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“We are committed to excellence in the electrical field, earning our customers’ long term trust through prompt, skilled and personalized service.”
Springing into Action T
By Nerissa McNaughton
he year was 1973. A young man in Sherwood Park had a love of working with his hands, an aptitude for business and a basement that was begging to be turned into profitable space. Don Bunting combined these three things to create Action Electrical Ltd. Fast forward to 2013. Action Electrical Ltd. now operates out of a massive twostorey building in Edmonton and employs nearly 100 people – many of whom have been with the company their entire career. This is the story of how a man with a passion for his business, an unshakeable set of goals and values and a healthy appetite for manageable risk created a family-run business that has lit up Edmonton for over 40 years. Don Bunting was always a man with a mechanical mind. From a young age he enjoyed taking things apart to see what made them tick. After he secured employment with his friend’s father, who was an electrical contractor, Bunting discovered he could channel his desire to make things work into a career. Between the Southern and Northern Alberta Institutes of technology (SAIT and NAIT), he completed his education to become a master electrician. The start of Bunting’s business was humble, but the trajectory was nothing short of amazing. After only two years of running Action Electrical Ltd. from his house, the company moved into a larger, rented space. The growing company moved again in 1981 before settling into their current location on 7931 Coronet Road in 2002. “It suited our needs,” says Bunting of the move. “There is good warehouse and office space and it’s a great location.” There are three main sectors of electrical work: industrial, residential and commercial. All three sectors have vastly different requirements and regulations. One of the many reasons Action Electrical Ltd. is so
1 • Action Electrical Ltd. • 40 Years
successful is because the company focuses solely on one sector: commercial. This allows for streamlining of training, skills and equipment; they are not spread thin trying to cover different aspects of the industry. Over 30 schools, 70 churches, numerous office and commercial buildings have benefited from Action’s services and so have notable landmarks, Manulife Place, Telus Towers, Sun Life Place, ATB Tower, The City of Edmonton, Bell Tower, NAIT, WCB, Grant MacEwan and many more. Action Electrical Ltd. has three distinct departments: service, TEGG and projects. A separate company, Custom Lighting Ltd., designs and manufacturers lighting fixtures. These fixtures are sold through distributor channels. The service department takes care of electrical maintenance, lighting maintenance/service and lighting retrofits. “Lighting is one of our niche markets,” says Blake Bunting, general manager and Bunting’s son. “We have done more lighting upgrades in the city than any other contractor.” Lighting services include washing, re-lamping, inspections, and outdoor sign and pole lighting maintenance. Lighting retrofits include energy audits, energy analysis, layout and design, mock-ups and installation. The service department has twelve fully stocked vans allowing the service technicians to respond to any type of electrical service request. Action Electrical Ltd. is northern Alberta’s only licensed TEGG service provider and under this division, they have been providing specialized electrical testing (infrared, ultrasonic, voltage/current diagnostics, arc flash studies, guaranteed maintenance agreements) since 2010. The TEGG method is focused on electrical distribution preventative