Building Renovations: The Critical Value of Safety

When it comes to multifamily condo and strata renovations, just how important is safety? The answer: much more so than you think.

Renovation projects, be it window and door replacement or something wider in scope, are major investments. There is one question above all that you should ask when getting quotes for the job: what exactly has been taken into account when calculating the cost? Condo and strata boards often end up with nasty financial surprises, sometimes almost immediately after agreeing to proceed. One of the major (though regularly overlooked) areas where this can occur is safety.

Let’s take a look at why safety is paramount when it comes to construction projects, both morally and in terms of your wallet – and why Centra Windows stands head and shoulders above the competition.

The Cost of Foregoing Proper Safety

When you receive a quote for a major renovation project such as windows and door replacement or exterior remediation, what do you expect it to cover? Of course there’s the cost of the products and (hopefully) the labour – but what else should your condo or strata board be asking about? With some companies you’ll receive a bare-bone quote, and vital considerations such as safety will be overlooked – at least until the project gets going. That’s when you start getting slapped with bills for the extras. The final total continues to spiral, and before you know it, you’re forced to go cap in hand back to residents, requesting more funds due to your contractor’s lack of transparency.

Another great tip prior to signing that contract: always ask about a contractor’s insurance coverage. It’s on the condo board or strata to vet the companies they’re employing to work on their complexes. If their safety standards aren’t up to par and there’s an accident, the board could very well be liable. That may or not seem fair, but that’s beside the point – it’s how things are. Always vet your contractor’s insurance before proceeding with them.

All of this, as important as it is to keep in mind, pales in comparison to the biggest cost of neglecting safety – the cost in health and potentially even lives, of both workers and residents. You want to find a company that treats safety as the serious issue it is. In BC and Alberta, that company is Centra Windows.

Why Centra Windows is Different

Safety is never secondary at Centra. We hold ourselves to exceptionally high standards, going above and beyond to protect our workers, any subcontractors, and building residents. This means full transparency for you, from before the project has even started right up to completion. Let’s take a look at some of the things that set Centra apart in this space:

Commitment to Safety Standards

At Centra, we’ll never be satisfied with doing the bare minimum when it comes to safety. We do our utmost to consider every scenario to ensure everyone on site, be it our people or those who live in the complex, aren’t in any danger. A good example of this is how we do our scaffolding. We’ve been asked why we encase it when this costs extra. Our ‘why’? We don’t know if there are kids on site, and when it comes to multifamily complexes, there very likely are. If we don’t protect the scaffolding against entry, it becomes accessible – and would you climb scaffolding as a kid? Many would, and it’s unconscionable to us that not taking that simple extra step could lead to a child having an accident. We consider the extra cost and time very much worth it, and this is the approach we take to all aspects of the project. You’ll see sites from other companies where scaffolding is set up into overhead powerlines or hoardings are right across doors, impacting egress and putting residents in danger if they ever had to evacuate the complex. That is not something you’d ever see with Centra Windows.

COR Certification

Safety is actually one of the company’s core values – and we have the COR certification to back it up, in both BC and Alberta. This comes with audits and a lot of extra scrutiny on our safety practices, which Centra happily welcomes. We’re a company that is more than willing to put our work and track record on display. COR certification isn’t simple to obtain – it’s something that sets us apart in our industry and is a major differentiator over the competition. Going out of the way to do the extra work required by this certification is some of the most solid proof there is of the importance of safety to Centra.

Thorough and Transparent Quoting Process

When it comes to the quote process, we make sure to take everything we possibly can into account from the get-go. We don’t think board members and their residents deserve any avoidable surprises, and crystal-clear clarity with quoting is our answer to that. We aren’t picking a number at random and then making it up as we go along. We take all safety precautions into account in our initial package, quoting for the full scope of the project instead of tacking on extras later. Other companies can keep costs hidden at the outset, knowing full well they’re going to come up further down the line.

