Rocscience

From its humble beginning more than two decades ago, this software company has morphed from a small spin-off company into a global enterprise By Lisa Kopochinski Rocscience is truly global. With a head office in Toronto, the company provides geotechnical software to its more than 7,000 customers around the world. Not bad for a company that was officially formed a little more than 20 years ago as a spin-off from the University of Toronto. Situated in a beautiful home-like and cozy office in the heart of downtown Toronto, its exterior would never suggest that inside is a team of 33 developers, engineers, marketers and support staff that regularly communicates with more than 120 countries.

Pacific Pile & Marine Civil Constructors

PPM's new subsidiary services Western Canada By Lisa Kopochinski Pacific Pile & Marine (PPM) may not be a household name, but if you're in the marine or heavy civil industry, it's a name you should get to know. PPM was formed in 2008 as a continuation of Hurlen Construction, which dates back nearly 50 years to provide best-in-class services to the Western United States and Canada. Between 2010 and 2011, PPM partnered on a remote design-build run-of-river project northeast of Sechelt, B.C. involving two new greenfield hydro facilities. Following that project, PPM determined the market would be better serviced by establishing a larger presence in the area and in early 2017, made good on that decision by establishing a B.C.-based subsidiary, PPM Civil Constructors.

Sold!

Canadian contractors tell us what convinces them to buy By Lisa Kopochinski  “There's a sucker born every minute,” is a phrase that has been closely associated to P.T. Barnum, the American showman from the mid-19th century. And while that may hold true for numerous industries, many will argue that the construction industry isn't one of them. Those in the deep foundation construction industry know a thing or two about what works - and what doesn't. The stakes (and expenses) are simply too high to act impulsively - especially when making a purchase - particularly if it is for a large piece of equipment in a project located in a remote area.

Kichton Contracting Ltd.

Supported by its earthworks and underground divisions, Kichton's piling and shoring division has the capacity “to execute any size caisson, anchor, soil nail and shoring design” By Barb Feldman Kichton Contracting Ltd. was founded in 1963 by Michael Kichton Sr., when he began doing small civil construction jobs for general contractors and residential developers in the Edmonton area. Fred Kichton, who after his uncle's death continued the company along with his cousin Michael Jr., became the company's sole owner in 2000. In 2007, Fred sold minority shares to his brother Richard and to key employees Laurie Conrad, Russ Giselbrecht and Chris Dirks, who, along with Richard, is now a company vice-president.

Frozen Solid

APE Drilling debuts its innovative Spinfreeze pile technology to the Canadian market By Jim Timlick Northern Canada can be one of the most inhospitable climates known to man or machine. Extreme temperatures and permafrost can pose a serious challenge to any kind of construction project in the region. One U.S.-based drilling company is hoping to change all that. APE Drilling recently introduced its Spinfreeze pile technology to the Canadian market. The Spinfreeze pile is designed specifically for colder climates and enables builders to create a rock-solid foundation by using an ad-freeze bond between the piles and frost susceptible geology underground.

New TEI HCC-10 pipe handling excavator attachment improves jobsite safety

Industry News

Ledcor donates $250,000 to innovative safety program at University of Alberta

Industry News

APE Drilling takes on the Big Apple with its geo-exchange system

Industry News

Liebherr drilling rigs deployed for plant expansion at Airbus Defence and Space

Industry News

DFI and PFSF host successful conference in Melbourne, Australia

Industry News

Second Chance Line Restraint, LLC offers a safety solution

Industry News

Selix Equipment Inc. pleased with NHES performance

Industry News

Is Your Business Ready for CASL’s Private Right of Action?

Being unprepared or unknowledgeable can cost your company thousands of dollars or more By Paul K. Grower, Fillmore Riley LLP On July 1, 2017, Canada will be “celebrating” the third anniversary of Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation - generally known as CASL (pronounced “castle”). Whether a celebration is warranted is questionable. While the legislation was purportedly designed

Creating New Benchmarks

Fraste's move into Canada signals new capabilities for the foundation sector By Kelly Gray Fraste SPA Italy is a company born from tradition. Back in the 1960s, the company's founder, Benito Fracca, followed the family's vision of benchmarking products that offered tremendous utility. Launching his mechanical workshop in 1964, Fracca looked to the traditions of his family and the historic forge they operated in

Up and Coming

Backed by one of the country's premier construction and infrastructure development companies, Aecon Foundations is expanding its role in Canada's piling industry By Mark Halsall Aecon Foundations has been installing piles for almost 50 years. But it wasn't until 2013 that the Calgary-based company began to ramp up its deep foundation business in a really big way.

Ottawa’s AATech Scientific

Celebrating 20 years of pile testing By Jim Chliboyko Twenty years have gone by quickly for Sam Salem and Fred Agharazi. The two men are the founders of AATech Scientific, an Ottawa-based pile-testing company the two formed in 1997.

Building From The Top Down

Bridges normally aren't constructed this way, but thanks to cutting edge technology developed in part by a Canadian company, that's exactly what's happening in Cartagena, Colombia By Mark Halsall Building a bridge from the top down isn't the usual way to do it. But when bridge builders faced the daunting prospect of having to span five kilometres of swampland during a highway upgrade project in Cartagena, Colombia, it was determined that top-down construction made the most sense.

Toronto’s Massey Hall Legacy

What's the future; What's the foundation By Marc Paoliello, P.Eng., Deep Foundations Contractors Inc. This article originally appeared in Foundation Drilling magazine, the official publication of ADSC: the International Association of Foundation Drilling. It is reprinted with permission. Is Toronto in the midst of a cultural renaissance? As Canada's largest urban centre at just over 6 million people, the population has grown since 1834, overtaking Chicago to become North America's fourth most populous city. Toronto's longstanding institutions are undergoing massive overhauls to meet the demands of a quickly changing metropolitan area.