Chester, NS – ABLE Engineering Services Inc., an engineering and land-survey consulting firm based in Chester with an office in Tantallon, has merged with Hiltz and Seamone, a Kentville-based consulting firm established in 1959.

“This is a natural progression, allowing us to better serve Nova Scotia communities outside of the metro region,” said company president Andre Veinotte, P.Eng., “It extends the type of services we can offer into larger-scale municipal engineering work, and significantly expands our service area.”

Founded in 2009, ABLE is a recognized leader in small-scale sewage treatment, designing about 250 single-family septic systems annually. The firm has built a reputation for value with designs saving homeowners significant construction costs.

ABLE also provides municipal and structural engineering services to private and public-sector clients throughout Nova Scotia.

Adding key Hiltz and Seamone staff gives the group the ability to address almost all municipal and environmental engineering projects. Both firms offer professional land-surveying services, with the merger creating greater capacity and quicker project turnaround times.

“This represents another major step in the growth of the company," said senior partner Jeffrey Pinhey, P.Eng. “We are the only engineering office of any scale west of metro offering municipal and structural engineering services.”

“This is a merger of a firm with a long track record of serving the Annapolis Valley and Nova Scotia, with a younger, vibrant firm, also based outside of the metropolitan area. We are excited by this recharge of our practice," said Sandy Dewar, P.Eng. “Technically and organizationally, this will allow us to better provide engineering services to a greater market area. And, as a 100 per cent Nova Scotia-owned and operated company, to better compete with branch offices of multinational firms that have, for the most part, taken over the municipal engineering industry in the province.”

ABLE Engineering Services originated as a firm focussing on small projects and is maintaining its goal of working at peak efficiency even as it adds larger projects in more areas.

“We have already collaborated successfully.” said Pinhey. "This merger allows our Nova Scotia-owned company to better serve small town and rural areas across Nova Scotia from a place they can better identify with, while still being able to serve the urban market from our location in Tantallon.”