet the needs of children in the community for many years to come,” said Elizabeth Melanson, President of the Prince Rupert Growing Space Society. “For many families and daycare providers in Prince Rupert, having a dedicated indoor space to escape the weather and get some extended physical activity is a blessing.

And it really wouldn’t be possible without the generosity and support of community groups and businesses like the Port.”

“The fact that Prince Rupert has a volunteer society like the Growing Space is a testament to the importance placed on early childhood education and development in this community,” said Don Krusel, President and CEO of the Prince Rupert Port Authority. “The work of this thriving family centre has supported childhood growth and maturity for several generations. It is a joy to sustain that legacy through our Community Investment Fund.”

Born as a volunteer mom-andtot group at the Civic Centre in 1975, the Growing Space ran at various locations in the community before settling in at its current location in Ocean Centre Mall in 1984. It has since become an important community asset for parents and caregivers of the young six and younger.

TUMBLER RIDGE Dinosaur Discovery Gallery gets a boost Tu mbler R idge’s efforts to bu i ld a robust tou rism sector were given another boost this week thanks to Northern Development.

The Trust’s board of directors has approved a $250,000 grant for the Tumbler Ridge Museum Foundation to support renovations at the Peace Region Palaeontology Research Centre that also includes the public interpretive exhibits, which showcases British Columbia’s rich collection of dinosaur bones, tracks and other fossils.

The funding will be used to assist the museum with everyt h i n g f rom pa rk i n g lot upgrades and signage to interior washroom and museum centre renovations.

The approval marks the fourth time the Trust has invested in

NEWS UPDATE

JANUARY 2016

the development of the museu m, tota l i ng more t ha n $400,000 in grants to date.

Northern Development has been working closely with the com mu n it y i n recent ye a rs to help develop a more-sustainable and diversified local economy.

The Trust approved $250,000 in 2014 to support the development of a new tourist information centre in Tumbler Ridge, and has also provided $58,000 in grant funding annually to the District of Tumbler Ridge to hire a local economic development officer and a grant writer.

In 2000, two local residents discovered dinosaur tracks in a local creek bed that led to the development of a paleontology research centre and dinosaur museum.

In 2014, Tumbler Ridge was designated a UNESCO Global Geopark, one of only 120 sites in the world and the only Global G e o p a rk i n w e s te r n N o r t h America.

UNESCO Global Geoparks are defined as unified areas with geological heritage of international significance.

T he T u mbler R idge Globa l Geopark contains nearly 8,000 squa re k i lometres of mou ntains, alpine meadows, cliffs and waterfalls, including the world-renowned Kinuseo Falls.

The grant approval will help the museum retain its status as the central feature of the Global

Geopark.

NORTHERN BC Small Town Love continues to grow The “shop local” movement continues to gain momentum in Northern B.C. with the launch of two online platforms that promote the region’s independent, locally-owned businesses: L oveChetw y nd.com a nd LoveMackenzie.com.

The launch of the new sites, financially supported by Norther n D evelopment I n it iat ive Trust, coi ncides w it h community events showcasing a host of unique, local businesses and entrepreneurs who will be available to the public to talk about the stories behind their homegrown businesses and the products they sell.

LoveChetw y nd.com and LoveMackenzie.com a re the latest additions to the largest marketing program in Canada that celebrates locally owned, independent businesses with an aim to strengthen their competitiveness and keep more dollars in the local economy.

With the inclusion of LoveChetwynd.com and LoveMackenzie. com, more than 1200 locallyowned independent businesses have been featured on similar websites across 26 communities throughout the region. These web s ite s fe at u re f i rs t-rate

photography and storytelling about the independent businesses in each community, as well as a search bar and directory functions to quickly find businesses or specific products online, plus a map that helps residents and visitors locate each business with ease.

Everyone is invited to the free publ ic lau nch celebrat ions, which are an excellent opportunity for local residents and visitors alike to come out and meet local business owners as well as learn about, sample, and shop their products.

The LoveChetwynd.com and LoveMackenzie.com projects are a partnership between the Trust, the District of Chetwynd, the Chetwynd Chamber of Commerce, District of Mackenzie and the Mackenzie Chamber of Commerce.

QUESNEL Northern BC students connected with skills training and mentorship More students in B.C.’s north will connect with the skills and experience they need for the jobs of the future through an expanded $4.9 million Shoulder Tappers program announced today by the BC Government and the Northern Development Initiative Trust.

M i n ister Mike Bernier a nd

Northern Development board chair Evan Saugstad made the announcement while touring Quesnel’s Correlieu Secondary School with officials from the Quesnel School District and community leaders.

Shoulder Tappers are career coordinators or recruitment specialists who work one-on-one with elementary and secondary school students to point them in the right direction with greater mentorship and positive career input. The program is based on the successful Northern Opportunities partnership in northeast B.C., which started with a focus on skilled trades careers. It has now grown to include student access to technical, academic, and vocational courses such as aircraft engineering, heavy duty mechanics, information technology, early childhood education and others.

The Province is providing $1.3 million and Northern Development is prov id i ng $3.6 m i llion over five years to expand Shoulder Tappers from three to 15 school districts throughout northern B.C. Shoulder Tappers work closely with school districts, the Industry Training Authority, the Career Education Society, industry and other organizations to help students benefit from exposure to trades and technical training.

They also help connect students with on-the-job experience, allowing them to graduate with dual credit toward advanced

3 trades training.

The Province launched BC’s Skills for Jobs Blueprint in April 2014 to re-engineer education and training so British Columbians are first in line for careers of tomorrow. Shoulder Tappers helps government meet this goal.

Shou lder Tappers a re now working in the following districts: Peace River North, Peace River South, Fort Nelson, Quesnel, Haida Gwaii, Prince Rupert, Bulkley Valley, Prince George, Coast Mountains, Stikine, Nechako Lakes Nisga’a, CaribooChilcotin, Gold Trail and Central Coast. These school districts collectively educate more than 45,000 students.

Over the next three years new K-12 curriculum is being phased in with new standards in mathematics, sciences and applied design, skills and technology. It supports opportunities for students to develop the problemsolving and creative thinking skills they need for success in B.C.’s tech sector.

In partnership with the BC Innovation Council, Br it ish Columbia is hosting its first #BCTECH Summit, Jan. 18-19, 2016. The summit will showcase B.C.’s tech industry and includes a career showcase to provide B.C. students and recent graduates with even more opportunities to get involved in the province’s rapidly growing tech sector.

To register or learn more, go to: www.bctechsummit.ca

OFF THE COVER

4

JANUARY 2016

TRADITION RUNS DEEP AT PG CHAMBER LEADING UP TO CHRISTMAS Guests attending our Lunch Among the Trees have benefitted greatly from the opportunity to

PRINCE GEORGE

listen to such accomplished athletes, and this year was no exception

CHRISTIE RAY

B

usiness events that have b e e n h e l d for y e a rs i n Prince George, take place once again with comfortable regularity. But there are many differences between present-day events and the ghosts of Christmas parties past. The Festival of Trees has been running in Prince George since 1994 and the Chamber Lunch Among the Trees has been part of the multi-day event for almost as many years. While Northland Auto Group is our main corporate sponsor for the luncheon, RBC has also generously stepped up by flying Olympic Athletes into Prince George to act as our Key Note Speakers during the event.

The RBC Olympians program hires both Canadian Olympic and Paralympic athletes as community ambassadors who bring

NEXT STEPS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

sufficiently preparing the next generation to lead.

There are a wide-range of causes, from the current generation allowing an environment to develop that’s not conducive to accountability for their children or relatives, a lack of maturity or capacity from the younger generation, or even a lack of motivation from existing leadership to prepare to step aside. “The wisest families have a few things in common that help them manage this process, “ he says. “First, they require that the family member work outside of the family business for at least 5 years, and require them to earn one or two promotions within the other organization. This tactic creates a filter ensuring that they take the position seriously and have the ability to contribute in a meaningful way. “Second, when the family member does start working, it’s important that they report to non-family managers and be regularly evaluated. By not doing so you can actually rob someone of valuable feedback that leads to growth and improved performance.

That concept can also be

Olympic messages of excellence and leadership to Canadian communities. Guests attending our Lunch Among the Trees have benefitted greatly from the opportunity to listen to such accomplished athletes, and this year was no exception. Mercedes Nicoll, a passionate and inspiring snowboarder has competed in three Winter Olympic Games, with her best result, 6th at the 2010 Vancouver Games.

Her keynote presentation focused on her journey of athletic development and the challenge of overcoming a major fall during the opening round of competition at Turin in 2006. It was a great presentation and the star power that Mercedes brought to our November 25th event was evident by the lineup of people taking personal photos with her following the luncheon.

extended throughout the company with ‘360 performance reviews’, which creates a safe place for all staff to give honest, objective feedback.�

Another challenge can be the older generation’s unwillingness, or perceived inability to move out the way and allow the next one to take over. “When someone starts a company it’s their baby,� says Bentall. “It’s really important to have empathy for that, this empathy is a gift that the younger generation can give to their elders. “One that has been established, the older generation needs to be proactive about distancing themselves from day-to day operations, and one of the first things they can do is develop strong leadership teams that have input on the direction and strategy of the company. “Adding an external board of directors comprised of a majority of independent directors is another effective tactic. Outside objective input is critical in an organization’s development.

Following that the current owners need to determine how much capital they want to draw from the business so that they’re not dependent on a salary within the company. Once those things

Prince George Chamber of Commerce staff with Olympic Snowboarder, Mercedes Nicoll (left to right: Christie Ray, Chamber CEO; Felicia Magee, Chamber Projects and Executive Coordinator; Mercedes Nicoll, RBC Olympic Athlete; Erin Tulle, Chamber Office Administrator and Bookkeeper; Megan Ginter, Chamber Membership and Events Manager) from 6th to 9th Avenue).

A long w ith Integris Credit Union and Community Futures Fraser Fort George, we will host our Christmas Block Party 2015 and this year we are stepping up our game to match the phenomenal party planning efforts made by our co-hosts year after year.

Cakewalk Desserts has come on board to generously sponsor a dessert buffet for our party and we’ve put together a beverage menu that will not disappoint.

Coming up soon is our Chamber Christmas party, another great traditional event that has undergone metamorphosis over the years. Gone are the days of the Chamber’s chocolate fountain and egg nog punch. While the Christmas party is still a chance for members, Chamber staff and the Board of Directors to meet one another and share some good cheer, a few years ago we decided to join forces with our neighbours along the block (Vancouver Street

have been determ ined, they can start developing a plan to transition away from day-to-day operations, and move the next generation into more senior leadership roles.�

Benta l l a lso spoke on issue prevention, and the importance of taking a forward thinking approach to the future of the family business. “Studies have shown that there are a few strategies that prevent internal conflicts and ensure that everyone is on the same page,� he says. “Regular family meetings are vital, there needs to be a place where each person can feel comfortable to express their concerns without fear of retribution. “In addition, there needs to be a formalized strategic planning process that ensures that everyone is on the same page, and knows where t he c ompa ny i s headed. One of the most destructive habits in family businesses is the failure to com mu n icate a nd seek out objective feedback.

If you can make sure that it’s not an issue, and give your family and non-family employees opportunities to have their say, you’re going to save a lot of heartache and stress.� www.nxtstp.net

The decorations are up and the Christmas tunes are crooning in the cozy Chamber office from 4:30PM-7:30PM on December 10th. We hope the business community will share the spirit of the season with us before a welldeserved holiday break.

Christie Ray is the CEO of the Prince George Chamber of Commerce. She can be reached at christie.ray@ pgchamber.bc.ca.

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QUESNEL

JANUARY 2016

5

2015 A BUSY YEAR FOR THE QUESNEL CHAMBER “One of the big projects that the Chamber took on was the revival of a trade show in Quesnel. Our community had not had a

QUESNEL

show for a number of years and the Board felt that we

WILLIAM LACY

were the best organization

2

to take it on.”

015 has been a busy a nd product ive yea r for t he Quesnel Chamber. From Boa rd elect ion s to ou r f i rst t rad e show to t he B u si ne ss Excellence Awards, and more, the Chamber has been hard at work in our community.

Boa rd elections, held i n J a n u a r y, s a w s e v e r a l n e w additions to the list of Chamb er D i rectors. O u r B oa rd i s a hardworking group of volu nteers that focus on offeri n g p ro g ra m s a n d s e r v i c e s that benefit our members and are committed to ensuri n g t h at Q u e s nel i s a b u sin e s s f r i e n d l y c o m m u n i t y.

With ou r Boa rd of Directors in place, we moved on to our strategic planning session to set our goals for the year and

en su re ou r com m ittees a nd ta sk forces were i n pl ace to carry out the work.

One of the big projects that the Cha mber took on was t he rev iva l of a t ra d e show i n Quesnel. Ou r com mu n ity had not had a show for a number of years and the Board felt that we were the best organization to take it on. The 2015 Home & Outdoor Adventure Show, held in May, saw fifty vendors and over 2100 guests.

We have already begun planning our 2016 show and look forward to this as an annual event.

May was a busy month for us as we also had the BC Chamb er of Com merce AGM i n neighbouring Prince George, as well as our own AGM at the end of the month. With the BC Chamber AGM being held so close to our community, many of our staff and directors were able to attend. This was a first time experience for many of t hem a nd t hey felt t h at t he experience was valuable.

“You rea l ly get a sense for the scope of the Chamber o rg a n i z a t io n w h e n yo u a ttend a meeting like this, especially the policy sessions,” said Amber Gregg, Manager of the Cha mber. “A s the Ma nager, I was well aware of the

a dvo c a cy ef for t s of t h e B C Chamber but to see the work in action shows you how that work is accompl ished a nd how passionate the staff and volunteers are about helping business.”

