Design & Build met Ms Cristina Deguara; Managing Director of MC Deguara Ltd to find out more at first hand.
The construction industry in these Islands is probably generally perceived as a strong man’s area, where the work is heavy and sometimes difficult too; often requiring brawn and physical strength.
It is definitely not seen as a typical woman’s job either.
And yet, Cristina Deguara has earned the trust and respect of her workforce, customers and collaborators alike by her thorough, on-the-job learning, by embracing rather than shirking her on-site presence, and by leading through collaboration and determination and not via finger wagging and ordering-about a different style which lends well to brains over brawn and which ultimately secures the precision, quality and timeliness of all their assigned projects.
Looking to her own beginnings, Ms Deguara comments that being a female building contractor helped her grow professionally. “I have been working in the construction business for the past 16 years and I founded MC Deguara Ltd in 2009. It is particularly during the past 12 years that I acquired knowledge and experience essential both to manage such a fast-growing company as well as the large projects which are increasingly being entrusted to us,” she said, adding that being a female contractor is certainly challenging due to gender stereotypes but this has actually helped in enhancing her professional growth.
“I had to earn the right of instructing and guiding teams. This required me to learn on-site what the different workers were doing and how they were so doing”
“In the past it was much more difficult for a woman to be accepted at a building site,” said Cristina. To avoid being ignored, I had to earn the right of instructing and guiding teams. This required me to learn on-site what the different workers were doing and how they were so doing.
“My father ran his own established contracting company and I wanted to continue in the same line from a young age under my own steam.” Rather than seeing his daughter as competition, he took her vision in his stride and supported her fully from the get-go. “He continues to encourage me to go on, even today, accompanying me on site visits to check how things are proceeding,” she proudly hastened to add.
Cristina strongly believes that the typical construction worker lags behind our western European counterparts in areas of health and safety standards and procedures. “For example, I sometimes have to stop our workers on site and ask why they wouldn’t be wearing safety boots or hard hats. I got to where I am today because of my making sure that things are always done the right way and to the best levels of quality,” added Cristina. “There are still people who find it difficult to accept our way of doing things, and we have lost some very good operators to this cause. And so be it”, she added.
From paper to reality!
MC Deguara Ltd’s leadership is mostly made up of Cristina, her father and the company architect. She “drives” the workers both on and off the job sites and strives for everyone to be always looking ahead. She describes the company generally as turnkey contractors but who also include the actual construction and development of the building itself, in their services offered.
“There are still people who find it difficult to accept our way of doing things, and we have lost some very good operators to this cause. And so be it”
MC Deguara Ltd are available for anyone who is planning a development, has all the architectural plans and permits ready and now needs to do the actual erection of the project, “to take it from paper to reality!” she enthusiastically explained. As building contractors, project managers and consultancy service providers, MC Deguara Ltd will execute the architect’s plans to the exact wishes of the client.
Cristina explained herself rather pointedly here: “We focus strongly on quality and make sure that we are better than anybody else in what we do!”
This statement is based on various elements, including the fact that the company’s personnel is all fully employed and not outsourced. “This includes masons and shutterers,” she said, further explaining that since they focus on building erections (“which is not something which ‘anyone’ can do well”), they tend to concentrate on the requisites of this kind of work.
“Nonetheless,” Cristina said, “there are times when we do actually need to outsource some workers due to the volume of work in hand, or to tight deadlines we would be asked to commit ourselves to…. we would know these workers well and they would have worked with us before, we know their capabilities and standard of work… and they know ours.”
No cutting corners
“There are moments when you do not rely on heavy machinery to do some specific work – if human life and limb could be endangered, if adjacent buildings could be stressed, if cultural heritage is involved – and on these occasions one has to rely on one’s experience and, if need be, do things by hand. This is where the true experience of the worker comes through. This is why we have good quality skilled workers at the clients’ disposal to ensure that the required quality is always reached, and safely so too,” Cristina proudly explained.
MC Deguara Ltd are equally committed to have experienced supervisors leading the work force. And this sort of leadership thinking pervades Cristina’s whole being.
“we know their capabilities and standard of work… and they know ours”
In fact, as she explained, scrutinising a project before commencement also involves looking closely at all micro items involved as she sees them to be as important as the major elements. “When a supplier of materials is chosen for a particular project, this decision is based on the quality of the product required and the supplier’s capability to deliver,” she hastened to add. “But once appointed, we will continue to use that same supplier until the completion of the project. This means that if the project is a multi-storey building, we will not willingly change the supplier as work proceeds, since I believe that this could affect the overall quality of the project being erected,” she emphasised.
“the company’s personnel is all fully employed and not outsourced.
“This includes masons and shutterers”
It is also important to focus on the supplier’s own exigencies of deliveries so that the work proceeds at a good pace and makes the time scales easier for all involved parties.
For example, certain suppliers have work schedules which are different from the general norm, such that their working day starts at around 4 a.m. so that they can supply on time when you actually need it on site. It is very comforting to be awakened in the early morning with messages like “Your order is ready for delivery”! In short, MC Deguara works in unison with those who share their work ethics, values and drive.
Several developersoffset their workloads to MC Deguara, particularly so when their works in progress are internal projects.
Being such a quality-oriented supply company, it is also very reassuring for her clients to know that these working values of MC Deguara Ltd means that they too can rely on them to be always on the ball and to delivering on a daily basis too. “When you consider that our clients also include people like developers, architects, and other industry stalwarts then it has a very high feel-good element when you know your work and effort is being appreciated,” added Cristina.
Projects
Cristina added that “The good mix for a good working relationship is for you to have a good relationship not just with the client, but just as importantly, with both your and his or her team in order to complete a project to everyone’s satisfaction. There must always be a strong element of trust throughout the whole project with everyone concerned, as otherwise one’s life can become unbearable and every day would otherwise become very difficult indeed,” she emphasised in her soft voice which, nonetheless didn’t hide her determined mind set.
“This is definitely a feather in our cap, to berecognisedbyone’s own peers”
“We are also presently working on large projects for major developers who often find it effective to share their own workload with us especially when this is for themselves. So, in a way, while they concentrate on servicing their clients, we will be servicing their own personal requirements. This is definitely a feather in our cap, to be recognised by one’s own peers as good enough – efficient, well priced, safety-focused and quality oriented in all senses of the word – for their own work and that of their very own customers,” she proudly added.
“if human life and limb could be endangered, if adjacent buildings could be stressed, if cultural heritage is involved … one has to rely on one’s experience and, if need be, do things by hand”
She continued to list some of their recent works, which also included finishing apartments in Bugibba and a nearby duplex too, part of which also included a child care centre. “We recently also finalised extensions for some hotels, one of which was to a very tight five month deadline… we had to work late into the nights to meet the deadlines,” she said.
The person
Cristina Deguara is one of those persons who can lead without the need for enforcing or imposing herself. She would calmly listen to our thoughts and questions and then reply confidently or correct the issue without needing to impose herself.
As soft-spoken as she is confident, she knows where she wants to go and how to get there, and does it with an underlying ingrained sense of ethics. Indeed, her mantra is “One of the most important things in this industry is reliability and efficiency to finish the job, whatever it is. And the work must be done right, and with respect towards one’s workers and clients… Without of course forgetting that one has to do so within the budget and the required time plans, time after time!”
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