OHBA Acquires Full Ownership of EnerQuality to Grow its Training Business

In September, the Ontario Home Builders’ Association (OHBA) announced that it had acquired full ownership of EnerQuality Corporation, the leading certifier of energy-efficient homes in Canada. OHBA founded EnerQuality in 1999 alongside the Canadian Energy Efficient Association (CEEA) with a mission to improve building and energy efficiency standards in the residential construction industry.

The acquisition of 100% of EnerQuality’s shares comes as OHBA seeks to expand its external education arm and deliver needed training to its members and the industry at large. Acquiring EnerQuality, which has certified over 120,000 homes since its founding, will enable OHBA to reposition EnerQuality as a revenue generator for the association.

EnerQuality already offers training programs to its customers, covering subjects such as energy efficiency and high-performance building. It will now seek to expand its educational offerings to new topics the residential construction industry needs, as the sector seeks to address the labour shortage it currently faces. This will include subjects tailored to home builders, land developers, professional renovators and other service providers.

The Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA) currently estimates that 22% of residential construction workers are set to retire in the next decade. This could account for 500,000 jobs across Canada, according to RBC Assistant Chief Economist Robert Hogue. OHBA is looking to get ahead of the problem, supporting its members by delivering training to encourage the next generation of construction workers to join the industry.

“This investment in EnerQuality is part of my larger strategy to transform OHBA into an industry association of the future,” explains Scott Andison, CEO of OHBA. “We spoke to our members about what the market needed, and many of them highlighted education and training. So we prioritized it in our new strategic plan.”

EnerQuality recently announced a new interim board of directors, appointed in late November, to set strategic direction, advise OHBA on the scope and skills needed for the new board, and to initiate the search for its new CEO. These board members are Gord Cooke (president of Building Knowledge), Peter Saturno (president of Midhaven Homes) and Brian Johnston (former CEO of CreateTO).

The hunt for the new CEO will prove crucial for EnerQuality. The new CEO is expected to implement EnerQuality’s strategic vision, focusing on the growth of its new training offerings and the energy labelling program.

“Our new interim board members will provide valuable insights as we work towards our strategic vision for EnerQuality,” notes Rose Benedetto, managing director of EnerQuality.

“The next generation of construction workers is out there, and we’re looking to them to build the future of Ontario.”

By fully integrating EnerQuality, OHBA is set to revolutionize the training landscape for the industry. The future of Ontario’s residential construction sector looks brighter with OHBA and EnerQuality at the forefront of this transformation.