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Professional and Environmental Engineering

November 19, 2008

Work resumes at Plutonic Power’s Toba Inlet site

Work at Plutonic Power’s Toba Inlet site was scheduled to resume today, after a plane carrying workers to the site crashed into Spyglass Hill on November 16, 2008.

November 19, 2008

La Rive condo takes shape at the edge Calgary’s Elbow River

The architect on La Rive is Casola Koppe Architects, while Wiebe Forest Engineering Ltd. is the consulting structural engineer.

November 19, 2008

LEED Canada Initiative continues to evolve and change

The LEED Canada Initiative is evolving with the aim of eliminating 50 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions (2005 baseline) from Canadian buildings by 2015.

November 19, 2008

Rocks tumble onto Sea-to-Sky highway again

There was another rockslide on the Sea to Sky highway. The small slide happened early on November 12, 2008.

November 19, 2008

International labour mobility key to weathering current economic storm

International mobility will play a growing role for construction and engineering companies in markets taking a hit from slower economic conditions, states a PricewaterhouseCoopers’ (PwC) report.

November 19, 2008

A call to arms for all Canadian architects to advocate on behalf of their profession

This article is a call to arms for all architects, intern architects and students of architecture in this country to advocate on behalf of the profession as the future livelihood of the profession and our legacy of excellence is on the line, writes R. Wayne Guy, FRAIC, NWTAA/PP. Mr. Guy is the RAIC’s regional director for Alberta and the Northwest Territories.

November 19, 2008

Canadian construction, engineering companies join push for more federal infrastructure spending

Construction and engineering representatives can be counted among those joining the chorus of calls from Canadian premiers for accelerated federal infrastructure spending.

November 19, 2008

Metro Vancouver digs deep to hire new contractor for North Vancouver Water Filtration Project

Metro Vancouver is in the process of hiring a new contractor to complete the construction of twin tunnels for a water filtration project in North Vancouver.

November 19, 2008

Laptops become more prominent on Canadian construction sites

There’s a new tool showing up at the job site, but don’t expect it to out dig, out muscle or out last any of the standard issue cranes, jack hammers or nailers.

November 17, 2008

Three Canadian projects earn Holcim awards for sustainable construction

North Vancouver’s Outdoor School, designed by Vancouver firm Larry McFarland Architects Ltd., recently picked up an Acknowledgement prize at the North American Holcim Awards.

November 12, 2008

Turbines tricky for crane operators

Growing demand for sustainable energy from wind turbines is presenting potentially dangerous, wind-powered challenges for crane operators involved in turbine construction and repair.

November 12, 2008

Mechanical insulation important to long-term costs

In an era of high energy costs and environmental accountability, it’s surprising, but not unusual, for building owners to trim mechanical insulation from building budgets.

November 10, 2008

Streu & Hirst: Sage advice for contractors facing the new economic reality

It has been one hell of a party, but unfortunately the music has stopped and the construction industry is abruptly facing a new reality, writes Norm Streu, Executive Vice-President and General Counsel of the LMS Reinforcing Steel Group, and Chris Hirst, partner and the leader of the Construction & Engineering Group, Alexander Holburn Beaudin & Lang LLP.

November 10, 2008

Recent cabinet shuffle bodes well for Canadian construction industry, CCA president says

The new cabinet assembled by Prime Minister Stephen Harper has received a “thumbs-up” from two construction industry stakeholders.

November 10, 2008

Korky Koroluk: Heavy-duty hybrid trucks fail to live up to the hype

There was a time not long ago when hybrid trucks were going to rule the world of commercial vehicles — if you believed the predictions, writes Daily Commercial News columnist Korky Koroluk.

November 10, 2008

Spruceland Homes builds Garrison Crossing with military precision and timing

Garrison Crossing is a one of Canada’s largest revitalization projects, located on a 153-acre property in Chilliwack on the former Canadian Forces Base.

November 10, 2008

Aecon’s Infrastructure division wins massive Ontario utility distribution construction contract

Aecon Group Inc., based out of Toronto, announced recently that its Infrastructure division has won an $180 million contract from Enbridge Gas Distribution Inc.

November 10, 2008

Economists expect Canadian economy to slip into recession early in 2009

The Canadian economy is expected to slip into a recession in the next few quarters, after both construction activity and national output declined in August.

November 10, 2008

Four Canadian consulting engineering firms named among top 100 employers

Four consulting engineering companies are numbered among Canada’s top 100 employers in a recent report published in Maclean’s magazine.

November 10, 2008

Foundry hammers out its place on Vancouver’s skyline

Polygon Homes Ltd. is the owner of the Foundry development, while Polygon Construction Management Ltd. is the construction manager.

