A St. Thomas industrial building was recognized last week for its innovative design and technical excellence.
The Element5 office and plant on Dennis Road in the city’s north end was a winner in the Industrial Category of the 9th Biennial Don Smith Commercial Building Awards.
The awards recognize the top commercial, industrial, multi-family and community buildings across the London and St. Thomas Association of Realtors (LSTAR) region.
The awards program was named after the late Don Smith, co-founder of EllisDon Corporation, which has deep roots in London.
It was the firm’s architects,
We spoke with Element5 President Chris Latour about the Don Smith Commercial Building Award and he had high praise for their architectural partner, Tillmann Ruth Robinson, which nominated Element5 for the recognition.
“They were a phenomenal partner to us the entire way. They really took our vision and brought it to reality, and actually made it significantly better than we could have ever envisioned ourselves.
“So I’m really proud that they’re bringing it forward as a project they’re proud of, because partnerships are at the core of our values. And I think the partnership we have with them is what signals what can be achieved with those partnerships.”
He admits the award came out of the blue.
Latour adds, “And then the other thing is we made the building high-grade industrial on the back and all wood on the front.
Element5 is the province’s first certified manufacturer of cross-laminated timber, and an expansion last year more than doubled the size of the plant from 130,000 square feet to over 350,000 square feet.
The expansion doubles the facility’s production capacity from 50,000 cubic meters annually to 100,000 cubic meters annually of cross-laminated timber (CLT) and glued-laminated timber (Glulam) products.
It’s not the first award for Element5, advised Latour.
The spectacular head office of the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (see photo below) has won several awards in the past couple of months.
He admits the building is quite the showpiece.
Last September at the official opening of their expanded facility on Dennis Road, Latour indicated Element5 is now ramping up its efforts in the residential sector.
“We are proud to provide innovative, sustainable building solutions that help address Canada’s urgent need for affordable, climate-friendly housing and infrastructure.
“With our expanded operations, we are even better positioned to support communities across Ontario and North America.”
Written by Ian McCallum
