Features
Minority Shareholders – Moving On
When you are a minority shareholder at a private firm and decide to leave and sell your shares, the situation can become complicated and lead to disputes.
Biomass Energy Evolves
Across Canada everyone from universities,
to utilities, to farmers are finding diverse ways to turn waste organic materials
into bioenergy, and so reducing
our carbon footprint.Flywheel Energy Storage
The Minto flywheel project in Ontario is a “mechanical battery” that stores electricity in the form of kinetic energy — one ingenious solution to the search for the “holy grail” of the electricity system.
Infrared Thermography
Infrared thermography is a powerful tool for discovering where energy is leaking from building roofs and wall assemblies.
Seawater Exchange at 351 Water Street
An office building in St. John’s, Newfoundland draws energy for its geo-exchange system from seawater that permeates the ground below the site.
Earth Benefits: Environmental Science and Chemistry Building, U of T Scarborough
At the Environmental Science and Chemistry Building at University of Toronto Scarborough, massive earth tubes that temper incoming air help to reduce the energy use.
We’re seeing a groundswell of green action
From the May 2016 print edition, page 3. Today the impulse to do what’s right for the planet is becoming entrenched in what we design and build. Big shifts are taking place in the political stratosphere, worldwide and in Canada.…
Staying Small
Dick Walters and Don Chambers started their own structural engineering company in Edmonton during the depths of the 1980s oil crisis. The company thrived, but they consciously decided to keep it to a modest size.
Damages for Contaminant Migration – Engineers & the Law
Environmental contamination on adjacent lands in Ontario has resulted in a Court of Appeal decision that could have important repercussions.
Internationally Educated Engineers
Engineers who come to Canada from overseas have a great deal to offer consulting engineering companies, but firms have to be prepared to provide soft skills training and support.
Controlling Odours from Wastewater Treatment Plants
Communities are often worried about odours emanating from wastewater treatment plants in their backyards, but standards for establishing reasonable odour levels are only just being developed in western Canada.
Montreal’s Sewage Drama
Last fall Montreal had little choice but to release a large quantity of raw sewage into the St. Lawrence River — unleashing a storm of public protest that was largely unfounded.
Landslide Protection in B.C.
After a landslide fell on a CN rail line in the steep mountains of B.C., Klohn Crippen Berger was asked to analyze the risks of potential further rock falls and design new protective structures for the track.
Highway in a Park – Rt. Hon Herb Gray Parkway
A new parkway built in the Windsor-Detroit trade corridor
of southwest Ontario has long stretches sunk below grade.When the public has had enough
From the March-April print edition, page 4 Worldwide 5.5 million people die every year from air pollution. So said researchers at an international science conference held in Vancouver in February. Over half of these deaths occur in the two countries…
The big urban squeeze is on
Editorial “Comment” from the January-February 2016 print edition, page 4. Hundreds of people came out on a cold night in January to hear plans for changing the Gardiner Expressway in downtown Toronto (see p. 8). It was mostly the grey-hair…
Fort York Visitor Centre
Wedged between Toronto’s most important historic site and the giant concrete piers of the Gardiner Expressway is a building that is as unique as its location.
Going Underground – Copeland Transformer Station
The Copeland Transformer station in downtown Toronto is only the second station in Canada to be built underground. Adding to the project’s complexity, it is being constructed on the site of a historic railway Roundhouse.
Power Boost – Vancouver Aquarium Expansion
Consulting engineers AES saved the Vancouver Aquarium from an expensive upgrade to its high-voltage power supply by using emergency generators during peak demand.
Testing Integrated Fire Systems
The new CAN/ULC-S1001 standard sets out the testing required to ensure that fire protection and
life safety systems work in concert. It will be included in the new version of the National Building Code.The BIM Revolution
The use of Building Information Modeling is taking off in Canada and around the world. It has many advantages, but for
engineers it’s not all smooth sailing yet.Corporate Structures to Save Taxes
Basic advice on ways to set up your professional consulting company — using
holding companies, family trusts and avoiding probate fees.AHR Innovation Awards handed out
A list of the 2016 AHR Expo Innovation Awards given for inventive HVAC & R products, systems and technologies.
Conversations: Sports Psychology Applied
Mark Blamey of Kerr Wood Leidal follows a rigorous regime to achieve physical and mental health and to manage stress. He is now applying the model to help people in his company achieve life balance.
CHUM – Mega Hospital in Montreal
From the December 2015 print edition, p. 10 Near the Ville-Marie Expressway in downtown Montreal, a gigantic construction project is transforming the landscape. The $1.9-billion Centre Hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal (CHUM) is one of the most ambitious urban integration…
Two inquiries over. Now watch for action
Editorial comment from the December 2015 edition, p. 4 Just before we went to press, the Charbonneau Commission of Inquiry report was released on November 24. Four years and $45 million have been spent on uncovering problems of collusion, bid…
On the Rebound – How Recent Events Are Affecting Consulting Engineers across Canada
Canada’s consulting engineering sector is facing repercussions from some dramatic events recently, including two engineering failures, an economic downturn in the oil patch, and scandal in Quebec.
Parliamentary ‘Digs’
A heritage building at 180 Wellington Street in Ottawa has been hollowed out to provide temporary space for the federal government while the Parliament buildings across the street are being renovated.
Controlling Legionella
Legionella bacteria can be very persistent in building HVAC and water systems, as recent tragedies have shown. In order to avoid such problems, designers need to consider not just a system’s functionality, but also how it can be maintained.
Chilled Beam Systems
ASHRAE has issued a guide to help engineers design an energy efficient technology that can both heat and cool individual building zones.