Modern Niagara’s Southwestern Ontario office, our newest location, continues to expand our presence and operations in the region. Despite only formally establishing a new office out of Hamilton in early 2021, Modern Niagara has a strong connection to this region and many of our current team members in the new office have been living and working in the area for many years. One such individual is Mitch Dupont, Project Manager at Modern Niagara, who spoke to us about his experience in the trades and working at Modern Niagara, as well as the ongoing process of developing our new office in Southwestern Ontario.
“I started late in the trades; I was about 25, 26 when I got my plumbing apprenticeship,” Mitch said. “As soon as I became a journeyman, I joined Modern Niagara in 2011 and started work on the St. Catharine’s Hospital project and I’ve been here ever since.”
“Most of my time at Modern Niagara so far has been spent on major projects,” said Mitch. “For my first eight or nine years, I worked on a total of three projects: St. Catharine’s Hospital, Maple Leaf Foods, and Joseph Brant Hospital.”
Joseph Brant Hospital, Burlington, ON
“There’s so much about working for Modern Niagara that we all like,” Mitch commented. “We have a good team and good management, and my positive experience with management is one of the main reasons why I took the job as a Project Manager with Southwestern Ontario.”
Although Modern Niagara officially announced the establishment of a new office in Southwestern Ontario earlier this year, our presence in the region stretches back many years and across numerous projects. As a native of the Niagara region, Mitch had already been living and working in the region for some time.
“Joining Modern Niagara’s Southwestern Ontario office wasn’t much of a move for me, because I live in St. Catharines and I’ve worked on most of the jobs in the area, in fact I haven’t really gone too much farther than Burlington for work.” said Mitch. “It’s been a little more straightforward for me since I’ve already been located around this area for quite some time, but some other people have had to make more of a transition to the Southwestern office.”
Mitch highlighted some of his new responsibilities after joining the growing regional team earlier this year as a Project Manager.
“As a project manager at Southwestern Ontario, everything involved in projects falls under me I guess; I manage all the trades, sub trades, labour on projects, do the billing and forecasting, amongst other responsibilities,” Mitch added.
Although Modern Niagara’s newest office is still in its early stages, Mitch is looking favourably at the future of the new shop and is excited to see how their team can continue to build up Modern’s regional presence.
“Things have been going well with our Southwestern Ontario team so far,” Mitch added. “Since a lot of us have been out living and working here already, it’s just a lot more focused now that we are officially opening up an office.”
Mitch is also happy with the growth of the new office and the addition of new, key members to the team. However, he mentioned that it is still early for their team and that they will be looking to continue expanding their presence and increasing their own regional autonomy in the coming years.
“It’s nice to have more of a dedicated team working out of this office and focusing on this region and the projects, especially with the addition of new coordinators, estimators, and managers,” Mitch mentioned. “I like the place the office is in, but I’m definitely looking forward to more growth, more new and larger projects, and more focus on developing our own systems.”
In addition, Mitch touched on his experience and some of his favourite aspects of working at Modern Niagara, where he has been now for just over 10 years. Mitch also pointed out that his positive experiences with Modern are often shared by both our team members in the office as well as the tradespeople who work in the field.
“I love working at Modern Niagara, and everybody I talk to loves it as well, so I know it’s not just my opinion and experience,” Mitch said. “Everybody wants to work at Modern Niagara; all the people we’ve had for our projects, in any role, always want to come back and are constantly asking us where the next bit of work is because they all want to work for Modern Niagara.”
Finally, when asked about any advice he would give to those who are thinking of entering or are new to the trades, Mitch emphasized the importance of pushing forward and exploring the possibilities that the industry has to offer.
“Just jump in and do it; It’s a great career and income, there are great people in the industry, it’s great experience, and it’s an industry where there’s so much room to move and grow in,” Mitch affirmed. “There are so many different avenues that you can follow, even if you’re a plumber, your job requirements and day-to-day could look different for every company you decide to work at, so there really is a range of things you can do.”
Our Southwestern Ontario office is looking for experienced trades people and office staff to join their growing team. If you’re interested in learning more about our Southwestern Ontario office, click here to check out their page on our website. Also, be sure to take a look at our current opportunities to see what positions are available at Modern Niagara Southwestern Ontario.
