Our History
Early Days
Pinchin began as DJ Pinchin Consulting Ltd., founded by Dr. Donald Pinchin in 1981. Don was well known as the author of "Asbestos in Buildings", a research study on the risks and control of asbestos in buildings, published for the Ontario Royal Commission on Asbestos in 1982. This seminal document formed the basis of most Asbestos in Buildings regulations in Canada.
In May of 1983, Don hired his first employee, Bruce Stewart. They worked out of a rented month-by-month office and performed all work themselves. The original focus of the company was to train on the assessment and safe removal of asbestos building materials, to survey buildings for asbestos, and to inspect remediation projects.
From this simple beginning as a one-issue consultancy, Pinchin quickly grew into a multi-disciplinary service provider with offices and professional staff throughtout Canada. Today, Pinchin operates in 50 offices throughout North America with more than 1000 staff dedicated to providing top quality service.
Have you heard about our apple story? Read our blog - The Pinchin Apple Story
Beyond Asbestos
Our growth strategy has always been one of entrepreneurial development, beginning with the recognition that the risk of asbestos in buildings would substantially impact construction projects and building management for all our clients.
In 1986, we opened our first asbestos laboratory in Mississauga which is now the largest of its kind in Canada. In, 1992 an additional asbestos laboratory was opened at Pinchin Leblanc Environmental in Nova Scotia. Our Mississauga environmental microbiology laboratory was added in 2001. Our experienced laboratories are ISO accredited and provide our clients access to the highest level of service and accuracy.
Our service philosophy begins with understanding the needs of our clients, and providing the knowledge and expertise of our industry experts to address those needs. Through the 1990s, mould contamination, indoor air quality, and occupational health & safety became a greater concern for facility managers and contractors. Pinchin recruited occupational hygienists and engineers, past colleagues and recognized industry leaders, to develop our capabilities in these new fields. In kind, these service lines, which address issues inside a building, eventually led to the introduction of our industrial emissions, contaminated soil and groundwater, and building science services, to further support our clients’ environmental and engineering needs.
Our People, Our Future
While Pinchin’s history is one of continued growth, we have always been an employee-centered company. Also, we developed a succession plan that included an employee share-ownership program. Through this planning and execution we have developed our leadership talent, resulting in engaged staff committed to the day-to-day operation of our company and the relationships we build with our clients.
We will continue to attract, develop, and retain top talent in our industry. This goal is part of what has made us one of the Best Workplaces in Canada for over a decade. Our clients continue to recognize the benefit of this philosophy through our consistent service delivery and the innovative solutions we provide to meet their needs.
