michael lee-chin crystal - Toronto Construction Association

Transcription

Builders’ Digest
Toronto Construction Association’s Quarterly Perspective
Vol. 1 No.1 Summer 2007
A shining symbol of renaissance
Michael Lee-Chin Crystal
Habitat for Humanity:
The human side of building
Dubai’s dazzling
construction projects
PM# 40787580
Battling Ontario’s
infrastructure debt
139 years of Service
14
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Belleville
613-968-9595
Mississauga
905-814-8533
St. Catharines
905-685-4269
Stoney Creek
905-643-6701
Kingston
613-389-5211
Oshawa
905-576-7200
Scarborough
416-289-1010
Toronto
416-461-9887
contents
Features
10 Building on Tradition: The TCA continues to serve the
interests of Toronto’s construction industry
By Roma Ihnatowycz
Page 42
12
An Institute Like No Other:
The Construction Institute gains more recognition
By Roma Ihnatowycz
15
Crystal—A Shining Symbol of Renaissance:
Toronto’s new ROM addition
By Greg Enright
24
Battling the Infrastructure Debt:
Infrastructure Ontario moves forward with new projects
By Gary Nyp
30
Bids, Lies and Outrage: Knowing when to let go
By Glenn Ackerley
Features
34 The Human Side of Building in Toronto:
Habitat for Humanity
By Daryl-Lynn Carlson
40
An Electronic Solution:
The TCA’s electronic plansroom
By Roma Ihnatowycz
42
Building on Sand:
Dubai’s dazzling construction projects
By Andrew Brooks
48
Driving Home the Message:
The voice of the construction industry
By David Frame
Page 34
Page 15
DEPARTMENTS
6 President’s Message
By John Mollenhauer
52
54
Upcoming Events
Index to Advertisers
Cover Photo: Courtesy of Jeff Speed, copyright ROM 2007. All rights reserved.
Builders' Digest Summer 2007 | 5
President's message
The World of Construction...
TCA Builders’ Digest is published for the
Toronto Construction Association
70 Leek Crescent, Richmond Hill, ON L4B 1H1
Tel: 416 499 4000 • Fax: 416 499 8752
www.tcanetworks.com
A Toronto Perspective
Builders’ Digest is Born
When the Toronto Construction Association (TCA) was
constituted in February 1867, it was a ‘General
Builders' Society’ comprised of 58 tradesmen, and
our core business was summarized in 10 simple
“stipulations.” These so called “stipulations” were
annexed to TCA’s first publication. Communication
was easy then, but that was nearly 140 years ago!
The world of construction is considerably more
complicated these days, and what was once a handful
of masons and stone cutters (among others) is now more
likely in excess of 250,000 consummate professionals
... So the notion of effectively communicating the news
and current events is predictably more challenging.
At TCA, we use our best efforts to communicate news
and current events in “Toronto Construction News,”
John G. Mollenhauer, President which is published by Daily Commercial News, a
Toronto Construction Association division of strategic alliance partner Reed Construction
Data. What was missing from our perspective, however,
were the historic perspectives and background stories
that put context to the news and make sense of current events. That, in
short, is the genesis of TCA’s newest publication—Builders’ Digest.
TCA’s Annual Members’ Day
There are a myriad of ways to communicate. We find, for instance,
that networking venues are popular, particularly when we include
insightful presentations and encourage constructive interaction.
One such forum occurred on May 17, 2007, when TCA hosted its
thirteenth Annual Members’ Day. The theme was “the new wave of
construction.” Our objective when we were planning the event was
to source keynote speakers capable of not only putting context to our
currently superheated marketplace but, more importantly, tackling
the issue of sustainability.
The folks who planned this event were our 18-member Allied
Professionals Committee. We think they did an exceptionally good
job. Witness the attendance of nearly 300 members who ended the
day with a deeper understanding of the current greater Toronto
marketplace and, more to the point, the wherewithal to plan target
market and resource strategies for the next three to five years. This
topic aligns beautifully with MediaEdge’s mandate for Builders’
Digest. At a minimum, hearing the views of experts about where
the new work is coming from and how it is likely to be procured is of
considerable interest and relevance.
Our first speaker on Members’ Day was George Gritziotis, executive
director of the Ottawa-based Construction Sector Council, and one
of Canada’s leading experts on labour markets. Mr. Gritziotis’ hourlong presentation began with a synopsis of our “existing marketplace
. . . maintain and repair more than five trillion in assets, comprise
in excess of 12 per cent of our national GDP, sustain a workforce
6 | Builders' Digest Summer 2007
Publisher
Robert Thompson
Editor
Roma Ihnatowycz
Associate Editor
Cydney Keith
Canadian Sales Manager Steve Beauchamp
Sales Executives
es Bridgeman, Gary Fustey
L
Bruce Jones, Mic Paterson
Contributing Writers
Glenn Ackerley, Andrew Brooks
Daryl-Lynn Carlson, Greg Enright
David Frame, Gary Nyp
Senior Designer
Annette Carlucci
Production Team Leader Zig Thiessen
Graphic Design Specialists
Jorge Gérardin, James T. Mitchell
, Krista Zimmermann
Production Co-ordinator Sharon Komoski
Published by:
President
Kevin Brown
[email protected]
Senior Vice President
Robert Thompson
[email protected]
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All rights reserved. The contents of this publication may not be reproduced
by any means, in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of the
association. Published July 2007.
Publication Mail Agreement #40787580
Return undeliverable copies to:
70 Leek Crescent, Richmond Hill, ON L4B 1H1
Phone: 416-499-4000 • Fax: 416-499-8752
President's message
north of one million workers and account for more than
60 billion annually in federal, provincial, and municipal
government spending. Mr. Gritziotis went on to classify
our local marketplace, sector by sector, and shared statistics
concerning real construction investment in the province of
Ontario and the workforce realities that dictate our ability
locally to meet the projected demand. And the bottom
line is that with net employment gains from the new work
currently on our radar and the need to replace our aging
workforce retirees, George predicts that our industry will
need to confront the challenge of
having to train more than 82,000
new skilled workers between now and
2015. Hence, the need at TCA for a
continued focus on attracting qualified
professionals to our industry.
#VJMEFSTµ%JHFTU
Toronto Construction Association’s Quarterly Perspective
Vol. 1 No.1 Summer 2007
The Industry Forum Panel
Next up on Members’ Day was the
Industry Forum, a panel comprised
Glenn Ackerley from Weir Foulds
Michael Lee-Chin Crystal of
LLP
(moderator), Naren Chande
HABITAT FOR HUMANITY:
THE HUMAN SIDE OF BUILDING
from Altus Helyar, Jim Dougan
DUBAI’S DAZZLING
from Infrastructure Ontario, Victor
CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS
Wong from Toronto Waterfront
BATTLING ONTARIO’S
Revitalization Corporation, Randy
INFRASTRUCTURE DEBT
Rason from the City of Brampton,
Eve Lewis from Urbanation, and
Gunars Robeznieks from Giffels. And
what an excellent panel it was!
Naren Chande kicked it off with
TCA’s new Builders’ Digest magazine: a
some
statistical context including
publication that aims to provide historic
recent
and projected construction
perspectives and background stories
starts (sector by sector), cost indices,
and a plethora of project-specific
information. Mr. Chande paid
particularly close attention during his presentation to the
three new office towers in downtown Toronto—specifically
Bay Adelaide (Brookfield), RBC (Cadillac Fairview) and
Telus (Menkes).
In the wake of Naren Chande’s overview, Jim Dougan
from Infrastructure Ontario (IO) overwhelmed the
audience with IO’s alternative finance and procurement
(AFP) program, which already has 23 projects in process
collectively representing a capital value of $4.7 billion.
For some, the notion of procuring construction via buildfinance (BF) and/or design-build-finance-maintain (DBFM)
models is potentially intimidating. But Mr. Dougan walked
us patiently through this seemingly complicated process and
broke it down to its simplest elements.
Victor Wong followed Jim Dougan and put some
context to the proposed $17 billion, 750-acre, Toronto
waterfront revitalization which, as most of you know,
brings all three levels of government together. Who
would have believed that would happen? And the first few
phases of this massive project are actually underway! The
Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corporation (TWRC),
139 Years of Service
Toronto Construction new design.1 1
6/27/07 10:39:20 AM
incidentally, is in the process of formally changing its name
to ‘WATERFRONToronto’ and their ambitious 30-year
program will ultimately result in some 40,000 new homes
in mixed-use neighbourhoods, expanded public transit, one
million square metres of employment space and a host of
significant cultural and recreational attractions.
