Ottawa General Contractors

We converted an in-law suite to include an office, garage and carport.
Project was completed to our expectations. Would definitely work with OGC again. Very professional. Satisfied with all work.

Thank you so much for the work of OGC and your subcontracts to complete the new extension at the back of our home. We are extremely happy with the final product and look forward to living in this bright open space.

Thanks to Sharri for helping us move through some of our choices and providing options and ideas.

A huge to thank you to Abdull as the project manager - responsive, positive and generally just a great guy. Tammy and I both said that seeing him for the last time on Friday was a bit sad - we will miss him. Whenever there was an issue, problem or change, Abdull quickly responded, walked us through the options and helped us move through the multiple decisions that needed to be made along the way. Without him at our side, it would have been a much more difficult process.

Please feel free to use this project in your marketing and if you want to use us as a reference or walk a prospective client around the extension, please feel free to ask.

The designer was very responsible for all wishes and recommended the best technical proposals!
A good company, reasonable price, pleasant communication, good results, short terms, a project in a convenient form.

Right from the start, the design, project management, contractors, and subcontractors ... all played an important role in moving our major project along. The workmanship was fine, the attention to detail was impressive!
We also really appreciated the conscientious and caring effort made by our designer Sharri, and project manager Paolo, along with our kitchen cabinet maker Bassem and cabinet installer Hadi, contractor Toby and electrician Steve... everyone equally displayed significant skill and passion for their work. We are pleased and proud to have chosen Ottawa General Contractors for our renovation.

We worked with Alex and JJ on a Trex deck and they did a fantastic job. The are very serious, committed to quality and a pleasure to work with them .

we highly recommend AVBuild - alexvanbrussel@avbuild.ca

*Short version*: OGC recently completed an extensive basement renovation for us in a timely manner--despite having to navigate the complications presented by COVID. Overall, we are very satisfied with their workmanship, communication, and professionalism. They are fair, honest, and willing to please. We understand they are making changes to how their Statement of Work document is laid out, which will propel them, I believe, to a 10/10! I would recommend them for any project.

*Detailed version*:
OGC brought in a team of qualified professionals (plumbers, HVAC, electricians) as well as a main general subcontractor to finish our basement to create a large rec-room, including a feature cultured stone wall, a display niche, a workout area closeable to the rest of the space via double by-pass barn doors, and under-stair storage space, and a 3/4 bathroom. They also replaced our old insulation with spray foam throughout the finished and unfinished spaces, re-framed our existing exterior walls, and installed sound-proofing in the ceilings and walls of our finished space. Additionally, they expanded the number and type of electrical outlets in our unfinished workshop, installed a workshop sink and counter, and as a tag-on to the main project, renovated our ensuite shower.

Right from the outset we were impressed with Bryan's design suggestions and patience with our various design questions and ideas, along with his willingness to work with us to break down our project into affordable phases (although, ultimately, we decided against this).

Deirdre was our original materials coordinator and she made numerous visits to our home, bringing us samples to help us narrow down our 'look' and offering great design suggestions. Due to COVID, Sharri took her place and also came to our house for on-site consultations and continued to make great design suggestions that really helped us keep a coordinated look and feel to our space.

Our resource manager, Andrew, helped us a number of times by connecting us with professionals that could fix unforeseen problems, i.e. latent cracks in our foundation and a mystery leak coming through our walls from our chimney or roof (be prepared for surprises when you remove existing drywall!). He covered the initial visit from the roofer --which was completely out of OGC's scope-- and he also provided complimentary materials pickup for items we were responsible for when we explained some extenuating circumstances, which we greatly appreciated.

Paolo, our project manager, would visit the job site at least once, often more times, a week to ensure the subcontractors' work was up to OGC's high standards, and was always pleasant to deal with. He supplied us with a weekly project satisfaction questionnaire to fill out, which we had to supply to the Customer Service & Operations Manager, Fatima, so any concerns noted could be brought to light right away; we rarely had anything to discuss, but when there were any items, they were always promptly dealt with to our complete satisfaction. Our interactions with Fatima were always enjoyable and she always conveyed a sense of truly caring about our complete satisfaction.