Our Chamber was fortunate to h ave p a s t P re s id e nt a n d CE O of t h e B C Ch a m b e r of Commerce John Winter, speak at our AGM at the end of May. John provided a summary of some of t he pol icies t he BC Chamber is currently working on a nd what to ex pect f rom the BC Chamber in the coming years.

O ver t he su m mer mont h s, t h e C h a m b e r te a m w o rk e d on pla n n i ng for the fa l l e v e n t s i n c l u d i n g t h e Fe dera l A l l Ca nd id ates For u m, Small Business Week and the Business Excellence Awards.

T hese events ta ke severa l mont h s to put toget her a nd utilize a variety of businesses and community organizations to be successful. In addition, Ch a mb er sta f f coord i n ated some of ou r ow n policy sessions and updated many of the office resource handbooks.

T h e 2 1 st A n n u a l B u s i n e s s E xcel lence Awa rd s, held i n October to cap off Sma l l Business Month, was well attended and we were pleased to

award the hardworking business owners in the communit y. E a c h nom i ne e re c eive s recognition and a certificate of nomination at our Nominee Luncheon, held earlier in September. They are announced a ga i n at t he awa rd s d i n ner to en s u re t h at even t hou g h t hey m ay not t a ke home a n awa rd, t hei r ef for ts h ave been noticed by an members of the community. This year we hired the Magical Jesaja, a Ca r i b o o-Ch i lcot i n m a g ician to entertain the crowd, fol lowed by a mazi ng d i n ner

by Jean’s Side Door Catering.

The winners were announced and awards given out to end the evening.

The above mentioned events a nd prog ra ms were on ly a small portion of what the Q u e s n e l & D i s t r i c t C h a mb er of Com merce were able to work on a nd a c c ompl i sh i n 2015. We w i l l h ave a few ch a n ge s com i n g up i n 2016 but look forward to carrying on w ith the momentu m that we have built up and continue our work in the community.

William Lacy is President and Chair of the Quesnel and District Chamber of Commerce. He can be reached through qchamber@quesnelbc.com.

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OFF THE COVER

6

Alistair Cook (left) and Brian Fehr, BID’s Chairman and Managing Director jointly facilitated the grand opening of the company’s Mirabel facility in Quebec

BID GROUP CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

i nteg rated as possible. T he strength of our organization is our people and the ability to assess and address all aspects of sawmill production,� Cook said. “Our business model ranges from the capacity to engineer, manufacture, and construct an entire sawmill from the ground up to simply providing equipment, upgrades, and our talented people.

Our operational strategy is to have the capacity to manufacture from the four corners of North America, of which Prince George and area is a significant presence for us. It is critical that we can serve our diverse customer base in a cost

effective and efficient way.�

One of the key elements of the BID Group’s current business focus is on the Southern United States, which has become a hot bed of forestry and sawmilling activity. “We’re very focused on the sawmilling business today.

Our strategy behind the opening of a world class complex in South Carolina was to establish a base to help expand into the southern United States. It’s a richly forested area underserved by the existing sawmills, facilities in many cases that are in need of modernization.�

Cook explained. “A lot of the major players, the Canfor’s and West Fraser’s have been expanding into the southern US. These are companies that have

The Comact (part of the BID Group of companies) manufacturing facility located in Mirabel, Quebec was officially opened December 10 a successful history of investing in their facilities and operating world class facilities. We want our current and potential customers to know that we have the capacity and the people to serve them in this strategic area.�

Part of the appeal of the US south, aside from the need to upgrade legacy sawmill operations, is the nature of the regional forest ecology itself. “We just received a significant purchase order to build a greenfield sawmill in Newton, Mississippi. The US south is one of the fastest growing areas for forestry, partially due to the fast turnaround for timber. There the tree can be merchantable in 25 or 30 years as compared to 60, 70 or 80 years here.�

Property taxes too high?

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Deadline for appeal is Feb 2, 2016 2015 Colliers International Property Tax Services specializes in the :LWK RYHU \HDUV RI SURSHUW\ DVVHVVPHQW DSSHDO H[SHULHQFH 3DFWHVW annual Review and Appeal of property assessments, property &RPPHUFLDO 5HDO (VWDWH $GYLVRUV VSHFLDOL]H LQ WKH DQQXDO 5HYLHZ DQG tax minimization strategies, as well as Property Transfer Tax $SSHDO RI SURSHUW\ DVVHVVPHQWV SURSHUW\ WD[ PLQLPL]DWLRQ VWUDWHJLHV appeals throughout British Columbia.

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Associate Vice President Property Tax Services Director, Property Tax Services, British Columbia

PacWest Commercial Real Estate Advisors tim.down@colliers.com E-mail: tim@pacwestrealestate.ca 250-864-9140 Web:Tel: www.pacwestrealestate.ca F: 1-250-864-9140

JANUARY 2016

BID Group has deliberately spread its production capacity across the continent, including Northern British Columbia, to better serve regional needs while reducing expensive transportation costs. “We have a shop in Vanderhoof, Salmon Arm and Prince George so we have the capacity to efficiently serve the West. Our model is to have the capacity and skill to manufacture in all four regions of North America. With the acquisition of Ron and his technology, we will focus our initial manufacturing out of the US South.� he said. “The acquisition of McGehee’s company is another piece of leading technology that, combined with controls and optimization

from our Comact division, will further provide a competitive advantage to our customers.�

For Cook, while offshore opportunities do exist, his company’s primary focus remains the North American forest industry. “While we have made sales outside of North America we believe there’s a tremendous opportunity right here, we really don’t want to spread ourselves too thin, especially if it might impact how we take care of our customers. We have a great business model where we can serve our customers from the four corners of North America, including Prince George.�

To learn more please visit the BID Group’s website at: www.bidgroup.ca/

DON’T AGREE WITH YOUR PROPERTY EVALUATION? YOU CAN APPEAL

P

roperty owners will soon be receiving their annual property assessment notices in the mail. This year, the BC Assessment Authority is sending approximately two million notices out to property owners across the province.

Tim Down, Director, Property Tax Services with Colliers International has over 28 years of valuation and property assessment appeal experience in B.C., and is an accredited member with the Appraisal Instute of Canada, International Association of Assessing Officers, as well as the Canadian Property Taxpayers Association.

He notes that 2016 property assessment values will vary from community to community based on the local market conditions. “It has been widely reported that residential property values have risen dramatically in the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley,� says Down. “The unprecedented market demand for commercial and industrial properties will result in large assessment increases as well as there remains too much money chasing too few available properties. “However, resource based communities have not fared as well with the uncertainty of oil and gas expansion, collection and distribution to offshore markets. It is critical that commercial and industrial property owners and tenants take a close look at their 2016 property assessment values to ensure their assessment values are fair and equitable.�

Down says that if an assessment is incorrect, the property owner or tenant will be paying more property tax now and into the future, so they need to ensure they have been assessed fairly and equitably.

“Property taxpayers have the right to either the lower of the actual market value or the equitable assessment value for their property,� Down says. “Assessment values should be no higher than a similar, competing property in the taxation jurisdiction.�

Down points out that, for example, an industrial property in Fort St. John shouldn’t be assessed at a higher rate than a similar neighbouring property. “There are things that can cause a property assessment value to change beside a rising market: Changes to the neighbourhood, like updated services,� he adds. “Physical changes to the property. Changes in zoning and/or official community plans. The assessor is responsible to interpret the effect any change has on a property’s market value.�

Down also points out that property taxpayers also have to be aware of “tax shifting� where certainpropertyassessmentvaluesareincreased above the average increase which will lead to a higher corresponding property tax notice. “Commercial and Industrial property tax rates are significantly higher in smaller communities compared to residential rates as local politicians tend to be more concerned with homeowners who vote,� he says. “Property taxes are the largest operating expenses after mortgage and leasing costs. A successful appeal will reduce the annual property taxes payable which goes straight to the bottom line performance of a property.�

The property assessment appeal deadline is February 2, 2016 and there are no fees to file an appeal. “Once the appeal deadline has passed, you cannotappealyourpropertytaxes,�Downnotes.

7

JANUARY 2016

W.G. DAVIS & SONS TRUCKING LTD.: ONE OF NORTHERN BC’S HEAVIEST HAULERS SPOTLIGHT

Prince George-based company has been moving heavy loads across the province for over three decades

P

R I NCE GEORGE- W.G. Davis & Sons T rucking has been moving heavy loads for customers in the mining, construction and oil and gas industries across northern B.C. for over three decades.

But owner Bill Davis points to one particular job four years a go t h at c au se d t he P r i nc e George-based firm to change gears and accelerate forward.

W.G. Davis & Sons was tasked with moving a 4,000-shovel excavator from Willow Creek Mine to Gibraltar Mine. It took 13 loads.

“It happened to be during a snowstorm,” recalls Davis. “We had to add a second power unit to pull one load that was grossing 103,000 kg on 11 axels, and then two 84,000 kg loads up the hill also with the track groups.

“It opened up a new awareness about our company,” he adds.

A big W.G. Davis & Sons Trucking Ltd. rig ready for snowy conditions

W.G. Davis & Sons Trucking Ltd. owner Bill Davis poses with his son Bobby Davis.

Bill’s other sons are Clint, Gary and Tyler. Another son, Shane Davis, passed away in 2003 at the age of 10.

“This is a business that is built on relationships. It’s about trust. If you know you can count on a company to do what they say they will do you’ll go back to them again and again. And our customers do.”

“We’re not a large company.

We’re a small company with big capabilities.”

Tod ay, W.G. Dav i s & Son s T rucking has over 70 pieces of equipment, including lowbeds, jeeps, boosters, highboys and stepdecks, with the ability to put together any combination up to 13 axles for extraordinary loads.

“We’re a one-stop-shop for heav y hau l i ng,” says Dav is.

“We have great relationships with carrier companies, so no matter what, we ca n sou rce someone to move a load. That means our clients get the job done with one phone call.”

“It doesn’t matter what you bring to us. We’ll move it.”

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W.G. Davis & Sons Trucking has trucks stationed in Prince George and Fort St. John, and will haul anywhere in Canada.

“We have built a list of clients who trust our ability to move price equipment from one end of the scale to the other,” notes Dav is. “T he compa ny has hauled supplies into Old Crow, been involved in moving a D10- and 80 ton crane to Tuktoyaktuk for the new all season road, and hauled projects on the Northwest Territories winter roads around Norman Wells.

“We will always find a way to complete a job, even when the load technically exceeds SEE W.G. DAVIS & SONS | PAGE 8

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JANUARY 2016

THE POWER OF THE MINDSET

SALES JOHN GLENNON

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A W.G. Davis & Sons Trucking Ltd. truck hauling an enormous off-highway pipeline

W.G. DAVIS & SONS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7

our in-house capabilities,” he adds. “We have such a great relationship with other carrier companies so that no matter what, we can source someone to move a load. That means our clients get the job done with one phone call.”

Davis grew up surrounded by heavy equipment that his operating engineer grandfather and uncle used. He knew how to run heavy-duty equipment from an early age, and got a taste of the trucking industry while working in the shop with his best friend during his high school years.

“I liked the feel of trucks,” he says. “I started working for Target Transport, which was ow ned by my adopted u ncle Greg Zoerb, at the age of 21,

and I have never looked back.

I love a challenge. I love doing the impossible and making our customers happy with a job well done.”

W.G. Davis & Sons Trucking has a “hands-on” culture. “ B r a n c h M a n a g e r Wa d e DeMerchant and I run this company by concerning ourselves with the details,” Davis says.

“We have to care about doing it right so that everyone else does.”

Their solid team includes two veteran drivers, Jim Meng and Wayne Erickson, who taught Davis how to low-bed when he was starting out. Art Holgate is a high school friend of Bill’s who has been with the company for many years.

“Our team of transport drivers, pilot drivers, mechanics and office staff contribute to the success of the company,” Davis notes. “They understand

the importance of providing good qu a l ity ser v ice to ou r clients.

“T h is is a busi ness t h at is built on relationships. It’s about t r u s t. I f you k now you c a n count on a company to do what they say they will do you’ll go back to them again and again.

And our customers do.”

Davis says the key to the company’s success is its dedication to customer service, first and foremost.

“We all like what we do – our whole crew from top to bottom,” he adds. “We have some great drivers, and it all starts with putting the loads together to drive to where they need to go, and having good equipment.

“We would be nowhere without our dedication to customer service,” Davis says. “It’s simple: We just don’t let our clients down.” www.wgdavistrucking.ca

ill sB n o i t a ! l m tu nd your tea Congrta o you a

our mindset has more to do with your success than almost any other single element. There are plenty of salespeople who possess extensive product knowledge, have numerous influential business contacts, are well-spoken, and have appealing personalities, yet their sale performances are average… sometimes, only marginally acceptable.

Then, there are salespeople who have just enough product knowledge to get by, have few business contacts, don’t always articulate their thoughts in the most artful manner, and don’t have particularly sparkling personalities, yet their sales performances rank in the top ten per cent.

How can that be?

Success in sales, or almost any endeavor, is not simply a product of one’s talent, education, personality, or contacts (although, those elements can surely help), but rather the result of one’s attitude—the natural tendency to have a positive outlook and maintain positive expectations.

But, it’s more than just being able to see the glass as half-full rather than half-empty. It’s the ability to see possibilities… coupled with the resolve to take

the required actions to turn those possibilities into realities.

Some people will view a challenge, and after analyzing the positive and negative aspects of it, choose to focus on the positive. They see possibilities and envision success.

The more they focus on the positive aspects, the stronger their belief grows about their ability to successfully meet the challenge. And, the stronger their belief grows, the more resolute is their judgment to take the actions necessary to achieve their goals. They press on, regardless…and they succeed.

