The Founding Story (2020 Archive)

This is a story of the building blocks on which NorLand was founded. How the company has overcome many challenges and grown into the NorLand we know and love today.

In 1954, Jack Pratt left his career in the mining industry and founded Pacific Blasting Company (PBC) out of the basement of his house in a small neighborhood in Burnaby. In the beginning, it was just Jack and three other blasters. Over time, the company changed, grew, and diversified while retaining the family-oriented culture upon which it was founded. Resiliency in overcoming tremendous obstacles was at the core of the company in the early days, and it continues to be to this day.

Jack and his wife, June, had a daughter named Beverly who got married in 1966 to a man named Dennis Bekar. Dennis joined the family business in 1968 and became a foreman. After 26 years as the owner and operator, Jack Pratt decided to go to Northern B.C. to pursue one of his mineral claims. He left the business to his wife June who had little interest or experience in running a blasting company. To keep the business in the family, she asked her son-in-law Dennis to take over. With great eagerness, 25-year-old Dennis reached out to his two younger brothers, Brian (23) and Dale (19) for help to purchase and run the company. In 1971, the Bekar brothers took ownership of PBC as equal partners.

Dennis, having the most company experience, took over business development, scouting new projects, building relationships within the industry, and ensuring the growth of the company. Brian, who came from the residential construction industry, and Dale, who came from a gold mine in Yellowknife when he got the call from his brother, both got involved in the blasting operations. Dale, in particular, became increasingly responsible for overseeing project completions and overall fieldwork.

The three brothers decided to move PBC headquarters to a small office space on the main floor of a house located at 3183 Norland Avenue. The original lease included one office (off to the right when you enter 3183) and one equipment bay, located behind the building. By 1974, the brothers had purchased the entire building on Norland Avenue and the 1-acre plot of land it was on, and while they weren’t the only business occupying the building or yard, they were growing.

Through the early and mid-70s, the company’s growth led to them branching out into shotcrete shoring services by 1977/78. PBC’s growth continued until the severe global recession of the early 1980s when interest rates skyrocketed to 17% and economic activity came to an abrupt halt. After a prosperous decade, in 1981 the company watched as its entire book of business for the year evaporated. The company payroll, which had expanded from 14 employees when the brothers took over to 30 employees before the recession hit, shrank back to around 15 employees. The Royal Bank of Canada, with whom the company had a large line of credit, chose to call in the entirety of PBC’s loan. This nearly put the company out of business for good, as there was no way to pay back their entire loan. What were they going to do?

The very next day after the loan was called, the Bekar brothers received an unsolicited call out of the blue from an old friend, Gary Bimler. Gary had helped the brothers with equipment financing in the early days, and as it happened had just been made Vice President of the Western & Pacific Bank of Canada. Eager for their business, Gary offered the brothers favorable terms on a new loan. The Pacific Blasting Company was saved! As Dale describes it “it was a gift from God.” This gift forged a life-long loyalty to that bank (now known as Canadian Western Bank), which remains intact to this day.

This unexpected turn of events lit a fire under the brothers and helped focus their efforts. They were leaner as a company but with this second chance, they were going to make the most of it. The brothers decided to expand their offerings again into demolition, renaming the company Pacific Blasting & Demolition (PBD) in 1983. The next year, while the business and the economy were still recovering, Brian approached Dennis and Dale about selling his ownership stake. Dennis and Dale purchased Brian’s shares and split them equally, becoming 50/50 partners of Pacific Blasting & Demolition.

The partnership between Dennis and Dale worked very well as they complemented each other’s skill set. Dennis brought the business knowhow and strategy to the table, and Dale brought insights into the operations and management of the business. Dale described Dennis as “his Brother, his Partner, his Friend.” They worked well together and enjoyed growing the business as a team.

Growth was steady for a few years, but in 1988 Dennis passed away. He had had health issues dating back to childhood and after 4 heart operations, he slipped from this life. Dale took over as the sole owner after inheriting his brother’s shares. While Dale was still eager to continue, work wasn’t the same without his Brother, his Partner, and his Friend. The business continued to grow with little sign of slowing down, and headcount increased above 30 again. Dale was now responsible for both the development and operations of the entire company, taking on the role his brother had played in addition to his own.

