About the Carrier

Our client is one of Canada’s leading telecommunications providers, operating an extensive wireless, internet, and landline network serving hundreds of thousands of customer connections across the province. The carrier plays a dual role as both a commercial telecom provider and a key public infrastructure entity, investing heavily in rural connectivity, fibre networks, and the ongoing rollout of next-generation wireless services.

The carrier’s strategy emphasizes expanding advanced communications infrastructure to ensure reliable, high-speed coverage for communities across the province, including rural and underserved areas — with a particular focus on closing the connectivity gap for remote and Indigenous communities in the north.

Challenge

The carrier’s northern expansion program is a multi-year strategic initiative targeting more than 30 remote communities across Northern Saskatchewan, with a particular emphasis on Indigenous and underserved communities. The program addresses longstanding connectivity gaps through the delivery of high-speed fibre broadband and enhanced wireless coverage — supported by significant capital investment alongside federal Universal Broadband Fund contributions.

The physical environment presented some of the most demanding construction conditions in Canada. Northern Saskatchewan’s Canadian Shield terrain — characterized by muskeg, dense forestation, and significant wildlife — compounds the already complex logistics of moving heavy tower infrastructure to sites with no existing road access. These conditions demanded a construction partner with proven capability to execute carrier-grade work in a remote, uncontrolled environment under a federal funding deadline.

The carrier turned to Pillar's Indigenous sister company, Tatanka Telecom, as their trusted construction partner to execute the build across three geographically isolated sites in the remote north — delivering full civil works, access road construction, and tower erection to the carrier’s specifications, on schedule, and without incident.

Project Solution

Tatanka, who was awarded the contract, engaged Pillar Telecom to co-deliver a complete turnkey construction scope across all three tower sites. Working to the carrier’s specifications, the scope of work included:

• Foundation and Civil Works — Preparation and construction of tower foundations at each site, built to engineering requirements.

• Access Road Construction — Ground-up road works at each location to enable equipment and crew mobilization to previously inaccessible sites through challenging muskeg and dense forestation.

• Tower Erection — Supply and erection of three 137.2 metre telecommunications towers, constructed to the carrier’s structural standards.  

• Antenna and Network Equipment Installation — Installation and integration of antennas and network equipment at each site, in accordance with RF engineering network requirements.

• Commissioning Support and Handover — On-site support through commissioning and handover to the carrier, ensuring all systems were operational and ready for network integration.

The project was executed between May and November 2025, with crews deployed simultaneously across the three sites. Pillar coordinated multi-crew logistics, equipment supply, and site access to keep the build on track in one of Canada’s most demanding remote construction environments — delivering the carrier’s program on schedule and to specification.