Others will view the same challenge and focus on the negative aspects—all the reasons (real and imagined) that the challenge can’t be met successfully.

They only see limitations, and envision only failure. The more they focus on the negative aspects, the stronger their beliefs grow about the improbability of successfully meeting the challenge and the futility of investing any effort in its pursuit. They give up, or at best, make a halfhearted effort…and they don’t succeed.

Your success is nothing more (or less) than what you envision it to be…and your determination to act in a manner consistent with that picture. If success has eluded you thus far, perhaps it’s time to change your picture, and then press on.

Copyright 2015 Sandler Training and Insight Sales Consulting Inc. All rights reserved.

John Glennon is the owner of Insight Sales Consulting Inc, an authorized Sandler Training Licensee. He can be reached at jglennon@sandler.com, toll free at 1-866-645-2047 or visit www.glennon.sandler.com

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JANUARY 2016

COMMERCIAL INSURANCE Interruption to revenue could mean business is dead in water Commercial insurance policies assess risk and protect clients at all levels BETH HENDRY-YIM

C

om m e rc i a l i n s u ra n c e could be one of the most valuable items a business owns. It could mean the difference between having a business after disaster strikes or not.

Joanne Freelund, CIP, of Real Insurance in Nanaimo, said the right pol icy ca n protect not only the business’s building or physical work space but also the contents, including valuable equipment and/or stock.

“Building the right insurance product starts with the physical or real property,” she said.

“From there you can add things like boiler and maintenance coverage for heating, cooling and electrical or theft of cash,

stock or revenue.”

However, Freelund stressed that, although in many cases insurance for physical property is mandatory, business owners don’t often think of insuring against loss of income.

“Interruption of income can b e f rom f i re or water d a mage or a sewer back-up; either way bills still need to be paid, even when the business is closed or undergoing repairs,” she added. “Start by looking at the building and contents, but then look at what happens when business is interrupted.”

Once the policy is in place, Freelu nd sa id, the busi ness should get annual reassessment to ensure adequate coverage.

SEE INTERRUPTION TO REVENUE | PAGE 10

PORTER & MCMILLAN: HOMEGROWN SUCCESS STORY Independent insurance provider has been serving Prince George and region since 1979

P

RINCE GEORGE – Developing ongoing relationships with its customers has been at the heart of everything Prince George’s Porter and McMillan Insurance has done for more than 35 years. “The key to our future is to remain locally owned and operated. We expect continued growth on the commercial side while continuing to help out in the community as both owners and staff. The key to our success has always been to be involved. It’s all about developing and maintaining relationships,” explained Lee Hill a partner with the firm since 1992.

A full service provider of both personal and commercial insurance products, Porter and McMillan is a fully independent brokerage that was founded in 1979. Today the company has a staff of more than 35 located in three separate offices around the city. “The whole advantage of an independent broker is that we’re not linked to any one company or product line. We have six core

Porter and McMillan Insurance operates three offices in Prince George with its downtown location serving as the main corporate headquarters companies that we deal with but ultimately we have access to dozens if needed. Exactly the same as a huge brokerage would have. Being in Prince George is definitely not a detriment in terms of matching products with the clients,” Hill explained.

“We regularly deal with underwriters in Ontario, in Vancouver and elsewhere, depending on the needs of the customer. We don’t base what we do by the company, we pick based on the coverage or premium – whatever is the right fit for the customer. There is no one size fits all for insurance.”

Extremely active in the community it serves, the company has been a proud supporter of a number of community organizations and events, including Festival of Trees, the local SPCA’s

Paws for a Cau se ca mpa ig n and the Mardi Gras Snow Daze Curling Funspiel among many others.

“Our market is primarily the City of Prince George itself, but we’re growing by leaps and bounds on the business side which is bringing clients in from the more northern parts of the province. While our focus is on Prince George we can provide services anywhere. That said, 99 per cent of our business is located right here,” he explained.

While the focus of the company has always been on the personal market (representing as much as 70 per cent of its business) the brokerage’s commercial side has grown dramatically, reflective of the changing nature of Prince George itself. “We’ve seen more growth in the city during the last two years than we’ve seen in the previous 20. It’s the same with our business – we’re busier more now on the commercial side than we’ve ever been.”

Proven, independent, commu n ity-focused a nd mu lt ifaceted, Porter and McMillan Insurance are the right local choice for personal, auto, travel and commercial insurance products.

To learn about this company more please visit the Porter and McM i l la n website at: w w w. porterandmcmillan.com/

Chris Rigg said liability insurance is needed throughout the cycle of a development project

Gord Brownridge said the north offers up unique insurance needs

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Porter and McMillan Insurance takes great pride in working with clients for all their needs from Personal Lines to Auto, Travel and Commercial!

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10

COMMERCIAL INSURANCE

INTERRUPTION TO REVENUE CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9

H a s revenu e ch a n ge d? H a s the company purchased new equipment? Are there any new employees?

“Over time a business evolves and expands, introducing new products or services, making new purchases and altering or adding to the business’s building or location. Going over the pol icy yea rly catches t hose changes and ensures the business is covered.”

Freelund, who caters to the restaurant business, said that loss can also come from stock shrinkage.

“Restaurants can have daily issues with staff walking off w it h food item s,” she sa id, add i ng that identi f y i ng the complexities of a business and assessing the risks is part of what a broker can do for clients.

Christopher Rigg, CIP, CAIB, senior vice president, Capri Insurance Services in Kelowna, who works closely with religious institutions and property developers, said that liability insurance is needed throughout the cycle of a business.

“For proper ty developers, whether a project is large or small, liability starts with the bare land.”

A newly purchased piece of la nd may be used by neig hbours for walking their dogs or by children riding bikes; either

“Bills still need to be paid even when the business is closed or undergoing repairs.”

JOANNE FREELUND, CIP REAL INSURANCE, NANAIMO

way, Rigg said the owner is responsible if something happens on it.

“It doesn’t matter if you are liable or not, people may still sue you,” he said.

He added that even after a development is complete there can still be liability issues for the builder.

“There is no statute of limitations on completed operations.

An extreme example would be of an attached covered shelter held in place with cables. If the cable rusts through, the shelter falls and hurts someone, the original developer could be liable.”

For Rigg, more than half of his clientele are religious institutions and they offer up a unique and complex liability.

“In a church you have elderly people who may slip and fall and youth groups who may get injured while playing sports,” he said, adding that both demographics have a higher risk incidence and need to be considered when underwriting a policy.

Gord Brownridge of

Brownridge & Company Insurance in Prince George said that the north offers up unique and area-specific clientele.

“I work with a lot of tradespeople, contractors, and transportation compa n ies. T hei r insurance needs are locationspecific but can also require floater policies for their property and liability needs.”

Most busi nesses work i n a set location, he explained, but tradespeople, especially electricians and plumbers, are more mobile, working in several locations in one day. Their insurance needs must travel with them, covering tools, vehicle and the area they are working in.

“For a restau ra nt or reta i l outlet, damage to the premises and interruption of work could mean that the business is shut down for months, literally dead in the water, with no income. Because of this, carrying business interruption insurance to replace that lost income is every bit as important as insuring the building and its contents” Brownridge, with more than 25 years in the industry, said one of the most important aspects of commercial insurance for his clientele is keeping him up-to-date on new equipment pu rch a ses a nd accu rate replacement costs.

“Ma k i ng su re a piece of property, a vehicle, a tool or

equ ipment i s appra i sed for its full value, year after year, protects the owner if there is a claim,” he said, adding that an insurance broker isn’t necessarily an appraiser so it is vital to get a qualified appraiser giving accurate values on the business and its contents.

When looking for the right insurance broker who can match the appropriate product to the business owner, Brownridge sa id to lo ok for ex p er ienc e and education. He said the Insurance Brokers Association of Canada sets the i ndustr y standards and its provincial counterpart provides localized support and education.

“Provincial licensing requires brokers to have a basic designation like a Certified Insurance Professional or CIP. With it, brokers get more in-depth education in dealing with claims and underwriting.”

The Insurance Institute of BC (IIBC), is a not-for-profit organization operating under the umbrella of its national institution.

Since its founding, it has grown to more than 4,400 members province-wide. It offers a variety of online and classroom courses in formats that are flexible and easily accessible.

Prospective students can start right out of high school and get their level one licensing. A CIP designation involves 10 courses and exams. The institute also offers networking events and

JANUARY 2016

seminars on specific topics.

Freelund said that because of t he complex ity of i n su rance policies, it is important to have a good relationship with a qualified broker.

“When a broker gets to know their client’s business, they are able to better understand its needs,” she said, adding that over the lifetime of the business the broker may be able to fine tune the policy, renegotiate and offer a better deal.

Brownridge said a broker can provide input as to risk assessment and management, looking at a business from a unique and experienced perspective.

They have been in the industry for a combined three quarters of a century, yet Rigg, Brownridge and Freelund have not lost their enthusiasm for the business. Each sees their expertise as providing a valuable service of protection and security.

R igg said that the industry is misunderstood, that many people see an insurance broker as a salesman sitting at a desk with reams of paperwork.

“I like my job. I meet different people every day from different walks of life.”

Freelund said that, for her, the insurance industry is an honourable profession, one with many heart warming moments, especially after a disaster when a cl ient th i n ks they have no way back and she shows them they do.

BUSINESS BUILT ON TRUST & EXCELLENT SERVICE Brownridge and Company Insurance is a home grown company with deep roots in the community it serves

P

R I NCE GEORGE – A multi-generational business with deep roots in the community, Brownridge and Company Insurance has built its corporate success on three key values: Excellence, Trust and Independence. “We really believe a client is best served by a truly independent brokerage in order to obtain unbiased professional advice,” explained G ord Brow nridge, compa ny Vice President.

“It allows us to maintain that local focus. We have an interest in the community, we’re not just employees of a nationally owned brokerage. We believe we can better relate to the client’s needs through our commitment to the community.”

A full service insurance prov ider of fer i ng a w ide ra nge of c om m erc i a l , re s id ent i a l and auto insurance products, Brownridge and Company was founded by company president B r i a n B row n r i d ge i n 19 9 0.

The company is a true family business. “In addition to my

Gord Brownridge is company Vice President and son of the firm’s founder Brian Brownridge

“This is our home and we have a direct stake in the success of both our region and our customers.”

GORD BROWNRIDGE VP, BROWNRIDGE & COMPANY

Brownridge and Company Insurance has been based out of its present office since 2004, but has operated in the city since 1990 father and myself, my mother (Jackie) a nd my brot her a re also involved. My brother T.R. Brownridge oversees our persona l i nsu ra nce l i ne wh i le I work on the commercial side,” Brownridge explained.

Located at a single downtown office Brownridge and Compa ny I nsu ra nce h as been at its present location (1198 Victoria Street) since 2004 and has a staff of about 18 to serve its growing client base. “Our motto i s: T he Most T r u sted Name in Insurance P roducts.

Trust has always been central to everything we do. Our insurance companies have to trust us

as we’re going to represent them with the appropriate level of professionalism. Our customers put their trust in us to protect their most valuable assets; their cars, homes and businesses,” he said.

Not focusing on any one market niche, the company provides a broad range of products and services for its clients. “We do have a particularly heavy focus on the commercial side of our business, much more so than a lot of local brokerages do. On the commercial side our main expertise is in the construction and transportation industries,” Brownridge said.

A home-grown success story, the younger Brownridge’s are Prince George born and raised and are both graduates of the Un ivers it y of Nor t h er n B C (U N BC), a com mu n ity connection that is one of the firm’s strongest assets. “Our customers are not just dealing with an out-of-town broker or direct writer. We’re here, a long standing part of this community. This is our home and we have a direct stake in the success of both our region and our customers.”

To lea r n more plea se v i sit the Brownridge and Company Insu ra nce website at: w w w. brownridgeinsurance.com/

11

JANUARY 2016

LOGISTICS & SNOW REMOVAL KEY TO COMPANY SUCCESS SPOTLIGHT

Company owner Jim Simonelli began his first snow removal business when he was 10 years old

T

ELK WA – Snow can be m a n y t h i n g s to m a n y people. It can be a charming effect on a Christmas card or a recreational delight for a skier.

But for a commercial or industrial provider snow can mean lost productivity, a disruption of services or even a life threatening situation. For Telkwa-based Outrider Contracting snow, its removal, use and manipulation, is at the heart of everything they do.

“The majority of my business is related to snow, water and ice with the winter’s focus being snow removal and snow making (to create ice bridges for water crossings and for special events), building snow roads, ice roads and that sort of the thing. In the summer we do water logistics, we do a lot of moving of people around and other work, but that part of it is for another story,” explained company owner Jim Simonelli.

Outrider Contracting came into being more than a decade ago to provide Snowcat services to companies located throughout Western Canada, companies operating in a wide and diverse range of industries. Outrider has provided winter logistical and snow removal services for companies ranging from utility providers, to mines,

“Knowing snow and how its condition can change from minute to minute allows us to operate safe.”

JIM SIMONELLI OWNER, OUTRIDER CONTRACTING

the oil and gas sector and even the film industry.

“I started doing this in 2004 under another business name with Outrider Contracting coming into being in 2007, building upon what I had done in the past. I had experience operating Snowcats so we ended up getting a bit of work moving some snow on the highways, doing a bit of film work and it kind of snowballed from there, pun intended.”

For Simonelli the lure and business potentials offered by snow became clear to him at an early age, starting his first snow removal business at 10, when he would earn money shoveling out homes in his neighborhood. “I actually started my first snow removal business when I was 10 years old. Then I ended up working in the ski industry from age 12 until about 20 which is where I learned to drive Snowcats,” he said.

