David Fontaine
“I believe the Gold Seal certificate is supporting recognition of what you already do. It enhances your credibility. It’s part of the self-improvement journey we all go through. It’s something you can have to show somebody you know what you’re doing.”
David Fontaine, GSC, Project Manager, West Kootenay Mechanical
David Fontaine does not have an official title. However his job requirements and tasks at West Kootenay Mechanical are very similar to a Senior Project Manager. His responsibilities include dealing with many industrial and commercial projects, planning, coordinating, cost-reviews and updating, coordinating subcontractors, and much more on a day to day basis. David also deals with the general management of the union labour-force. David exclaimed that he enjoys his role, and the challenges he may encounter daily. “Change is something I enjoy the most about my job. Every day proves different, and every project is different. Hopefully I’m able to find solutions to problems that may arise and we can successfully complete our work to reach key goals.”
David’s career in construction began in his mid-20’s. Originally planning to attend an educational institution to continue a degree in computer science or engineering, he found himself working at West Kootenay, helping with some outages the company was having at the industrial smelter in his hometown. From that point forward David has never left the company. “When I began at West Kootenay, I started out doing low level stuff such as costing and reporting. Soon my responsibilities evolved into scheduling, and then budgeting and cost control, then overall project management. I’ve grown here at the same company. I know a lot of people may change companies a few times in their life, but that hasn’t been necessary for me.”
David discovered the Gold Seal Certification program while he was attending a project management course offered by University of Waterloo, remotely. From that point forward, David had his sights set on earning his Gold Seal Certification, and would do so years later. In January 2017, David earned his Gold Seal Certification. “it was nice to know I passed the exam. It’s been a long journey of having to think about earning my Gold Seal Certification. It feels good having completed it and to get that validation.” David continues to explain some challenges he faced along the way to earning his certification. “I think the biggest challenge I faced along the way to earning my certification was making time to study and to do my education, work, and also have a young family. I had to take some time off work to complete a technical diploma. The time and cost commitment was significant and made getting to where I am today a logistical challenge.”
Furthermore, David would like to give a shout out and a thank you to John Balfour, President and owner of West Kootenay Mechanical 2001 Ltd. He is also a Gold Seal Certified Project Manager (Mechanical) who ultimately initiated and enabled David to become certified over the last decade. In sending David to the University of Waterloo’s Mechanical Contracting Project Management course (offered by CMCEF at the time) and supporting his efforts to complete a Mechanical Engineering Technologist diploma at SAIT. David states with great admiration that Mr. Balfour was a key factor in his achievement.
“You should always be striving to improve yourself or validate yourself. The Gold Seal Certification program offers a good way to prove what you know and it provides recognition for that knowledge and experience.”