How this journalist found his way into the construction industry – FEAS Alumni & Engagement

While Rob Bradford may not be a Faculty of Engineering and Architectural Science (FEAS) alumnus, Bradford has made his mark in the construction industry. After graduating from TMU’s journalism program in 1977, his career began as a journalist at the Daily Commercial News, a newspaper serving the construction industry. 

“I spent two years there, and then I had the opportunity to go into the Toronto Construction Association because the skills that I learned were very transferable to the association world,” said Bradford. “It’s all about communication and being able to communicate with the members and with the government.” 

Applying his journalism background to his work, Bradford has held various positions within the construction industry, including becoming the executive director at Ontario Hot Mix Producers Association and president of Bradcom. However, the writer spent most of his career at the Toronto Area Road Builders Association (TARBA), where he has held a management role since the mid-1980s. He took a break between 1996 to 2012 to manage the Ontario Road Builders’ Association, however continues to provide management services at TARBA.

TARBA is celebrated in TMU’s President’s Circle for its generous contributions and investments in students’ education. 

“TMU was one of the first post-secondary organizations that we decided to sponsor,” said Bradford. “Many of our board of directors had TMU civil engineering backgrounds. Once we got to the point where we had extra funds to sponsor students, TMU was first on the list because that’s where many of us came from.”

Today, Bradford is the CEO of InSite Services where the company provides research and writing services, with a focus on the Ontario construction industry.

For the writer, Bradford’s work within the construction industry is further memorialized through his book, Keeping Ontario Moving: The History of Roads and Road Building in Ontario, published in 2015. Despite beginning his career in journalism, Bradford says the construction businesses and workers’ resilience is what inspired his passion for the industry.

“The risks that construction companies or owners are willing to take still baffles me. Their whole lives are always on the line, and I admire what they do,” said Bradford. “To me, it’s a really tough business. To get along, you have to be innovative, you have to be intuitive, and you have to know what you’re doing. It takes incredible skill.”