“In the summers I was working in the mining industry and I had a few clients who said ‘hey you drive Snowcats can you do this?’ and it just of spiraled from there. We did one job, someone else heard about us and we kept getting more and

Transport of supplies and equipment to remote and inaccessible locations is one of the many services provided by the company

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One of the key services provided by Telkwa’s Outrider Contracting is the deployment of Snowcats for crew transport more work to where we’re now pretty steadily booked. At the very least our clients are going to bid, with us in mind.”

Based in Telkwa the company is ideally situated to service clients across Western Canada. In the past Outrider has worked on projects in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, into the Northwest Territories, all across BC and occasionally into the Yukon. “I’ve had clients who have shipped me to northeastern Saskatchewan from Telkwa to do two weeks of work. One of our clients was going to ship us all the way out to Newfoundland this winter to do four days worth of work. It’s not really cost prohibitive to do that as we specialize in what we do and given the fact that we have a lot of return clientele. They know when they hire us they know what they’re getting.”

The Genesis of the company that would become Outrider Contracting began when Simonelli worked providing snow removal and logistical services on the set of a movie being shot in Northern BC. Once the film work wrapped up he was able to purchase the Snowcat from the movie company, which was the start of his acquisition of rolling stock.

“I went from one Cat to where we now have six. Then we added some small excavators that we use, we fly into locations and our business has sort of taken a life of its own. My background, which had always been snow-based

allowed me to try different techniques. A lot of time we are going to job sites and they’ve never used this type of service before.”

Having essentially been involved in snow and snow removal for most of his life, Simonelli said that degree of hands-on experience has provided him with an instinctive understanding of the nature of snow, and how it can change quickly depending on conditions such as temperature or time of day. That initial schooling was only enhanced during the years he worked in the ski industry.

“I began to learn even more how to manipulate it, use it to my advantage which gave me the basis to take it to that industrial level. This would of course include building roads. We’ve done projects for clients where they’ve wanted to get in large pieces of equipment, excavators, rock trucks and other heavy equipment,” he explained.

“Five years ago for a client we built them an 80 kilometer ice road over three different glaciers along the Alaska / BC border and we were able to walk in large equipment that they couldn’t get in any other way and it allowed them to get full sized construction equipment to their job site to start building a mine site.”

Respect for Nature and its power to both delight and destroy has allowed Simonelli to create a successful business model built on cost efficiency, leaving as small an environmental footprint as

possible, and with safety being the paramount obligation to both clients and crew.

“Knowing snow and how its condition can change from minute to minute allows us to operate safe, knowing that we’ve been through all the different conditions before. This experience allows us to make the judgment calls when we know we can and can’t do the job. Having been through it and having seen how fast changes occur allows us to make those kinds of judgment calls so we can operate safely and not raise the overall cost of the project.”

For Simonelli the future of his company is as bright as an unmarked snowfield on a winter’s morning. “What does the future hold? Hopefully snow! I’ve essentially been pushing snow with Snowcats for about 18 years now, and I’ve clearly seen a change in the weather patterns as have many people. It seems like we still get these big massive storms,” he said.

“A lot of time our clients don’t plan on bringing us into the project. But a situation develops where they have so much snow, or an avalanche has hit a tower.

So even though the seasons are potentially getting shorter, with Global Warming we’re getting these mega storms that are creating chaos for the clients and that’s often where we shine.”

Proud to provide our services to Outrider Contracting

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www.allcatservices.com Kelowna, BC

12

FORT ST. JOHN

JANUARY 2016

Bonnetts Energy Corp: Delivery Well Ahead Company founded in Fort St. John in 1972 continues to set the standard in oil field services FORT ST. JOHN – “Delivery Well Ahead” is what Bonnetts Energy Corp. is all about.

The company, founded in Fort St. John in 1972 by Gerald and Dianne Bonnett, is a trusted name in downhole operations, as a leading provider of slickline services.

Bonnetts Energy Corp. is one of the larger homegrown oil field services companies in Canada and is part of a small army of technical specialist firms working to ensure the viability and marketability of the nation’s oil and gas industry. The company now operates with seven independent but inter-related divisions to provide a broad spectrum of technical, data collection and operational services to the major oil and gas producers in the country.

The divisions are: Bonnetts Well Intel, Boreal Testing, Redneckz Wireline, Boreal Pumping, Silverline Swabbing, Bonnetts Wireline and Boreal E-line.

The company has built strong roots in each of the communities it serves in B.C. and throughout Alberta (head office is in Grand Prairie, Alberta), while focusing on the safety of its employees, the environment, and providing a premium quality of service to customers.

It also knows the importance of being able to adapt quickly in an industry that historically has more than its share of ups and downs. Its management team is skilled to adjust the company to meet customer needs and the fluctuations of the oil and gas industry.

SOLID LEADERSHIP Murray Toews has been President since 1998 and Chief Executive Officer since 2005.

Toews was raised working on his family’s grain farm before moving to the energy sector. He literally grew up in the Bonnetts Energy Corp. business, starting at the back of the shop and moving up to General Manager, and eventually, becoming an owner, along with Kelvin Torgerson.

“I still feel comfortable walking to the back of the shop to see what’s going on today,” he says. “You’ve got to understand people and the equipment that we use, and I do, because of my experience. In the field and days in the shop, some days I wish we were only three units and my job was that one customer, one location, one crew and the job at hand was all that mattered. With the success of the business, some days that day on location was fun, simple and a lot less stress.”

Chief Operating Officer Troy Tews has been with Bonnetts since 2006, coming to the firm after working for a multinational company in various locations throughout the world, in a variety of positions. His skill set derived from a wide variety of experiences has benefitted Bonnetts, helping them adapt to the ever-changing marketplace. He meshes well with Toews.

“Murray and I work so well

together. We complement each other,” he says. “I’ve known Murray since I was a kid. I decided I was coming back to the area, and we connected through non-business related functions.

“I’ve worked in a lot of places where things changed quickly, so it’s no different from where we are today,” he says. “With me having been part of large, international service providers, I try to bring that to the table.”

Adds Toews: “Troy brings consistency and the ability to maintain a strong, safe work environment for all the divisions at Bonnetts. Troy crosses all the T’s and dots all the I’s.

I know I sleep better at night since Troy joined Bonnetts.”

Chief Financial Officer Carrie Lonardelli notes the management team at Bonnetts keeps a careful eye on costs, which enables the company to weather the typical ups and downs that face resource-based industries.

“We make sure that we’re sizing right, and that we have cost efficiencies across the board. We centralize our purchasing, streamline our vendors, and do what we need to do,” she says. “When times are tough, we get pressures from our customers on pricing, so we do standard cost-cutting across the board.”

Lonardelli adds that Bonnetts “provides very thorough training for our staff, to make sure they keep up with core competencies”, which also helps the bottom line through more efficient work processes.

Carrie has a very strong control background and her warmth towards the staff makes for a well functioning executive team.

Safety, as always, is a priority. “We have good people, and we make sure our staff gets safely home to be with their families,” notes Tews. “We’re always pushing the safety side of the business, and we’re getting better every day at that.”

The company’s secrets to success start with looking after customers’ needs, and instilling policies and procedures to ensure the safety of workers.

To that, Toews adds: “Being fair and honest to the company. Respect it and don’t neglect it, and it will look after you and your family and everyone else connected with it.”

PLENTY OF EXPERTISE A specialist in providing so-called ‘downhole’ operations, Bonnetts Energy Corp.’s various corporate divisions are routinely tasked with delivering a diverse range of services that typically involve either sending some tool or technology down an already drilled well hole (such as for data collection, cleaning or hole preparation) or for removing some object or tool that has negatively impacted the operation of the well, referred to as fishing.

“The bulk of the services we provide in northern British Columbia involves slickline services,

swabbing services, electric line services, fluid and nitrogen pumping services, testing services,” says Sales Manager Jeff Foster. “Our total head count across the company is about 250, that ranges from smaller bases to larger ones but that’s our total head count.

“All of the services we provide throughout Northeastern BC are based on the demand of the customers. There are some significant customers working in the area like the Progresses (Progress Energy Canada Ltd) of the world and so on so it really depends on your customer base and what services you’re providing out of it.”

“Basically we started out as a slickline company, progressed from a three-unit operation when Murray and his partners purchased it (in 1998). It continued to grow and added well testing services in 1999.

In essence we’re a services side support company for the oil and gas industry,” stated Tews, the COO. PRIVATE, PUBLIC, PRIVATE Bonnetts was a private company when Gerald and Dianne Bonnett started it in 1972. Toews and two partners purchased it in 1998, turned it public in 2005, and have since returned it to its private roots, with Toews and Tews as owners along with their majority shareholder, Mill City Capital.

The Initial Public Offering (IPO) placed Bonnetts as an Income Trust, and the stock rose from $10 to $30 per share in just 18 months. The federal government’s dissolution of income trusts and other factors drove the stock price lower, paving the way for the purchase of all remaining shares in 2009 by Toews, Tews and Mill City Capital. The privatization of Bonnetts was led

by Mill City Capital.

“There was so much equity held within a small group that the stock was never traded like a public company because nobody ever sold their shares,” Toews recalls. “We needed to be able to move as well. Being a private company now, we can move a little quicker.”

Back when he first started with Bonnetts, Toews could see the company’s potential.

“I saw this company could really grow, but I would have never thought that we would have 500 employees in its hey-day,” he says, adding there are now around 250 workers on the payroll. “As he mentored me, Gerald was very open with me about how much money we spent and how much we could make. Gerald always said a slickline truck was the best kept secret in the oil and gas industry.”

ENORMOUS POTENTIAL The Canadian oil and gas sector is a giant factor in Canada’s fiscal picture, injecting more than $129 billion into the national economy in 2013, according to statistics released by the Canadian Energy Pipeline Association (CEPA). That

Bonnett’s Energy Corp. currently has approximately 250 employees working at sites across Alberta and Northeastern British Columbia sum (including the contribution of the mining industry) accounted for more than 27 per cent of the entire Canadian Gross Domestic Product (GDP) placing the energy sector second only to the manufacturing industry (35 per cent) in terms of monetary contribution.

“The energy sector contributes significantly to the strength of Canada’s overall economy, and adequate and reliable pipeline infrastructure is critical to Canada’s economy. The oil, gas and mining sector accounts for more than one quarter of the value of Canada’s goods-producing economy,” as stated on the CEPA website.

“Through royalties, land payments, corporate and personal taxes, the oil and gas sector is a large generator of funds that our federal and provincial governments use to pay for essential programs and services such as health care, education, CPP and many other government programs.”

No matter how it’s examined, the Canadian oil and gas industry is big business. Information released

by Natural Resources Canada (NRCAN) shows that Canada has become the world’s fifth-largest producer and the fourth-largest exporter of natural gas. As part of a fully integrated and continental natural gas market, Canada moves its natural gas resources seamlessly across provincial and national borders, from supply basins to demand centres thanks to a network of pipelines and other infrastructures.

A brief industry snapshot provided

by NRCAN shows that 92 per cent of all Canadian energy exports are destined for markets in the United States, exports with an annual price tag of more than $118 billion.

In addition the biggest segment of government revenues is collected from the nation’s oil and gas industry, a sum that has averaged $23.3 billion during the past five years.

But the influence from and the decisions made by the various political levels have a direct impact on the industry as a whole. Most recently the as yet unknown political direction to be taken by the newly elected federal Liberal government, and

the policies already introduced by the Alberta NDP government have Bonnetts taking a “wait and see” position.

ADAPTING TO THE MARKETPLACE While not as large as multinational players in the industry, Bonnetts Energy Corp. is considerably larger than many of its oil industry service sector competitors, which positions it to be more adaptive to any pending changes in the national oil and gas marketplace.

“We’re large enough to have the flexibility we want with our producers, its companies like ours they have the confidence in. We can offer the better service and have the best people in place to do the job. The industry certainly is in a state of flux right now, with much of it coming back to the political side and uncertainly over how the different levels of government are going to impact the industry,” Toews said.

One of the other keys to the company’s long range success and growth hinges on its willingness to embrace change, to adapt to the latest technologies and to invest in ongoing training of its greatest asset, its employees.

“We’re sized right to keep us working steady, but we’re at 250 people so you’d better hope that we have determined that we’re sized right, if we’re not then we’ve got even bigger problems,” he said.

“At the corporate level we feel we’re sized right to work steady, which wouldn’t have been the case if we were still at the 500 person mark we were back in 2006. The problem is if there is growth and we need to expand again a lot of the skilled people have moved on.

People who have left the industry have moved into the forestry sector or agriculture which is big up this way. They’ve had a change of life and have moved onto other areas, so it’s hard to get those kinds of people back and training new ones takes time.”

For Bonnetts it makes sound fiscal sense to keep its existing workers happy and trained on the latest equipment and technology

FORT ST. JOHN

JANUARY 2016

as beginning the training process with new people is costly both in terms of money and time.

“It’s complex and expensive work training new people up to those standards,” Foster explained.

“It’s not easy and it’s not without expense.”

EXPANDED SERVICES Key areas of the many technical services provided by Bonnetts can be roughly broken down into niches described by the company as: Well Intelligence, Testing, Slickline, Pumping, Pumpdown, Swabbing and Electric Line. Each of these service areas address specific needs identified by the oil and gas producers, requiring specialized mobile equipment as well as the highly trained crews needed to operate them to fulfill their ongoing contracts.

Well Intelligence, for example, will involve the collection of a vast accumulation of information that examines all aspects of a well’s technical health, pressure levels, casing condition and others. Slickline involves sending specialized tools directly down well holes from the company’s state of the art vehicles to address specific needs, including information collection and the removal of unwanted objects.

