< Previousbaldassarra.ca The adventure paid off. Today, Advanced Precast counts more than 100 employees and is one of the biggest precast companies in Canada. The company works mainly in Canada, particularly in Ontario, but it occasionally carries out work in the United States also. Precast concrete is manufactured in a controlled environment and can speed up production signifi- cantly in regions affected by extreme natural elements. While the harsh Canadian winter can cause outdoor construction work to slow down, it is also one of the reasons behind the rapid growth of the Canadian precast industry. Despite their titles as Vice-President and President of Advanced Precast, Brancaleoni and Bakhtiari are still very much involved in the day-to-day part of their business. "Me and Andy, we're still working people (…). We don't consider ourselves the boss, per se. We come to work every day. I still go to the production every day. (…) So, we're still very active in the business," says Brancaleoni. Advanced Precast specializes in the manufacturing of archi- tectural precast concrete. The main difference between struc- tural and architectural precast is their purpose. While structural precast has a purely functional purpose, architectural precast has both a structural and decorative function and includes finishes and ornamental features. The company provides its customers with a complete package that includes engineering and design, building, transportation, and installation. With this in mind, it is no surprise to learn that Brancaleoni and his team serve many different industries. From residential and healthcare right through to entertainment, the buildings that Advanced Precast work on vary enormously in both feature and purpose. Furthermore, servicing customers across a wide variety of sectors requires Advanced Precast to satisfy the most diverse and detailed architectural and engineer- ing specifications. | 60 APRIL 2023CONGRATULATIONS ADVANCED PRECAST ON 30 YEARS! 905-727-7100 | info@colouredaggregates.com colouredaggregates.com Quality and strength from the ground up Manufacturers and distributors of specialty aggregates and sands for architectural precast, flooring, roofing, cladding, landscape and other specialized industries. Over the past 30 years, Advanced Precast has worked on many projects and built millions of square feet of precast. However, there is one particular project that is really close to Brancaleoni's heart, a job that proved the company could match anyone in the industry for scale and skill. ‘It's called the Windsor Arms, which is a hotel in downtown Toronto. At that time, we had no business taking this job. We were too small. We had maybe ten employees, and the job was a fair size. It was a little beyond our reach, but we took the challenge, and we struggled through it, but we did it.’ Brancaleoni remembers this job with pride because it marked an important moment of “From residential and healthcare right through to entertainment, the buildings that Advanced Precast work on vary enormously in both feature and purpose.” growth for his company, which was at the time transitioning from the small warehouse shop to a larger building. With few employees, minimum equipment, and a relocation in progress, this project was a complicated but gratifying adventure for Advanced Precast. In passing, Brancaleoni also mentions another hotel project in downtown Toronto with which the company is particularly proud. The building stands tall beside the national soccer sta- dium BMO Field and in the middle of the Toronto Grand Prix track, it finds itself in a particularly privileged location in terms | 61 APEIRON CONSTRUCTIONof visibility. ‘When the World Cup comes to Canada in three years, you'll be able to see that building in the background,’ says Brancaleoni, visibly pleased by the idea. As a reflection of its growth, the company has already relo- cated three times, and Brancaleoni says a fourth relocation might be on the horizon. From the small 5,000 square foot warehouse to a bigger one of 10,000 square feet and finally to the current facility, which extends to an incredible 50,000 square feet. When asked about the secret of the company's success, Brancaleoni doesn’t pause for a second. “The peo- ple, both employees and customers. That's what has made us very successful. A piece of concrete is a piece of concrete, but it's how you present it, and it's the people that we surround ourselves with.” In an example of how positive the company culture is, Brancaleoni is proud to share that most Advanced Precast employees have worked with the company since the very beginning. "Our personnel hasn't turned around a lot. We have our guys in the shop who have been with us for 30 years. We have people that retire when they turn 60, and after three months they say, ‘Do you mind if we come back?’ So that speaks volumes." Advanced Precast builds long-lasting relationships based on trust, understanding, and honesty. After 30 years in business, the company can count on many repeat customers, which shouldn't come as a surprise considering that Brancaleoni's philosophy is that the customer is always right. "Andy and I, we may be the owners of this company, but we work for them (the customers). And we always specify that to our guys." Thinking about what made his company so successful, Brancaleoni emphasizes that nothing is possible without good luck and good health. Remembering the initial period of lockdown as being one of the most challenging periods for his business, he stresses the importance of being considered an essential business and lists the many changes Advanced Precast had to go through in order to keep its doors open. "We had to adapt. We got