Breaking New Ground—Stories from Defence Construction Breaking_new_ground | Page 76

Meanwhile, progress marches on
In DCC’s Head Office, the computerization that had
begun in the previous decade gathered speed. By 1980,
a consultant database system was being developed and
plans were being made to upgrade the computer system.
By December 1981, both Confirmations of Contract
Awards and Change Orders were being issued by the
new computer systems. In November 1983, it was
decided to install computers at the European Branch
Office in Lahr.
Plans were made to equip regional offices with computers
that would eventually be connected to Head Office. In
early 1988, these systems were approved, and
$250,000 was earmarked to pay for the equipment.
Interestingly, in the 15 years preceding 1983, the
company had seen a 22 per cent decrease in Head
Office personnel and a 31 per cent increase in field
staff. With computerization enabling authorities and
responsibilities to be moved towards the “sharp end of
the stick,” this shift in the mix of personnel was expected
to continue.

Increasing inflation; increasing costs
Early in 1984, DCC established a Committee of Senior
Engineers (including Alec Lawson, Pierre Galiungi,
John Delory and W.J. (Bill) Nugent) to report on the
effectiveness of site inspection. At the time, both costs
and concerns were growing due to the serious inflationary
pressures that the Canadian economy was experiencing.
As a result, the Committee’s responsibilities were expanded
to include a report on the Standards of Inspection. Issues
included the “percentage indicator”—the percentage of
DCC costs compared to the value of work it put into
place. For 1983–84, it was expected to rise to between
8 and 9 per cent, compared to an average of approxi-
mately 7 per cent for the previous four years. Other
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indicators, including the ratio of value of work put in
place per employee, were also considered. Concerns
were raised that DCC personnel were “doing the
contractor’s work” and that cost reductions, including
layoffs and other measures, had to be looked at.
The Committee’s conclusions provided recommendations
about priority items, identified low morale as a problem
with field staff, and argued that improvements in effec-
tiveness—cost, time and quality—could be achieved if
the quality of the contract package was improved.
Wally Enders’ observations about life in DCC at this time
seem appropriate here:
I had the feeling of a family—the loyalty that people had.
Things didn’t always go smoothly and people weren’t
always happy, but on the whole, the chemistry was
right. People weren’t afraid to speak up for their point of
view, and getting all these perspectives into consideration,
you can’t help but come out with a good idea.
Wally Enders joined DCL in 1974, working in various
places including Head Office. He joined the Department
of Public Works for two years, and then returned to
DCC, working with DCC Europe and the NAADM project.
He retired in 2000 after heading up the National
Operations Group.
Political winds change course
In September 1984, Brian Mulroney and the Progressive
Conservative party defeated the Liberals under John
Turner. This new government introduced changes in
defence policy, particularly plans for the military’s
renewal and the signing of the North American Air
Defence Modernization Agreement in 1985. This led
to more work for the company (the dollar value of work
that DCC carried out in 1987–88 was 43 per cent more
than in 1984–85), but cost-cutting, examinations of
BREAKING NEW GROUND
DEFENCE CONSTRUCTION CANADA