Another service, Swabbing, makes use of mobile derrick units to remove liquids from within the wellbore itself and allows reservoir pressure to push fluids up the tubing or casing for removal.

Bonnetts Energy has the tools, the

experience and the personnel to handle all aspects of oil and gas industry servicing.

“There are a lot of multinationals in this business so I wouldn’t say we’re one of the largest by any means. But once you take away the large groups, we’re certainly among the larger home grown providers of this type of service,” Tews explained.

“I think that the message we need to get across is that Bonnetts has been here a long time, it’s a long standing name and we’ll continue standing no matter what the government at the provincial or federal level throw at us in the coming months. We’re prepared to adapt to change, to be flexible within the changing oil and gas sector,” Toews stated.

CONFIDENCE IS KEY That confidence in the strength and adaptability of the company is echoed by other key management team members.

“I agree with Murray,” says Tews.

“We’ve been here a long time, we’re one of the larger players in the game, but we’re feeling the effects as much or more than everyone else.

We don’t have the escape of being able to run to Venezuela if that’s where the business is thriving like the multi nationals can do.

“We’re a Western Canadian service provider which can be both a plus and a minus for us. We’ve done well compared to some of our competition in part due to our policy of reinvesting back into our

equipment and our people to allow us to stay at the forefront of the industry. Our job is to look after our people, we strive to keep the head count right and to teach the people we have the best we can.”

Like many in Alberta and across Northern British Columbia the potential benefits of the development of a mature Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) industry and its companion pipeline infrastructure are the brass ring they are reaching for to help propel the entire industry throughout the 21st Century. Not just firms directly involved in the oil and gas industry, but companies ranging from metal fabricators, to brush and right of way clearing firms, to local retailers in communities throughout Western Canada who eagerly await the green light that will signal the start of this bright new chapter in Canada’s emergence as a global energy producer.

“Having a supply of gas in the ground is fine, but it benefits no one unless it can get to the end user. To do that you need to have infrastructure, pipelines and all of the support services. Putting those things in place takes time and money and the longer they are delayed the longer it will be before the product can move to the customer,” Toews said.

“Pipelines and infrastructure is what will hold up the LNG if they don’t get started on it soon. If things start to go again the lack of existing infrastructure will play a role with gas tied up behind the wellhead, but you need the infrastructure to get that gas to the end user and

building it all will take years. We need British Columbia to get going on the LNG plants and get the pipe into the ground.”

READY FOR THE FUTURE With decades of experience, a keen willingness to adapt and having an uncanny ability to read the signs indicating the direction its ever changing industry is taking, Bonnetts Energy Corp. considers itself ideally positioned to respond as positively in the future as it has since its founding more than 40 years ago.

“I think another take away for this story is that the way our business is run we’re sized properly to be able to adapt quickly. A smaller company might not have that option and a much larger company like a multinational is too rigid to be flexible,” Tews said.

“We have a strong belief in and commitment to the safety side of our business, as well as to our service delivery. We believe the service quality side of our business, coupled with the safety side of the business and the people we have in place puts us at the forefront of the industry as far as service delivery goes.”

Toews remains guardedly confident the industry and his company in particular will ultimately not merely survive, but thrive in the changing world of the Canadian oil and gas industry.

“There may be a crystal ball to show the future of the industry but it’s kind of murky right now.

13 You can take the approach that if the light that shines through that crystal ball is the light at the end of the tunnel it would be kind of nice to see some of that light right about now,” he said.

“At this time of year, with the ground starting to freeze the work that has to be done because the ground is frozen is about to get underway and we always get our share of that. We should start to see things pick up here soon.”

“The company has been very well managed through downturns in the economy, changes in government policy, the dollar, and oil prices, and we’ve always found a way to work through things. The current situation is as tough as we’ve had yet,” Toews says, referring to the hesitation and indecisiveness of Alberta’s NDP government.

“It’s keeping everybody in the weeds, in limbo, sitting and waiting, Right now, no decision is the worst decision. It’s a standard holding pattern.”

The enormous potential for growth in Canada’s oil and gas sector looms large. With the right decisions, thousands of new drills could start virtually overnight, Toews says.

“If we can get another 12,000 to 13,000 wells going in Western Canada, that would be great,” he says. “It’s tough to wait and see. We continue to be patient. We’ve pulled through every other problem we’ve faced so far, and we’ll get through this.” www.bonnettsenergy.com

P: 403.340.2008 - F: 403.340.2029 - E: info@bricooiltools.com #520, 7700 - 76 Street Close, Red Deer, AB

14

JANUARY 2016

ROOFING: THE CORE OF PRINCE SHEET METAL’S BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT

Since 1956 Prince Sheet Metal has been serving industrial and commercial clients across Northern BC and beyond

P

RINCE GEORGE – Across s i x d e c a d e s a n d t h re e generations Prince Sheet Metal has grown and evolved with the city and region it calls home. “T he compa ny as we know it began in 1956 when Empire Sheet Metal bought an existing company, Scoullar Sheet Metal. My Dad (Bill Plumridge) was working for Empire at the time, then they turned around and sold it to him in 1958 and we’ve been here ever since,” explained Jim Plumridge the company’s current owner.

“Ba sica l ly at t h i s stage of the game we do custom sheet metal work, cladding, below grade membrane waterproofing, roofing and roof maintenance contracts. We’re located at 2002 South Quinn Street.

Prince Sheet Metal is COR (Certificate of Recognition from the BC Construction Safety Alliance) Certified, bondable and carry torch endorsed liability insurance. We also do custom sheet metal. You bring us your drawings, sketches or whatever and we’ll manufacture it.

We usually carry valid business licenses in Prince George, Valemont, Quesnel, Vanderhoof, Burns Lake, Smithers, Mackenzie and Fort St. James. We do venture further afield if needed on projects.

Despite Prince Sheet Metal’s business longevity and success, in the 21st Century it finds itself experiencing something of an identity issue. “Although our company is called Prince Sheet Metal the majority of our work is actually commercial roofing.

The meat and potatoes of our company is roofing,” explained Kris Plumridge, company coowner and the third generation

SEE PRINCE SHEET METAL | PAGE 15

Housed in a 9,000 square foot shop at 2002 South Quinn Street Prince Sheet Metal has been serving the regional market since 1956

“The meat and potatoes of our company is roofing.”

KRIS PLUMRIDGE CO-OWNER, PRINCE SHEET METAL

Here’s another example of the sort of quality commercial and industrial roofing projects Prince Sheet Metal routinely carries out

Some roofing projects are more challenging than others, rather than a typical flat roof, this install required the use of sloping metal work

15

JANUARY 2016

The primary business of Prince Sheet Metal is the installation of commercial and industrial roofing, including flat torch-on roofing

Initially a sheet metal fabricator Prince Sheet Metal continues to operate its sheet metal shop, a service of value during its roofing projects

PRINCE SHEET METAL CONTINUED FROM PAGE 14

of Plu m ridge to work at the business.

“The name Prince Sheet Metal has been around so long, and has such a strong local recognition factor that to change it to something like Prince George Roofing would be a major pain. We’ve been here so long everybody in the construction industry knows us and they also know what we do, but our name can be a bit of a detriment to outside builders and owners. The company has basically evolved well beyond its original name.”

Focusing on the commercial industrial market Prince Sheet Metal’s primary role is as a roofing contractor. “We do all aspects of flat and sloped roofing on commercial and industrial projects. We work for pulp mills,

saw mills, school districts, and other industrial and commercial clients who own buildings that need roof or roof maintenance.

We subcontract to a multitude of general contractors on various projects. In the 1950s and 1960s we used to go down as far south as Cache Creek, but localized competition has basically shrunk our traditional marketplace over the years,” Jim said.

Prince Sheet Metal promotes its ongoing training of its staff.

Employees are all Red Seal Certified Journeymen or in the process of working towards their certification with the ITA (Industry Training Authority of BC). Most employees have H2S (Hyd rogen Su lph ide), PSSP (Power System Safety Protection) and First Aid Training.

Many of our employees have “high security clearances” allowing them to work in secured work sites such as the Prince

George Reg iona l Correction Centre, BC Hydro facilities and CN. Kris said that despite having the skills and the machinery to complete any form of sheet metal product the company has grown by focusing on the commercial roofing market. “The majority of our roofing is flat, torch-on roofing - that comprises the largest part of our work. Flat commercial roofing is our bread and butter. We also have done and have the expertise to install TPO (Thermoplastic Polyolefin), EPDM (Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer) and PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride) roofing and maintenance. Prince Sheet Metal is a 50 plus year member of the Roofing Contractors Association of BC (RCABC), Canadian Ro of i ng Cont ractors A ssociation (CRCA) and the Prince George Construction Association (PGCA).

Jim Plumridge has over the decades earned a solid reputation for being an award-winning leader of his industry. “I’ve personally sat on the RCABC Board of Directors for 29 years and I chaired the RCABC Technical Committee for 29 years and I sat on the CRCA for 29 years on its Technical Committee. I was awarded the Ken Grant Award in 2004 from RCABC and the Frank Ladner Award in 2008 which are awards in our industry for performance, ethics and technical expertise.”

Despite t he accol ades a nd the industry recognition the elder Plu m r idge recog n i zes that having a company with an inaccurate brand name can be problematic, especially when dealing with a new generation of potential customers. “We’re usually three or four months behind on our workload, we’re well known in the community

but what’s happening is that the next generation is coming on board and where we seem to be losing contact with is with the condos and apartments that are owned by outsiders. Due to our name brand it seems to be hindering us in that area. Because of our name people kind of forget all that we do, especially the newer generation and those from outside of the area,” he said.

“They don’t fully understand who we are and what we do. The older generation, my generation is retiring and they’re the ones who have known us and worked with us all of these years. Our website really says what we are today (www.roofingbc.com) and that’s the message we want to get out, that we are a roofing company. We used to do a lot of mechanical like HVAC, plumbing, sprinklers, refrigeration the whole nine yards. In 1972 we got out of the residential heating market and began to focus solely on the commercial / industrial market. But we were still doing roofing back in those days as well as our sheet metal / mechanical work. Back then we’d do about 50 / 50 mechanical vs roofing.”

A grow i ng com mu n ity a nd changing market conditions has cha nged the compa ny’s focus away from trad itiona l sheet metal duct work and other mechanical jobs. “We haven’t done a major mechanical job in perhaps five years. We used to do schools, hotels, hospitals and that sort of thing. We’re a mechanical contractor if we so choose.

We manufacture duct work right here in our shop, we’ve got a full shop,” Jim explained.

For the younger Plumridge the company’s future is very positive. Kris says, “About the only thing I’d like to do is to mechanize the shop in the coming years which would be a little bit of an upgrade but it’s not something that we’re rushing to do mainly because we’ve not had the need to, at least not yet. We find that we do excellent work by doing it with the old system.”

16

JANUARY 2016

ENVIRO MULCH: INDUSTRY LEADING SITE PREPARATION EXPERTS SPOTLIGHT

Company has worked in the industrial land clearing sector for more than a dozen years

F

ORT ST. JOHN – Visualize raking up the leaves in your backyard in the fall and then feeding that collected debris into a leaf mulcher to produce material you can work back into your soil.

Now imagine that on a truly massive, industrial scale and you have the beginnings of an idea what the daily workload of Fort St. John’s Enviro-Mulch Land Clearing Solutions is all about.

“We do oil and gas lease and road construction, basically large scale clearing of any sort,” explained company General Manager Jeff Doyle. “We do mining work, we’ve worked a number of times clearing land for wind farms through the Tumbler Ridge area. We’ve worked as far north as Inuvik doing tundra work for Shell Canada. We’ve been as far west as the Queen Charlotte Islands where we’re doing some airport runway upgrades.”

Launched more than a dozen years ago the company founded by Doyle has gone through a few changes, but has always remained focused on its primary service, providing comprehensive land clearing and construction site preparation services across Northern British Columbia and into Alberta. “I started the company in 2003 with two mulchers. The company then grew over the following couple of years and I ended up selling the company to a firm called Big Eagle Services. They gave that a go for the next while, through the tough times of 2008 and beyond,” Doyle explained.

“But the company found it hard going through those years, so I was given the opportunity to buy it back which I took in 2011.

Basically I bought back my old name and everything. We got going the second time around and then in 2013 I sold it out to Petro West Energy Corp. I’m now essentially the General Manager of the

This Lam Trac mulcher is one of 20 pieces of mulching equipment regularly used by Enviro Mulch Land Clearing Solutions

“I saw the technology and realized there was a need for this in our area, so I went for it.”

JEFF DOYLE GM, ENVIRO-MULCH

company that I started, which is now actually owned by someone else. Nothing’s really changed in terms of the type of work we do, or how we do it. My day to day operations continue as they always have.”

To service its Western Canadian clients Enviro-Mulch currently operates a fleet of nearly 40 pieces of equipment, including pick-up trucks, lowbeds for transporting gear and nearly 20 pieces of

mulching equipment. The company staff count varies depending on the job, but typically ranges from 10 to 20 persons. “We’re always advertising for crew,” Doyle explained.

“It’s a lot of work and not for everyone, but it’s great when I find someone who really gets into it. I’m lucky to have a core of some really good guys and I always want to add to that key group.”

Operating as it does on projects located across Northern British Columbia and beyond the nature of the service Enviro-Mulch provides can take its crews into remote locations, sometimes for extended periods.

“The work we do typically isn’t what could be described as a day job. We could be working on a remote site for extended periods. Last winter we were in Fort McMurray with a crew SEE ENVIRO MULCH | PAGE 17

Launched more than 12 years ago Enviro Mulch has worked on land clearing projects right across Western Canada.

