CaDCR staff writer
A Hamilton-area modular home builder will receive $2.5 million from the federal government to upgrade its facility, increase production and create skilled trades jobs.
The planned expansion will enable BECC Modular to create some 2,200 structures per year of single and multi-story buildings.
During a press conference Monday, local MP Filomina Tassi said some of the cash will be tied to development of skilled labour and 35 new jobs in Hamilton.
“If you don’t have the people to build the homes, you’re not going to get them built,” she said. “We are investing significant amounts of money to ensure that we are providing workers with the training they need in order to take up those jobs that are going to create the homes that are needed.”
BECC produces turn-key modular homes for affordable housing projects and commercial properties. Completed modules are stored until shipping date, then trucked to the site for installation. At least 80 to 90 per cent of the construction happens inside the factory and that speeds up building time by 25 to 50 per cent.
CEO Ali Ozden says the cash will also “dramatically” increase production with new machinery including a hydraulic pressure machine and fiber laser steel cutter.
“This is the right investment at the right time. BECC Modular has access to the right labour and materials in Hamilton to scale up dramatically our production output and respond rapidly to the ever-increasing demand for housing of all types,” Ozden said.
The City of Toronto has committed to creating 1,000 new modular homes in Toronto. Officials say it is “an innovative way to build small-scale infill housing that provides people experiencing homelessness with safe homes and appropriate supports” to help them achieve housing stability.
Council approved the construction of the first 250 modular homes on City-owned sites in 2020 and 2021. Since then, the City has completed 216 modular homes.