Our forth panelist was Randy Rason from the City of
Brampton. Mr. Rason is director of building construction
in one of Canada’s most dynamic and rapidly growing
cities, and the incredible number of municipal projects
under his jurisdiction surprised the neophytes in the
crowd. Brampton, for example, has enjoyed a 33 per
cent population growth since 2001, which is equal
in incremental construction to adding a city the size
of St. Catherines or Barrie to the existing Brampton
infrastructure. At a minimum, attendees were reminded
that municipalities are and will continue to be one of the
preeminent buyers of construction in Canada.
Our fifth panelist, Eve Lewis, is president of MarketVision,
co-founder of Urbanation, and one of Canada’s leading
experts on the condominium sector. Ms. Lewis began
her presentation with a synopsis of the existing condo
market. Highlights included a postmortem of the last 10
years culminating in record sales in 2005 and 2006, and
statistics supporting the extraordinary number of new
projects underway by the end of Q1-2007 (132 of 248 new
projects on the market). The good news for constructors is
that traditional market “drivers” indicate continued sector
growth well into the foreseeable future.
Our final Industry Forum speaker was Gunars
Robeznieks from Giffels Design-Build Inc., one of
Canada’s most successful owner-builders. As senior vicepresident of business development at Giffels, Gunars is a
leading authority in the industrial sector and, apart from
the high cost of land forcing owner-builders to source
properties farther afield from the traditional transit arteries,
Mr. Robeznieks was very bullish about the next three to
five years in the industrial sector. The only caveat to that
from Mr. Robeznieks’ perspective relates to the rigours
of planning approvals which Gunars portrayed with an
appropriate degree of levity.
At the end of the day, the message from our panel
of experts is that the existing superheated construction
market is in fact sustainable and the future is bright. And
we would like to take this opportunity on behalf of the
TCA membership to thank Glenn Ackerley and his Allied
Professionals’ Committee for putting on such an insightful
Industry Forum. |BD
John G. Mollenhauer, President
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Association news
Building
on Tradition
The Toronto Construction Association has successfully served the interests
of the city’s construction industry for more than a century
By Roma Ihnatowycz
The Toronto Construction Association (TCA) has
made a mark for itself as a modern, forwardthinking organization. But its roots are very
much steeped in history. Established in the
late 19th century as the Toronto General
Builders' Society, the TCA is the original
mixed trade association in Canada. In fact,
it even predates the country itself, by about
six months.
“It was founded in February 1867, so it’s
older than Canada,” says John Mollenhauer,
the TCA’s president and CEO. “It is (also)
older and bigger than any other association
in our industry.”
The forerunner of the TCA was set up
by 58 initial members to further the interests
of the city’s construction industry. While
much has changed since then—including
the name—the mandate has remained
steady over the decades. Then, as now, the
association aims to serve as a focal point
for the construction industry in what has
The Toronto Construction Association was established become the Greater Metropolitan Toronto
in 1867 as the Toronto General Builders’ Society Area (GTA).
This was evident from the get go, starting
with the decision to form the association. It was also
evident 25 years later when it was incorporated as
the Builders Exchange of the City of Toronto, a
move aimed in part to gain recognition in dealing
with the government on construction issues.
The 36 companies that formed the nucleus of
the newly renamed and incorporated association
paved the way forward in a city that saw some
impressive construction projects in the twilight
years of the 19th century. This included the
Gooderham Building at Front and Wellington
streets, the Temple Building at Bay and Richmond
streets and Toronto City Hall.
Growing bigger and better
In 1925, with membership tallied at 170 companies,
the association moved into new offices at 1104 Bay
Street, where it braved the challenges of the Great
Depression. Nonetheless, notable construction
projects like Maple Leaf Gardens and the T.
Eaton’s store still managed to get completed.
By the end of the Second World War, membership
had risen to 300, and Norm Fraser, just out of the
RCAF, took the reigns as secretary-manager, later
known as general manager, a position he held
for more than two decades. Following him, TCA
general manager Cliff Bulmer, who also held
his post for approximately 20 years, oversaw a
major and important move by the association: the
creation of the Toronto Construction Industry
Government Affairs Committee, tasked with
lobbying the government. Since renamed, the
TCA’s lobbying committee nevertheless continues
to advance and address construction interests
before the government to this day.
Following Bulmer, Tim (Temple) Harris took the
reigns at TCA, and keeping to tradition retained
his position as president for a lengthy 18 years.
His right-hand man, executive vice president
Bill Gohn, remained in his position even longer
— for a full quarter century. “When I started (in
2006), the Association had only had three leaders
in the last 60 years,” notes current TCA president
John Mollenhauer. These long tenures helped
strengthen the Association and they also reflected
the strong commitment that industry leaders had
to its ongoing development.
In the ’60s and ’70s, TCA membership grew
quickly, reaching 1,351 by 1988 thanks largely to
changes allowing Affiliate Association membership.
By 1979, members gained representation on
the federal level as the Canadian Construction
Association agreed to allow TCA to integrate its
members. In 1990, TCA opened a second office,
the Mississauga Construction Association, which
attracted more than 85 construction companies in its
first year. Not long after, TCA launched the annual
Construct Canada Conference and Exposition.
Today, TCA membership is in excess of 2,200
corporations, and the association continues to
grow, expand and seek new ways to serve the
increasingly complicated interests of its members.
In truth, the role it plays has never been more
vital, says Mollenhauer. “It has never been more
important than it is now… (because) our industry
is becoming infinitely more complex—it is getting
very litigious, buyers of construction are getting
into new and different forms of procurement and
the size of projects (is expanding).”
Fortunately for the city’s construction industry,
the TCA has more than a century of experience
to build on as it continues moving forward in the
21st century. |BD
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The construction institute
An Institute
Like No Other
The Construction
Institute
Toronto • Canada
With a new reciprocity protocol signed this spring, and another on the way,
The Construction Institute gains yet more recognition for its successful
accreditation program
By Roma Ihnatowycz
It’s called The Construction Institute, but any
comparison to a stuffy old academic institution ends
there. This Institute offers construction professionals
up-to-the-minute continuing education on topics
ranging from the practical, like blueprint reading,
all the way to the finer details of construction law.
Established in 2003 by founder
and current chancellor Keith Gillam,
The Construction Institute aims to
develop and promote professionalism
and excellence in the management
of the construction process and acts
as a vehicle for industry professionals
in attaining professional stature.
“It is positioned as a continuing
professional development Institute
and it recognizes the need for
education to be a lifelong
commitment,” says Gillam, who, in
his sixties, continues to take courses
himself. Gillam is a strong believer
The Construction Institute’s mandate: in education: he is one of only three
To be the prime vehicle for those in the construction professionals who is a fellow of both
industry, to attain professional stature through education, the Chartered Institute of Building
experience, service and conduct (CIOB) and the American Institute
of Constructors (AIC).
Also important is the multi-level accreditation
that the Institute provides for professionals across the
country—accreditation that will soon be recognized
in the United States. On April 21, Gillam and the
Institute’s vice chancellor and president John
Mollenhauer signed a protocol agreement with the
American Institute of Constructors (AIC) in Dallas,
Texas. The move is expected to lead to a formal
reciprocity agreement this November.
“We will recognize their accreditation, and they
will recognize ours,” explains John Mollenhauer,
who signed the agreement on behalf of the
Institute. “With globalization, the world is fast
becoming flat. Our borders—where commerce is
concerned—have effectively been eliminated. So
this notion of reciprocity becomes more important
now than ever. (It means) all the things professionals
work hard to achieve here are recognized outside
the borders of Canada.”
The Construction Institute is also in discussion
with the U.K.-based Chartered Institute of Building
Accreditation: The ladder of opportunity
The Construction Institute offers six levels of accreditation:
Student Member • Member • Associate Constructor
• Professional Constructor • Master Builder • Fellow
(CIOB) to pen a similar agreement. As the largest
continuing development construction institute in
the world, an agreement with the CIOB would
gain recognition for the Construction Institute’s
accreditation in more than a hundred countries
across the globe. “(Representatives of the CIOB)
are also coming in November of this year, and we
hope to reach some sort of an agreement with them
by then,” says Mollenhauer.
A step up
At home in Canada, the Institute’s accreditation
process continues to give industry professionals
from coast to coast a step up both in improving
their skills and demonstrating their level of expertise in their given trade. As the Institute’s mandate
outlines, it develops and promotes professionalism
and excellence in the management of the construction process.
To date, it does this through its various workshops,
seminars and six levels of accreditation, available
to all professionals involved in the Canadian
construction industry. The levels of accreditation
range from the entry level Student Member for
those still enrolled in post-secondary education, to
the top-level Fellow.
