Buca RenderWritten by David H. CaldwellWhich is better: quality or quantity? Every company is forced to address this question when forming its business plan and long-term strategy. With a business model focusing on client interaction rather than the mass acquisition of contracts, Arguson Projects Inc. is rapidly building a reputation as a ‘one-stop shop’ for design, construction, renovation, and contracting. The company has expanded from a single Toronto office with minimal staff to having satellite offices across North America.Arguson has developed a reputation for professionalism and close cooperation with its clients. This has allowed the company to expand greatly beyond its home city to set up satellite offices across Canada and the United States. While this was not the focus when the company was founded, Vice President of Operations Paul Clarkson says this expan-sion was a natural progression due to Arguson’s client-focused business model. 33“We go where our clients go,” he explains simply. “If our core clients purchase prop-erties in other regions, they generally want us to go with them to provide the same services that we provide in the GTA [Greater Toronto Area].” As its clients purchase buildings or land in other cities, Arguson follows to perform building inspection and other pre-construction work. Throughout the process, it is on hand to provide advice, budgeting and coordination with the asset managers to ensure the best inter-ests of the buildings, while providing quality design and construction. “It’s really a full-service package that we provide,” Clarkson says, “and generally the clients want to replicate what we do in the GTA across all their portfolios and locations.”This has allowed the contractor to enjoy a meteoric rise over its eleven years in business. It had fewer than ten employ-ees when it was founded by two entre-preneurs Dan Boucher and Rich Newman in Toronto in 2008. The company now has over one hundred staff distributed between its Toronto headquarters as well as field offices in Calgary, Saint John’s, and Halifax. Arguson has also expanded into the United States recently, setting up new field offices in Chicago, New Jersey, and is also managing some projects in Florida. Internally, the company has undergone significant restructuring in the past year to add more specialists, project man-agement staff and an additional layer of management. The goal is better structure, more streamlined processes, to make the “We go where our clients go. If our core clients purchase properties in other regions, they generally want us to go with them.”150 Symes2251 & 2285 SpeakmanSNC Lavalin44 company more efficient and responsive to the client and, longer term, to increase work-life balance for employees. “A lot of contractors today are hard-bidding projects and looking for the next project from anyone they can get them from,” Dan Boucher, company CEO states, noting that, as a result, many con-tractors think more of short-term financial gain. Arguson instead seeks to build longer-term relationships with its clients and establish itself as their preferred contractor. “I like to think that we’re more than just a general contractor for our clients and we really aim to integrate ourselves within those businesses.” To do this, Arguson handles as many aspects of a project as possible, including interior design, budgeting, value engineer-ing, and planning, from pre-construction through to comple-tion, and it works to build its reputation by staying within project budgets. “It’s building that relationship and having that strength with the people that you’re working for,” Boucher explains, elaborating that the company preaches this model when developing new relationships with new clients.Unlike many of its competitors, the company does not actively pursue hard bid contracts. “Our focus is primarily [construction management] with an emphasis on design-build mandates, which helps our clients out a lot and gives them an advantage in the marketplace.” Arguson assists not merely on large con-struction projects but smaller renovations and facilities man-agement work, from a $500 toilet replacement to projects with price tags of up to $40 million. Though other contractors might dismiss the smaller jobs, Clarkson says the company views this policy as crucial to integrating itself with its clients’ businesses. 150 SymesRestoration 1“Everyone in the company has access to the leadership team.” 6Its facilities management and value add services might involve improving energy efficiency, including lighting retrofits, consult-ing work, building automation LEED and mechanical upgrades to promote building efficiency. The goal of this diversification, Clarkson says, is to establish Arguson as a place that can do it all. If the company can provide all the services a client might need – construction, facility management, design, maintenance, and utili-ties – it can ensure a reliable client base for years to come. While the company does not employ engineers or architects on staff, Clarkson says that “It’s something we may do in the future.” 150 SymesRestoration 1TopHat 7 Arguson has numerous successful commercial projects across Canada, and currently in Calgary, it is renovating the three storey building podium at Stephen Avenue Place, a 620,000-square-foot property offering shopping and dining. Arguson will update the podium and façade of the building and redevelop the interior space to create new retail, common area, food hall and amenity space, turning it into a downtown landmark and destination. The company will also be undertaking substantial renovations at Halifax’s Maritime Centre to create a building addition to the existing podium to provide retail, restaurants and new common area space. This will also modernize a building that has been a long-term Halifax landmark.Closer to home, Arguson has been renovating the streetscape over recent years in the Yonge and St. Clair neighbourhood in Toronto, bringing this busy intersection up to date. Current projects include the redevelopment of 2-24 St. Clair Ave. West and 1 St. Clair Ave. East, adding to multiple other projects in that area. The company has also engaged in smaller projects in towns across Ontario, including Barrie, Bracebridge, and Baysville. As a full-service contractor, it currently focuses more on ren-ovation over new build construction, as that is primarily its clients’ focus. The company’s versatility shows in the variety of its renovations, including interior offices, washrooms, common 82 St Clair Ave WLobby Renovation 9Next >