If The Buildings Sector Slows, PCL Has Oil in the Backyard
In addition to Ernest Poole, PCL has been influenced by an older company that is almost its spiritual cousin. PCL’s disciplined approach to contracting, flush balance sheet and desire to hire you for a career, not a job, reminds many of Kiewit Corp., Omaha, Neb. The two companies seem to be made of minerals extracted from the same Western soil. They have had joint ventures, and they are linked by their mutual interest in Alberta’s natural resources, where Kiewit and PCL find plenty of work.
In PCL’s corporate autobiography, published on the company’s 100th anniversary in 2006, PCL treats Kiewit with special respect. In the 1940s, Kiewit approached PCL to become a joint-venture partner, and the two pursued heavy civil projects such as the Banff-Jasper highway through the Rockies. PCL’s book calls Kiewit “a leader in labor relations...recognized for setting a fine example for the Poole organization.”