Comprehensive Insurance Coverage

No matter how rigorous you are with safety and taking precautions, construction sites are inherently hazardous places and accidents can happen. That’s why we as a company are fully insured. If anything were to ever happen, we don’t want the financial burden to fall on your board, your residents, and your own insurance company. We handle the coverage ourselves so you don’t have to worry about it. Comprehensive insurance protects the investments, reputations, and well-being of all parties involved in the process and allows the project to proceed smoothly.

In-House Safety Teams & Hazardous Materials Testing

Our exceptional dedication to safety is upheld by our in-house safety teams. We have safety managers in both BC and Alberta whose primary role is to ensure we’re fulfilling our commitment to safety on every job. Our in-house teams perform regular site visits, making sure everything is in order. We also have extensive safety manuals, in-depth training, and on-the-job assessments to keep all workers knowledgeable and up to date with those strict standards.

In addition, Centra performs extensive hazardous materials testing in BC, and we’re trained to handle materials like asbestos ourselves which is another major differentiator over our competitors, and again likely to save you money as the project progresses. We still test in Alberta, though regulations are different in the province – as are window installation methods, meaning hazardous materials are not at the same risk of being disturbed by our work.

Always do Your Due Diligence

What else should condo and strata boards look out for besides safety when deciding which contractor is right for their project? The first rule of thumb is to always check company reviews. With Google, Home Stars, and other online resources, it’s never been easier to find information on the contractors you’ll be working with, so be sure to have a browse and properly acquaint yourself with them.

Another integral factor when choosing your contractor is the warranty on offer. How long will your investment be protected? Some companies offer a ‘lifetime’ warranty – but they tend to be anything but. When you read the contract, you’ll find that this supposed lifetime warranty covers you for a set amount of time, often 20 or 25 years. Many cover you for even less time, with major elements of a project no longer under warranty after just a couple of years – and with what is covered, companies will fight tooth and nail to avoid their responsibilities. We’ve seen projects undertaken by others which have been so poorly done, with such bad, difficult-to-access warranties, that complexes are having to look at replacing their windows once again after less than five years. Thankfully Centra now offers a new warranty with 30-year coverage, to give you total peace of mind.

As well as looking at your contractor’s reputation and warranty, you should find out how long they’ve been around. You may hear the term ‘Mickey Mouse operation,’ which summarizes some of these companies quite well. Sometimes after operating for a little while and doing a few jobs a company can disappear, popping up again as something else, and your warranty becomes useless and you have no recourse to correct any deficiencies with what is likely poor workmanship in the first place. That’s not a risk with Centra. We’re 100% Employee Owned, and in addition to the value our many Owners place on integrity, it also means our ownership is constantly renewing and the company can’t be shut down or sold off. You can rest assured that Centra will always be here for you.

When it comes time to pick your contractor, be as smart as you can about the decision. Other companies may try to underbid and undercut early on, but subsequently, they also underperform and underdeliver. Making lowest cost the number one priority is a bad move for such important projects. Don’t be hoodwinked by artificially low prices and the obfuscation practiced by some companies – demand clarity and ensure every box is ticked prior to signing on the dotted line. Being as educated as possible and avoiding the urge to skimp is very likely to save you more – in terms of both money and headaches – in the long run.

With 40 years of experience and hundreds of successful multifamily projects under our belts, Centra is perfectly placed to make your project a success. Reach out to our Experts today for a free project assessment, and let’s rejuvenate your complex in the way it deserves.

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We love to talk windows! We’re here to help, so if you have a question about your window project all you have to do is reach out. Contact us early in the process so that our experts can make sure everything is correct from the get-go.

For more information on this topic (and many more!) contact our local Employee Owners at 1-888-534-3333 or drop us an email at info@centra.ca. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram to learn more about what's happening with Centra Windows. Join the club and become a Window Geek yourself by signing up for our newsletter, which provides news, advice, and tips about the window industry and upcoming events, and test your window knowledge by following us on LinkedIn.