1940s
Harold Barg was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, on September 18, 1946 and raised on the family farm in Glenlea, Manitoba.
1960s
Harold recognized very early on that he was happiest working with his hands. The first time he picked up a hammer, he said, “I felt like me”. At the age of 19, Harold was offered his first construction job with Braemar Homes. It is through this job that he would connect with future junior partner Kornelius Ens, and ignite his lifelong passion for building and construction.
Throughout the 1960s Harold worked for several companies rising to the role of supervisor/foreman by 1967 for BF Klassen Construction. One of his first northern projects with the company allowed him to spend 7 months in Kugluktuk, Nunavut building a school, nursing station, and power plant. It is through BF Klassen that Harold was not only introduced to his love for working in Canada’s Arctic, but also to the love of his life, his wife Florence.
1970s
Harold transitioned to a new role in the early 1970s, but driven by his entrepreneurial spirit, he, along with two partners purchased a company and began Norland Construction Limited out of his home in Headingley, Manitoba. After that partnership concluded in 1974, Harold and his wife began Norcan Development Limited, running the business for the next five years from the basement of their family home.
With 5 employees by 1975, Norcan pursued its first major project, a parking garage development in Baker Lake. Throughout the remainder of the 70s, Norcan used its experience working in the north to serve remote and rural communities, completing projects in areas including Baffin Island, Frobisher and Kugluktuk.
1980s
From the late 1970s to early 1980s Norcan continued to develop a strong reputation for its work on northern and rural projects. As a result, Norcan obtained a pre-engineered metal bidding franchise to expand its offerings to include arenas and recreation centres. By this time, Norcan also built its first office building at 3074 Portage Avenue and purchased its first plane – a six-passenger Aztec to allow the company greater access to remote communities. It is here that Kornelius Ens joins the Norcan team as a junior partner, and who would go on to work alongside Harold for the next 25 years.
In 1982 Norcan moved from its Portage Avenue location to Niakwa Road on the east side of Winnipeg. With 12 employees by 1985, the team’s capacity and capabilities grew beyond measure, allowing Norcan to pursue design build projects for the first time.
1990s
In the early 1990s, Norcan Development Limited became officially known as NDL Construction. By 1991, now finished high school, Harold’s son, Peter joined the company along with a number of new faces, bringing the total staff to 50 by 1995. A growing team, expanding expertise and strength in the office opened doors to facilitate larger, more complex projects. It is during this period that NDL moved to its current location on Symington Lane in Navin, Manitoba.
2000s
The 2000s marked a period of growth as well as a new era in more ways than one for NDL. In 2006, Harold’s son Jonathan joined the team, and he and Peter began their journey towards ownership by 2019. This period also brought an exciting opportunity for the team to pursue its first fibre optic project in Northern Ontario.