News
Toronto endorses ambitious parks and rec facility development
Last week, Toronto’s council endorsed what it calls the most ambitious plan for developing parks and recreation facilities in the city’s history. The implementation of the new program will see $2.2 billion invested across Toronto over the next 20 years.…
FNX-INNOV merges with AXOR Experts-Conseils
Montreal-based engineering firms FNX-INNOV and AXOR Experts-Conseils announced a merger on Oct. 31, creating a single company set to operate under the FNX-INNOV banner. The merger brings together nearly 1,000 employees and a portfolio of multidisciplinary services across several sectors…
-
Belleville names new director of engineering and development services
Stephen Ashton has been appointed director of engineering and development services for the city of Belleville, Ont. He began his new position today (Nov. 4). Ashton first joined the city’s government as manager of policy planning in June 2018 and…
-
Lawrence Lukey named chair of ACEC’s board
The Association of Consulting Engineering Companies – Canada (ACEC) has named Lawrence Lukey, P.Eng., partner and president of Saskatoon-based BCL Engineering, to chair its board of directors for the 2019-2020 term. The announcement was made at the ACEC national leadership…
-
Point of view: Perspectives gap
Bruce Matthews, P.Eng., chief executive of Consulting Engineers of Ontario (CEO), has been a professional engineer since 1990. Matthews took on the leadership role at CEO in late February 2018 and during his brief tenure with the organization, he has…
How BIM and IPD can work
Building Information Modelling (BIM) is an intelligent 3-D virtual modelling process for the design of buildings and infrastructure which is rapidly becoming the main tool for project realization used by architects, engineers and other construction professionals. The key challenge to…
Consulting engineers address need to adapt to changing times
In today’s dynamic business environment, an organization’s dynamic capabilities are the source of its competitive advantage. In a paper published in the Strategic Management Journal, researchers from Stanford University define dynamic capability as a “firm’s ability to integrate, build, and…
-
WSP wins Schreyer at 51st annual Canadian Consulting Engineering Awards
The 51st annual Canadian Consulting Engineering Awards Gala took place on Tuesday, Oct. 29 at the Delta Ottawa City Centre hotel, with the top prize—the Schreyer Award—going to WSP for its Solving Small Community Drinking Water Challenge project. The awards…
-
RFQ released to enhance Toronto’s Union Station
Infrastructure Ontario (IO) and transportation agency Metrolinx have released a request for qualifications (RFQ) to prequalify project teams for a project to enhance downtown Toronto’s Union Station. The project will involve designing and building transit infrastructure and implementing upgrades at…
-
University of Guelph to renew and expand performing arts facilities
Ontario’s University of Guelph broke ground yesterday for the renewal and expansion of its performing arts program’s facilities. Diamond Schmitt Architects has designed the 45,000-sf project to reimagine the north wing of the MacKinnon Building, which was built in 1967…
Lucy Casacia named VP of WSP’s smart solutions
Consulting engineering firm WSP Canada has hired Lucy Casacia to serve as vice-president (VP) of its ‘smart solutions’ business. Casacia’s experience includes eight years of senior roles with Siemens Canada, most recently leading business development for its ‘smart cities’ practice…
Mott MacDonald to study new TransLink crossing’s feasibility
British Columbia’s provincial government, Metro Vancouver’s TransLink and municipal funding partners selected engineering consultancy Mott MacDonald to study the technical feasibility of a high-capacity rapid-transit (RT) crossing via the Burrard Inlet to the North Shore. The study will consider the…
CaGBC offers recommendations to new federal government
In the wake of this week’s federal election, which the Liberal Party won with a minority government, the Canada Green Building Council’s (CaGBC’s) advocacy team has offered recommendations for moving the building industry toward a lower-carbon future. “Canadians call for…
OAA showcases infrastructure innovations in inaugural Shift Challenge
At a free event on Nov. 6, the Ontario Association of Architects (OAA) will showcase 11 infrastructure projects it has recognized through its inaugural Shift Challenge program, which addresses how new infrastructure can make communities better for everyone. Through an…
-
Toronto’s SickKids breaks ground on Patient Support Centre
Yesterday, downtown Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) and its charitable foundation held an official groundbreaking ceremony for their new 22-storey Patient Support Centre (PSC). The ceremony follows eight months of demolition. The site for the PSC was formerly occupied…
Bill Gammel joins AEP as VP of sales
