Sackville company big winner in design and construction

With more than 23 years of experience to draw from, a Sackville construction company is a winner when it comes to design and construction of all types of homes and buildings.
Owner of Can-Tech Construction, Drew Fraser was honoured earlier this year by the Canadian Home Builders Association New Brunswick during its annual awards presentations, taking home top honours in two categories: New Home Award, Single Detached, as well as the Housing Design Award for New Construction for 2008. The award-winning home is Fraser's own home, located in the Walker Road area, which he shares with his wife Marlene.
Fraser said last week that he's pleased to be recognized for his work.
"It's great to be honoured for what you do," he says, adding that the dedication and expertise of his employees and that of the sub-contractors who work on his projects, play a large part in Can-Tech homes meeting or exceeding its customers expectations.
He says most people choose a builder after getting a recommendation from family, friends or co-workers.
"Very few people look in the Yellow Pages to find a contractor and I think that's best. If you do a good job, you get a good name and people will continue to do business with you; basically that's the way it goes," he says.
Can-Tech Construction Ltd. builds a cross section of projects, everything from baby barns to upscale homes to all types of renovations, big or small. A background in architectural design allows Fraser to offer design options to his customers as well.
"People often bring me a picture of a house and ask me to design a floor plan for them. But I believe it has to be the other way around. I realize it's important for people to be happy with the exterior of their home, but what's most important is that the floor plan fits well with their lifestyle," he explains.
He recommends that when planning a home, people measure their current floor space and determine how much space will be needed in their new home to accommodate all of their furniture and to be an ample size for their regular activities.
"It's important to plan for what might seem like the smaller details, but in fact are really important ones; like deciding where your wall outlets will be, which side of the kitchen is the most appropriate for the dishwasher. When I'm designing a house I take into consideration the customer's wants and needs," Fraser explains.
He believes strongly in the need for energy efficiency and protecting the environment so has been an R-2000 builder since day one.
"You have to spend the extra dollars to ensure energy efficiency but it's always best to consider this at the planning stage. You can't change all of your windows, or move the house so it gets better southern exposure or build thicker walls to add more insulation once the structure is built, so you need to consider these things first off," he says.
To that end, he also favours using 2x8 studding in his homes which allows for an R-28 rating insulation.
"R-28 is above the building code rating but it gives much more insulation value. The cost for upgrading from 2x6 to 2x8 walls is minimal but the reduction in future heating costs is substantial," Fraser explains.
With the downturn in the world economy, he says most home builders and renovators are feeling the pinch.
"People tend to be putting off their building projects more, although there are still some who are planning kitchen or bathroom renovations. Fortunately, our company also does commercial work as well," he says.