PCL Construction completes transformation of global payroll and operations with Syntax

Syntax Systems, a leading provider of global technology solutions and services for cloud application implementation and management, announced the successful completion of a multi-year digital transformation initiative with PCL Construction (PCL), one of North America’s largest general contracting firms.

The project modernized and unified PCL’s global payroll and operations, consolidating 26 independently managed on-premises enterprise resource planning (ERP) instances into a single environment hosted on Microsoft Azure, according to Syntax Systems.

“The magnitude, complexity, and technical sophistication of this initiative are incredible,” said Mark Bryant, chief information officer, PCL. “Through close collaboration with Syntax, we’ve moved decades of fragmented infrastructure to the cloud. This not only streamlines how we operate but equips us with the agility and insights to support our long-term strategy.” 

Over its 119-year history, PCL’s operations had grown across multiple business units and regions, resulting in 26 standalone ERP environments running on legacy IBM AS/400 infrastructure. This decentralized approach made enterprise reporting cumbersome, limited system scalability, and introduced operational risk with every change or update.

To future-proof its operations, PCL partnered with Syntax to develop a phased ERP consolidation roadmap. The project began with the lift-and-shift migration of all ERP environments to the Syntax Enterprise Cloud. In the final phase—completed last month—Syntax consolidated all 26 ERP instances into a single, unified environment on Microsoft Azure.

Today, the new cloud-based ERP platform supports all core business functions including finance, payroll, asset management, project execution, and supply chain management—empowering PCL with real-time visibility, improved governance, and greater operational efficiency.

“Consolidating our ERP environment on Azure marks a pivotal shift in how PCL operates financially across its global footprint,” said Glen Anderson, vice president of finance and commercial risk, and project executive sponsor, PCL. “We’ve significantly improved reporting accuracy, eliminated duplication, and reduced risk—while building a flexible platform to scale with our business. Syntax has been an indispensable partner in this achievement.”

For more information about this news, visit www.pcl.com or www.syntax.com.