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August 2, 1999
(Development and Rural Renewal)


St. John's entrepreneur runs growing business

Alex Garland's father and grandfather lived and fished from the Battery in St. John's. So it was natural that when Alex Garland decided to open a fabrication and machine shop in 1987, that he should concentrate on marine applications.

"Much of the equipment on fishing boats was made of cast iron, it was big and heavy and would seize up in winter. My idea was to get rid of all that, to use stainless steel and aluminum and bring in new technology," said Garland.

For several years Garland Systems Limited of Donovan's Park manufactured masts, booms, stabilizers, fuel tanks, and rudders. "Everything I could make simpler, lighter, and more efficient, I made," said Garland. Then in 1992, the Northern cod moratorium was introduced.

After a period of readjustment, Alex Garland and his wife Sylvia have re-invented and diversified their business. Today, 60 per cent of their work is offshore oil and gas related. They also make parts for military vehicles manufactured by GM in Ontario, and they are participating in a refit of a coast guard vessel in St. John's harbour.

"Mr. Garland is an example of how hundreds of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians are creating opportunities using their past experience," said Beaton Tulk, Minister of Development and Rural Renewal, whose department provides ongoing advice to the company.

With the traditional fishery in difficulty, Garland secured contracts with Hibernia to manufacture personnel baskets that hoisted workers aboard the giant oil rig under construction in Mosquito Cove. Once the rig was moved to its production site on the Grand Banks, Garland continued to receive work. Today he makes stairways, platforms, railings, pipe supports and other parts for Hibernia that are almost impossible to explain.

"We don't have to know how to design or operate an oil rig. We receive the drawings and make the parts to their specs," said Garland, pointing to a thousand-pound slab of welded and machine steel.

Garland's employees are constantly learning new welding procedures and are tested regularly. The yard has a dozen damaged containers used for shipping drilling supplies and chemicals to oil rigs at sea, all awaiting repairs. They are made from special impact-resistant steel that is imported from the United Kingdom and must be welded to European codes.

"Quality control is essential in this business" said Garland, whose company has an ISO 9002 rating and is certified by the Canadian Bureau of Welding and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Re-educating and upgrading workers' skills is a costly but necessary part of doing business in the oil patch, but something that Newfoundlanders assimilate quickly.

Garland Systems recently received a contract to refit worn parts on the Canadian Coast Guard vessel, the Sir Wilfred Templeman. Seven Garland employees are currently working on the ship.

In the shop, where a further seven men work, are a pile of military green painted parts that represent just one of 18 different metal parts Garland makes for General Motors armed personnel carriers, from brackets to dashboards. All are exported from the province.

Garland says much of his work results from long-term contracts. He says it is a mistake to think of oil production as just short-term projects. Once oil rigs are in production, their superstructure is continually being changed and rebuilt throughout the life of the rig, which can be 20 years or more. Garland says: "Sometimes my biggest problem is not finding work but finding space to carry it out."

At present his 5,300 sq ft. shop is working to capacity. On occasion he has to work three shifts 24 hours a day on time-critical jobs, and he has to sub-contract some work where he lacks facilities. He plans to double the size of his shop by adding a 5,000 sq ft. shop to his existing premises which he hopes will be finished in October.

The growth of small-scale manufacturing is a global phenomenon in which large companies are increasingly contracting out the manufacture of sub-assemblies. Based on research carried out by the Department of Development and Rural Renewal, the provincial government this May unveiled its strategy to support small-scale manufacturing in Newfoundland and Labrador. The sector is valued at more than $1.8 billion and creates the equivalent of 17,500 full-time jobs.

"Mr. Garland's company is a good example of how small-scale manufacturing is changing the economy of Newfoundland and Labrador," said Minister Tulk. "Developments in oil and gas and in other sectors are providing opportunities to diversify our economy and create new permanent jobs. Thanks to the efforts of Mr. Garland, and people like him, we are developing new industries and employment is increasing throughout Newfoundland and Labrador."

Media contact:

Josephine Cheeseman, Communications, (709) 729-4570

Alex Garland, Garland Systems Ltd., (709) 368-4300

1999 08 02         10:35 a.m.


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