As an example, courses considered mandatory
for the Associate Constructor level include the
Ethics Workshop and Level I of the Leadership
Development Program, while the Certified
Professional Constructor would have to complete
the Tendering and Bidding School as well as Level II
of the Leadership Development Program.
While the Construction Institute is “home grown
and designed around the needs of our domestic
industry,” according to Mollenhauer, the added
recognition it is now achieving outside Canada
via reciprocity agreements will ensure that ‘home
grown’ construction professionals will be equally
respected elsewhere. Says Mollenhauer: “It’s an
enormous bonus, particularly going forward.” |BD
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Crystal:
By Greg Enright
16 | Builders Digest Summer 2007
Photo courtesy of Finest-Images, copyright ROM 2007. All rights reserved.
The recently-completed
Michael Lee-Chin Crystal
represents one of Toronto’s
landmark architectural
achievements
cover story
As Toronto’s stunning new ROM edifice nears completion,
those involved in its construction weigh in on the complexity involved
After seven years, 2,800 tons of steel,
9,000 cubic metres of concrete,
and some of the most innovative
planning the Toronto architectural
community has ever witnessed, the
Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) has
burst into the 21st century with the
opening of one of the city’s landmark
architectural achievements.
Known as the Michael Lee-Chin
Crystal, the ROM’s new shining
light is a highly ambitious and
unique addition to the museum’s
north side, named after the
Burlington philanthropist who
donated $30 million towards the
project’s $200 million price tag.
The building features a design and
structure that is certain not only
to transform the appearance of
the bustling Bloor Street West/
University Avenue corner on
which it resides, but will also add
another major accomplishment
to the city’s growing portfolio of
world-class structures.
Reaching a height of just over 36
metres, or four stories, the edifice is
like nothing else in the city, with its
complex configuration of structural
steel beams, none of which are set
on a vertical grade. From across
Bloor Street, it resembles a series of
shimmering, finely cut crystals—
their upper corners piercing the sky
like arrowheads—which somehow
manage to support each other and
create a startling effect for museum
patrons and passers-by.
The ROM Renaissance project—
the museum’s master plan that
encompasses the building of the LeeChin Crystal and the restoration of
its two existing buildings—took root
with the appointment of Vanbots
Construction Corp., who in a novel
move were brought on board to
of Vanbots, Libeskind’s challenging
submission was surprisingly the
least complicated of the three
that were tabled. “One of them
required too much demolition of
the existing museum and was just
unacceptable from the point of
view of Heritage (Ontario),” he
Those involved in the construction of
Toronto’s stunning new ROM addition
weigh in on the many challenges they faced
in erecting the landmark structure
manage the project long before any
other players were selected. The
Markham-based company’s CEO
Keith Gillam and president Matt
Ainley worked closely with ROM to
select the balance of the team.
In June 2001, a search for
an architect was launched. The
design of internationally renowned
Polish-American designer Daniel
Libeskind, working in partnership
with Toronto-based Bregman +
Hamann Architects, was chosen
eight months later.
According to the project’s
construction manager, John Martin
says. “The other one was elevated
and had helix spirals. This one
appeared not as complicated.”
After the design was chosen,
demolition of the ROM’s Terrace
Galleries commenced in the early
summer of 2002. That process meant
that employees in the affected areas
had to be relocated and artefacts
transferred to a specially constructed
storage facility in Oakville.“We put
new offices in the museum’s curatorial
blocks and rearranged things so we
could get all the people who worked
in the Terrace Galleries out into other
offices,” Martin says.
Photo courtesy of Sam Javanrouh Photography,
copyright ROM 2007. All rights reserved.
A highly unique feature of the Crystal is the aluminum
material applied on top of the steel structure
“
As soon as we started the structural
steel, the interest in the project was clearly
evident, as people saw it coming out of the
ground they would always stop and ask
questions and take photographs
”
John Martin, Vanbots Construction Corp.
For Walter Koppelaar, president of Walters
Group, the Hamilton-based firm responsible
for the Crystal’s all-important steel frame, the
project was one of “extreme geometry.”
“Because everything is set on an angle and
a slope, the building is inherently unstable
until it is a completed structure. It wants to
corkscrew into the ground, which has a
huge bearing on how you design all those
connections and joints and how you direct
the structure,” explains Koppelaar.
Although his team was eager to accept the
challenge of helping to erect such a unique
building, Koppelaar admits they were a tad
surprised when it became clear just how
unorthodox its underlying geometry was.
“When you start looking at the drawings, you
assume there are some vertical elements—
they are stable and they agree with the forces
of nature,” he says. “When you realize there
aren’t any, it’s a bit of an eye-opener.”
The key to getting it built, Koppelaar
says, was a constant triangulating of the framing. Not one beam could be allowed to be
“dangling out there on some sort of crazy angle
looking like a fishing pole.” Every piece had to be
tied back into some sort of triangulated frame that
would remain stable. When a piece of steel could
not be connected permanently to such a frame,
Koppelaar adds, it was tied back temporarily until
the concrete floors could be poured. That element
was the final glue that ensured everything would
remain stable. “It’s like putting a lid on a bowl,”
he says. “You can have a plastic bowl that’s very
flexible until you snap the lid on top, which is the
equivalent of the concrete floor, and all of a sudden the thing becomes very stable.”
cover story
Construction gets underway
By March 2004, the construction of the Lee-Chin
Crystal was set to begin. As the site was located
in the middle of one of Toronto’s busiest and
crowded neighbourhoods, there wasn’t much
space for workers to carry out their tasks. A “justin-time” process therefore had to be employed.
“The structural steel would arrive and you could
probably store two days’ of it on the site, but no
more than that,” Martin says. “So it all had to
arrive in exactly the right sequence. You’re always
tight for space in downtown spaces. You never have
enough storage space.”
Even if the space limitations were similar to
other big-city construction projects, the shapes
and sizes of the steel being used were anything
but common. “We were asked tongue-in-cheek
by many people who drove by the site as the steel
was going up whether it was an erection site or a
demolition site,” says Koppelaar with a laugh. “It
looked like one of those games of pick-up sticks where somebody had just dropped the
whole mess on the floor.”
As those pick-up sticks began to be fitted into place, however, and as the structure began
to stick out over Bloor Street West, it didn’t take long for those walking by to begin noticing
the rising landmark. “As soon as we started the structural steel, the interest in the project
was clearly evident,” says Martin. “As people saw it coming out of the ground they would
always stop and ask questions and take photographs.”
But while citizens and tourists were already beginning to admire the inchoate
edifice, those responsible for its construction were busily following a tight schedule
and tending to the myriad details required to get the job done. “The process was
extremely intensive,” says Koppelaar. “There were just so many things to consider,
including the weights of the pieces and how far away they are from the crane, and
how far can you stand them before they want to fall over, and if they fall over, where
can you prop them. It was characterized by us as a mating octopus, in terms of how
many things you would discover along the journey.”
The process was helped along by the use of a variety of software modeling
tools that allowed the parties to “build” a computerized replica of the Crystal. This in turn
It is exciting to be a part of the future of construction,
on a venue with Josef Gartner USA & Vanbots Construction Corp.
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www.cwsmithcraneservice.com
allowed them to know, for example, whether
a certain beam would fit into a certain space.
The end result was a significant savings of time
and money. “You can understand much better
what the impacts will be and how things will
fit (with the software),” says Koppelaar. “All of
these very practical things can be vetted on a
computer screen ahead of time.”
Vanbots’ Martin agrees that technology
played a helpful role in the Crystal’s
construction. “Sometimes when you look at a
two-dimensional drawing, you can’t envision
what you’re trying to do; you need that 3D
model to look at it from different angles to
understand where you are,” he says. “3D
work is becoming more and more common.
This job required it more than any other job
I’ve used 3D on before.”
Other technologies involved in the
construction process included holographic
targets being applied to strategic elements.
Using these, laser surveying and global
positioning equipment was used to ensure
everything had been placed in its precise
required location.
Another highly unique feature of the
Crystal is the aluminum material that was
applied to the steel structure once it was
finished. Manufactured in Germany and
stored at a facility in the city’s west end,
the covering material, or cladding, was
assembled into larger pieces like part of
a jigsaw puzzle and then fitted into place
over the huge steel skeleton.
The complex configuration of
structural steel beams: none
are set on a vertical grade
Photo courtesy of Vanbots Construction Corporation
Incredible achievement
The Crystal’s recent completion is made that
much more incredible when one considers
that the project was carried out while the
ROM continued regular operations and
that only 20 days were lost due to inclement
weather. The project was also completed
without any accidents occurring to anyone
involved in its erection. And aside from a
series of flexible flashings connecting the
new ROM structures with the old edifices,
the Crystal does not actually touch the
original 1912 and 1934 buildings.
