'High-calibre' team has pulled Tom Jones through tough times.

• Position: Company of the Year - more than 50 employees - awardee Tom Jones Construction Inc. - Northern Ontario Business Awards

Tom Jones Construction Inc. has been a dominant force in the commercial, industrial and institutional construction industry in northwestern Ontario for more than 20 years.

The Thunder Bay firm is this year's recipient of the Northern Ontario Business Award for Company of the Year (more than 50 employees). The award is sponsored by the Royal Bank of Canada.

Owned and operated by brothers Tom and John Jones, the construction company is part of The Jones Group which also includes a property management company, Tom Jones and Sons Limited.

The brothers are the third generation of the Jones family to work in Northern Ontario's construction industry. About 70 years ago their grandfather was involved in the construction of several Thunder Bay landmarks including the Black Bay Bridge and the Whalen Building, now the home of Thunder Bay Hydro.

However, it was T.A. Jones, the father of Tom and John, who started the firm, then called T.A. Jones Construction Ltd. He turned over the day-to-day operation of the company to his sons in 1969 and the firm's name was changed to Tom Jones and Sons Construction Inc.

The company's growth during the 1970s surprised even the Jones brothers. Its projects included a shopping centre in Florida and several Canadian Tire stores and doughnut shops across Canada, and its revenues doubled almost every year.

"When you start a company you naturally dream about it growing and doing things, but when it actually becomes a reality it is always shocking," recalls Tom Jones, the company's president and chief executive officer.

The main benefit of this growth was that Tom Jones Construction was able to attract and retain high-calibre employees who helped the company through some leaner years in the early 1980s, when high interest rates threatened the entire construction industry.

"We have a lot of people looking for their 20-year watches, and it has been those people that have pulled together into a team during the rough periods," says Jones.

The economic recession forced the brothers to restructure and refinance the company in 1982. While it was a trying time, Jones now regards it as a valuable learning experience.

"Based on our previous successes we were building more on spec, and then all of a sudden we were going backwards," recalls Jones. "In retrospect it was a great education. We sure won't get caught like that again."

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