Commitment to our Communities

Hatch is in the people business. Every single day, our people work with their clients and community leaders, to deliver on the promises we make to assess, design, build and deliver a quality outcome that benefits everyone.

That commitment to people and the communities in which they live goes beyond our project work.

Chile Master Plan moves forward

In February 2010, an 8.8 magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami devastated the central and southern coasts of Chile.

Working together with the municipality of Licantén, the Chilean government and Universidad Mayor, Hatch created a plan that helps rebuild the impacted areas, and helps Licantén, which suffered heavy damage, to be safer in the event of any future incident.

More than 60 employees volunteered their engineering and environmental expertise to create the reconstruction plan. They worked more than 5,000 hours to design evacuation corridors, a civic center, a waste management plan, a sewage treatment plant, a bus station, as well as electricity and water supplies.

In late 2011, the Chilean government announced that it will implement the first stage of this effort: the civic center, which will house a kindergarten and small clinic, as well as the police station, a fire station, and municipal offices.

Hatch is helping to fund a combined gymnasium and community center. To date, Hatch employees in Chile and Canada have raised over C$110,000 towards the project — which will be matched dollar-for-dollar by the company.

Support for higher education

In a world where students are less likely to pursue careers in science, technology and math, Hatch recognizes the need to focus our support of higher education in these areas and contributes over C$1.5 million a year to finance scholarships, bursaries and university chairs on five continents.

One example is the Gerald G. Hatch Scholarship, launched in 1990. It is awarded to 12 students entering undergraduate engineering studies at a university or college each year, in each of our regions — Africa, the Americas and Australasia.

Engineers Without Borders

Hatch has worked with Engineers Without Borders (EWB) Canada for a number of years. EWB maintains 36 chapters at universities across Canada and is focused on delivering the skills and energy of young engineers to help the development of African countries.

In 2011, Hatch was a lead sponsor of EWB Canada's annual conference. And in 2012, we will increase our support of EWB's African leaders program. The program invites African delegates from four countries — Burkina Faso, Ghana, Zambia and Malawi — to a leadership experience in Canada. Hatch sponsored two African delegates with work placements in our Mississauga, Canada office.

FIRST Robotics

Created in 1989 by inventor Dean Kamen, FIRST means "For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology". Today, FIRST has a family of programs engaging children from age six to 18 in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, as well as promoting innovation, entrepreneurship and creativity.

FIRST Robotics Canada (FRC) challenges students to build in only six weeks, a five-foot-tall, 140-pound robot that goes on to compete in high-intensity robo-sports.

Hatch sponsors three FRC teams in the province of Ontario — Oakville-Trafalgar High School and St. Mildred's-Lightbourn School in the Toronto area, and Lo-Ellen Park Secondary School in Sudbury — and is lead sponsor of the Greater Toronto Regional event. At last year's FIRST Lego League World Festival, held in St. Louis, USA, a Hatch-sponsored team captured the World Championship.