CTSNA celebrates its 12th anniversary in Kincardine

By: Liz Dadson October 20, 2017 1603

CTSNA celebrates its 12th anniversary in Kincardine

Commissioning and Technical Services (CSA) North America celebrated its 12th anniversary in Kincardine, with an open house at the business headquarters, located on the upper floor of the Kincardine municipal administrative centre, Wednesday evening, Oct. 11.

The company was founded in Kincardine in 2006 as a result of Bruce Power's need for contract staff for the refurbishment of Units 1 and 2 at the Bruce A generating station, states a press release about the company.

In 2005, Neil Smith, president and chief executive officer, and Rick Goodman, vice-president, purchased Merlin General, an engineering consulting company based in Kincardine, and were getting requests for staff augmentation in addition to managed task projects.

The decision was made to create a separate staffing company that would provide engineering, technical and IT (information technology) recruitment services, including contract, contract-to-hire, and permanent placement.

In 2011, Merlin General was sold to Atlantic Nuclear, and in 2012, MComm Solution of Puerto Rico Inc., an installation and commissioning company for the telecom sector, was acquired. And in 2014, Comtask Global, based in Sarasota, Florida, was added to the fold to provide engineering services to the telecom sector.

Today, CTSNA has 14 dedicated staff and more than 350 contractors deployed in assignments across the industry and in five provinces. Recruitment staff operates out of two offices - Kincardine and Burlington.

Engineering still remains very much the focus, but other disciplines include training, operations, maintenance, construction, commissioning and outages.

Kincardine mayor Anne Eadie congratulated CTSNA on its 12th anniversary in Kincardine, and noted that the company enjoys a spectacular view of Lake Huron from the second floor of the municipal administrative centre.

"If I had been mayor when this building was purchased, I would have put council on the second floor," she said, with a laugh. "We appreciate you as a tenant in the building and in the community. You are one of the largest recruitment firms in Ontario and in the nuclear business. Congratulations."

Mike Rencheck, president and chief executive officer of Bruce Power, also congratulated CTSNA for its hard work and dedication to the nuclear industry.

"We have about 350 people from CTS on our site," he said. "They are a great workforce and we appreciate your continued support of Bruce Power. We look forward to many more years working together."

Smith welcomed everyone to the 12th anniversary celebration and said the reason he and Goodman started the company was because of Bruce Power.

"Thank you to Bruce Power, to Mike (Rencheck) and your people," he said. "We appreciate your business and your safety culture. That's one of the biggest things with Bruce Power - the importance of people. That's why people want to come to this community, work for this company, and enjoy a great quality of life.

"Rick (Goodman) and I started this business together 12 years ago, and we hope to be here for many more years."

CTSNA supports local programs and charities, including the United Way of Bruce Grey, Huron Shores Hospice, and the Our Kids Bruce Grey Child and Family Services Foundation, as well as the many golf tournaments that take place in Bruce County.

The company is a member of the Association of Canadian Search, Employment and Staffing Services, the Organization of Canadian Nuclear Industries, Canadian Nuclear Society, Women in Nuclear, and the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business.

This year, CTSNA earned Inavero's Best of Staffing Client and Talent awards for providing superior service to its clients and job-seekers. Inavero's Best of Staffing winners have proven to be industry leaders in service quality, based completely on the ratings given to them by their clients and the permanent and contract candidates they have helped place. Fewer than two per cent of all staffing agencies in Canada and the United States earned the 2017 Best of Staffing award for service excellence.