Yellowknife (Feb 24/06) - A Yellowknife manufacturer says his company would like to build trailers for pipeline workers, but his proposals have fallen on deaf ears.

Manuel Jorge, general manager of Energy Wall and Building Products, says the government has shown little interest in supporting Northern manufacturing. - Mike W. Bryant/NNSL photo

The territorial government has a secret memorandum of agreement with Calgary-based international firm ATCO Structures to supply the Mackenzie Valley Gas Project with 1,420 trailer units, after which they'll be handed over to alleviate severe housing shortages in the NWT.

The entire project is worth about $500 million. The government plans to invest $116 million of that.

Manuel Jorge, general manager of Energy Wall and Building Products, said he could take on at least some of the project, but the government doesn't appear interested in using Northern manufacturers.

Jorge began his business in 1982. His pre-fabricated system for insulated walls was approved by the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation seven years ago. Energy Wall was the first NWT company to manufacture trusses for roofs.

His company has taken on about $15 million worth of building projects in Yellowknife and Norman Wells, including the K'Alemi Dene school in Ndilo and the Great Slave Helicopters air base.

But these days, the 20,000 square-foot Energy Wall factory is building kitchen cabinets because Jorge can't find any trained staff who could take on bigger projects.

"We could build anything if we had the opportunity to," said Jorge.

"We have the best facilities in the North, but we're not using it to full capacity because we don't have enough skilled people to do it.

It's a bit of a catch-22, he explained.

There is a huge demand for manufactured housing in the NWT, but buyers, including the territorial government, turn to southern firms because that's where the factories are, as well as certified apprenticeship programs.

Jorge said he has approached the government several times about the problem, but has gotten nowhere. Fat lucrative contracts, meanwhile, are out of reach.

"Is our government committed to developing industry in the North?" wondered Jorge. "I don't know any more."

The issue of training for manufactured housing workers occupied much of question period in the legislative assembly, Tuesday.

MLAs wanted to know whether the territorial government's plan to invest more than $220 million into the NWT economy by employing Northern companies and workers to convert ATCO trailers into housing would translate into a skilled workforce, who would eventually be able to put their training towards a career.

The plan calls for Northerners to be trained at the ATCO plant in Calgary. The actual conversion work would take place here.

"Are they going to get recognized certification?" asked Hay River South MLA Jane Groenewegen. "Not just someone who knows how to convert a trailer?"

Range Lake MLA Sandy Lee - who says she has become a "complete pariah" in the legislative assembly for her near-daily barrage of questions into the ATCO scheme - said at least the government is thinking about Northern career opportunities in manufacturing as opposed to a year ago.

Nonetheless, she remains skeptical.

"If they want to do anything in Hay River, or Inuvik, or anywhere, show us," said Lee.

Housing Minister David Krutko insisted that NWT workers involved in the ATCO project will be certified, likely through an Aurora College program, and that they will be able to put their new-found skills toward working on other projects in the future.

Developer Les Rocher, who imports trailers and modular homes from plants in Estevan, Sask., and Lethbridge, Alta., said he doesn't think there is much of a future for Northern manufacturing.

"It's not possible," said Rocher.

"We don't have the manpower, we don't have the material and fuel costs, we don't have any of it. It doesn't add up."