Greetings BCA Members,
As we progress through the busy 2026 summer building season, your BCA staff enjoys the opportunity of reaching out to you, the membership, with an update on what we have been working on over the past six months. In short, it has been a busy period, we have been focused on expanding the content of our plan room, our networking and fundraising events and we continue to develop relationships with our procurement partners. Supporting all of these efforts, I must acknowledge the hard work of your BCA Team; Alicia Blow and Bryony Buchanan.
Please note the following highlights of our efforts in Government Relations and Procurement, Education, Networking and Member Care:
Government relations and procurement:
- Members and local procurement staff attended the first annual Symposium, presented by the BCA and the Simcoe County Heavy Construction Association – updates were provided from the City of Barrie, County of Simcoe, Town of Innisfil and York Region – each municipality providing key information on their upcoming budgets. Followed by a presentation on Adjudication & Dispute Resolution from GFW Law.
- The BCA in partnership with the Simcoe County Home Builders Association participates in regularly scheduled meetings with the City of Barrie Building Department to discuss member issues and best practices.
- BCA members continue to take advantage of member pricing to view plans & specifications on the ConstrucConnect platform. Access to the portal can be arranged if you do not already subscribe – just give us a call!
- Stay tuned for additional networking opportunities as we will be hosting our next Municipal Symposium in February of 2027.
Education:
- BCA has a busy training schedule and members are taking full advantage of the competitively priced safety training, industry standards courses and the always popular Lunch & Learns. Industry experts have presented on the new Construction Act, Working for Workers Act, the Ontario Building Code, Adjudication, Working with the City of Barrie, and online Gold Seal certification and more. All of our Lunch & Learns are FREE for BCA members! Watch your inbox for upcoming sessions.
- Students earned Gold Seal credits by taking advantage of the wide range of courses offered:
- Close Out of a Construction Project
- Docs 102 Construction Drawing Interpretation
- Effective Construction Meetings & Minutes
- Effective Work Planning for Crew Supervisors
- Estimating 101 Introduction to Construction Estimating
- Estimating 102 Applied Quantity Surveying
- MS Excel – Basic & Advanced
- MS Project for Construction
- Profitable Contracting
Networking:
- The ‘always sold-out’ BCA hockey tournament proved to be an action-packed day as teams battled for bragging rights. In the end it was Duncor Enterprises that won the cup.
- We hosted our Annual General Meeting at Ferndale Banquet Hall (a BCA member!) Members passed a special resolution which brought the BCA By-Laws into compliance with the Ontario Not-for-Profit Corporations Act. All in attendance enjoyed the friendly atmosphere, the great food and seeing friends old and new.
- Who doesn’t love the BCA spring golf tournament!?! Another great event where members can relax and network at the same time.
- Members enjoyed a taste of Mexico at the Meet & Greet held at the Sandbox Centre.
- The Ride for Cancer had motorcycles touring throughout the Blue Mountains this year. A fantastic committee organized prizes, route signage and raised over $5 200!!
- Stay tuned in to your inbox as we will be announcing a Pop-Up Pub night – an impromptu get- together at a local establishment J
- Upcoming events include Family Day at the Wasaga 500 on August 8th, Fall Hockey Draft and our annual Christmas Gala
Member care:
- BCA members can take advantage of many special discounts through our affinity program. Savings can be had on insurance, fuel, accommodations, business forms and much, much more. Details on all the great offerings can be found on the BCA website.
- Each year we update and publish our Member Directory. This useful tool guides the buyers of construction directly to YOU. Copies are distributed hot-off-the-press to all of the local procurement staff.
- Another useful tool for those looking to buy what you sell is our website. The on-line directory with alpha and divisional search capability means that your products and services are at the fingertips of local buyers. FREE to all members is the details section…send us your company history or project portfolio and we will add it to your listing.
- Access to industry forms such as substantial completion forms, CCDC 9A and B, health and safety checklists etc. can be found at the ‘Industry Tools’ button on the BCA home page.
- Don’t forget to connect! Find current news and comments on Facebook and Twitter.
In terms of our 2026 Board of Directors, you will find 11 very committed men and women representing the membership. This dedicated group were chosen by the membership and are extremely engaged with the BCA, the various committees they serve on, and it has been a distinct privilege to serve with this fine group of people from industry – all of whom I consider friends.
I look forward to seeing everyone at upcoming events, and please feel free to drop by the BCA for a visit with the team at any time.
Thank you, Alison
Alison Smith is the BCA’s Executive Director.