November 5, 2008

Intertech’s CityPoint project moves up

The construction manager on the CityPoint project is Intertech Construction Managers Ltd.

November 5, 2008

Seacliff Construction wins two contracts totalling $90 million

In less than a week, Vancouver-based Seacliff Construction was awarded two major contracts worth a combined total of about $90 million.

November 5, 2008

Province of British Columbia expands Towns for Tomorrow program

More British Columbia regional districts can apply for infrastructure funding under an expanded Towns for Tomorrow program.

November 3, 2008

Korky Koroluk: Geothermal energy gains ground

The various names attached to heat pump systems are confusing to ordinary people, but whether you call them earth energy systems or ground-source heat pump systems or geothermal systems, they have become a hot green technology that is slowly enlarging the niche it has occupied for many years.

November 3, 2008

Highway 97 remains closed as geotechnical experts evaluate unstable rock face

Highway 97 in B.C’s Okanagan region could be closed for weeks or even months after a huge crack appeared on a slope above a highway widening project.

October 29, 2008

British Columbia construction industry enters new stage in its business cycle

In just a few months, B.C.’s construction industry has shifted into a different stage of the business cycle, writes Keith Sashaw, president of the Vancouver Regional Construction Association.

October 29, 2008

SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. announces third-quarter 2008 results

On October 31, 2008, SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. (TSX:SNC) announced its results for the third quarter and nine-month periods ended September 30, 2008.

October 29, 2008

Additional $300-million investment moves Rio Tinto Alcan’s Kitimat smelter project forward

An additional US$300-million investment will ensure that the Rio Tinto Alcan smelter modernization project moves forward.

October 29, 2008

Kayaker finds body of missing Langley construction worker

Part of the mystery behind the disappearance of a 29-year-old construction worker was solved when a kayaker found a body in a lake near Mission, B.C.

October 29, 2008

British Columbia premier Gordon Campbell unveils economic strategy

British Columbia’s premier Gordon Campbell unveiled an economic plan last week that includes fast-tracking the construction of infrastructure projects.

October 29, 2008

Thermoplastic technology may replace plywood on worksites

A Quebec-based engineering group has developed a machine to manufacture a plastic sandwich panel that has several possible applications for the construction industry.

October 29, 2008

Heatherbrae builds a pleasant Exchange

The Exchange is a heritage renovation project in the old B.C. Telephone Exchange building in South East False Creek in Vancouver.

October 29, 2008

PCL builds Keynote at downtown Calgary address

Work continues on the Keynote Development project in downtown Calgary, Alta.

October 29, 2008

Aecon Group posts record results for third-quarter 2008

On October 28, 2008, Aecon Group Inc. (TSX: ARE) reported record third-quarter results, as the company’s revenues, margins and net income all increased over those reported a year earlier.

October 27, 2008

Sustainable design moves to Canada’s smaller cities and rural areas

Initially, the move to sustainable design in architecture was championed and pioneered in the nation’s urban areas, writes Charles Olfert, MRAIC, the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada’s regional director for Saskatchewan/Manitoba.

October 27, 2008

Collaborative Structures introduces Canada’s first LEED-CS certified building

Paying special attention to the building envelope has paid major dividends for contractor Collaborative Structures Limited and the consultants who designed and built its new Cambridge headquarters.

October 27, 2008

British Columbia Institute of Technology unveils BETH, the Building Envelope Test Hut

Earlier this year, the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) unveiled its new research facility, the Building Envelope Test Hut (BETH), the first of its kind in Western Canada.

October 22, 2008

Letter to the Editor: Standards, regulations discourage use of supplementary cementitious materials

Although initially lagging behind in the use of fly-ash when comparing with Europe, Canada is now more advanced in allowing up to 50 per cent fly ash, but standards and regulations are still discouraging the proper use of supplementary cementitious materials (SCM) on an equal footing in general.

October 22, 2008

Quattro developer determined to rebuild after devastating fire

Charan Sethi, owner of the Tien Sher Development Group Inc., has called in structural engineers to assess the damage and develop a reconstruction plan for the $625-million Quattro condominium project, which was under construction when it was levelled by a fire earlier this month.

October 22, 2008

Cobalt Engineering clients earn 2008 BC Hydro Power Smart Excellence awards

Cobalt Engineering clients have picked up a pair of 2008 BC Hydro Power Smart Excellence awards.

October 22, 2008

Canadian economy makes strong recovery in July 2008

The Canadian economy made a strong recovery in July, while growth in the construction sector was unchanged.