17

JANUARY 2016

In addition to mulching non-merchantable wood back into the soil, the company has extensive experience in site preparation

ENVIRO MULCH CONTINUED FROM PAGE 16

Typically working in remote locations, the Enviro Mulch team is regularly on site for weeks or even months at a time

of 10 as we were the winter before that,” Doyle said.

“Right now we have a crew over on the Queen Charlotte Islands where we’re doing some airport runway upgrades, mowing down some big stumps. We regularly work around the Fort Nelson area and obviously all throughout our area here in Fort St. John. While we do work across the region most of our work does come from our immediate area.”

The backbone of the EnviroMulch fleet consists of its industrial mulchers, bulldozer like machines fitted with bladed units that can reduce stumps, deadfall and other non merchantable wood into large chips that can more easily decompose back into the soil. “I’ve worked with Jeff for years, even before he really began the mulching business,” explained Sterling Nordin,

with Edmonton’s Edge Equipment.

“We assist him with his mulchers, to help keep them up and running through our parts and product support. He’s a great guy I’ve known him for years. I was originally a road mechanic when he first started up High Performance Trucking.

He had a couple of mulchers even then and some of my first dealings with Jeff were from working on his mulchers.”

For Doyle, despite his background in heavy equipment operations, the concept of developing a thriving business based on commercial land clearing wasn’t part of any long term plan. “There was no real catalyst for me starting this business as I wasn’t doing anything similar before. I just learned about it and became interested. I didn’t really have any background experience I just decided to try it, find the right people and learn about it as I went.

SEE ENVIRO MULCH | PAGE 18

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JANUARY 2016

True to its name, the mobile industrial mulchers used by the company can reduce wood waste into manageable chips

ENVIRO MULCH CONTINUED FROM PAGE 17

Back in 2003 I saw the technology and realized there was a need for this in our area, so I went for it.�

Having experience working on massive industrial projects, such as land clearing at BC Hydro’s ‘Site C’ dam site, Doyle is hoping to capitalize once the proposed LNG pipeline project becomes a reality. “Obviously for our future growth we’re hoping to see the LNG lines come through. If the discussions conclude and it goes through it would present a great opportunity for us. The development would bring another growth spurt to the region, one more economic boom and then we’ll see what happens

after that,� he said.

Regardless of the fate of planned mega projects, Enviro-Mulch Land Clearing Solutions has always kept active and growing thanks to the resiliency and variety of its industrial clients in Northern BC. “We’ve worked basically across the province and beyond, servicing a wide range of industries from mining to forestry to oil patch to utility providers,� he said. “One of our biggest strengths is our ability, experience and capacity to work on projects wherever the work is located. Our work has carried us across the province and into neighboring provinces and territories, and that’s probably going to continue. We’re far more than a local company.�

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JANUARY 2016

ENGINEERING FIRM TAKES ON UNIQUE PROJECT SPOTLIGHT

Thirty years of experience designing structure in northern BC brings high level of expertise

P

RINCE GEORGE - When a large fire destroyed an existing 470 ft chip conveyor gallery at a pulp and paper mill, Gairns Santos Engineering Inc. was called in to assess and plan for the safe removal of the damaged and fragile structure.

It had to be done quickly. The burnt gallery hung near buildings and over a working yard.

“Safety is always our first concern,” Nelson Santos, P.Eng., owner and partner of GSEI, said, so the company’s first step was to design and install large steel shields to protect the buildings in case the gallery collapsed before removal.

Next, a steel framed cradle, with hinged bottom, was designed to be lifted in place by cranes and wrapped around the wood gallery structure. Once the cradle was secured, conveyor sections could be cut free of their tower supports and safely lifted away.

T he fi n ished project, from design and drawings to implementation, showcased GSEI’s attention to detail and creative thinking.

Santos is no stranger to challenging projects. As a structural engineer, he specializes in jobs with unique and special needs.

“Much like the skeleton supports the human body, our designs support a certain form and weight.”

NELSON SANTOS OWNER, GAIRNS SANTOS ENGINEERING INC

In fact, Santos’s ability to create solutions to complex structural problems is in demand throughout Northern BC, especially in the pulp and paper and mining industries.

“Clients tell us they like working with our company because of our viable solutions,” Santos said, adding that subtrades and other professionals working on a project appreciate the high quality and detailed drawings GSEI produce.

“When we sit down with an owner and the construction team we find the best solutions that fit the budget, timeline and design needs.”

Santos and his business partner, Doug Gairns, have known each other for more than 30 years, graduating from the same five-year engineering program at the University of British Columbia only one year apart. They’ve been working together in Prince

Renovations on a CN railcar and locomotive maintenance building required both project coordination and structural design expertise

The CN building renovation by GSEI included designing truss supports for 17 modified columns George for over 20 years, providing structural engineering and project management services throughout Northern BC. “W hen we fi rst sta rted we would do any project,” Santos explained, but over the years, Santos and Gairns began focusing their combined expertise and experience and became specialists in industrial type structures that include supports for equipment, pipe bridges, unique industry structures, project management, and designing and installing repairs to damaged structures.

“We mostly work separately,” Gairns said. “But for some jobs we work together, focusing on different parts of the project.”

Gairns’ skills include extensive expertise in computer modelling and design and a methodical and detailed approach to large projects. One such project involved the structural design of a 30 ft. x 62 ft. x 44 ft. high steel frame dilute non-condensable gases building with concrete f loor designed and built to support a 75,000 lb. pressure vessel, a

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smaller 23,000 lb. vessel, and two large industrial fans weighing 10,00 lbs. each.

“Much like the skeleton supports the human body, our designs support a certain form and weight,” Santos added.

Whether it is designing a new structure, creating solutions to repair problems, conducting field reviews or sharing build options for clients, Santos said that their company has weathered the ups and downs of the boom and bust economy by following the timeless tenet of W.A.Foster, that ‘quality is never an accident; it is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction and skillful execution; it represents the wise choice of many alternatives.’

Gairns added that following this principle keeps GSEI focused on building long term, trusting relationships with its clients.

Tod ay, GSEI is sha ri ng its strong work ethic with a younger generation. Two apprentices have joined the GSEI team, Bryn Endacott, a graduate of the UBC

engineering program and Nelson Santos son, Craig, also a UBC engineering grad. Bryn has one year left as an engineer in training and Craig has two.

Gairns Santos Engineering Inc. is at 1507 3 rd Ave. in Prince George. www.gsei.ca

20

MOVERS & SHAKERS

JANUARY 2016

spot for years to come.

Terrace Judith I. F. Kenacan, of the Legal Services Society, has been appointed to the Queen’s Counsel for 2015.

The Snow Valley Nordic Ski Club has received their new grooming machine – the Snow-Kiti. It was named after the District of Kitimat because of their generous donation of $85,000 towards the $291,188 machine. The fundraising for the machine was a four-year effort.

Bruno Belanger’s Gemma’s Boutique was featured in HomeStyle magazine’s November 2015 issue.

Work has begun on the Lax Kw’alaams recycling/waste transfer station. Terrace based Progressive Ventures Construction is looking after the project. The project is expected to be completed by mid March.

Chetwynd A Chetwynd project – Lunch n’ Learn, has received $13,100 from the provincial government, in order to host lunch and learn sessions on subjects such as: home and community safety, nutrition, and resources for caregivers.

Kitimat A certificate has been handed to Rio Tinto Alcan, indicating that the Terminal A Extension Project has received environmental assessment approval from the BC Government.

RG’s Auto Services congratulates Gregg Stevens upon receiving his Heavy Duty Equipment Technician certificate.

Prince Rupert A key legal advisor to the Prince Rupert Port Authority for various terminal projects, Gregory Donald Lewis, also a business law partner at Bull Housser & Tupper LLP, has been appointed to the Queen’s Counsel this year.

Barry Pages has been re-elected as chair for the 2016 SkeenaQueen Charlotte Regional District statutory board.

The BC government announced a $3-million plan to improve safety measures along Highway 16 from Prince George to Prince Rupert.

A second phase of the Fairview Container Terminal with Prince Rupert Port Authority and DP World would raise the capacity to 1.3 million TEU’s (when completed in 2017) to approximately 2 million TEU’s.

The terminal showed more than a 29 per cent growth over 2014.

SwissReal’s 72-unit condominium complex received the go ahead on Bill Murray Drive after a 6-1 vote from the City of Prince Rupert.

They are set to break ground in 2016.

The Shames Mountain ski facility was mentioned in an article in a recent edition of Western Living Magazine. The article discusses the beginnings of the mountain co-op.

City Welcomes Agreement Between DP World and Port Authority The City of Prince Rupert welcomed the agreement between DP World and the Prince Rupert Port Authority that is expected will lead to further expansion of the Fairview Container Terminal.

“The first eight years of operation at the Fairview Container Terminal have been incredible for the City and region,” said Mayor Lee Brain.

“The benefits have included hundreds of well-paying jobs and a start on rebuilding the industrial tax base of the City.”

“Today, we are all benefiting from the leadership and perseverance of the Prince Rupert Port Authority. The success of the Fairview Container Terminal has its origins in a bold vision. A vision steadfastly promoted by the Prince Rupert Port Authority beginning more than 10 years ago - a vision that faced many obstacles,” Mayor Brain stated.

A threefold increase in throughput at Fairview Container Terminal fits well within the City’s Hays 2.0 Vision for Prince Rupert. “As we head into 2016, the visions of the PRPA, DP World and the City are well aligned,” Mayor Brain acknowledged.

Container volumes of that magnitude would require the City and Province to investigate the capacity and safety of Highway 16 and City streets.

The municipal and provincial road system must safely and effectively accommodate the obvious increase in traffic generated by local and regional businesses and the hundreds of additional workers all needing access to the Fairview Container Terminal.

Mayor Lee Brain pointed out that, “in this investigation we would have to take into account the eventual re-development of the downtown core of Prince Rupert. Future plans for the

City’s core would have to examine the viability of maintaining a provincial highway with increasing car and truck traffic routed through the downtown of the City.”

The City of Prince Rupert will invite the Province (operator of Highway 16) to partner with the City in bringing together all stakeholders to examine the impacts of increased traffic through the heart of Prince Rupert arising from much welcomed growth in business at the Fairview Container Terminal.

The goal would be to develop options that ensure public safety, expand road capacity or explore alternative bypass routes, and maintain effective operations at the Fairview Container Terminal and other Port operations.

“Ultimately, this investigation must take into account an eventual modernization and redesign of Prince Rupert’s downtown core.” Mayor Brain stated.

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Community Futures Cariboo Chilcotin recently celebrated their 30 th Anniversary in business, providing financing options to small and mediumsized business.

First Nations Health Authority cohosted the Highway 16 transportation symposium, along with the Ministry of Transportation, on November 25 th . The symposium featured constructive talks between community leaders and government representatives on transportation opportunities and ideas to connect communities along Highway 16.

Graduates of the First Nations First Responders program were at an all time high this year, with 118 new First Nations who are now trained to provide first response emergency care in northern communities – as announced by the First Nations Health Authority and the Red Cross.

The Town of Smithers has received a funding allotment of $20,000 from the BC Government, for their agefriendly assessment and action plan that focuses on safety and accessibility within outdoor spaces, trails, recreation infrastructure, and public buildings.

Williams Lake New World Coffee and Tea House has begun serving dinner at their establishment, from Tuesday to

The Williams Lake & District Chamber of Commerce Visitor Centre celebrated its 9 th Anniversary this year.

Williams Lake’s Save-On-Foods and Overwaitea Oliver Street location celebrated their 100 th anniversary in business.

A new executive assistant to the CEO, Beverly Evans, has joined Cariboo Chilcotin Coast Tourism.

Oliver and Company welcomes on Gina Mawson as their new Office Manager, taking over from Anne Oliver as she moves into retirement. They have also welcomed Daniel T. Patterson, as a new lawyer at their firm focusing on Personal Injury Law, Criminal Law, and Family Law. Beamac Installation Ltd. is joined

by Philippa Mahon, as their new business manager.

Two Williams Lake businesses have been nominated for this year’s Small Business BC Awards: The Realm of Toys, Best Concept; and Puddle Produce Urban Farms, Best Community Impact.

2015 marked the first ever ‘Festival of Trees’ charity fundraiser for Williams Lake.

The festival took place at Signal Point, and proceeds were donated to the Cariboo Chilcotin Child Development Centre and the Salvation Army.

Prince George A $20,000 provincial funding grant has been awarded to the City of Prince George’s agefriendly action plan, which involves working with community partners, seniors and city staff to conduct an age-friendly accessibility assessment of the community for the purposes of making Prince George more easily accessible to seniors.

Prince George’s Purden Ski Village has renewed their 30-year operating agreement with the province, ensuring residents, tourists and winter outdoor enthusiasts continue to enjoy the

Six businesses from Prince George have been nominated for the Small Business BC Awards: Contours for Men and Women, Best Workplace; Game Quest, Premiers People’s Choice; Margo’s Café, Best Workplace; Nancy O’s Restaurant, Premiers People’s Choice, Best Community Impact; Shiraz Cafe and Restaurant, Premiers People’s Choice; TC Creations, Premiers People’s Choice. Winners are set to be announced on February 25 th , 2016, at the awards ceremony in Vancouver.

Central Mountain Air has announced it is doubling capacity on their Kelowna – Prince George – Terrace route, progressing from a 19-seat Beech 1900D aircraft to a 37-seat Dash 8 aircraft.

Dawson Creek BC Business listed Dawson Creek as number two on their Top 10 “Best Cities for Work in BC” for 2015.

After four months of external renovations, the Dawson Creek Art Gallery has reopened its doors to resume exhibition.

