Helping to build the Cayman of tomorrow

The ‘WENDY HOUSE’ on Walkers Road

Wednesday,  October 5, 2005

The list of successful projects completed by “Construction 1” keeps getting longer with names such as Ocean Frontier where it was a Sub-contractor, Prospect Primary School Water Works Treatment Plant where it was also a sub-contractor and the Campbell-Thompson Building where it operates a main contractor.

Presently it is the main contractor for the Morritt’s Tortuga Shopping complex, a residential development complex being built by AL Thompson in Beach Bay and also they are sub-contractors for a project in the Camana Bay being built by the Dart Group. 

As the list gets longer Construction 1 can be justifiable called The Number One Construction Company. 

The development of the business is a dream come true for Everton Vidal. Originally from Thompson Town, Clarendon, Mr. Vidal, a school drop out at the age of fifteen, decided that the one thing in life he wanted more than any other was to be a master builder. Having attended trade school where he learned both the practical and the theoretical aspect of construction he then set out to work. 

He migrated to the Cayman Islands in 1985 and worked for almost every major construction company that operated here where he rose to the level of supervisor, which gave him the opportunity to learn the different techniques in construction, especially the ones accustomed to back home and that of the Cayman Islands.

During this he kept his eyes on the prize.

“It was my dream all of my life to own a construction Company,” he said. After he got married the dream became more intense. 

“A year after I got married, my wife and I decided it was the right time,” he said.

“We started our own company with her as the director. We financed it with everything we had. As the company grew, she decided to give up her job in banking and work fulltime with the company.”

Moving into a 1000 square feet office space with two secretaries, a quantity surveyor and an office manager, the company now manages up to 1.5 million dollar labor contracts at any given time.

For Mr Vidal success did not come easy or overnight. “Many times my wife and I found ourselves broke after we pay our staff,” he said reflecting on the past.

“For a small company, it was tough specially when big jobs are scarce. We had to rely on residential homes and small projects. Sometimes the people would hold back money or simply didn’t have it when we needed it the most. We used to have trouble finding money to pay our guys. Now, business is not bad at all.”

Deeply rooted in his religion, Mr. Vidal attributed his success in his faith in God. “My main trust is in God. From learning the trade, I always asked God to help me to learn the trade to the fullest so I can be a contributor in the field.”

Though a skilled mason by trade, Mr. Vidal said he doesn’t engage in that aspect of the job anymore.

Maintaining a ten-hour work shift, he said he spent four hours in the office and six in the field dividing his time between the sites. This he said gives him full knowledge of the progress of the work. But with all this he still relies on the expertise of a certified Quantity Surveyor to validate the progress so as to stay within budget. 

Though successful he never gets complacent. “I never look at a complete job and get big headed,” he said. “When I look at it, I never look at what’s right about it. I always look for what has not gone right.”

According to him, this makes him always open to suggestions. Certainly this method works for him. He said Construction 1 has gotten the respect of all the major construction companies operating here on the Island and the Planning Committee.

“I must say that we’re not the cheapest company. And we do not want to be seen as that,” he said adding that the cheapest is not synonymous with best.

For him, the sky is the limit. 

“Our team have all the knowledge and expertise to take us to the highest point,” he said. He maintains a steady workforce of over forty personnel with the majority from Cayman and Jamaica.

Though he had a satisfying amount of Caymanian workers, he thinks that Caymanians are not attracted to small companies.

“Local labor mainly stick to the bigger companies,” he said. 

He praise all of his workers but has a high regard for his Jamaican work force saying that they are reliable.

“In a time when construction is booming, we need reliable workers to meet deadlines,” he said.

He admonishes all Jamaicans who come to these Islands to conduct themselves in a maner that shows respect for the Cayman Islands.

According to him, most of the hardship back in Jamaica is attributed to crime both in high and low places.

“I love the Cayman Islands,” he said. “And it makes me feel bad to hear some of the things we are responsible of doing. Overall, we are hard working, honest and reliable. But as always, one bad apple will spoil the appearance of the barrel.”

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