In September 1988, Sam Gudewill approached Dale with an offer to purchase the company. Dale wasn’t planning to sell – business was good and growing then – but he recognized that without Dennis, there was a big piece missing. Dale felt that Sam, with his business acumen and strategic mindset, could complement his field operations and management, much like Dennis had. Dale sold the business to Sam and his business partner, Joe Houssian, in January 1989, agreeing as part of the deal to stay on as company President for five years. This arrangement allowed Dale to do what he did best and ensured the success of the company long-term, while also giving Dale comfort knowing the family-oriented culture he and his brothers helped create would continue under his leadership. Dale understood the value of creating a safe work environment, where employees felt welcomed and looked after, and staying on as president gave him the chance to preserve that culture. Little did he or Sam know that Dale would remain on as President for nearly 30 more years through several more ups and downs. As Dale now approaches his 50^th anniversary with the company (next year) we can take comfort knowing that he continues in his active work for NorLand as Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors, for which all of NorLand is very thankful.

Dale found the Partner and Friend he had lost in Dennis, and while Sam would never be able to replace his brother, he helped Dale continue to grow the business and foster the family-oriented company that started back in 1954. In 2015, the company was rebranded as NorLand Limited. Although Pacific Blasting & Demolition is still at the heart of the business, the company that started with a single blasting service in the lower mainland of Vancouver is now part of a much larger offering of businesses and services that work across the country, with specializations that are recognized and respected throughout Canada.

In order to tell this story accurately, Dale was interviewed, and the ownership was consulted. A follow up to the initial interview took place to get a better understanding, from Dale’s perspective, of what the main factors were that have helped NorLand become what it is today, and what he believes will help NorLand continue to create a positive impact for the next 100 years. Dale talked about how NorLand started as a small, one service company that has evolved into a leader in the construction industry, with a very diverse offering. This leadership was made possible only by the innovation and hard work of the employees, having a culture anchored in safety and family values, capitalizing on opportunities when they are presented, and by having an Anything. Possible. mindset.

In an interview back from 2004, Dale was quoted, talking about their 50 year anniversary, “That’s rare in the construction industry,” says Bekar. “It’s a boom or- bust industry and construction companies come and go with the cycles. We’ve been fortunate but we also worked hard to develop a good reputation. To survive 50 years in the B.C. construction industry is something we’re very proud of.” To read more from that article in BC Business, follow this link.

To be a leader in such a competitive industry, however, there’s no room for complacency. Leaders must continue to learn and adapt. One of NorLand’s core values is Innovation Is What Sustains Us. This has been a key ingredient in past success and if the company is to succeed, it must remain so. Innovation happens at the people level, and NorLand has been fortunate to be able to attract incredible talent. Without a culture of a positive work environment and deep-rooted care for their employees, NorLand would not be able to retain this talent and benefit from the long-term commitment to innovation and teamwork. As one of NorLand’s other core values states, Teammates Get Treated like Family.

In Dale’s own words, “If we hadn’t diversified out from blasting, we would have been out of business a long time ago.” While blasting remains a core NorLand service offering, without the benefit of expanded capabilities, the company would not have been able to grow the way it has. The diversity of service offering – which includes shoring, controlled blasting, demolition, scaffolding, custom manufacturing, jet grouting, consulting, excavating, mine rehabilitation, and heavy dimensional transportation (to name a few) – have enabled NorLand to continue to innovate and grow through two-thirds of a century of operations and all the economic ups and downs that come with that.

This is the same message Dale wants to communicate to the current and future generations of NorLand. For NorLand to make a positive impact for the next 100 years, they must continue to learn, adapt, grow, and lead the way forward for the entire industry. This includes treating employees, co-workers, and all NorLand staff, like family. Treating their people well will ensure NorLand attracts and retains the best, most talented, and innovative people, which will ensure an enduring legacy and positive impact for the next 100 years. Along with talent and innovation comes solid strategy. Without the strategic minds and future thinkers that NorLand has on its roster, they would not be able to plan for and lead the industry in Helping Build Enduring Communities, Together.