Redrock Camps
For more than a decade, Redrock Camps has been designing and operating mid-sized camps across western Canada. The company provides turnkey workforce hospitality solutions for companies operating in remote areas. Headquartered in Calgary, Redrock Camps is privately owned and operated and has operational facilities in Edmonton and Grande Prairie.
Redrock’s goal is to provide clients with the best camp value in the industry. The company looks to offer reliable and comfortable camp solutions that will help its clients’ workforces better complete their projects.
The company’s offerings include camp and catering solutions encompasses everything from providing camp equipment to daily hospitality services. Redrock strives to be a flexible service provider that can offer its services faster than the competition.
Different Approach
Redrock wants its clients to see its services as an investment in their operations. It says its camps can be tools that clients can use to attract and retain employees for their labor forces.
“Their workforce will be more productive, better-rested and safer,” President and CEO Troy Ferguson says.
Redrock wants its camps to be more than an institutional environment. Non-institutional remote camp environments help the company differentiate itself from competition through more comfort, choices, access to technology and connectivity to family.
More than 90 percent of the people who call its camps homes are men, so the environments are designed to provide a camp with a look and feel that will appeal to the workers. Redrock’s camp facilities provide a comfortable environment complete with layouts, furniture and décor that look more like a cabin than an institutional, modular facility. “We take an emotional approach to our business to help people relax when they are away from home,” Ferguson says.
Redrock strives to provide a high-level hospitality experience. The company manages the facilities it builds, and it is often brought in to manage facilities that were constructed by others. “Our services include camp management, housekeeping, catering, maintenance and more,” Ferguson says. “Our supply chain operations ensure that all goods are transported from our warehouse in Edmonton, and all of our services are in-house. We look to hire people based on their skills and their ability to make our environment welcoming.”
Ongoing Improvement
One of Redrock’s most significant recent undertakings was the acquisition of a majority stake in Sockeye Modular Installations. Sockeye has worked on projects with Redrock as well as its competitors. By acquiring Sockeye, Redrock can offer all of its services under one roof.
“They have core values and a culture that is similar to ours,” Ferguson says. “The acquisition provides peace of mind for our customers because we have everything in house to provide a camp solution.”
Other investments have been behind the scenes. Redrock launched an enterprise resource plan utilizing SAP Business One and a customer resource management system to support growth and improve its systematic approach to its operations. “We can be more effective in terms of how we serve customers,” Ferguson says.
The current state of the energy market in Canada makes conditions challenging for Redrock, but the company can provide products and services to many different sectors. It is working to retool its salesforce so it can develop relationships in areas outside of oil and gas.
“This is our second market downturn we’ve had to navigate, which demands fiscal discipline and finding new customers,” Ferguson says. “We are introducing the business now as a remote logistics company that does workforce housing and hospitality.”
Redrock Camps has a lot of opportunity to solve problems for customers in Canada’s north country. It can also grow from those roots to work in remote locations around the world. In addition, it is seeking opportunities to work with First Nation populations to help those communities build infrastructure.
“Our goal is to strive to be different,” Ferguson says. “Times like this are a healthy part of business ownership because you can take stock of how you do things and change as needed. I am excited about our future.”