DESIGN-BUILD · COMMERCIAL
Commercial HVAC design-build, under one contract
Engineering, fabrication, installation, controls, and commissioning of mechanical systems for office towers, multi-residential rental, and mixed-use buildings — delivered on one budget, one schedule, one liability envelope. Across Quebec and the GTA.
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- Certified specialistsLEED, CEM, CMVP, RCx — across four offices in Quebec and Ontario.
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- Projects deliveredMechanical scopes across Canadian commercial, industrial, and institutional buildings since 1927.
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- Grants securedÉcoPerformance, Énergir, and Hydro-Québec funding won for clients in recent years.
What design-build delivers
Engineering to commissioning, in one delivery org
The four scopes that asset managers usually buy from a separate engineer, mechanical contractor, controls contractor, and commissioning agent — run by one team, on one contract.
Engineering — tailored, technology-neutral
Certified engineers design mechanical systems around your real loads, operational constraints, and financial targets. Technological neutrality — we select the equipment that fits, not the one we sell.
Fabrication and installation — in-house
Our multidisciplinary team — engineers, designers, draftsmen, control technicians, project managers, and millwrights — covers the bulk of mechanical, piping, and controls work in-house, under RBQ and CMMTQ licensing.
Budget and schedule — locked
Integrated execution removes change-order risk. One cost envelope, one schedule from preliminary design through commissioning, with total transparency on project management.
Commissioning and performance monitoring
We instrument what we build and stay through the first cycles of operation. Proactive alerts and dashboards keep the numbers in service matching the numbers in the proposal.
Revit / BIM coordination
Intelligent 3D models that integrate mechanical, electrical, and plumbing scope in a unified BIM environment. Clash detection between MEP and structural systems before site, 4D scheduling and 5D cost data inside the model, and as-built BIM deliverables for facility operations.
Built for occupied buildings
Complex conversions in manned environments
Most commercial design-build work happens in buildings full of tenants. Our delivery model is built around that — not around an empty greenfield site.
Delivery in manned environments
Mechanical retrofits sequenced around tenant operations — staged shutdowns, temporary services, and invasive work scheduled outside tenant hours. We deliver complex system conversions in occupied, densely populated buildings.
No interruption to operations
Proven expertise in completing complex projects without interrupting operations, even in densely occupied office towers and multi-residential buildings. The construction crew is backed by our service division for off-hours coverage.
Service-backed off-hours coverage
Same delivery org runs both capex and opex. A fleet of 25+ trucks with 24/7 dispatch across Greater Montréal and the GTA covers the construction team when off-hours coverage is required.
ESG-ready handover documentation
Integrated dashboards and automated reporting feed directly into your annual ESG disclosures and compliance audits — built for asset managers and REIT portfolio teams who report on what they build.
Building types we serve
Office, multi-residential, mixed-use, retail
Same in-house team, sized for the codes, occupancy profiles, and ESG mandates that apply to each commercial asset class.
Office towers
Design-build of full mechanical scope on new construction and major retrofits — engineered for tenant retention, certifiable environments, and the ESG reporting tenants increasingly require.
Multi-residential rental buildings
Complete mechanical re-engineering and new-build scope for rental towers — converting existing systems to optimize resident comfort and cutting energy bills by 30–50% on past mandates.
Mixed-use developments
Mixed retail-residential, retail-office, and hospitality-residential complexes — one mechanical contractor coordinating the load zoning, code rules, and operating profiles that mixed occupancy demands.
Retail and corporate HQs
Owner-occupied corporate HQs and retail portfolios — from telecom (Bell, TELUS, Rogers) to big-box (Walmart, Canadian Tire, IKEA, Jean Coutu, Dollarama) to financial HQs (BMO, TD Canada Trust, Banque Nationale). The design-build sweet spot for clients who measure outcomes in operating cost per square foot and capital efficiency.
How we work
Four steps from first conversation to commissioning
Meet
Senior-engineer site walk and discovery. Free.
Visit
We measure existing conditions, loads, and tenant constraints.
Diagnose
Engineering proposal with cost, schedule, and grant eligibility.
Build
Execution, commissioning, and performance handover.
Design-build FAQ
What our clients ask before signing on
How do you mitigate tenant disruption on an occupied office tower or multi-residential building?
We sequence mechanical work around tenant operations — staged shutdowns, temporary services, and invasive work scheduled outside business or sleeping hours. Our teams are routinely deployed in occupied, densely populated buildings, and the construction crew is backed by our service division (25+ trucks, 24/7 dispatch) for off-hours coverage.
Can you deliver LEED-certified commercial projects?
Yes. Our portfolio includes multiple LEED-certified commercial deliveries — among them the Altoria / Aimia Tower in Montréal, the Bell Canada head office on Nun's Island, Dicom HQ, the Fontaine Building, Dollarama HQ, and the ICAO headquarters. The same body of work has earned Kolostat multiple ASHRAE awards for innovative energy and sustainable-design projects.
How confident is the schedule on a design-build project?
Integrated execution removes the engineer-versus-contractor change-order cycle that drives schedule slippage on fragmented mechanical scopes. One in-house team owns engineering, fabrication, installation, controls, and commissioning, and we commit to rigorously respecting the budget and schedule established at the engineering-proposal stage.
Do you manage grant applications as part of the design-build contract?
Yes. Through Kolostat's Energy division, we identify eligible measures across ÉcoPerformance, Énergir, Hydro-Québec, and NRCan, file the analysis and implementation components, and produce post-installation reporting. The project is designed around grant capture, not after the fact. Up to 75% of project cost has been grant-financed on past commercial mandates.
Who owns the engineering — Kolostat or a third-party consultant?
Kolostat owns the engineering in-house. Our multidisciplinary team — engineers, designers, draftsmen, control technicians, project managers, millwrights, and service professionals — covers the bulk of design, mechanical, piping, and controls work without subcontracting the engineering scope. The integrated team is the reason design-build is our core delivery model.
What does the single-contract model actually buy us?
One contract, one schedule, one liability envelope. No engineer-versus-contractor arbitration when a decision needs to be made on site. Procurement teams that have priced the cost of a fragmented mechanical scope — separate engineer, mechanical contractor, controls contractor, commissioning agent — typically pick design-build the second time around.
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Tell us about your project
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Have a commercial design-build mechanical scope?
One contract from engineering to commissioning — for office towers, multi-residential rental, mixed-use, and retail. RBQ (1269-6704-94), CMMTQ, four offices across Quebec and Ontario.