They are part of Dawson business strategy

The story of the Dawson Group is essentially one of teamwork. According to Graham Dawson, its growth history is largely due to the calibre of personnel at all levels. In fact, one of his prime business strategies is to build on the services of skilled specialists, many of whom have been more than 30 years with Dawson.

“Skilled people are our most valuable asset,” he says. “Our people, more than our machines, build our projects. And we are proud to have among us the skills and knowhow that make the difficult become routine.”

From bottom up

Among the Dawson Team, Magnus P. Teit was one of the earliest employees. He joined Dawson, Wade and Co. Ltd., the predecessor of Dawson Construction Ltd., in 1943 as a labourer with Dawson’s first asphalt plant.

He was later to become a senior paving manager and more recently vice-president and general manager of Dawson Construction, the parent company of the group.

Mag still feels most comfortable in the field, and enjoys an excellent working relationship with the men on the job.

Peacemaker

Jack A. Capstick joined the company in 1946 in a junior clerical capacity, as a stenographer. He worked his way up through the accounting department and in the ’50s, he was project accountant on the Granville St. bridge.

Jack has since moved into the field of property management, labour relations and safety. He is now vice president administration of Dawson Construction.

As a past-president of the B.C. Road Builders Association, he has helped maintain labour peace in the road-building industry through his intimate knowledge of construction, coupled with prolonged negotiations with labour leaders.

Estimating

H. Reginald Christie, P. Eng., joined Dawson, Wade and Co. in 1952. For several years, he worked in the field as a project engineer. He was brought into the head office to work with then vice president and chief estimator Bill Terry. He gained a great deal of experience and skills and is today one of the most capable estimators in the construction industry.

His knowledge of construction and his engineering capabilities have been of great assistance to many consultants and owners alike. He is vice-president engineering of Dawson Construction and a director of several companies of the group. He is a member of the Association of Professional Engineers of B.C.

Cost control

T.C. (Trev) Murdoch joined Dawson Construction in 1968 and has recently been appointed treasurer.

Trev, brought to the company experience attained in accounting and cost control work in the construction industry. He has been instrumental in setting up one of the finest cost-control systems in the industry, utilizing a combination of manual accounting methods backed up with detailed computer assistance.

He and his staff produce cost reports not only as to direct job costs, but equipment repair and operating costs as well. These reports are reviewed with operating personnel to point out areas of cost-overrun and, more particularly, potential problem areas. He is in constant liaison with a group of field accountants, one or more of which are on each Dawson project.