Summer 2009
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COLAUTTI GROUP A History of Survival
THE MAGAZINE FOR CONSTRUCTION EXECUTIVES
Colautti Group In 1970, his sons, who had been running the company, sold the business to Beaver Construction. Just two years later, Ron Coluatti, his brothers Gary and Dennis, cousin Larry, and Steve Weiss began plans to start a new company; by 1973, Colautti Construction Ltd. as it is known today was born.
Colautti Group in the 21st Century
A History of Survival
Produced by Cathi Sachs & Written by Shelley Seyler The history of Colautti Group is one of name changes and historical landmarks; and the company today is all the stronger for it. The roots of Colautti Group stem back to the 1920s when Antonio Colautti arrived in Montreal from Italy. Moving to Windsor, Ontario in the early 1920s, Antonio started a business, Colautti Brothers, digging basements by hand. A few years later, he acquired a partner, a scoop, and a team of horses; from there he continued to slowly grow this fledgling company, gradually completing larger construction and infrastructure projects. When the clouds of the 1940s rolled in, the Italian name that adorned the company’s equipment was no longer something to market; for a while being Italian was no longer a positive thing. Antonio was picked up off the street and put in an internment camp in Canada where he was forced to stay for close to two years. During this tumultuous time, many of Colautti Brothers’ contracts and clients were lost and the business partners who remained in the free world decided to change the name to Keystone Contracting. Keystone eventually dissolved with many partners involved, only a fraction of whom were actively working with the company. Though this led to some disagreements within the company and when Antonio was released from the internment camp, Colautti Brothers was started anew as a tile, marble and concrete company.
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Colautti Group today has 120 employees and works from its headquarters in Ottawa, Ontario. With annual revenue of approximately $40 million, Colautti Group works throughout the residential, provincial, and federal sectors specializing in sewer and water projects. Colautti is versatile, sometimes acting as general contractor and also as a subcontractor. Holding excavating, pipe laying and raw land developing in house, the company relies on subcontractors for blasting and asphalt. At Colautti: Employees are Everything “It is quite a bit of magic dealing with employees who work with you. We treat them like family; our employees are our family. That’s what we are all about is our people. We look after each other,” says Dennis, who is partial owner of Colautti with Stephen Weiss and Alistair Miller. Proof of the company living up to this belief is its own Employee Association that is an in-house union with its own constitution and bylaws, a treasurer and president. The association puts forth a collective agreement that is renegotiated every three years and
sets each employee’s salary at an agreed-upon rate. As might be expected by this unique approach, Colautti enjoys a high retention rate and has many employees who have been there for 10, 20 and even 30 years. “We don’t want people here for just one year, we want this to be their career,” says Dennis. “We have a vision that the only success we have is with our people. We take care of them and they take care of us…I always say, ‘nobody works for us, they work with us.’”
We provide
peace of
mind.
On the Cutting-Edge Colautti also makes a point to listen to the innovative and cutting-edge ideas of its employees. One of the more recent examples not only changed the everyday operations of the company but also increased its bottom line by 25 percent for each of the last four years. When Colautti employees began discussing their problems with breaking down equipment, the company started researching alternatives. In collaboration with John Deere, Colautti’s Board of Directors has implemented a
Smith Petrie Carr & Scott Insurance Brokers Ltd. has been looking after Colautti Construction’s insurance since the 1970’s. We are very proud to provide them with their Construction Bonds and Property and Liability insurance. We started with Colautti when they were less than 20 employees and now they are one of Ottawa and area’s largest construction companies. SPCS, like Colautti Construction, has built our business on personal service and quick response to our customer needs.
359 Kent St, Suite 600 Ottawa, ON K2P 0R6
613.237.2871 www.spcs-ins.com
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new method of acquiring brand new equipment. Originally buying 28 pieces, Colautti signed a four-year lease with John Deere that brings with it a complete maintenance package
that allows for services after hours so no on-the-clock time is lost. “We want to do the work but we don’t want to look after the equipment. That’s not our profession,” says President Chris Jacobs. This contract also provides the company with brand new equipment as it is released to the market, allowing Colautti to trade in their old for the new. “All our guys are driving around in the newest equipment out there. They are quite happy,” says Dennis, with a smile. Colautti has worked on various projects on Parliament Hill, the seat of Canada’s federal government. From infrastructure renewal to government agencies, Colautti has a history of working on site, a relationship that promises to stay for the foreseeable future.
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Colautti is also working closely with the City of Ottawa and provincial governments on continuous infrastructure, repair, and new development projects.
“We are very open. People can discuss things and come up with changes to adapt to situations,” says the Board of Directors
What the Future Holds
Employee-oriented and leading the industry charge into innovative techniques, Colautti Group has seen tougher times. Ottawa can rest assured this well-known Italian name is not going anywhere.
In today’s challenging marketplace, Colautti’s Board of Directors is optimistic. Having yet to see a direct decline in the company’s revenue because of the economy, Colautti is adapting its vision in the face of these challenges. “That’s really the key, though; opening your eyes and having a vision of where you want to be but you have to think outside the box, you have to see what the industry wants,” says Dennis. Toronto enjoys less drastic ups and downs as compared to other parts of the world and Colautti is thankful for this insulation.
Congratulations Colautti Construction! Best of luck on all your future projects!
A Message from the Board of Directors including President Chris Jacobs, and owners Dennis Colautti, Stephen Weiss, and Alistair Miller: “At the Colautti Group of Companies, we constantly strive for our customers’ profitability. Our employees are our greatest strength which we continually nurture and protect. Constant positive change is embraced, keeping us on the cutting edge, ensuring directed focus on innovative strengths, benefiting our customers, our employees, and our companies. The Colautti Group of Companies is confident that our customers and our employees truly believe we put them first.
COMPANY AT A GLANCE Established : 1920's Employees : 120 Annual Revenue : $40 Million
www.colauttigroup.com Brenning Paving is pleased to be working with Colautti Construction!
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613-822-1316
613-257-2918
9094 Highway 7, Ashton, Ontario, K0A 1B0 Email: Mail@thomascavanagh.ca
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Brenning Construction (1986) Ltd.
2741 Quinn Road, Gloucester(Ottawa), Ontario K1T-3V4
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Summer 2009
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Colautti Group 2562 Delzotto Avenue Ottawa, ON k1T 3V7 Canada