new clocks before the clock (because) we didn't want people to sign (when punching in and out), we fumigated our lunchroom every morning, at three o'clock in the morning, we had somebody come in to make sure that everything was clean and sanitized. It was certainly a chal- lenge trying to keep 60 people in a shop working, but nobody got COVID from the plant." For the future, Brancaleoni hopes to maintain the same success and to see the next generation gradually take over the business. As he speaks about the company and what he wishes for the future, the look in his eyes is one of content- ment. The adventure started with his friend and co-founder Bakhtiari 30 years ago turned out to be an extremely suc- cessful and rewarding business. So, while the two partners will gradually take a step back, the new generation will drive Advanced Precast's future towards new and equally success- ful adventures. | 62 APRIL 2023| 63 APEIRON CONSTRUCTION| 64 APRIL 2023WRITTEN BY GEORGIE DOWNES I n order to navigate and succeed in the construction indus- try, it is important to have a number of key skills, integrity, innovation, perseverance and passion all spring to mind. One skill that can often be overlooked however, is that of resilience. This may take many forms such as enduring the turbulence of a pandemic or rising above the omnipresent skilled labor shortage. Mahan Form, in Toronto, Canada has achieved both. In addition to this, the company has grown and thrived from the humble beginnings of Mark Malekza- deh, the highly skilled and experienced owner of the com- pany. Malekzadeh’s journey to success began in the Kerman Province of Iran, more specifically a “small historical town” called Mahan, where the company got its name and has now reached a point where Mahan is the go-to company in its field. Mahan Form specializes in concrete formwork and if the company’s current rate of growth and expansion is any- thing to go by, this resilience has certainly paid off. As Malekzadeh explains, the progression that led to setting up Mahan Form was on the cards from early on. Given his ability and experience, he always felt that once settled in Canada, the rest would follow. I’ve been in construction ever since I can remember, and I had my own company before I came to Canada, when I was in Iran. I had never worked for anybody, so basically for me it was hard to work for anybody else. I think of myself as a good leader and I was always able to manage many things at the same time, so for me the logical thing to do was to take the step and start building a company myself, which resulted in Mahan Form.” Those formative experiences have led to the company emerging as the highest-quality forming company in Toronto. Its specialty is working on both mid- and high-rise projects. As Malekzadeh puts it, his experience while owning and run- ning a construction company in Iran has ensured that when Mahan Form was in its infancy, it had the skills, foresight, and experience to weather any early storms. “Everything I had done before; all that experience was what helped me start this company. These experiences allowed me to navigate the challenges of starting a new company, build a strong founda- tion, and set it on the path to success.” | 65 APEIRON CONSTRUCTIONWhile this path has not been without its challenges, the resulting success has been all the sweeter for the company. For Malekzadeh, Mahan Form has been built on values and beliefs that he learned in his homeland. It is clear when speaking to him that Mahan Form is a company that has developed and grown with a deep passion and pride of its Iranian heritage. “Leaving the country was one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life, so it’s inevitable for me to have that deep connection to my culture and heritage, which is something I feel a lot of immigrants can relate to.” This pride is not just an idea or belief, however. Mahan Form taps into the immigrant community to source hardworking and skilled staff. Malekzadeh sees this as an opportunity to give back to the community he has learned so much from. In addition WARDELLLUMBER 42 YEARS Nantucket Woodworking to that, he believes that giving people a chance they may not have access to is crucial. “There are a lot of people with good abilities out there, but because of the language barrier, there was a low chance for them to thrive in the field. By posting job advertisements in Farsi, I aimed to provide opportunities for these talented individuals, helping them develop their skills and gain valuable work experience.” Interestingly, at a time when many construction firms are frus- trated by staff shortages, Mahan’s experience has been more positive. According to Malekzadeh’s son Josh, this has been in no small part because of the opportunities gained through working with the Iranian community. “We're full-blooded Ira- nians which is a big advantage to us. We can find and hire people that other companies might not be able to. There's a big population of Iranians in Toronto that speak and read Farsi. So, we actually advertise in Farsi, and they come and meet a lot of our lead guys who are bilingual which isn’t there for a lot of other companies. I think that attributes a lot to why we're able to get workers. Good workers are hard to find.” “By posting job advertisements in Farsi, I aimed to provide opportunities for these talented individuals.”Josh joined his father at the company in 2019. At the time, Mahan Form was growing fast, and Josh’s professionalism and knowledge was needed to bring the company to the next level. Malekzadeh believes that the addition of his son would be mutually beneficial. “Josh, as my son and an intelligent individual with a strong work