“It was quite tricky to go through the
1912 building and put in a concrete
stair shaft up through the old building,
and support columns for the restaurant
crystal,” says Martin. “That was all (done)
through an existing 1912 museum that was
open to the public the whole time, so that
created some logistical issues.”
Inside, visitors will be treated to 19 new
and refurbished galleries throughout the
ROM, as well as the new Garfield Weston
Exhibition Hall, the largest temporary
international exhibit hall in Canada.
Architecturally, museum-goers will notice an
irregular polygonal pattern characterizing
ATTENTION
ARCHITECTS * ENGINEERS * DEVELOPERS * BUILDERS
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“
There were just so many things to consider, including the
weights of the pieces and how far away they are from the
crane, and how far can you stand them before they want to
fall over, and if they fall over, where can you prop them. It
was characterized by us as a mating octopus
”
each level of the Crystal, in which walls
intersect with floors at “spectacular angles,”
according to the ROM.
In the end, the Michael Lee-Chin Crystal
will play a significant role in enhancing
the architectural landscape of Toronto,
according to Martin. “Architecture is
becoming more and more important in
Toronto. The buildings are becoming
more unique and one-off and therefore
people are going to have more opinions
about them, and that’s good. I don’t
think everybody has to love it, but they
can look at the building and maybe take
more interest in it.”
Koppelaar agrees, saying that projects
like the Crystal tend to stay in visitors’
minds where other buildings don’t.
“There are many beautiful buildings
in Toronto, such as Queen’s Park and
all the old stately stone buildings, but
you don’t remember them,” he says.
“Whereas the CN Tower or the Sydney
opera house—you show someone a
picture of those things and they know
where they are. I certainly think the ROM
will be in that league.”
Paul Gogan, partner with Bregman +
Hamann, the Toronto architectural firm
that worked in conjunction with Libeskind
on the project, believes the Crystal will serve
as an inspiration for younger generations.
“Students and the academic institutions
will see the innovative and creative
architecture first hand, creating great
aspirations and opportunities for them
and the city in the future.”
The Crystal also says something good
about Toronto and the attitude of those
helping to create and define its character
through architecture, Koppelaar says. “It
makes a statement about the city: We’re
willing to be different, we’re out there,
we’re not sticking with the tried and true
at every turn. Would you want an entire
city full of ROMs? Probably not. But as
a cherry on top of the sundae, I think
you need them.” |BD
Modern
Niagara
TORONTO INC.
Mechanical Contractors and Engineers
Proud to have been the Mechanical Contractor on the prestigious
Royal Ontario Museum Renovation and Expansion
Congratulations & thanks to the whole team
12 Penn Drive, Weston, Ontario M9L 2A9
Tel: (416) 749-6031 Fax: (416) 749-4673
www.modernniagara.com
Photo courtesy of Finest-Images, copyright ROM 2007. All rights reserved.
Walter Koppelaar, Walters Group
Infrastructure
An illustration of the Durham
Consolidated Courthouse,
designed by WZMH Architects
A bird’s eye view of Montfort Hospital’s
new boiler house and east wing this
past April
Infrastructure Debt
Ontario’s new public agency—Infrastructure Ontario—moves forward with
projects aimed at cutting the province’s growing deficit
By Gary Nyp
Back in November of 2005, Ontario’s provincial
government convinced the executive-vicepresident of TD Bank Financial Group to
leave the private sector for a new, rather
uncertain, role as president and CEO of a new
public corporation. Its mission? To combat the
province’s burgeoning—some would suggest,
crippling—infrastructure deficit.
It was a daunting prospect. At the time, a
study by the Ontario Hospital Association had
identified hospital infrastructure needs alone at
a whopping $8 billion. That coincided with an
equally disturbing report by former premier
Bob Rae recommending that at least $5 billion
be invested in post-secondary facilities over the
next decade, a figure that didn’t even include
infrastructure challenges faced by elementary
and secondary schools. Yet a third study, this one
examining the state of Canada’s urban transportation infrastructure, determined Ontario’s
investment requirements for roads and bridges
were ranked third-highest in the country.
Eager to reverse the troubling trend, the
province thrust more than a dozen approved
projects, each valued at more than $100 million, into the fledgling agency’s lap despite its
still-skeleton staff, absence of a clearly defined
model and plenty of marketplace scepticism.
And yet David Livingston eagerly embraced
the opportunity to become the inaugural
president and CEO of Infrastructure Ontario,
a crown corporation dedicated to the renewal
of the province’s hospitals, courthouses, roads,
bridges, water systems and other public assets.
The agency forms what Livingston refers to as
the “execution arm” of the province’s highly
ambitious ReNew Ontario initiative, a fiveyear, $30 billion investment plan to address the
aforementioned infrastructure deficiencies.
Livingston says the decision to take on his
new role was fuelled by a long-held desire to
“enter some form of public service,” as well as
his strong affinity for start-up businesses and
working with talented teams to make things
happen. “The chance to work in a crown
corporation where a private operating style
could be maintained, but where accountability
to the public is the ultimate objective seemed
perfect,” he explains.
Despite Livingston’s proven track record,
the task ahead seemed particularly onerous.
“When I arrived here, we had nothing,”
recalls Livingston, whose TD Bank duties
included the execution of mergers and
acquisitions. “We had little staff—just a
small group really—and no model to speak
of. We started from scratch. From that, we
had to build a company while at the same
time having to get a number of projects to
market. All that, and we had to convince
the market that we were a credible organization as well.”
Progress to date
Fast forward some 18 months. The dozen
or so projects Infrastructure Ontario took
on at its birth have ballooned to more than
50 major undertakings scattered across the
province. While many remain at a preliminary and/or pre-tender stage, final details of
20 projects totalling $4.7 billion have been
determined and are either ready for bids, have
decreed the winning bidder, or are construction-ready. In fact, nine projects totalling $1.8
billion fit into the latter stage.
The agency’s first shovel-in-the-ground
project was the $250 million redevelopment
of Ottawa’s Montford Hospital. Construction
on the project, which will double the capacity of the facility and represents the most
substantial expansion in its history, began
in June 2006. When completed in 2009,
the hospital will span 750,000 square feet
and boast a capacity of 289 beds. The
redevelopment will accommodate a 73 per
cent increase in emergency room visits,
twice the number of intensive care beds,
an 83 per cent increase in ambulatory care
visits, four additional operating rooms,
a 60 per cent increase in surgeries plus a
significantly expanded residency program.
The spin-offs associated with such massive
projects are also significant. Some 250 workers
are expected to be on-site everyday throughout the three-year construction period.
“
The chance to work in a crown
corporation where a private
operating style could be maintained,
but where accountability to the public
is the ultimate objective seemed perfect
”
David Livingstone, Infrastructure Ontario
The impact of these and similar projects
is being felt in several Ontario cities now that
construction is getting underway. Multi-million dollar redevelopments are in progress at
North Bay Regional Health Centre, Quinte
Health Centre in Belleville, Sudbury Regional
Health Centre and Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. Construction has
also begun on a new Youth Justice Facility in
Brampton. Waiting in the wings are imminent redevelopments to West Toronto’s and
Mississauga’s Trillium Health Centre and
London’s St. Joseph’s Health. Crews will soon
begin building a new Durham Consolidated
Courthouse in the city of Oshawa as well.
“I’d call that a very significant number (of
active projects),” Livingston says, “when you
consider how long we’ve actually been in
existence.”
Indeed, progress has been swift in a number
of ways at Infrastructure Ontario. From its
modest initial contingent of staff members,
for instance, the agency has grown to more
than 130 employees, many of whom boast
considerable experience and expertise in construction and property development. Along
Photos courtesy of Infrastructure Ontario
The groundbreaking ceremony for the
redevelopment of Ottawa’s Montford Hospital
Infrastructure
the way, the agency has helped develop a new
financing model for work with the private sector while increasingly stepping forward as a
valuable source for those seeking project management expertise. “We’ve firmly established
ourselves,” Livingston says. “We’ve demonstrated that this program is very credible, that
it’s got legs.”
To that end, the agency sends out questionnaires to its customers once a year seeking
feedback. While Livingston says responses
have generally been favourable, the agency
has consistently been encouraged to maintain its collaborative approach, seeking the
advice and ideas of the various stakeholders,
rather than slipping into an inflexible, madeat-Infrastructure-Ontario mode.
