Timmins couple building shelters for success.

• Author: Stewart, Nick
• Position: SPECIAL REPORT: TIMMINS

Creating a successful business often means being willing to take a wild leap into the unknown.

It's a strategy that has certainly paid off for Michelle and Denis Duquette.

The two co-owners of the Timmins-based EnviroStructure Systems took a chance seven years ago when they both retired from their jobs to create their greenhouse and shelter construction business, and they've never looked back.

"It was quite the change, but it's been very enjoyable," Denis says with a laugh.

"I think everybody should have two careers in their lives."

After building a small greenhouse in their backyard to grow their own fruits and vegetables, the pair started seeing more and more requests from friends and neighbors to have greenhouses built for them. Interest grew to the point where a small business seemed viable, leading Denis to leave a management position with NorthernTel after 25 years, while Michelle left behind a 26-year career as a registered nurse.

Using local materials alongside special plastics from Quebec-based Harnois Industries, the Duquettes began to build greenhouses and boat shelters throughout the Timmins area until Harnois invited them to begin selling the company's custom-design car shelters.

Rapid success over the course of just one year found them being asked to act as the Northern Ontario representative for the company's industrial-use MegaDomes.

These special domes, which can reach up to 125 feet wide and 60 feet high, are made of galvanized steel frames and covered with a special UV-resistant fabric. Although the parts are shipped from Montreal to EnviroStructures' warehouse facilities in Timmins via transport, it's up to the Duquettes and their staff to assemble them, a process which can take up to 10 days.

While a variety of industries have made use of this particular product, Denis says business from the mining industry currently accounts for a quarter of their livelihood. Clients range from Xstrata to Dumas Mining Contractors. They use the product to cover anything from ore piles to specialized equipment. Part of the appeal, Denis says, stems from the fact that these tent-like structures aren't taxed at the same rate as a traditional building.

The company also services private residents, and regularly builds large-scale shelters for various levels of government. These include various arena complexes for the city of Timmins, as well as a two-acre greenhouse complex at the Wabigoon First Nation, near Dryden.

Business has been so...