Atlas Engineered Products (AEP), a truss and engineered wood product company based in Nanaimo, B.C., has hired Bill Gammel to join its executive team as vice-president (VP) of sales, effective immediately. Based in Edmonton, Gammel has more than 30 years’…
-
Winnipeg’s largest infrastructure project nears completion
Construction has finished on phase two of Winnipeg’s Southwest Transitway, the largest infrastructure project so far in the city’s history. It is set to open fully in spring 2020. The dedicated high-speed roadway for buses, developed by Plenary Roads Winnipeg…
Ontario launches unsolicited infrastructure proposals framework
Ontario’s government has launched a framework for receiving and evaluating infrastructure proposals from the private sector. A new online portal will accept unsolicited proposals (USPs) that were not requested through an existing procurement. The framework marks the first-ever formal process…
Vance Czerwinski named West Grey’s director of infrastructure, public works
The municipal government for West Grey, Ont., has hired Vance Czerwinski as its new director of infrastructure and public works. He was introduced to council at a meeting yesterday. A certified engineering technologist (CET) and certified road supervisor (CRS), Czerwinski…
FCM concerned with CPC platform’s infrastructure spending reductions
The Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) has responded to the Conservative Party of Canada’s (CPC’s) election platform—which was released on Oct. 11—by expressing concern over its reductions to year-over-year infrastructure spending. “Cities across the country have an urgent need for…
NORR rebrands with new logo, tagline, website and centres of excellence
NORR Architects and Engineers has launched new corporate branding to represent its current strategic direction, align its 750 professionals across 14 market sectors, support its new ‘centres of excellence’ in Canada, the U.S., the U.K. and the U.A.E. and, according…
-
Endress+Hauser facility in Burlington pursues three sustainability certifications
Engineers at mcCallumSather and WSP are helping Endress+Hauser Canada target three major sustainability certifications—i.e. net-zero energy, the Zero Carbon Building Standard and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold through the Canadian Green Building Council (CaGBC)—for the company’s new…
-
Ellis Don and PCL short-listed to build Vancouver’s new St. Paul’s Hospital
Providence Health Care has short-listed qualified teams from Ellis Don and PCL for the next stage of a competition to design, build and partially finance the new St. Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver (rendering pictured). Ellis Don’s team includes Parkin Architects…
Krista Barfoot joins Stantec’s environmental services practice
Krista L. Barfoot, Ph.D., C.Chem., QPRA, has joined Stantec’s environmental services team as senior scientist. Based in Waterloo, Ont., Barfoot will lead the delivery of brownfield risk assessments (RAs) across the province, while also sharing the engineering firm’s emerging contaminants…
Sarnia names David Jackson director of engineering
David Jackson has accepted the position of director of engineering with the municipal government of Sarnia, Ont. He begins the role today, which involves overseeing the city’s public works, transit and engineering divisions. A registered professional engineer (P.Eng.) and certified…
Canadian infrastructure report card updated ahead of federal election
The 2019 Canadian Infrastructure Report Card, released yesterday ahead of the federal election, calls for long-term investments in the renewal of public infrastructure that it finds is aging, in poor condition and at risk. The following are some of the…
-
HGC Engineering expands with Calgary office
HCG Engineering of Mississauga, Ont., a specialized consulting engineering firm that exclusively addresses noise, vibration and acoustics, has opened its new Western Canadian branch headquarters (HQ) in Calgary. “We have been doing acoustical consulting work in Western Canada since our…
Weather barrier pioneer honoured as DuPont fellow
DuPont has recognized building science and construction technology leader Theresa ‘Teri’ Weston with the title of fellow, the company’s highest technical professional level for scientists and engineers, shared by only 12 other active members around the world. Working within DuPont’s…
JLR acquires PES
J.L. Richards & Associates (JLR), which provides engineering, architecture, planning and project management services from seven offices across Ontario, has acquired Porcupine Engineering Services (PES), a multidisciplinary firm based in Timmins. The acquisition is intended to diversify JLR’s servers for…
Infrastructure Canada supports expansion of Edmonton’s science centre
Infrastructure Canada recently promised funding, through its community, culture and recreation stream, to support the Aurora project, a renovation and expansion project for Telus World of Science Edmonton. Specifically, $8.65 million in new funding will go toward the $23.4-million fourth…