New restaurant, Sushi Heaven Japanese Restaurant, has opened it’s doors for business in Dawson Creek and Fort St. John.

ReMax Dawson Creek Realty recently celebrated the grand opening of their newly renovated complex, Gateway Industrial Park, formerly Greensmart.

Vintage & Restoration Love, from Dawson Creek, and Filaprint 3D, in Tumbler Ridge, have been added to the shortlist for the Business BC Awards.

Dawson Creek company, Peters Bros. Construction Ltd., is now open for commercial gravel sales and delivery.

For 35 years, Jim Chute has served the Dawson Creek community. Chute is currently the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) for Dawson Creek, and is one of the longest-serving municipal civil servants in the province.

The Dawson Creek Hospital has passed a milestone in its upgrade process, as Northern Health has completed capital planning on the renovation plans. The cost estimates for these upgrades are quoted between $70 and $100 million.

Tumbler Ridge Clean Energy BC has named Tumbler Ridge as ‘Community of the Year’ for its role in promoting wind power in the province.

MOVERS & SHAKERS

JANUARY 2016

which will create a working group with local seniors to provide age-friendly assessments of the community and come up with an action plan. The project will work in partnership with the Nelson CARES Society, the Columbia Basin Rural Development Institute at Selkirk College, and the Nelson & District Seniors Coordinating Society.

Hazelton BC Safetylink and Aware 360 launch BC’s first Workalone

100 Mile House A South Cariboo age-friendly initiative – Moving Forward, has been awarded a provincial grant of $7,000. The South Cariboo community planning council and other partners will hold consultations with the local community on options for seniors’ housing, a transportation action plan, and support systems for aging in place.

A local 100 Mile House resident, Callie McHarg, has been named as one of the top four winemakers on the continent by WineMaker Magazine for 2015. Ms. McHarg formerly owned U-Brew, and won nine medals at a 2015 International Wine Making competition.

Fort St. John Founder of Earmme & Associates law firm, Augustine Tae-Hoon Earmme, was among 39 BC lawyers named to the Queen’s Counsel this year.

Fort St. John was listed as number one for BC Business’ Top 10 “Best Cities for Work in BC” list for 2015.

D&G Jewellery has announced that they are closing their doors and retiring, after 13 years in business.

Three friends: Terry Isenbecker, Jon Jueng and Horst Holstein, are working to restore and transform one of Fort St. John’s run down churches on 96th Avenue and 79 th Street into a 1920s-styled lounge and cultural centre for the community.

A new coordinator of Aboriginal Services, David Christie, has joined the Northern Lights College. Christie’s role is a recently developed director position that aims to serve as the first point of contact for Aboriginal education.

The Cutbank Ridge Partnership (CRP) has approved a $715 million gas processing plant for a site near Fort St. John, which is anticipated to be in service by

late 2017. The project will draw its resources from the Monteny resource play, and will have the capacity to produce 200 million cubic feet per day of rich gas, in addition to nearly 20,000 barrels of condensate and natural gas liquids daily.

A $300,000 surveying contract has been awarded to Underhill Contracting, a firm serving BC and the Yukon, for the Site C dam in Fort St. John. The contract is scheduled to run for six months, with the possibility of extending to two years.

Shoppers Drug Mart recently celebrated the grand opening of their newly renovated store on 100 th Street.

On November 16th, the Fort St. John Family Practice Associates was joined by Dr. Hamid Sadri, as their newest member. Dr. Sadri is currently accepting new patients.

Quesnel More than 1200 tourists visited Barkerville’s Victorian Christmas attraction this year, breaking an attendance record dating back to 1997.

The Cariboo Chilcotin Regional Hospital District has elected to continue providing $30,000 per year to the Quesnel, Williams Lake and 100 Mile House communities for recruiting healthcare professionals.

Monitor Centre BC SafetyLink, a division of Gitxsan Safety Services (GSS),

is pleased to report on its partnership with Aware 360 for the development of BC’s first digital WorkAlone™ Monitor Centre for commercial and nonprofit workers in BC. BC SafetyLink (BCSL) is a central information coordination facility, providing companies, government employees, and individual citizens in the northwest of BC and throughout the province with personal tracking and monitoring services, utilizing a variety of digital devices such as smartphones, satellite messaging devices, fleet tracking devices and distress pendants.

Rick Connors, President and CEO of the Gitxsan Development

21 Corporation (GDC) stated, “We are excited to have introduced this technology to the BC marketplace, which has been successfully used by both private industry and government in Alberta, to create a “SafetyNet” for all workers throughout BC. BCSL literally turns every exposed worker into a potential resource in an emergency situation”.

Steve Matthews, CEO of Aware 360, added “we are pleased with the implementation of our WorkAlone™ monitor technology to BC at a time when major projects are being planned and commitment to worker safety has never been higher throughout industry and government.

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JANUARY 2016

TIMING PLAYED A ROLE IN PETROLEUM COMPANY’S SUCCESS SPOTLIGHT

William Petroleum has been serving the Western Canadian petroleum industry for nearly 25 years

P

R I NCE GEORGE – T he founding and industryleading success of Prince George’s Williams Petroleum was almost fated to occur – being the result of a number of serendipitous happenings occurring at just the right moment.

“I started a small petroleum maintenance company in the early 1990s after having worked in the recreation industry. It was timing really that has allowed us our growth. When I got involved with this business the pumps of the day were all mechanical, those systems were on the way out while the electronic pumps were on the way in,” explained Bob Williams, President and owner of Williams Petroleum.

“I quickly realized I didn’t know much about the petroleum electronics so I went down to California and took a fairly high end electronics course with the petroleum equipment. I was very lucky I had a very good instructor which gave me a good grasp of the technology which helped me as I launched my business.”

“I was blessed to have a very strong family to support me.”

BOB WILLIAMS PRESIDENT, WILLIAMS PETROLEUM

Williams Petroleum has spent nearly 25 years selling, installi ng a nd ma i nta i n i ng equ ipment related to the petroleum industry for clients across British Columbia and Alberta. The company does everything from installing tanks and equipment for service stations, to assisting with the tear down of old and out of date facilities. “We do some tear downs, where we dig up old tanks and other related services. But in a case like that the company we’re working for will generally have its own environmental company on site to do the remediation work,” he explained.

The company specializes in the sales and service of all forms of petroleum equipment, conducts meter calibration to ensure accuracy and a myriad of other services including commercial electrica l i nsta l lations, i nground and above ground tank sales and even carwash repairs.

“When I first got started it really gave me the edge to be located in Central British Columbia, as

Bill Williams (left) grew up in the petroleum business, riding with this father (centre inset) when he was 12, his son Mason (right inset) is already getting into the swing the distributors that supply all of the specialized equipment we installed only had offices in the major centres. This gave them the need to offer their services and equipment nationally and with our commitment to ongoing training we were able to create strong relationships with these firms,” Williams said.

“Within a year or so of starting, Automatic Temperature Conversion (ATC) came in so all the major oil companies had roll outs to remove all of the old mechanical and install all the new electronic systems. These would be linked to things like POS (Point of Sale) systems and Cardlock systems. One of the

companies in Vancouver that really gave us a good launch because they gave us a huge amount of work was P.D. McLaren Limited. They gave us an opportunity as a sub trade to do a lot of this work. We were lucky that a lot of other companies then followed suit.”

The fledgling company consisting essentially of Williams a nd a lone employee h it the ground running, finding a ready and expanding market for its services and industry expertise.

“In the mid 1990s I probably did about 95 per cent of the temperature conversion of that era in this area which was a lot of work.

I was on the road close to 300 days a year. For the better part of three years I went virtually seven days a week doing these conversions. But all of that allowed us to grow.”

Another key to the rapid expansion and ultimate business success of Williams Petroleum was his desire to participate in ongoing training to remain at the forefront of the industry.

“Once we’d put the ATC in I quickly understood that the old

Williams Petroleum has decades of experience working for industrial clients, such as work completed at the Mt. Milligan copper / gold mine

23

JANUARY 2016

On the job: Williams Petroleum crews have worked helping to install service stations across BC and Alberta way of calibrating pumps was on its way out because with all the new electronics even Measurement Canada didn’t have the staff available to grasp the impact of the newer technology,” he recalled.

“It’s all about ensuring the pu mps prov ide a n accu rate measurement, that they’re delivering exact amounts. T he electronics allowed for very precise metering of these products.”

Today Williams Petroleum has a staff of more than 20 in the Prince George area and maintains contracts with other companies that work as sub trades to provide petroleum industry maintenance and service across Western Canada. Williams recognizes that one of his firm’s

greatest assets is its staff and its business relationship with its sub trade providers. “I’m really fortunate that we have an extremely loyal and long term staff. We have the same relationship with our sub trades they’re practically family. Some of our sub trade contracts are for petroleum work, electrical, restaurant work, HVAC, car washes all types of sub trades,” he said.

“All those years I was doing the calibration I made a lot of contacts throughout BC and Alberta and that’s what helped blossom the company, allowing us to meet and work with those guys. When we had an opportunity we were able to share it and ultimately take on a bigger share of the market. A lot of the

equipment we use is very expensive, the training is ongoing and very expensive and with the environmental impact there are a lot of requirements that have to be met. It’s not the type of business where you can have a pipe wrench and say I’m in the pump fix it business. The courses are extremely specialized, with a lot of ongoing certification.”

Having an opportunity to work alongside of his son, and introducing the business to him at an early age, is another of William’s proudest personal achievements.

“My son Bill has been involved with the company for something like 16 years. When I was on the road all the time about the only way I could spend any time with him was to take him with me on

A major project for the company was the installation of an above ground fuel tank farm at the Mt. Milligan Mine located north of Prince George these trips. He quickly learned at a very young age how to do a lot of this stuff so he’s really grown up in the petroleum industry. He’s adapted with the new safety regulations and new electronics so he’s taken to this business very well.”

After nearly a quarter century of service, a core of trained and motivated staff, a live 24/7 answering service and one of the most enviable reputations in the industry, Williams Petroleum continues to innovate and lead in this specialized profession. “There was no secret button pushed here. I was blessed to have a very strong family to support me, because there were some tough times. T hat and having a staff that was willing to come in and learn from the

ground up because I feel that’s the best way to learn. It’s the only way to really learn it well,” he said.

“The future looks fairly bright because I’m extremely proud of our core staff. They’re young and they’ve got years of field experience already and they really work well together. In my eyes they’re superstars. With my son being involved with that group I think that’s the real future of this company. As long as Grandpa keeps his nose to the grindstone and runs a good business there’s a good future for the kids and their kids.

That would probably be something I’d like to see passed along.”

To learn more please visit the Williams Petroleum website at: www.williamspetroleum.ca/

Liquid Handling Equipment - Sales - Service - Installation

Congratulations to Williams Petroleum on your success.

We wish you all the best.

The installation of in-ground fuel tanks is another service regularly carried out by the Williams Petroleum technicians

Westeel is a proud partner of Williams Petroleum.

CONGRATULATIONS TO WILLIAMS PETROLEUM ON YOUR MANY YEARS OF SUCCESS

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OPINION

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JANUARY 2016 A division of Invest Northwest Publishing Ltd. Prince George Office 2871 Wildwood Cres Prince George, BC V2K3J4 Toll free: 1.866.758.2684 Fax: 778.441.3373 Email: info@businessexaminer.ca Website: www.businessexaminer.ca

PUBLISHER/EDITOR | Lise MacDonald, lise@businessexaminer.ca SALES | Shawn Bishop, shawn@businessvi.ca; Josh Higgins josh@businessvi.ca; Joanne Iormetti, Joanne@businessexaminer.ca WRITERS | Goody Niosi, Beth Hendry-Yim, John MacDonald, David Holmes WEBSITE | John MacDonald, john@businessexaminer.ca

ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES ABOUND FOR FIRST NATIONS

MARK MACDONALD

O

pportunity is knocking for First Nations in British Columbia.

Perhaps more now than ever before, First Nations have a very real chance to catapult forward economically in the coming years.

There are already well-catalogued successful examples of economically successful First Nations.

On Vancouver Island, there’s the Campbell River Band’s redevelopment of downtown property, which effectively transformed Campbell River as a city, as well as Komoks First Nation’s very successful Pentlatch Seafoods Ltd. and Salish Sea Foods.

On the Lower Mainland, Tsawwassen First Nation is gearing up for the opening of two massive retail shopping alongside

Highway 17 near the Tsawwassen ferry terminal. Combined, the new Tsawwassen Mills and Tsawwassen Commons will become the second-largest shopping complex in B.C., next to Metropolis Metrotown in Burnaby.

Leading the way for years now, by continuing to raise the bar, are the Osoyoos and Westbank First Nations in the Okanagan. Osoyoos Chief Clarence Louie has been a key motivator for other First Nations with his speeches and example, as their NK’MIP resort/ vineyard/golf course has taken the South Okanagan by storm.

Westbank First Nation has several successful shopping centre operations that have fuelled much of the growth in West Kelowna, as Chief Robert Louie has led the way with several innovative ideas, including the much-anticipated Lake Okanagan Wellness Centre.

It is the latter that holds perhaps unlimited potential in terms of revenue generation and economic growth, which could become a model for other First Nations.

Remember these three words: private health care.

In Canada? Impossible, due to the constrictions imposed by the Canada Health Act. Any mention of two-tiered health care causes many Canadians to at least

threaten to light their hair on fire, amid calls against “queue jumping” and favouritism. Anything that might allow sick people to obtain care in this country other than standing in line for the next available physician or surgeon other than the status quo is met with the strongest of verbal opposition.

But health care facilities on First Nation territory? This could be an absolute game-changer for not only First Nations, but all Canadians.

