Parker: Industrial safety leader Bravo Target Services creates 'stronger team' by acquiring EHS Partnerships (2024)

Bravo Target Safety, a national leader in industrial safety services based in Calgary, has announced the acquisition of EHS Partnerships (EHSp), a full-service environmental and occupational health and safety firm.

“EHSp’s expertise perfectly complements Bravo’s specialization in field services,” says Bravo CEO Kevin O’Brien. “This acquisition unites our areas of expertise to create a stronger total offering. By enhancing and diversifying our services, we will be able to sell into our existing customer base while pursuing other opportunities.”

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He says along with Bravo’s provision of highly trained safety personnel and the latest in industrial equipment, EHSp’s expertise — particularly in dealing with a variety of hazardous materials and industrial hygiene concerned with workplace exposure through chemical, physical and biological agents — offers an invaluable integrated new service.

Glyn Jones, co-founder and senior partner of EHSp, becomes general manager of Bravo’s EHS business unit. A graduate in chemical engineering at the University of Toronto, Jones also received his master’s degree in occupational health and safety there and is recognized as an expert in his field. With 30 years working in his industry, he is known as a great mentor who conducts several courses at the universities of Calgary, Alberta and New Brunswick.

“This new venture is a very good fit,” says Jones. “Together we will be able to offer a greater range of services to existing and prospective customers. Our corporate cultures are aligned and we already service a number of common clients.”

EHSp’s 50 professionals across Canada — working out of its headquarters in Calgary and other offices in Edmonton, Winnipeg and Ottawa — have joined the Bravo team.

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Bravo employs a huge seasonal workforce varying between 150 and 500, comprising medics, safety watch personnel, rescue technicians and other safety-service providers in Calgary and in its facilities throughout Alberta. They include a 20,000-square-foot facility for serving equipment and a four-acre yard in Leduc, plus a number of other employees in B.C. and Saskatchewan.

The majority of its customer base is in hydrocarbons, while around 30 per cent are in the fertilizer industry.

“Only about half of EHSp’s legacy business is in the energy sector,” O’Brien says. “This acquisition gives us unprecedented access to new and untapped markets. For example, we will now have a physical presence in Ottawa and Winnipeg, which facilitates business development with the federal government and new manufacturing customers. Simply put, together, we are a stronger team.”

Notes:

• CEO Scott Hamilton and his team at the Alberta New Home Warranty Program are celebrating the organization’s 50^th anniversary of protecting homebuilders and homeowners across Alberta. Since its inception in 1974, ANHWP has been a cornerstone of the Alberta homebuilding industry, providing assurance that warranty commitments, construction standards and guarantees are honoured. Its mission is to empower the best home ownership experience, and its effect on the Alberta homebuilding industry is significant. ANHWP serves approximately 500 builder members and has protected more that 650,000 homes over its history, and provides $19 billion of total insurance value with more than 90,000 current policies in place. The organization’s ongoing commitment to excellence includes the new Dweller Home Services pilot offering to be launched this month, offering pre-possession and possession inspections, along with consumer protection and homeowner education services, further supporting homeowners in understanding and caring for their homes.
• Camp Brand Goods has been a favourite Inglewood brand since 2011, sharing space in the Red Barn with jeweller Coutukitsch and in the unique Livery Shop across from The Nash. When Coutukitsch opened its own store, Leslie and Connor Gould decided to launch their own new retail concept called CampLand Institute of Leisurely Pursuits, which opened last month. Inspiring people to enjoy our outdoors is the stimulation behind CampLand, through its own designed clothing and international brands such as Patagonia, Cotopaxi and Gramicci, plus a wide of range of accessories, extensive commissary and non-alcoholic beverages. Forty-two per cent of its brands are Canadian and half of those are local to Calgary. The shop features a mini campsite with pop-up tent trailer, and in the driveway is a window where visitors can buy the popular Made by Marcus ice cream.

David Parker appears regularly in the Herald. Read his columns online at calgaryherald.com/business. He can be reached at 403-830-4622.

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