London Inc. Fall 2021 - 16

Upfront Construction
BUILDING
FROM THE
INSIDE OUT
A growing full-service
construction firm keys in
on innovative expansion,
employee culture and
community engagement
ASK NATE FEHRMAN to describe
his firm, michael + clark construction
(www.michaelclark.construction), and
he won't refer to it as a construction
company, a design-build firm or building
services business. Instead, he prefers
the firm to be thought of as " project
stewards " - a business dedicated to
handling the management of a project
entrusted into one's care.
" I always say, 'Anybody can build the
thing,' " Fehrman explains. " It's figuring
out the why - why it needs to be built
the way it does and figuring out what
the individual client's needs are. "
For the last eight years, that is how
michael + clark has operated. Founded
in 2013 by Fehrman and his business
partner, Mike Newton, the duo set out
to fill a void in the region for a commercial
contracting company that provided
end-to-end services but did so with
the care and attention of a boutique
business.
" And you know what? Our company
grew much faster than we envisioned, "
Fehrman says.
The key to their approach, he says, is
comprehensive engagement from the
outset. Which is why their ideal client is
not someone with a final vision in hand,
but " a client who brings us in as early as
possible. "
Consider, says Fehrman, one client
who knocked on their door asking for a
100,000-square-foot facility, convinced
they needed every inch of that space.
" By the time we were done planning
16 | londonincmagazine.ca | FALL 2021
Nate Fehrman and Mike Newtwon
with them, they actually only needed
60,000 square feet, " he says. " I don't
think many [contractors] do that. "
And by all accounts, it's an approach
that is meeting the demands of broad
range of sectors, from industrial,
healthcare and commercial facilities
to institutional, retail, manufacturing
and food processing projects. Its
diverse portfolio of clients includes BOS
Innovations, Dr. Oetker, Carfax Canada,
Pillar Meats, Tepperman's and Starlim,
to name but a few.
The latest innovation for the partners
is a new way to efficiently respond
to client needs once a build is finished.
Spun out as a new division called
hexcon (www.hexcon.ca), the venture
will expand into capital maintenance
services and smaller scale expansions,
building on the business they've
acquired through michael + clark.
" Sometimes, clients just need a small
project - they need a window changed,
http://www.michaelclark.construction http://www.hexcon.ca http://www.londonincmagazine.ca
London Inc. Fall 2021

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