COVER
“It’s important to have that anchor job because it offers
stability for the company and the crews,” Toma said.
Formula Contractors works mostly in the resources sector
on projects in Western Canada, the Northwest Territories
and the Yukon. According to Toma, the company utilizes
a concept to completion approach, offering a full range of
construction services from foundation work and building
structures, bridges and roads, to mine site development and
reclamation and project management.
“We’ve been there, we’ve done it and we understand how
to do these jobs, which is a benefit to us,” said Toma.
The business was previously known as Formula Pile and
Bridge Contractors Ltd. but changed its name to reflect its
expanded capabilities. Today, Formula Contractors contin-ues
to do a wide variety of deep foundation work.
“We can do it all, but our bread-and-butter is bridge con-struction
and driven piles,” Toma said.
He adds that Formula Contractors has a large fleet of
equipment at its disposal, but will rent, lease or buy addi-tional
machinery when needed to ensure projects are kept
on track.
As an example, Toma points to a Soilmec SR-30 hydraulic
drilling rig that Formula Contractors purchased last year. The
new equipment was needed to drill and embed piling into a
tricky shale slip zone area during the company’s work on BC
Hydro’s Site C Dam project in northern B.C.
“Now we own that drill and we can use that resource
on other jobs or bid for more work like that on other jobs,”
Toma said.
Engineer on staff
Formula Contractors has a professional structural engineer
on staff who used to design bridges for B.C.’s Ministry of
Transportation. According to Toma, the engineer is relied on
frequently to provide expertise and is a tremendous asset for
the company.
Another unique feature of Formula Contractors, Toma
says, is that the each of company’s staff is responsible for
their projects from start to finish. They will find the work,
estimate on projects and then manage the job if their bid is
accepted. The result is less administrative bureaucracy that
clients have to deal with and lower overhead for Formula
Contractors that is reflected in the company’s pricing.
“We think this is the best way to operate for us,” Toma said.
“There are efficiencies in this, because the project estimator/
manager is familiar with everything from the first nut and
bolt that he estimated to the final invoice. He makes sure
everything is taken care of and the flow through with a client
is always with the same guy, and that’s important. It’s a strat-egy
that works very well for us.”
Formula Contractors was established by Peter Thwaites
in 1977. Thwaites continues to be the principal owner, while
Toma and Formula Contractors vice president Paul Tiefensee
have ownership stakes in the company.
According to Toma, there are very few situations that
Thwaites hasn’t seen in his 40 years in the construction and
deep foundation business.
“We totally bend his ear on that all the time – he’s a great
resource for that,” Toma said.
CN retaining wall in Mayerthope, Alta.
Bridge construction across the Moberly River at the
Site C Clean Hydro Project near Ft. St. John, B.C.
PILING CANADA 37