A well-defined system
The process from embryo to construction
leaves no stone unturned. Livingston says
the province establishes project priorities and
it’s up to Infrastructure Ontario to execute
them. In the initial stages, the agency works
closely with the project host, whether hospital, school board or government ministry,
as they complete the key, behind-the-scenes
preparation. Once due diligence is complete,
the details of the project are well defined
and the budget and timeline determined, the
agency goes to the marketplace in search of
qualified contractors. Potential bidders are
given details of the pending projects and, if
interested, will submit a formal Request for
Qualifications (RFQ).
Projects assigned to Infrastructure Ontario
must meet several key principles, including
public interest, value for money, accountability
and transparency. Assigned projects also operate under what the province calls the Alternative Financing and Procurement (AFP) model.
Simply put, it’s up to the contractor to land
private sector financing for the project.
Livingston says the alternative financing
approach offers the taxpayer the best of
both worlds. While the approach in no way
affects public ownership of core assets such as
schools and hospitals, it transfers all associated
risks to the private sector. Livingston says the
AFP model draws upon the inherent, costconscious efficiencies of the private sector to
create an overall lower cost for taxpayers. By
placing the onus on the private sector, the AFP
model will, among other things, eliminate
cost and schedule overruns, he explains. “We
argue that the people who can best assess and
manage the risks are the people building the
project,” says Livingston.
In addition to the dozens of major projects it currently manages, Infrastructure
Ontario’s impact on municipalities across
the province is being felt in another significant, albeit somewhat overlooked, way. The
agency has absorbed the role of the former
Ontario Strategic Infrastructure Authority,
which provided loans to municipalities for
infrastructure-related undertakings. Since
Infrastructure Ontario assumed that role,
Livingston says, more than $1 billion in loans
have been issued to municipalities, many of
which have also leaned on the agency as a
valuable resource for expertise and advice.
Where does Infrastructure Ontario go
from here? Livingston says he’s not sure
where the government’s infrastructure priorities lie as the agency moves forward. While
the health care community dominates the
current spate of projects, Livingston foresees
expansion in other areas such as transitrelated infrastructure.
In the meantime, Livingston harbours no
regrets surrounding his decision to take on
his ground-breaking post. “Every experience
since making the move has been nothing but
positive,” he says. “I believe I have the best
job in the province.” |BD
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Allied Division
Allied Division
Bids, Lies and Outrage:
Knowing when to let go
While bidders can always raise concerns about the sincerity of competing
bids, a recent Supreme Court ruling says an owner is under no obligation to
investigate them
By Glenn Ackerley
If you were bidding a job and knew
that one of the other bidders had
lied in its bid, what would you do?
You might let the owner know
and ask the owner to look into
the situation. And if the owner
ignored your request and gave
the contract to the lying bidder?
You’d be outraged, especially if
the owner did nothing when the
deception was proven, and you
would have gotten the job had the
lying bidder been disqualified.
Double N Earthmovers Ltd.
found itself in that very position over 20 years ago when it
bid on a contract for the City of
Edmonton to supply equipment
and operators to move garbage
around a landfill site. In filling out
the bid form, another bidder, Sureway Construction, lied about the
equipment it was going to supply.
Double N was suspicious and told
the City to look into the information accompanying Sureway’s bid.
The City didn’t bother checking
Double N’s allegations, and instead
gave the contract to Sureway.
After 20 years of litigation, the
case went to the Supreme Court
of Canada. It released its decision in early 2007, upholding the
City’s right to grant the contract
to Sureway. Understanding why
Double N lost the case is important for anyone involved in the
Supreme Court of Canada that
set out the ground rules for the
bidding procedure.
When an owner calls for tenders,
Understanding why Double N lost the
case is important for anyone involved in
the tendering process, because it goes to the
very heart of what the bidding process is
all about
tendering process, because it
goes to the very heart of what
the bidding process is all about.
Ground rules for owners
and contractors
For the last 25 years, owners and
contractors have been wandering through the maze of legal
rights and obligations created by
the landmark case of Ron Engineering, a 1981 decision of the
each bidder putting in a bid enters
into a contract (“Contract A”) with
the owner. Contract A places legal
obligations on both owner and bidder to behave in certain ways during
the period when the owner is choosing the successful bidder.
Once the owner chooses the
winning bid, the bidder enters into
a contract with the owner to carry
out the work or supply the goods
(“Contract B”).
Allied Division
These ground rules have been
refined over the years as other cases
have made their way through the
courts. Early cases examined the
obligations of bidders under Contract A, such as the requirement to
hold the bid price for the bid period.
Later cases looked at the owner’s
obligations, with the courts confirming that the owner had a duty to treat
all bidders fairly and act in good
faith. If an owner treated a bidder
unfairly, the owner could face a lawsuit from that bidder for damages.
to be provided. In its bid, Sureway
promised to meet that requirement,
but Double N suspected that at least
some of Sureway’s equipment was
older than 1980. When Double N
warned the City about its suspicions,
the City ignored the information
and did not carry out any further
investigation.
In the end, the Court decided
that an owner is not under a duty to
investigate the information supplied
with a bid. The judges were concerned, understandably, that such an
To avoid the mess created by making
owners look past the information in the bid,
the majority decided that owners should be
allowed to rely on the bid, period
More recent cases have considered the issue of non-compliant
bids, when something about the bid
is inconsistent with the tender documentation—such as failing to name
subcontractors or including price
qualifications—with the question
of whether a bid should have been
disqualified being decided mainly on
the facts of the individual case.
Through all this litigation, there
were two issues that had not been
clearly decided by the courts:
1. What is the duty of an owner to
investigate allegations made by
a bidder against another bidder
during the bid process?
2. When does Contract A come to
an end?
Those questions were the key
issues before the Court in the Double N case.
Double trouble for Double N
The tender documents issued by the
City of Edmonton required that all
equipment supplied had to be from
the year 1980 or newer, and that
registration and serial numbers had
obligation could lead to all sorts of
confusion and uncertainty. Imagine
if a bidder tried to gain a strategic
advantage over another by alleging
that the bid information given was
false and forcing the owner to carry
out independent investigations? To
avoid the mess created by making
owners look past the information in
the bid, the majority decided that
owners should be allowed to rely on
the bid, period.
The City did eventually find out
that Sureway’s equipment was older
than required, after Sureway got
the contract. Double N argued that
the City should have disqualified
Sureway and given the contract to
Double N at that point. Worse still,
after learning of the age of the older
equipment, the City still let Sureway
use it until it was eventually replaced.
Double N said that the change was a
“variation” in the contract and that
the owner should not be allowed to
overlook it.
The Court disagreed and ruled
that once a bidder has been selected
based on the tender documents,
Contract A comes to an end and
the obligations of the owner to treat
bidders fairly ceases. What happens
after the end of Contract A with the
successful bidder is none of the business of the other bidders.
The Court was concerned that
bidders who lost a bid would keep
an eye on what happened with the
contract afterward and jump at any
chance to point out a “variation”
from what was tendered. This would
be a state of affairs the Court did not
want to see.
It was a tough loss for Double N
after 20 years of litigation and a very
close decision, with four of the nine
Supreme Court judges disagreeing
with the five majority judges. The
minority stated that it was not good
enough for the owner to rely only
on the bid form, especially when
information could be easily doublechecked. In this particular case, the
age of the equipment was an important aspect of the tender and the
City could have checked the age by
looking up the equipment registrations in the City’s own registry.
The majority ruling stands, however, and although Double N itself
came away empty-handed, the
Supreme Court has left us with two
important principles. First, owners are entitled to rely on the bid
documentation and do not have to
go beyond it—even if bidders are
raising suspicions. Second, once the
contract has been awarded, Contract A is at an end, and the owner
and the successful bidder do not
have to worry about other bidders
looking over their shoulders. |BD
Glenn Ackerley is a
partner in the law
firm WeirFoulds LLP,
where he practises construction law. Glenn is
also chair of the Allied
Professions and Owners Division of the
Toronto Construction
Association.
"UILD)T2IGHT4HE&IRST4IME
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Community
title
Habitat for Humanity’s
19-townhouse Energy Star Build
in Toronto in mid-construction
The Human Side of
Community
Photos courtesy of Habitat Humanity
Habitat for Humanity has a volunteer
work force of 7,000 people
Building in Toronto
At Habitat for Humanity, volunteers embrace a new concept of a ‘dream home’
By Daryl-Lynn Carlson
Pool together the resources of skilled tradespersons, donations of bricks and
mortar, volunteers to assist with assembly and one common, altruistic purpose,
and you’ve got a habitat that fosters humanity for the benefit of all involved.
