The Best Seats
In The House

Rock and roll, bell bottoms, free love and extremely heavy folding gym partitions are just a few characteristics of the 1950s, 60s and 70s. While the former are relatively unthreatening, the latter has become one of the biggest safety concerns athletic facility operators face today.

After serving the purpose of dividing a space for a number of decades, the fact that many of these antiquated systems are still in operation today pose a variety of safety risks to both operators and participants.

Designed using heavy materials and often with not enough horsepower to operate them, these outdated gym dividers have made unfavourable appearances in the media over the past two decades, having caused a number of of injuries and even some deaths.

One of our most recent projects took us to the Bay of Fundy on Canada’s East Coast to help the Boys and Girls Club, one of our favourite organizations. With locations throughout Canada and the United States, these clubs provide children and youth with life-changing programming and community-based services that aid them in developing the skills required to lead a healthy, productive life.

We have had the pleasure of working with a number of these clubs across North America and this time, we were happy to be involved with some work at the Boys and Girls Club of Saint John, New Brunswick.

Committed to fostering a safe, supportive and stimulating environment for students, Ancaster District High School provides a variety of transitional programs and leadership opportunities for its students.

Located in what’s known as Toronto’s Golden Horseshoe, the school is located on the western fringe of the city of Hamilton, a port city located at the west end of Lake Ontario.

In addition to the school’s focus on academics, Ancaster High School also takes pride in its extensive athletic programming. Representing high school athletics as the Ancaster Royals, the school’s gymnasium serves as a hub not only for physical education but also for pride and recognition of the students’ athletic prowess.

Honouring current, past and present women whose lives exemplified the courage, resilience and independence that ultimately shaped the American West, the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame is the only museum in the world dedicated to preserving their history.

Located in Fort Worth, Texas the museum is home to more than 4,000 artifacts and information regarding over 750 remarkable women, celebrating their decorated past and on-going contributions to American society today.

In 2015, the museum began the early stages of what would be a massive $5.5 million renovation that eventually made its way upstairs to the facility’s second floor. With much fanfare, the second floor was once again open to the public earlier this month and we were fortunate to have been involved with the redevelopment of one of the museum’s attractions.

In the 40 years in which we have been in operation, our proudest accomplishment has been not only our rapid expansion in Canada and the US, but also into other foreign markets such as Kuwait, Barbados, and Europe among many others.

Once again, we were fortunate to have another international invitation to bring athletic equipment abroad, this time to the African nation of the Republic of Uganda. Located in east-central Africa in the Great Lakes region, the country is completely landlocked except for a portion of their border on Africa’s largest lake, Lake Victoria.

Near the end of 2016, our team was directly contacted by Richard Stanley from the 303 Development Group located in Staten Island, New York to discuss the possibility of a new multipurpose sports facility in Uganda. As a part of an expansion to the Allen VR Stanley Secondary School, the facility was in the process of planning a new indoor pavilion that would accommodate sports such as basketball, badminton, volleyball and many other events. The construction of such a facility would prove to be the first of its kind in the Republic of Uganda and one that had everyone very excited.

When it comes to extreme sports, skateboarding and BMX riding provide the recipe for heart-pulsing excitement and thrills for both spectators and participants.

Naturally, in this type of environment, safety is a prime concern. No matter the skill level, the chances of a collision or crash are extremely high and for those operating these types of facilities, there are many areas that can be made safer.  

While we are used to working with traditional sports such as hockey, football, basketball and more we also do quite a bit of work in the extreme sports realm, even working closely with many Hollywood stunt teams.

Facilities that house extreme sports almost always require safety padding, which often comes customized, as each facility can be completely different.

Located just west of Canada’s Capital lies the quaint and quiet village of Carp, Ontario. Anchored for years by historic Diefenbunker Museum, the small rural town has grown significantly after amalgamation with the City of Ottawa. Today the community retains its historic charm while offering residents charming restaurants, and parks along with a brewery and a vineyard.

As part of one of our most recent projects, we were commissioned by the city to design and install a unique set of stairways for use with some existing wooden bleachers inside the local arena.

Operating across three campuses in eastern Ontario, St. Lawrence College (SLC) is one of the province’s leading institutions when it comes to applied arts and technology. Home to roughly 7,000 full-time students, SLC specializes in programs such as applied science and computing, baccalaureate nursing, business, community services, justice studies, applied arts, health sciences as well as skilled trades and tourism.

As the institution continues to experience exponential growth, 2018 was the year that saw exciting projects come to fruition at the school’s flagship campus in Kingston. As part of the Hello Future Capital Project, renovations and a new build to the Student Life and Innovation Centre got underway after over 80 percent voted in favour of supporting the project in a student referendum.

Administering Roman Catholic schools scattered throughout the western portion of eastern Ontario, the Algonquin Lakeshore Catholic District School Board is comprised of over 30 elementary schools and 11 secondary schools in the region.

As part of their equitable and inclusive education standards, the schools residing within the board are built on the foundations of discipleship, scholarship, and stewardship. As such, a number of the schools are equipped with specialized rooms that allow for a quiet or safe place for students who sometimes thrive by being temporarily removed from the often noisy and busy environments characteristic of the classroom.

One of our more recent projects brought us back to Canada’s most southern city, Windsor. Tucked along the Detroit River directly across from the Motor City (Detroit), Windsor is a major player in the Canadian automotive industry and the area’s 400,000 residents.

Working closely with the Windsor Essex Catholic District School Board in southern Ontario, we were contracted to perform some work at Holy Names Secondary School on the south side of Windsor.

Home of the Knights athletic program, the school was scheduling a two-phase approach to the construction of two sets of large bleachers and a press box to adorn their new field and track.