Rector Machine Works wins a Nobbie!

Rector Machine Works of Sault Ste. Marie won a Northern Ontario Business Award last night.

Rector won the Company of the Year Award in the 16-50 employees category.

The award was presented in North Bay.

Also recognized were Manitoulin Physio Centre and the Township of Terrace Bay.

**************************** THUNDER BAY – Business and opinion leaders from across the North celebrated the achievements of 10 companies and individuals at the 24th Annual Northern Ontario Business Awards (NOBA) gala last night.

NOBA has become the largest annual gathering of its kind in Northern Ontario since it was first launched in 1986.

The 24th annual NOBA event was co-hosted by Thunder Bay Mayor Lynn Peterson and Northern Ontario Business Publisher Patricia Mills.

NOBA is an initiative designed to celebrate successful businesses and entrepreneurs throughout Northern Ontario.

The award evening provides the perfect occasion to acknowledge the efforts of those who create the opportunities that allow everyone to enjoy living and working in the North!

The event rotates annually among the five major centres in Northern Ontario.

There were nine business awards presented: Company of the Year (three categories, based on size), Entrepreneur of the Year, Young Entrepreneur of the Year, Entrepreneurial Community, First Nations Business Award of Excellence, Innovation, and Judges’ Choice.

The Union Gas Essay Scholarship, worth $3,000, was also presented.

An independent panel of judges adjudicated more than 100 nominations from around Northern Ontario.

This year’s judges were Jeff Elgie, partner, Lucidia Ltd. (Sault Ste. Marie); Tom Fortin, director, Ontrak Control Systems (Sudbury); Louise Thomas, curator, Ahnisnabea Art Gallery (Thunder Bay); Jennifer Twigg, president, Twiggs Coffee Company (North Bay); and the Union Gas Essay Scholarship Judge Jacqueline Savoie, director of development, Science North (Sudbury).

The following are this year's 2010 Northern Ontario Business Award winners:

************************* Company of the Year (16-50 employees) Award

Rector Machine Works (Sault Ste. Marie)

Sponsored by: OLG

Based in Sault Ste. Marie, this family-run manufacturing, machine and fabrication business has seen three generations upholding the Rector name and work ethic.

It all began in 1933, when Hervey Rector Sr. and his wife began a humble washing machine and appliance repair service in Espanola.

Now in the hands of his son and current president Herv Rector Jr., the company continues to flourish under his leadership, with the help of his children, extended family and loyal employees.

Company of the Year (1-15 employees) Award

Winner: RES Equipment Sales (Dryden)

Sponsored by: BDC

Dryden’s Bob Ray and RES Equipment Sales have done just that in building a rapport with mining industry players across Canada and internationally.

The 14-employee Dryden mining supplier is considered a cornerstone company of an emerging supply and service centre in northwestern Ontario.

RES Equipment is a provider of new and used mining equipment, parts and service to major mining players on just about every continent.

First Nations Business Award of Excellence

Manitoulin Physio Centre (Manitoulin Island)

Sponsored by: Ontario Power Generation

When Derek Debassige became a physiotherapist, a high-demand profession that could have taken him anywhere in Canada, he knew exactly where he needed to go: back home to the M’Chigeeng First Nation.

He’s since opened the only private clinic on Manitoulin Island, growing it by leaps and bounds as he tries to stay true to the First Nations’ medicine wheel and its approach to a balanced life.

Indeed, Debassige strives daily to maintain his focus between his service to the community, the donation of his time to local causes, and his enjoyment of the natural splendor of the North.

“It was really a lifestyle decision and getting back to working in a very diverse environment,” said Debassige, whose practice primarily handles private outpatient orthopedics.

Innovation Award

Century Systems Technologies Inc. (Sudbury)

Sponsored by: Export Development Canada

From the blowing desert sands of Egypt to the red-hot Ring of Fire in the James Bay Lowlands, the world’s miners are increasingly making use of products created by Sudbury’s Century Systems Technologies Inc.

Using bred-in-the-bone Northern know-how, president Ray Auger and his team have crafted a series of Windows-based software products tailored specifically to the industry’s growing exploration needs.

“These are very important applications for the industry,” says Auger. “It is very easy to sell, actually. It does a lot for them.”

This company’s product line revolves around helping clients collect, validate, store and manage information related to drilling, surveying, and laboratory results - in other words, anything a mining company needs to test its fortunes.

Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award

Krista Hedican, owner operator, Pizzale Gardens and Landscaping Inc (Timmins)

Sponsored by: CIBC

What began as a summer job en route to a career in nursing has blossomed into a horticultural heaven for Timmins’ Krista Hedican.

From growing and planting flowers to installing pools, the 26-year-old owner of Pizzale Gardens and Landscaping has her green thumbs planted deep into every aspect of her flourishing business.

“I really thought it would be a part-time thing for me,” said a chuckling Hedican, who runs the only local and privately owned garden centre in the city.

This young entrepreneur’s first brush with the business came at the age of 13, when she began working as a summer student for Pizzale Gardens’ previous owners to help fund her fondness for ski racing.

After seven summers and an additional year at a rival landscaping firm following the closure of Pizzale, the opportunity arose to snap up the property and the 30-year-old name of her former employer.

To continue reading about the 2010 NOBA winners, please click here