That’s exactly what the global homebuilding organization, Habitat for
Humanity, has achieved. The original organization, founded in 1976, set out to
develop “partnership housing” based on Christian principles that would provide
disadvantaged families with access to affordable homeownership.
The organization has since become an international presence, with home
building projects ongoing in 100 countries. Its volunteers have constructed more
than 200,000 homes for over one million people. A new home is completed and
dedicated to its new owners around the world every 24 minutes.
Habitat for Humanity Canada was launched in Winkler, Manitoba in 1985
and quickly grew into a network of 70 affiliate organizations that have completed
Community
Habitat for Humanity’s CEO Neil
Hetherington helping out with construction
With a volunteer force of 7,000 people
coupled with donated materials, Habitat for
Humanity Toronto can build a home valued
at $200,000 for just over $80,000
in excess of 1,000 homes coast to coast.
More than 30,000 Canadians volunteer
regularly with home-building projects.
The families who attain homeownership
are the primary beneficiaries of the
organization’s work. However, all the people
involved glean tremendous advantages
ranging from professional networking
opportunities to “Habititus”—best described
as a pervasive but humble state of euphoria
inspired by the purpose and process at hand.
“Habitat is not just an organization, it’s a
movement,” declares Neil Hetherington,
chief executive officer of the Habitat for
Humanity Toronto chapter. “If you offer
an opportunity to a family and say here’s a
hand up, not a hand out, and it’s not charity,
the result is wonderful.”
Habitat for Humanity Toronto was
established in 1988. Like its sister chapters,
it receives no government funding; rather, all
projects are 100 per cent reliant on monetary
gifts from corporations, individuals and
foundations. Within the city’s higher-priced
real estate market, the median price for a
home is $335,900. With a volunteer force
of 7,000 people coupled with donated
materials, Habitat for Humanity Toronto
can build a home valued at $200,000 for just
over $80,000.
Hetherington says participation and
donations to the Toronto chapter continue to
grow steadily. This is a promising sign given
the growth of disadvantaged families in the
city. According to the Toronto Community
Foundation’s 2006 Vital Signs Report, more
than 6,000 children in the city sleep in a
shelter every night. More than 190,000
live in a low-income family, and 552,000
households—or 25 per cent—subsist on
income below the poverty line. Toronto’s
waiting list for subsidized housing is 64,000
families deep, and nearly 200,000 tenant
households spend more than 30 per cent of
their income on rent.
The numbers reflect the ongoing need
for affordable housing, especially within
a market rife with development. “We ask
the industry that has really been blessed
over the last number of years to contribute
back through donating their skills and
services,” says Hetherington of Toronto’s
construction community.
Hetherington acknowledges that a
general, nationwide industry surge makes
recruiting of volunteers challenging at times.
“With the (building) boom on right now,
there’s so much work, people don’t always
have time,” he observes. “But people need
to prioritize giving back to the community,
and they’re doing that.”
Community
Tradespersons are integral to Habitat, overseeing
the build projects and working alongside volunteers
who act as assistants or, in some instances, bona
fide apprentices earning educational credits to
achieve trades certification themselves. And despite
demands, there’s no indication that any industry
personnel shortage has adversely affected the
organization’s progress.
Chosen families
One of the fundamental principles of
Habitat for Humanity is to provide families
with a hand up, not a handout. It enables
recipient families to break the cycle of
poverty and build on a future by means of
equity in an affordable living environment.
Accordingly, applicant families must meet
three specific criteria to qualify for a Habitat
home. They have to demonstrate a critical need
for affordable housing, such as income below
poverty standards coupled with substandard
living conditions, along with the ratio of shelter
expenses factored against total income. Secondly,
families must have a means to repay a Habitat
mortgage, which is interest free and covers only the
cost incurred for the home, with no profit margin
for the organization. The mortgage monies go
The opening of the Rotary Drive Habitat site
on St. Lawrence Street in Toronto
into a “revolving fund for humanity” that
is used to build more homes. The third
requirement is a commitment to donate
500 hours of “sweat equity” assisting with
the construction of their own home along
with other homes.
Once the home is completed, the
key is turned over to the recipient
family with fanfare. Hetherington
remembers one family’s homecoming
well. Walter and Sheila, the parents
of five kids including young Lisa, who
was confined to a wheelchair, lived
in a tiny basement apartment that
was riddled with mould. All five kids
slept in one large bed, while Lisa’s
wheelchair wouldn’t fit down the
stairs so was left chained outside on
the street overnight. Walter worked
overtime often installing springs in
mattresses, but his income was paltry
and the family couldn’t get ahead.
In June 2003, over the course of nine
days, 1,700 volunteers built the family
a brand new home complete with
wheelchair accessibility. On the final
day, as the new home was dedicated to
the family, everyone present was moved.
“Being on the porch with them, giving
them the keys for a home they would own
and that they would pay for, watching how
they walked through that doorway and
Following the donation of surplus land in
Scarborough from the federal government,
Habitat for Humanity was able to build a
neighbourhood of 36 single-dwelling homes
Community
crossed the threshold into a new future,
it was such a wonderful opportunity,”
enthuses Hetherington.
The income of all Habitat homeowners
is reviewed on an annual basis. If
their income increases, their monthly
mortgage payments are adjusted, but not
to exceed 30 per cent of their monthly
income. If a family’s income decreases
because of a temporary roadblock like
job loss, similar adjustments are made
to maintain affordability.
As part of its commitment to families,
Habitat provides education and support
to facilitate successful home ownership. As
a result of ongoing support, the mortgage
default rate in Canada is merely about
one per cent. And to prevent families from
selling a Habitat home for a profit, a second
mortgage is levied for 12 years. Once the
first mortgage is paid off in full, the second
mortgage is forgiven. Habitat also has first
rights to the property should the family
decide to sell.
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Toronto projects
Over the years, Habitat for Humanity
Toronto has completed 74 homes. Almost
all of its builds have been single dwelling
homes, although recent donations of larger
tracts of land have allowed the organization
to build multiple unit projects
Acquiring affordable land has been one
of the organization’s greatest challenges. Yet
in 2004 it was able to launch what it coined
“The Breakthrough Build.” This involved
the creation of a neighbourhood of 36
single-dwelling homes—the largest build in
Canadian Habitat history—following the
donation of surplus land in Scarborough
from the federal government.
This year, the Toronto chapter is
constructing 10 townhomes adjacent to
the Daniels WAVE Lake Shore Village
condominium towers on land donated by
the Daniels Corporation, along with a multiunit project on Peddicord Drive on land
gifted by The Mainella Family through the
Ontario Power Authority.
In another first, Habitat for Humanity
Toronto is, in partnership with Direct Energy
and Enbridge Gas, nearing completion
of an Energy Star Build of 19 townhouse
condominiums on land donated by Ed &
Fran Clark at 4200 Kingston Road.
The Energy Star project incorporates
complete energy efficiencies conducive to
conservation and economy. As Hetherington
notes, “There’s no point building a house
that a family can’t afford to pay for.”
Restores across the country, including
three in Toronto, sell surplus construction
goods and tools that have been donated
by commercial stores and suppliers. The
Restores are open to the public and offer
quality materials for 50 per cent or less
than their retail cost. The money generated
through the Habitat for Humanity Restores
covers the expense of the organization’s
administration.
In sum, it’s easy to wonder how Habitat
for Humanity has achieved such resounding
success in its provision of affordable housing
and equity for families eager to break the
poverty cycle. Its principles are simple and
clearly set out; its altruism practiced in a
manner that is easy to embrace.
As Hetherington, who’s worked with
the organization in Africa, Poland and
Hungary, repeats with conviction, Habitat
for Humanity is a “movement” that inspires
all those who encounter its work. |BD
Community
Lessons of life
Aspiring tradespersons can achieve educational
credit working with Habitat for Humanity. In fact, a
considerable portion of Habitat’s volunteers seek
hands-on experience on site at its projects.
This includes volunteers like Matt Kett,
currently between jobs after moving to Toronto
from Ottawa. Kett, 26; dedicates upwards of 10
hours per day as a crew leader and apprentice
learning construction and carpentry. “Habitat is
the perfect thing for me, I’m able to sharpen my
skills, learn new skills and network,” he says.
While Kett joined Habitat on his own initiative,
other participatory programs are facilitated
through schools. There are 11 Canada Campus
Chapters based at universities across the
country that encourage community youth
involvement beyond the student bodies for those
aged 16 or older.
Last spring, the Canada Campus Chapters
undertook the first-ever National Student Build
project, with 30 students from across the country
gathering in Winnipeg to build, from start to finish,
an all-student constructed home for a single mom
and her two children who had been living in social
housing for seven years.