ethic, had great potential to con- tribute to the company's growth, which was a big factor in my wanting to have him involved in the company. I believed his involvement would not only benefit his personal development but also bring fresh ideas and energy to the company, helping it achieve new heights. He has an excellent understanding of modern technology and the latest trends in construction, enabling him to contribute new ideas and strategies to keep the company efficient.” Unsurprisingly, Josh too is full of praise for his father. Most notably when he shares how his work ethic and resilience has paved the way for the compa- ny’s future success. “My dad had an opportunity to set up a company and then he calls me and says, I need you to come start with me. And this was in September 2018. I started January 2019. I packed up everything I was doing to move back to Toronto. We were working non-union, small jobs to start but my dad’s reputation precedes him and when word got out that he had set up his own company, people started knocking on the door.” Since then, Mahan Form has amassed a number of success- ful projects. Among these is the spectacular Universal City Condos in Pickering, three stunning contemporary high-rise towers located in a master-planned community. The project was very much a high-profile one for Mahan Form. This growth in project size is in keeping with the trajectory of the company in general. Mahan Form has gone from a small family outfit to fully-fledged player employing 140 staff. While Mahan Form began life as a relatively small company man- aging one or two projects at a time, mainly low rise to three- story buildings, things changed rapidly during the pandemic. Josh explains that, when Covid hit, these challenges actually presented a chance for the company to test its own capa- bilities and compete for larger projects. “A lot of major com- panies that were scheduled to do the high rises used Covid as an opportunity to back out of their contracts because usually you lock in a price about two years in advance. Our overheads were lower, so we were able to match the original price that these businesses had quoted. The first big tower we worked on proved that we could work at this scale. We had a partial contract to complete the ground floor. Once we had achieved that we were awarded the contract for the other nineteen floors. There were about seven condos in this block. So, we were able to prove we could do it.” Mahan Form has certainly proved its skill and resilience in an industry that demands excellence. From his experience running a company in Iran to standing out as a leading fig- ure in the local Iranian community, Mark Malekzadeh has created a wonderful legacy for his family. It is clear that both father and son take huge pride in their culture and heritage while, for Mark, the company would be nothing if it wasn’t for two things, quality and opportunity. “Our company's main goal is to focus on delivering high-quality work rather than competing with others. Our guiding ethos is centered around providing opportunities for talented individuals who might have been overlooked in the industry, as mentioned previously, and ensuring that every project we undertake meets or exceeds client expectations.” Mahan Form deliv- ers on both of these fronts. Universal City Condos Pickering, ON | 67 APEIRON CONSTRUCTIONWRITTEN BY DAVID O’NEILL and the settlements that were attracted to the areas have ensured that Egypt has maintained a strong presence in the global economy. While the area surrounding this enormous river contains wide, deep valleys, the idea of growing large swathes of greenery and trees in the country is mostly a fanciful one. The country is a staggering ninety-six percent desert and the small part of what is left has been carved up between cities and farmers. With such a large portion of the country being desert land, it could seem as though Egyptians E gypt and its historical dynasties have been developing and evolving for thousands of years. The country has a long and illustrious history of innovation, construc- tion and creative thinking. One only needs to consider the meticulous detail involved in creating languages as complex as hieroglyphics and the awe inspiring pyramids of Giza to appreciate the level of thought and skill that is abundant in the area. Alongside this, the country also benefits from the River Nile and its fertile banks and deltas. Diverse ecology | 68 APRIL 2023are comfortable with the yellow and blue of sand and sky. What may not be as well known, however, is the ecological danger that these deserts possess. Deserts cover one third of the earths surface and it is estimated that they are expand- ing by thousands of square miles each year, taking over oth- erwise essential land for food and growth. Deserts can be unfairly dismissed as cold and lifeless. The truth however, is far from this misconception. With each des- ert having its own unique biological profile, they are abundant with both flora and fauna. Furthermore, species of which exist in these environment exclusive to anywhere else on the planet. According to environmentalscience.org, the distinct balance of these environments make them both vital and delicate. “The Mojave Desert is a case in point; it's one of the harshest environments on the planet with a humidity level that rarely goes higher than 40%, yet it maintains abundant biodiversity throughout the seemingly barren topography. All species have adapted to live in this harsh environment and many are protected because of their geographical limitations and delicate ecological requirements of coping with the high temperatures and dry environment.” | 69 APEIRON CONSTRUCTIONNext >