Tanara Oliveira/News Staff
Knappett Projects, a well-known Victoria builder, is holding a big party to honour its 40 years of hard work.
The company has crews working on 21 job sites from North Island to Victoria. It is celebrating this special event with a time-honoured tradition: a hearty pizza lunch on the job site on Sept. 13. As it raises a glass to the past, the team is excited for the next 10 years, where they hope to keep growing.
John Knappett, the company’s founder and CEO, began his journey on Sept. 13, 1983, when he started Knappett Construction, which later grew into the well-known Knappett Projects Inc.
As a professional engineer, Knappett has made important contributions to many boards over the course of his long and successful career. Some of the most important groups it belongs to are the South Island Prosperity Group, Civic Heritage Trust, BC Hydro, Shaw Ocean Discovery, Infinite Source, Construction Safety Network, Vancouver Island Construction Association and the Canadian Construction Association.
“The industry is much more complicated than when I started,” Knappett said. “The codes for buildings are very complex and extensive, the industry has many inexperienced people trying to navigate the complexities and the authorities with jurisdiction are generally overworked and understaffed for the level of work in the marketplace, which results in delays throughout the system. Making matters more difficult is the general lack of skilled trades and the skyrocketing costs due to a variety of factors such as supply chain constraints and much more complicated systems throughout our buildings.”
Over the past 40 years, Knappett has made a permanent mark on the building industry by completing over 700 different projects. These include public buildings, infrastructure, industrial facilities, multi-family and social housing, business buildings, restorations, additions, and upgrades to historic buildings, as well as repairs to the building envelope.
The 443 Helicopter Squadron stands out as their biggest project to date. It is a symbol that can be seen when leaving the region.
In 2019, the British Columbia Construction Authority gave Knappett an award for being a leader in the construction business.
In 2021, it won the title of employer of the year, which shows how dedicated they are to doing things right. When asked about the benefits of working in construction, Knappett said construction has a lot of advantages as a career.
“The ability to work flexibly appeals to women in the workforce. The industry is a high-wage workplace that has unlimited opportunity for individuals who are willing to learn and work hard, it is also a creative industry with pride of our projects uppermost in our workers’ minds.”