Neil Hetherington, chief executive officer of
the Habitat for Humanity Toronto chapter, says
the campus programs are increasingly popular
as young people recognize the potential for
a lucrative and rewarding career in trades.
“These are young men and women who are
getting exposure a phenomenal industry, a
growing industry and a profitable industry that is
rewarding, with tangible results,” he says.
In Toronto, there are upwards of a dozen
students working on projects every day. ”I
see young people recognizing the fulfillment of
creating something. And the way we’re engaging
people is not just through construction; they’re
working alongside bankers, IT people, people of
all walks of life and realizing this is a good and
honourable profession.”
There is also a Women Build program that
focuses on giving women the opportunity to
learn and flourish in what is otherwise a maledominated profession, as well as opportunities
for kids under the age of 16 to participate.
The organization is always in need of help with
landscaping, painting, work site clean up or with
duties at a local area office.
The Energy Star Build on land donated by Ed & Fran Clark at
4200 Kingston Road
McLevin Woods: with
36 homes this is the
largest Habitat site in
Canada
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Industry Q&A
An Electronic Solution
TCA’s executive vice president Kim McKinney speaks to Builders’ Digest about
the Association’s electronic plansroom and the advantages of using the system
By Roma Ihnatowycz
What exactly is an electronic
plansroom (EPR)?
Electronic plansrooms (EPR) have
been in existence since the late
1990s but were not embraced by
the industry until the early 2000s.
TCA first launched its electronic
plansroom in February 2000 to allow
members access to construction project
drawings, specifications and addenda
over the Internet, 24 hours a day, seven
days a week. This information has
always been available in construction
association plansrooms, but given
commuting times in larger urban areas,
it was a natural progression.
Have they changed the way
construction projects are
handled?
The EPR has revolutionized the way
in which construction projects are
handled. All of the major owners,
architects and issuing authorities rely
on EPRs to get critical information to
general contractors, trade contractors
and suppliers and manufacturers. This
improves the overall bidding process,
making it more efficient. Although
many contractors and estimators still
rely on physical plansrooms to prepare
bids for projects, more and more are
converting every day.
Is special software required to use the system?
Individual users do not need special software on their computers, as the software
is accessed via the Internet by any browser with a log-on and password. And
in May of this year we upgraded to PrintNet3, the Provincial Electronic
Plansroom, allowing access across the province of Ontario. We are all now on
a common platform and our members can access projects across the province,
on a project pass basis. The beauty of the system is that there is no additional
training required to access projects in another location in the province.
How many projects has the TCA’s EPR handled to date?
In 2000, TCA’s first year for EPR, we handled 800 projects with 150 members
and 300 users. This has grown to 1,056 projects with 500 corporate users and
1,200 individual users in 2006. On the project side, this equates to just under
6,000 projects through our EPR since inception in 2000. We are on target to
surpass the number of projects in 2007 with 488 projects in the plansroom in the
first five months of 2007, averaging just under 100 projects per month.
Do you feel your members fully understand the benefits
of the EPR?
The majority do; however, like any new technology, unless you are using the
system on a daily basis, many users are not using the software to its full capacity.
Our software developers from Wade Tech have actually stripped out a great
deal of the complexity from the system to make it very user-friendly. Users do
not require a large investment in training time and can basically use the system
almost immediately after signing up. We have more converts every day. But we
also recognize that some people in the industry do not like to use email and some
will only use physical plansrooms. We cater to all of our members.
How is TCA’s EPR managed?
We have a staff of approximately five full-time employees who handle different aspects of the physical and electronic
plansrooms. There are many overlapping functions, since we have a physical copy of each project both at our head office at
TCA and in Mississauga at MCA. One of our staff is dedicated solely to a help line for users and also runs a number of training
demos for our members free of charge.
Construction Safety
Association of Ontario
If you work in Ontario construction,
you’re a member of CSAO. That means
you’re entitled to a wealth of information
on preventing occupational illness and
injury.
What if a bidding company wants
to have the drawings printed?
We have invested heavily in printing equipment
both at TCA and at MCA, and we now, for
the first time, are able to print large format
drawings at MCA on demand, in addition
to TCA and HHCA. Members can order
drawings on-line through the EPR and have
them delivered to their home or office within
24 hours. Members can also pick them up
at TCA, MCA or HHCA. Importantly, we
also have Wade Tech, our service provider,
handling large orders that we cannot fill on a
timely basis. Wade Tech is one of the largest
printers in Ontario and they are working
closely with the respective associations to
provide this service to our members at
competitive prices.
Training programs
Books, CDs, videos
Magazine and email updates
Consultation.
416-674-CSAO (2726) [email protected] www.csao.org
What about e-notification of a
new project or a change to an
existing project?
This is one of the top benefits of our system,
which saves users significant time checking
the EPR. They only need to log into the EPR
when they know a new project that interests
them has been added, or when a change is
made to a project they are bidding on.
Recruitment ad.eps
13/06/2007
2:41:19 PM
Does TCA’s EPR handle all
projects?
No, although we would love to do so. We do
some municipal projects, but believe there is a
huge opportunity to do more of these projects
going forward. We have been concentrating
on getting the best electronic plansroom in
the country and linking up all the associations
across the province. Now that we have
accomplished both of these objectives with
our counterparts, we are ready to expand the
EPR to various levels of government, other
owners, as well as private plansrooms, which
we believe is another untapped opportunity.
We have been in discussions with a number
of potential clients for private plansrooms for
some time and expect to be able to announce
something very shortly.
C
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Work with Us!
www.pcl.com
The Burj Dubai is a US$330 million
“rotating tower,” with each story
rotating independently
Photo courtesy of RTT-Dynamic Architecture
Eye on the World
Eye on the World
Building on Sand
Dubai’s dazzling construction projects continue to push boundaries and
wow the world
By Andrew Brooks
Water, sand, air and fire: there’s an elemental undertone
to Dubai. The fire, of course, is the prodigious
heat. Recorded maximums in Dubai approach the
50-degree Celsius mark, and anything more than a
five-second walk from an air-conditioned hotel to an
equally cool limo becomes a veritable health hazard.
But the heat hasn’t dampened the pace of Dubai’s
growth, which is among the fastest in the world and
faster than emerging powerhouses China and India.
International trade has grown 11 per cent on average
year over year since 1988, while GDP growth has
averaged 13 per cent a year since 2000.
Construction is one of the sectors targeted for
special attention. No fewer than 20 per cent of the
world’s tower cranes are reportedly on the job in
Dubai—a staggering thought given that the emirate’s
population is but a low 1.4 million. Altogether, the
construction sector employs over 250,000 workers,
mostly from India and Pakistan.
Planned chaos
Many observers find Dubai’s growth chaotic. A recent
Vanity Fair feature described the city’s tower-friendly
profile as “a skyline on crack.” However the government
has firm and definite ideas about how the emirate’s
growth is to be directed, in addition to its hardline policies on foreign ownership. It has played a
controlling role in development from the start, often
providing initial seed investment to get projects
rolling in targeted sectors.
But heavy-handed planning is beside the point. By
dint of their sheer scale, Dubai’s construction projects
impose their own internal coherence across much
larger spaces—physical, economic and conceptual—
than exist in most other parts of the world.
Dubai’s construction sector employs over 250,000 workers, mostly from India and Pakistan
Eye on the World
“The Palms”: three sprawling, man-made palm-shaped
peninsulas jutting into the Gulf that will accommodate hundreds
of thousand’s of the world’s better-heeled
Dubai is one of seven emirates that
make up the United Arab Emirates in the
Middle East. In its case the terms “state”
and “city” are synonymous
Superlatives aren’t hard to find. There
are “The Palms”—Jumeirah, Jebel Ali and
Deira—three sprawling, man-made palmshaped peninsulas jutting into the Gulf that
will ultimately accommodate hundreds of
thousand’s of the world’s better-heeled.
Then there’s the Burj al-Arab, completed by
Emaar Properties in 1999. The world’s tallest
freestanding hotel, the Burj is constructed
on an artificial island. The building’s curved,
sail-like profile still serves as Dubai’s global
trademark, an instantly recognizable shape
reminiscent of an Arab dhow.
That status will become a thing of the past
when Emaar is done with its next venture:
the Burj Dubai, a US$800 million massive
tower project. The exact dimensions are a
closely guarded secret, which is probably
the best marketing ploy Emaar could have
chosen as various rumours put the completed
height anywhere from 800 to 1000 metres (a
kilometre, in other words), and the number
of storeys from 160 to somewhere over 216.
