Toronto firm finally wins big Haiti contract
by Michael Ouellette
Innovative Composites International Inc. (ICI) has signed a US$68-million contract to supply two million square feet of its EcoScape housing for large scale reconstruction projects in Haiti and Ghana.
TORONTO—Innovative Composites International Inc. (ICI) has signed a US$68-million contract to supply two million sq. ft. of its EcoScape housing for large scale reconstruction projects in Haiti and Ghana.
The Toronto-based developer and manufacturer of composite structural building materials signed the contract with Palm Beach, Fla.-based construction conglomerate Barclays Gedi Group (BGG), after lengthy negotiations to secure construction projects in Haiti and elswhere.
In a press release, ICI says the contract price is based on the current $34-per sq. ft. price of its 880 sq. ft. house design.
ICI also announced plans to start up a second manufacturing facility in South Carolina—with this new order representing 40 per cent of its planned output— which is expected to start shipping houses in the first quarter of 2012.
The terms of the contract also gives BGG the right of first refusal to purchase up to an additional 35 per cent of the new plant’s output for 5 years. In this case ICI sales to BGG could hit $112 million a year.
“…We haven’t even scratched the surface in terms of market penetration and will be able to accelerate project roll out once the [South Carolina] facility is up and running,” ICI President and CEO Terry Ball says.
Watch a short video of a house being built using ICI’s composite panels and design:
ICI has been a darling of the Canadian commercialization scene for several years, and is run by a group of innovators with big time experience in iconic Canadian manufacturing companies.