Let’s face it: We already have two-tiered health care in this country. One tier is for all Canadians who have “access” to health services as their number comes up. (Surely we don’t believe we have “free” health care by now. . . it has been documented that our current system costs every Canadian an average of $5,000 per year.)

The other tier is for those who can afford to pay for health care in other countries. Countless Canadians hop the border for medical services in the United States, Mexico and beyond. They have the wherewithal to get well now, and they take that advantage to do just that.

Faced with getting in line to wait for knee/hip replacement surgery and suffering in pain for six, nine,

12 months – or as long as they can physically endure – wealthier Canadians are choosing to spend retirement funds on operations that get them healthy immediately, so they can enjoy life, pain free.

What if those services were available in Canada? With our dollar continuing to slide against U.S. currency, if Canadians could have those same services at home on First Nations territory, they’d also save over 30 per cent just on the exchange rate alone.

If a First Nation was to identify private health care clinics as significant economic opportunities critical to the success of not just the First Nation but surrounding communities, which government official or lobby group would challenge that?

Benefits would abound. For First Nations, these could be jobcreating economic engines with enormous possibilities. For others, a chance to get healthier, quicker, spending Canadian, rather than U.S. funds. Not to mention eliminating ever-growing lineups for surgical procedures.

Going through the list of First Nations projects listed above, it is obvious that real estate development is another lucrative market opportunity that has already been identified.

So, why is development on First Nations land so attractive to builders and developers?

Because Fi rst Nations, pa rticularly those which have already settled their land claims, have a fresh slate. They haven’t had years of civic and regional district bureaucrats instilling administrative red tape and impediments to growth. They are starting from ground zero.

Here’s a possible exa mple: Investors wanting to build a development within city limits could face waits of one-totwo years to work their way through a quagmire of regulations, stipulations and duplicated inspections. Meanwhile, neighbouring First Nations land offers almost immediate start times due to the lack of bureaucracy, plus taxation levels should be more affordable, due to the fact their First Nation doesn’t require mounds of hidden fees to pay for layers of expensive bureaucrats.

Those are just two major benefits to First Nations with settled land claims.

It’s a reason why much of the expected economic growth in this province will come from projects on First Nations land.

The time has come.

ECONOMIC FREEDOM AND CANADA’S PUBLIC POLICY SCHIZOPHRENIA The Trudeau and Notley governments appear dedicated to repeating the mistakes of the BC government in the 1990s and Ontario today FRED MCMAHON THE FRASER INSTITUTE

I

n international rankings of economic freedom, Canada has soared past the United States, so it should be no surprise that among sub-national jurisdictions in North America (which encompasses 10 Canadian provinces, 50 U.S. states and 32 Mexican states) three Canadian provinces - Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan - ranked at the top using 2013 data, the most recent available.

But Canada is becoming a bit of a policy schizophrenia country.

Three other Canadian provinces were close to the bottom of the Canadian and U.S. rankings: Nova Scotia tied with 10 other

jurisdictions for 42nd, Quebec and Prince Edward Island tied for 57th, ahead of only Delaware among the Canadian provinces and U.S. states. The 32 Mexican states were behind all Canadian provinces and U.S. states. The remaining four provinces, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Ontario were in the middle of the Canada-U.S. pack.

And reversals are coming. Since 2013, Alberta elected a new government and Canada chose a new federal government. And both governments have shown a propensity for policies that reduce economic freedom, putting government in

the way of free individual choices by upping taxation (so you have less of your own money to spend as you choose) and increasing government intrusion into the economy, thus reducing space for free exchange.

The relative ranking of the provinces helps illustrate the power of economic freedom. The average per capita provincial domestic product of the top provinces is $70,294; of the four middle provinces, $52,124; and of the three at the bottom, $41,655.

Economic freedom is simply the ability of individuals and families to make their own economic decisions, unhindered by overly large government or restrictive regulations. Over a century of evidence shows that the drive and ingenuity of individuals beats heroic government in creating prosperity. More than 130 policy and fact-based academic articles have used the North American index in research and found that a number of positive outcomes, including increased growth and entrepreneurship, are powered by economic freedom.

Over the past 20 years, Canada has run a fascinating experiment in the ability of economic freedom to drive growth and the lack

of economic freedom to inhibit growth.

During much the 1990s, BC fell back in economic freedom as the size of government and regulation increased. Long one of Canada’s richest provinces, BC fell to have not-status. During the 1990s, BC had by far the slowest growth of any province in Canada at just 7.3 per cent per capita over the decade in inflation-adjusted terms.

At the same time, Ontario increased its economic freedom and had a growth rate of 20.7 per cent, almost three times of that of BC in the 1990s.

Then, everything turned upside down. Ontario’s economic freedom went into reverse in the first decade of this century and, just like BC before it, the province fell to have-not status. This is remarkable denouement for Ontario, the province that had been Canada’s economic engine.

In the decade following 2003, Ontario, like BC before it in the 1990s, had by far the slowest growth rate in Canada, remarkably just 3.3 per cent. Meanwhile, BC was moving in the opposite direction, increasing economic freedom. With increased economic

freedom, BC quickly moved out of have-not status and had a growth rate almost five times that of Ontario, at 15 per cent.

It is amazing how we can be resistant to learning even the most obvious lessons - BC falling into have-not status when economic freedom was reduced and then soaring when it was increased; Ontario experiencing strong growth when economic freedom was relatively high and then falling into have-not status when economic freedom declined.

The recent elections in Alberta and federally in Canada have elected governments that appear dedicated to repeating the mistakes of BC in the 1990s - and Ontario today - by increasing government’s interference in the economy, although growth and prosperity are strongly related to individual economic freedom, not big government.

Fred McMahon is a Fraser Institute resident fellow and holder of the Dr. Michael A. Walker Research Chair in Economic Freedom. See the Fraser Institute’s Economic Freedom of North America report

SUBCRIPTIONS | $45 PER YEAR (12 ISSUES), $80 FOR 2 YEARS (24 ISSUES), SUBSCRIBE ONLINE: WWW.BUSINESSEXAMINER.CA. DISTRIBUTION: FOURTH WEEK OF EACH MONTH VIA CANADA POST AD MAIL. The publisher accepts no responsibility for unsolicited submissions. The views and opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher. Produced and published in British Columbia. All contents copyright Business Examiner Peace Cariboo Skeena, 2015. Canadian Publications Mail Acct.: 40069240

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JANUARY 2016

FABRICATORS LOG HANDLING SYSTEMS IN SAWMILLS WORLDWIDE SPOTLIGHT

Linden Fabricating has been developing innovative products for the sawmilling industry for more than 35 years

“There’s a lot of potential right now for our log handling and merchandising systems.”

MIKE STELTER

P

R INCE GEORGE – With an entrepreneurial spirit, the multi-faceted skills of a machinist and a belief that improvements can even be made to an already good product, Prince George based Linden Fabricating Ltd. has grown over the past 35 years into an industry-leading provider of sawmilling equipment.

“This company was started in 1980 in Prince George. The owner, Bruno Lindenblatt came from a sawmill-related maintenance and installation background. He opened Linden Welding & Fabricating Ltd. in Quesnel, BC in 1970.

He got into more of a finite niche in the market as Linden as a company began to manufacture specialized sawmill equipment, specifically related to the singulation of logs whether they have bark on them or not. He was able to acquire a license to manufacture a device called a step feeder,” explained Mike Stelter, Linden’s General Manager.

“The step feeder was the first

GM, LINDEN FABRICATING

Linden’s new office and shop complex was built using the services of Heartland Steel Structures and Scouten & Associates Engineering singulating device that Bruno acquired from a company called Interlog (NA Interlog AB) i n Sweden and he was granted sole rights to manufacture the step feeder which was under Canadian and US patents. In 1983 they went into full production of the step feeders. The step feeder can feed

various applications, the most common ones being feeding a batch of logs toward the step feeder and one log at the top is fed to either a barker line or a canter line depending on the needs,” he said.

Lindenblatt was born in Germany and immigrated to Canada in 1959. A born entrepreneur he

used his background as a welder and machinist to establish a sort of ‘have welder - will travel’ type of industrial maintenance business.

“He could do just about everything. Before Linden he travelled around with a truck that was outfitted with all his tools – welding machine, torches you name it. He

went around and did weekend maintenance for people,” Stelter said.

“A real entrepreneur, he was running around from Terrace to Quesnel and all over the province doing whatever he could to make a living. He’s quite a success story to say the least.”

SEE LINDEN FABRICATING | PAGE 26

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The Double Acting Step Feeder is an example of Linden taking an existing system and upgrading it to make performance even better

The Linden Log Ladder is another system developed by the company to assist with moving material within a sawmill

We are proud to have worked with Linden Fabricating on the supply and install of the building

(250) 612-8416 | Prince George, BC | www.heartlandsteelstructures.ca | kenk@heartlandsteel.ca

26

JANUARY 2016

Linden Fabricating operates within a 15,000 square foot shop that allows it to manufacture large industrial systems

LINDEN FABRICATING CONTINUED FROM PAGE 25

Congratulations to Linden Fabricating Ltd on all of your success!

2266 S. Nicholson St Prince George, BC TF: (800) 663-8319 www.tstubing.com

For Lindenblatt and the future of the company that would become known as Linden Fabricating the big break came with a major installation job at a Cariboo sawmill.

“West Fraser was really the company that really gave him a boost working at their mill in Quesnel.

He was able to get some very big installation jobs from West Fraser.

When that started for him he was able to acquire the individuals to work on these big jobs in the field.

From there that’s when he built this fabrication shop (located at 9368 Milwaukee Way) in Prince George in 1980. That’s when the

company, Linden Fabricating Ltd., as we know it really got rolling.”

The introduction of the original step feeder system was only the start for the company. Taking the original design of the log transfer system Lindenblatt and his team made a number of modifications that enhanced the performance and functionality of the system.

The original step feeders were hydraulically driven with a single moving section. Linden on its own developed a new machine derived from the original technology to create a double acting step feeder where two moving sections were opposing one another.

“The benefit of that was that the double acting machine was able to be run by a single electric drive

versus hydraulically driven. That made it more complicated to fabricate but simpler and more efficient for the end user,” Stelter said.

“The systems were easier to maintain and had less down time.

Since the 1990s companies have been trying to get away from hydraulics as much as they can due to the impact of hydraulics on the environment, specifically when hydraulic lines fail and hydraulic oil leaks into ground soil. Hydraulics can be maintenance nightmares as well, especially in colder climates like ours and across the rest of Canada as well for that matter.”

Today Linden Fabricating produces a number of key sawmilling systems, machinery in use in mills across North America and

beyond. These include machines for moving logs within a sawmill such as single and double acting quadrant feeders, log ladders and self-cleaning step feeders in addition to the original step feeder models. “We work with USNR (United States Natural Resources) which is one of our biggest customers out of Woodland, Washington. When we do a system with them they take care of the scanning and all of the control of our equipment so some of our equipment goes into some of these big packages that they sell, manufacture, install and start up with various companies all over the world,” he said.

SEE LINDEN FABRICATING | PAGE 27

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Congratulations Linden Fabricating IRONWORKS SHOP LOCAL 712 BRITISH COLUMBIA Leaders in Manufacturing with Pride, Dignity and Security

27

JANUARY 2016

Step Feeders are at the heart of the various systems designed and manufactured by Prince George’s Linden Fabricating

The Log Merchandising System can be adjusted to a variety of log lengths and is in use in sawmills across North America

LINDEN FABRICATING CONTINUED FROM PAGE 26

With a current staff of only 12 employees (many of whom have been with the company more than 30 years), Linden-built systems are in place not only all across Canada and the United States but in Japan and even in Europe. “A big part of our business is selling replacement wear parts on every type of equipment that we manufacture. We don’t have maintenance crews who go out to repair systems for our clients, but we teach them how to maintain it as part of the install. What we do offer is a service technician who will go from time to time to do inspections of our equipment and if someone is having some difficulties with something we go to the site to assist and to provide training.”

To better serve its expanding global client base Linden Fabricating is putting the finishing touches to a new office and shop complex that will feature approximately 16,000 square feet of shop space. “Linden is open

for business. We’ll continue to provide specialized equipment to the lumber industry, innovative products for a growing industry.

Aside from our fleet of products we also do custom fabrication for our clients. With the Canadian dollar being where it is we’ll sell a system and the buyer will quite often say ‘do you have the ability to fabricate some of our peripheral equipment’ and we answer, absolutely,” Stelter said.

The construction of the new shop was carried out by Prince George-based Heartland Steel Structures Ltd. Company President Ken Kruger said working with the team at Linden Fabricating made his job much easier.

“The new building features a main fab shop as well as an office area and a machine shop. It was really nice to work with Bruno and Mike on the project, and it was also delightful to work with Scouten and Associates Engineering – it’s always great to work with professionals on a project like this,” he said.

“It’s good to be working with industry leaders like Linden, they

always have their stuff together, they’re organized and they know what they want. When you’re not dealing with a lot of bureaucracy it makes it so much nicer. When you get people together who know what they want it’s easy to put a nice project together, you can control your costs and you get the results you want. It all went great.”

For Stelter the future for Linden is looking bright. “The future’s looking good. 2016 is going to be a pretty good year. The decision to go with the new shop enables us to have more space and it allows us to keep on track with some of these potential orders that are going to be coming in during the New Year, the majority coming from the US where there’s more interest now in updating equipment. A lot of the old log cut-up lines in some of these southern mills are aged and they want to upgrade. So there’s a lot of potential right now for our log handling and merchandising systems.”

To learn more please visit the Linden Fabricating Ltd. website at: www.linfab.com/

Movable saws make up a key component of Linden’s Log Merchandising systems allowing for more of the log to be used