I was so keen about the work I did . I gave him the full treatment , mentioning all the things we did that made DCL a money-saving and well-run Crown corporation . One of the other gentlemen turned to me and asked “ Do you know who your Minister is ?” ( It took me a moment to realize that he didn ’ t mean the minister of my church .)
I said , “ No , I don ’ t .”
He then said , “ Let me introduce you to Mr . O ’ Hurley , Minister of Defence Production , your top boss .”
You can imagine my consternation …
Ed Bastedo joined DCL at Camp Gagetown in 1955 , serving as Regional Manager in the Atlantic Region from 1961 until his retirement in 1984 .
On the European front In 1956 , the German Construction Agency ( also known as Sonderbauamt ), working with the French engineers , began to carry out construction work on the Canadian bases in Germany . This created a circuitous and bureaucratic way of doing even the simplest of things . For example , in order for the CE Section at Zweibrucken airfield to have the German Construction Agency at the airfield carry out work , they would apply for approval from Command Engineer Headquarters in Metz , which would forward the request to DCL Paris . DCL Paris would inform the German federal representative in Frankfurt , which would forward its approval to the Oberfinanzdirektion in Koblenz , which then directed the German Construction Agency in Landau . This agency then tasked the German Construction Agency back at Zweibrucken to actually do the work .
DCL was tasked with coordinating and monitoring the working relationship between these offices , while all design work , plans and specifications approvals , job site control , certification of invoices and acceptance of construction work was delegated to the local BCEO office .
Despite complications such as these , total expenditure on the bases in Europe had reached $ 21 million by 1961 , when the Federal Republic of Germany signed Status of Forces Agreements with the NATO Sending States , putting into effect a general administrative agreement .
Although construction on the French and German bases had tapered off by early 1962 , the delivery of the CF-104 to Europe that year required DCL ’ s European Branch to administer construction contracts for improved arrestor gear and other facilities . More than $ 1.7 million in work was handled at bases in Belgium , France and Germany in the 1963 – 64 fiscal year .
Demonstrating Canada ’ s expertise in the area , DCL ’ s European Branch Manager was chosen in 1962 to be president of the Construction Advisory Committee for the NATO Military Budget , which was comprised of construction experts from the Alliance ’ s member countries . He was re-elected to this position the following year .
Working with the Americans DCL ’ s history of working to attract , and often manage , contractors that could fulfill the required briefs for American forces worked so well that the U . S . Air Force asked for similar contracting procedures for family housing projects at Goose Bay in Labrador and Harmon Air Force Base in Newfoundland , as a cost-saving measure . DCL helped bring the projects to the attention of the Canadian construction industry and also handled the opening of the bids in Ottawa .
30 BREAKING NEW GROUND DEFENCE CONSTRUCTION CANADA