www.ecao.org 24 POISED TO THRIVE Key verticals Stiles says the Toronto office is focused on five key verticals: airports, long-term care/ retirement living, post secondary, high- rise residential, and — most importantly — P3 pursuits. “We’re serious about the P3 marketplace, we’ve done several P3s corporate-wide and are looking to partner with the appropriate subtrades to help qualify and win P3 projects in the province of Ontario,” Strickland says. He says there’s an opportunity for “subcon- tractors to grow their business alongside us.” Innovation has always been part of Pomer- leau’s DNA, and nowhere is this seen more clearly than in its use of technology as a value differentiator. The company prides itself on being a pioneer in the Business Information Modeling — Virtual Design and Construction (BIM-VDC) space, a methodology that identifies construction conflicts and design improvement opportun- ities before ground is broken, thereby saving significant time and money. BIM delivers far greater efficiency when plan- ning, designing, constructing and managing building and infrastructure projects. Pomerleau also employs virtual reality, allowing clients to review their workspaces prior to construction so that designs can be tweaked and enhanced to ensure customers are getting exactly what they want. “That interface with the end user group is critically important and is part of our value proposition,” Strickland says. Solving challenges with technology Strickland says a surgeon recently used Pomerleau’s virtual reality to test his operating “We’re really customer oriented, we’re a company built on relationships. We don’t look at projects as transactional, we want to develop relationships with subtrades, with suppliers, with our clients...” theatre within a new hospital. There was a piece of equipment that had traditionally been in that location, but the surgeon said it always got in the way of his elbow while he was operating, so he wondered if it could be moved six inches. Through computer rendering, the room was reconfigured to make it work, and — voilà — a long-standing challenge was easily rectified. This specific instance is a prime example of Pomerleau’s vision of rethinking construc- tion, from idea to completion. It’s a unique approach that ensures the best results possible. “We do things differently,” Stiles explains. “We’re very innovative. We’re always looking for different ways of doing things. The status quo isn’t good enough for us. We like to dif- ferentiate ourselves that way.” Pomerleau offers partners, suppliers and clients a local presence with experienced employees that have an intuitive understand- ing of the intricacies and unique qualities of their specific regional markets, all backed by the power, expertise and innovation of a national organization. Ultimately, it’s a value proposition that offers the best of both worlds. Rob Blackstien (www.Pen-Ultimate.ca) is a Toronto-based writer who specializes in the construction, renovation and housing industries. Patrick Stiles, Regional Vice President, GTA