Colt Structures—New Brunswick, Canada

Colt Structures—New Brunswick, Canada

AN AFFILIATE COMPANY OF COLT BUILDERS

The tiny town of Nackawic, New Brunswick, sits on the mouth of the Saint John River, just half an hour over the Canadian border. Home to the world’s largest axe and a population of less than 1,000, Nackawic is also the first plant location for Colt Structures.

The world’s largest axe, on display in the tiny town of Nackawic

A sister company to Colt Builders, Colt Structures opened their Nackawic location in 2016 and specializes in building wall panels for a variety of architectural projects. A natural expansion of Colt Builders, Colt Structures helps diversify and grow the company’s overall interests. The majority of shareholders at Colt Builders are Canadian natives, which made settling down in Nackawic a natural choice.

The company took up residence in an industrial park that had been abandoned for some time, giving a literal new lease on life to the area. Since Nackawic’s founding, the town and the surrounding populations have relied on employment from companies at the industrial park, meaning Colt Structures has revitalized the town once again.

The company has only grown since it began, adding two production lines and becoming the second-largest employer in the region. Even when the COVID-19 pandemic decreased the demand for wall paneling as building projects were put on hold, Colt Structures still kept their employees on board, only cutting hours down from 44 to 40. “The guys were telling me, ‘I need a break anyway!’” jokes plant manager Mark Cormier. But now, as demand is growing again. “We’re heading back in the other direction,” he says.

Colt Structures plant in Nackawic, New Brunswick

Meet Mark

Mark has been involved in construction work for nearly his entire life. In fact, his first job was on-site construction work for his family’s business as a teenager. “My time in construction as a teen really disciplined me, and I appreciated that,” Mark says. This sense of discipline followed him throughout his career, which had Mark building everything from residential houses to tiny homes that were shipped all over Europe.

But after working thousands of construction jobs, Mark was ready for something new. “At that point in my life, I wanted to be involved with something that mattered to someone else,” he explains. When Mark saw an advertisement for a plant manager position with a new company that had just set up shop in the town he’d called home for over two decades, it felt like a stroke of luck.

“I’d never gotten to work in my hometown,” Mark says. “This plant was something that mattered to my immediate family, so it was a pretty decent opportunity. I met with Colt Structures, and within a month I was hired. We hit the ground running.”

Wall panel fabrication and assembly in the Nackawic Colt Structures plant

Wall panel fabrication and assembly in the Nackawic Colt Structures plant

Wall panel fabrication and assembly in the Nackawic Colt Structures plant

Building Community Ties

But Colt Structures hasn’t spent the last five years only fostering the local economy—they’ve spent time creating relationships with the local community as well. Since opening the plant, the company has found ways to provide funding and equipment for sports teams and student groups.

One of the most prominent ways they’ve donated to Nackawic is through the local co-op program at the high school. Mayor Ian Kitchen, who spends his days as a math teacher and volleyball coach when not handling town matters, has seen firsthand the ways his students, as well as his constituents, have benefited from Colt’s relationship with the town.

“Any time you can get someone to help you out with equipment at school, it makes life a lot easier,” Mayor Kitchen explains. “For a small town, you really need companies like Colt that are involved in the community. That helps your town flourish.”

Colt Structures has also provided funding for the local junior curling league and the high school’s sports teams. But when COVID-19 hit Canada and school programs like the carpentry co-op began to close down, Mark realized that there was another opportunity to help out. In partnership with the local building supply store, Colt Structures provided tool kits for each student, ensuring that they’d have access to the materials that they needed to complete their projects.

Curling league Donated equipment for trade students

“I was worried the trade students were going to suffer since they usually have to share tools,” Mark explains. “Every kid has their own books going into class, and trade students deserve their own tool kits hanging on the shelf.”

Donated equipment for trade students

Even in the wake of a once-in-a-lifetime global health crisis, Colt Structures is looking forward to continuing growth and expansion, as well as furthering their relationships with community members. With another plant opening up in Kingman, Arizona, the Nackawic branch is preparing to share a period of exponential growth. As Canada and the United States face a serious housing shortage, the company knows that the next several years will require building materials as supply attempts to appease demand.

A Future of Exponential Growth

“We’re a small-town, bedroom community,” Mayor Kitchen says. “Colt Structures has brought a lot of jobs to our town and helped our economy, and they’ve done it all on their own. They’re self-sufficient and doing well.”

Mark thinks so, too.

“Colt Structures coming to Nackawic was a great opportunity for this small community,” he says. “I think the future of Colt Structures is strong. I think the future of this community is strong. I’m looking forward to every minute of it.”