Ottawa General Contractors

Our history with OGC started over 10 years ago and this was our third project with them. After cooling down for two months, we still couldn’t believe that OGC managed to close our project in five months. The project scope included 2nd floor addition and existing rooms redone, exterior house renovation (change siding to stone and stucco), first floor office and laundry room update, front entrance, garage, and stairs/railing refinish, and partial foundation work. This is a great achievement given the supply chain challenges and Covid situations.

We signed the contract in Nov. 2020 after many rounds of revisions. Nick was very patient with us and addressed many of the questions we had. Meeting with him on ZOOM saved us lots of time from traffic. Designer Alain was superb, whenever we had any questions, we could hear from him within 24 hours.

The official construction started in April 2021 as planned without delay and we asked for Andrew to be our project manager due to our positive experiences with him on our previous project.

Within a month, Andrew got promoted and he handed over our project to Abdull. At that time, we were not sure if our project would receive the same level of attention and care. After several weeks, we realized that our project was in good hands with Abdull.

Throughout the project, Abdull had been on top of things all the time. He maintained daily communication with us and provided weekly project schedule updates for the upcoming weeks. He was very organized and detail-oriented and almost every day we had some contractors working on the site without much down times. He also made efforts to coordinate with some of the special trades that we signed on our own.

In addition, Abdull was very hands on himself and not afraid to roll-up the sleeves to fix things or get things done. We really appreciated his efforts and the entire OGC team.

OGC also honoured the contract terms and absorbed the significant lumber price increases in the first half of 2021 for framing related work.

There were a couple of areas we feel there is room for improvement:
1. Scope of Work could be written in simple language for clients to comprehend, and some details in the drawing could be updated to match the SoW or vice versa;
2. We had seen some staff turnovers during our projects which slowed down some works. Given the hot renovation/construction markets right now, it was inevitable and OGC is not alone in this respect.

Overall, we were very pleased with OGC and the project team Abdull/John and others (e.g. Mahr) to get our project done. We have received many positive comments from our neighbours and passerbys for the quick speed and final look of our renovated house.

Andrew/Abdull,
We will enjoy our newly renovated house for a while before thinking of other things for you to fix. Stay tuned....

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
David & Angela

We hired OGC to add a office and bathroom to our basement. We are overall happy with the quality of work completed. However, there were several delays and concerns regarding communication within the OGC team. Some delays were unavoidable delays due to COVID. Some delays were due to miscommunication among the OGC team due to high staff turnover throughout our project (different project managers, switch in the designer, new staff enlisted to provide initial project quotes and details).
We ended up with a very professional project manager (Adam) who ensured our project was completed effectively and with high quality work.

Exterior repairs and siding installation 8/10

Our project involved removing the stucco (EIFS) exterior, repairing damage, and installing steel siding. There were some additional elements such as rebuilding/reinstalling stairs and deck. The project had several challenges including matters beyond OGC's control like COVID based delays and issues, but others like delays in material deliveries and coordination that were disappointing. We did enjoy excellent professional service from multiple OGC employees, including Steve (and team) on structural issues, Luc (and team) on siding and trim installation including in difficult winter conditions, and Rob (and team) on deck/stairs that have led to multiple passers by stopping to take photos of our design. We were impressed with the quality of the work and the approach to do it well for long term protection instead of the quickest or easiest way. At the end we also had a useful post project review with Alynn to discuss what had gone well and what could have been better and she demonstrated a strong commitment to improving certain aspects and dealing with some of the issues and delays we experienced.

The most positive experience was with our project manager, Ramy who coordinated all the moving parts. He was very responsive, quick to resolve issues and really demonstrated he cared about the success of our project with his support throughout. His background as a structural engineer was also very helpful in explaining the how and why of various design choices and this also helped efficiently implement official recommendations from professional engineers into instructions for subcontractors on the site as well as working with the City on inspections/permits. We're pleased with the final result and would consider working with OGC again in the future.

Warranty 8/10

There was one reasonably significant item to fix under warranty, and a few smaller issues and it did require coordination with our attached neighbours. Unfortunately it did take more than one try to get it done but throughout Leighton was good at communicating with us and clearly committed to getting it done right and to our satisfaction, including doing some of the last steps himself. OGC's warranty service demonstrated they stand behind their work.

the quality of products and the workmanship is excellent
finished product is beautiful
attention to details is great
there were however delays and the project took more time to complete than presented in the schedule.

Ottawa General Contractors was great from the very beginning. They were the only company we met with who were willing to salvage some existing cabinets and countertops to keep us within budget.
Matt, our project manager has been extremely responsive, and worked tirelessly to get us everything we wanted whle staying on budget.
Special shout-out to Trevor, one of the OGC workers, who has almost become part of the family in the past few weeks. He was so professional, helpful and respectful.
Another few weeks to go, but the project is looking great!

After the completion of a new addition, which included a bathroom, the water pipes to this bathroom were freezing on cold winter nights. The company has been working with us trying to solve this issue.

We had our kitchen and flooring replaced. The tradesmen did an excellent job. Very friendly and precise. Left my home clean after daily work. I would definitely recommend OGC as a company.

We first met Nick from OCG in June 2020 to discuss our renovation ideas. We converted our mudroom into a laundry room with dog spa, replaced our existing kitchen counter tops with quartz and installed a new backsplash. We also finished the basement creating an office, 3 piece bath, games room, bar and family room. Nick and his team did a great job putting our ideas into accurate 3D designs. Our project began in October 2020 and was completed mid-January 2021. During that time our Contractor Ramy and Designer Sharri were indispensable.
Sharri's concepts and design ideas were fantastic and Ramy ensured our schedule ran smoothly with no major issues or delays. A special shout out to Oliver, OCG jack of all trades who did exceptional work. From beginning to end OCG personnel were professional, accommodating and engaged. They were quick to respond to calls and emails as well as any issues that came up. Overall we had a very positive experience and absolutely love our renovation. We would highly recommend this company to our family and friends.

Renewal of kitchen and parts of the first floor. Most teams were very professional and effective. Communications with the staff of OGC was outstanding. All issues were discussed and followed through in the best possible time.

We converted an in-law suite to include an office, garage and carport.
Project was completed to our expectations. Would definitely work with OGC again. Very professional. Satisfied with all work.