Our main subcontractors, under Brian, were all phenomenal! I can't say enough about the high quality of their workmanship, their professional attitudes, their willingness to go the extra mile, and their attention to detail. Brian's custom work for us -- a barn door, some cabinetry and shelving, a maple stair railing, and a live-edge wood ledge--were all beautiful and of the highest craftsmanship. If I could given them an 11/10, I would!

At the end of the project, we were given the opportunity to walk around and create a 'punch list' of any deficiencies, like dings in walls or anything else needing touch-ups, and OGC addressed every one without hesitation--even the ones we probably were being overly picky on :-) .

We are super pleased with the final results. The only item that is holding us back from giving a 10/10 review relates to how OGC's statement of work (SOW) is currently laid out. Though very thorough, we felt it was laid out more in 'construction speak'. Most of it we could navigate, but there was some wording on there that was not--in our opinion--as clearly laid out as it could be so it did lead to some confusion. For a bigger project with different 'zones', the SOW would also benefit from being broken down by area and with costs associated with each line item. We brought this up with them and they have indicated they have taken our feedback seriously and will be trying to incorporate our suggestions to revamp their SOW in the future. Some clarity could also be provided in the wording of their change orders re: which costs relate to labour and which to materials. I think if they are able to make those alterations , they will definitely be propelled to a 10/10! I am still waiting to hear back on clarification of one item in the statement of work re: our custom cabinetry, but this did not prevent us from closing out the project. I have every confidence, given our consistent experience of their wanting to make sure the client is completely satisfied, that they will follow-through on this last point shortly.

As noted at the outset, I would recommend OGC for any project.

We hired OGC to finish the basement in the home we bought last year. They were of great help during the design and permitting process (particularly for us first-time homeowners), and ultimately handed over a high quality project when they were done. They did a great job of modernizing our old underdeveloped downstairs into a modern, liveable basement. Their post-renovation communication and assistance has been A+ as well. Abdull in particular was a pleasure to work with as a project manager.

If I had any advice it is to communicate early and often (particularly if you are sourcing some products yourself and/or are a first-time homeowner) to ensure that you stay on the same page as the project evolves and don't have to do any unnecessary returns/refunds. However, this may not be so much an OGC issue but a first-time renovator issue.

Overall, a good trustworthy company that delivered a high quality product at a good price. I recommend.

Our coach home is finally complete. Abdul was our project manager and was great throughout the project. I am not the easiest person to please and deal with but Abdul really came through for me by being patient and did his very best to rectify and solve any issues I had.

Abdul also went above and beyond by helping us install a fireplace, fix some electrical things just to name a few.

I highly recommend Abdul and have recommended Abdul to anyone that has called OGC for their project needs.

We used OGC for our major home renovations.

Abdull was the project manager and he was stellar. He was available at all hours, week day or weekend, keeping the process moving and ensuring it remains as smooth as possible.

For high end work with some structural concerns, we definitely made the best call going with OGC.

Rating: 9/10

I am writing this review to share a positive experience with OGC (Ottawa General Contractors).

I hired OGC for a complex project involving numerous repairs and even rebuilding part of my house. While the project was not without issues, what I found about OGC is that they are very responsive, they see things through and they take responsibility for any issues. Things are done in writing, professionally, on the up and up, the project scope is clearly set out at the beginning with professional diagrams and details, and there are multiple levels of contacts within the company who are available during the process.

OGC also has a dedicated customer service employee, Fatima, who was very attentive to all our concerns. Unfortunately she was absent on maternity leave during the first part of our project, but when she returned, she jumped right in, took care of issues and was extremely quick to respond to any of our concerns.

We also had positive experiences with Deirdre and Andrew.

This is a local, family-owned business and they are keen on ensuring work is well-done and customers are satisfied. They are not argumentative or dismissive of concerns; when you bring something up, they address it. When the manager visited our project, he himself pointed out things that he felt were not up to the company’s standards, and he organized additional work to make things right. He also returned repeatedly to our house ensure the work was done correctly. If an issue occurred, such as a subcontractor damaging something, OGC also took full responsibility and made things right.

The only negatives were issues that I believe would have been encountered with most renovation companies, mainly issues with subcontractors, employee turnover and delays. However, between choosing to do a cash deal with a company that may run away in the middle of a project with the work incomplete, or choosing to do business with a professional company like OGC that sees things through to the end, is responsive, and takes responsibility, then I would definitely once again choose a company like OGC.