Even the lowball figures are enough to make
it the largest structure ever built on land.
It will contain residential and commercial
space, including a luxury hotel, apartments,
an observatory and the largest shopping
mall in the world.
Dubai World Central International
Airport, also currently under construction,
will accommodate 12 million tons of
cargo and 120 million passengers a
year, and will cover more square footage
than London’s Heathrow and Chicago’s
O’Hare airports combined.
And so it goes. Among other attractions
either underway, on the drawing
board or under consideration are: an
underwater hotel; “The World”—a
series of islands shaped like a map of
the world and available for purchase;
and “Chess City,” which consists of 32
64-storey towers, each shaped like. . .
well, you can figure it out. | BD
Eye on the World
The negatives
The conditions in which the large expatriate workforce lives have
been described as “less than human,” and the death rate among
Dubai construction workers is high enough to be a matter of concern.
The workers are kept in near-servitude, totally dependent on the
companies that hire them. And wages, at least until recently, often
went unpaid for months.
At the end of 2005, hundreds of workers for an Abu Dhabi
construction company working in Dubai staged a peaceful sit-down
protest to demand months’ worth of back pay. To its credit, the UAE
labour ministry ordered the company to pay up, imposed fines and
granted workers the right to transfer their “sponsorship”—their right
to work in Dubai—to another employer.
Preliminary drawings of the Burj
Dubai’s rotating tower
The Dubai waterfront: the
site of many new and ongoing
construction projects
Photos courtesy of RTT-Dynamic Architecture
Eye on the World
A different spin
While the Burj Dubai probably has the corner on sheer numbers when it comes to the scale of development
in Dubai—or anywhere else—another project has the edge in innovative daring. A US$330 million “rotating
tower” is now being constructed by the appropriately named Rotating Tower Technology International,
brainchild of Italian architect David Fisher.
Over 300 metres in height, the building will have 68 storeys, each rotating independently to allow
residents to capture or—this is Dubai after all—avoid sunlight, and change views as desired. A full rotation
will take 90 minutes. Prefabricated construction will cut construction time from about 30 months to 18, and
reduce the labour force required on site to about 90. Each storey will be built at an assembly site in Dubai,
arriving for ‘installation’ with its electrical, plumbing and air conditioning systems ready to go.
When completed by the end of 2008, the structure will contain apartments, serviced residences, offices,
a six-star hotel, and five villas on the top floor. These will have ensuite parking, with residents’ vehicles
carried up and down on special elevators. Wind turbines and solar panels incorporated into the structure
will provide all of its power, with enough left over for several other buildings in the vicinity.
Eye on the World
COCA Commentary
Driving Home the Message
With Ontario’s general election right around the corner, it’s time for the
construction industry to make its voice heard on a number of crucial issues
by David Frame
The province of Ontario will have a general
election on October 10, 2007, but the
political parties at Queen’s Park have already
been preparing their ammunition for many
months. Government announcements are
coming at an increasingly fast clip while
opposition denunciations reach fever pitch.
It is an opportune time for COCA to
drive home the construction industry’s
message to the candidates of all parties. It’s
true that Ontario political history shows an
upper hand for incumbents, but there are
always surprises. Just look at 1990 when
the ‘third party’ won a majority, and 1995
when another ‘third party’ won control of
the legislature.
It is important to remind candidates of
all parties about the crucially important
role construction plays in the economy of
the province. Members of the legislature
are always quoting statistics about the auto
industry. But construction accounts for
more than 6 per cent of the gross provincial
product and deserves greater recognition.
COCA has issued a letter to the political
parties asking for the commitment to act
on some important issues. It is important,
however, that those of you closely involved
with construction projects underscore
the industry’s message whenever you get
a chance to talk to candidates or their
representatives. The following is a brief
overview of our message to those who will
form the next government of Ontario.
Underground Economy
The underground economy must be
recognized as a major factor affecting
both government and business. It has been
reliably estimated that the underground
economy is costing the Ontario government
and its public agencies at least $1.5 billion
a year. The underground grows during
economic slowdown and we must address
the issue now.
The sad fact is that compliant companies
are the ones that lose business and profits or
who may in fact fail because of the uneven
playing field. We want the next government
to establish a commission with industry
representation to define the problem,
explain where and why it exists and then
issue an action plan.
Construction Lien Act
The construction industry is directly
affected by the Construction Lien Act, as
this legislation dictates how conditions of
contract are met. The legislation is now
24 years old and is quite outdated. COCA
has been proposing sensible amendments
to the Act to protect contractors’ interests
for years and we are urging the next
government to act.
We are proposing that holdback be placed
in an interest-bearing trust account; that
‘early’ contractors’ lien rights be protected
through to substantial performance of
the main contract; and that holdback be
released automatically by a set date. In
addition, the lack of clarity regarding what
construction is subject to a lien (occasioned
by the Kennedy Electric case under appeal)
could be simply remedied.
COCA hopes to have these issues
addressed as quickly as possible after
disposition of the Kennedy case (however
it is decided) and we are impressing
candidates with the importance the
industry places on them.
WSIB
The WSIA must be amended to require
that everyone exposed to hazard on a
construction site should have premiums
paid by or for him or her. It is only fair and
equitable. Calling employees “independent
operators” to avoid payment puts a huge
burden on those who play by the rules and,
more importantly, it disadvantages honest
contractors in bidding.
WSIB loses hundreds of millions of dollars
each year in the construction category and
the simple—but grossly unfair—response is
a threat to raise construction rates until the
industry “pays its own way.” The unfairness
of the workers’ compensation issue is a
terrible burden on such an important sector of
the economy and COCA is insisting that the
next government address it fully.
Environment
Government must create a solution to Ontario’s
waste capacity issues—in Ontario. There
should be a complete review and overhaul of
the Environmental Assessment process with
emphasis on the establishment of facilities to
handle waste. We desperately need increased
capacity for construction materials not included
in the 3R regime.
Action on Water protection requires a
commitment to System Sustainability. A
commitment is needed to proclaim SWSSA,
including a commitment to a timeline
for regulations. These regulations should
include a requirement for full cost pricing by
municipalities. Year after year, municipalities
that don’t implement a system of full cost
pricing for water and wastewater make the
infrastructure deficit worse.
Sustainability can only be guaranteed by
proper funding of the system to meet both
current demands and future needs. The only
way to assure this sustainability is, therefore,
to mandate dedicated reserves for water and
wastewater in each municipality. If there is no
action, the infrastructure gap will rise by $18
billion over the next few years
Construction Advisory Council
The Minister of Public Infrastructure Renewal
launched the Construction Advisory Council
in the fall of 2006. This council is made up
of senior industry representatives and its
mandate is to discuss important issues facing the
construction industry, i.e. tendering practices,
labour supply, infrastructure planning etc.
The Council is an essential advisory body to
any government as construction is one of the
fastest growing industries in the province, and
it faces many issues in the near future. This
council provides expertise to the minister, and
an ear for the industry at the cabinet table.
COCA is encouraging all candidates to commit
to maintaining the Construction Advisory
Council so that it will continue its important role
regardless of political party and minister.
In conclusion, COCA has a strong record of
achievement with governments of all political
stripes. We continue to press for resolution of
the issues that impede growth and investment
in Ontario. Please help us
by mentioning these issues
whenever you get a chance
to talk to candidates between
now and October 10th. |BD
7 8 M i l l w i c k D r i v e To r o n t o O N M 9 L 1 Y 3
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62 Progress Court
Brampton, ON L6S 5X2
Tel.: (905) 799-9922
Fax: (905) 799-9923
Cell: (416) 434-4128
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! ! 50 | Builders' Digest Summer 2007
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Call John van Bilsen
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e-mail: [email protected]
www.capannellilaw.com
CanWell
Insurance and
Financial Services Inc.
Suppliers of Door & Wall Protection,
Cubical Track & Curtains, Expansion Joints
& Washroom Accessories & Partitions.
DARRYL STEEN
CEDARCREST ARCHITECTURAL SPECIALTIES LTD.
525 Hwy #3, RR#2, Courtland, Ontario NOJ 1EO
Tel: 519-688-0269 • 866-705-4451
Fax: 519-688-0174
Experienced brokers willing to work and grow with small and
medium size contractors and tradesmen.
We have strong and stable insurance markets for most trades.
We offer:
• business insurance
• professional liability
• commercial auto
• contract surety bonds
Norman Ritchie, BA, CIP
CANWELL INSURANCE AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INC.
80 Acadia Ave, Ste. 306, Markham, ON L3R 9V1
Tel: (905) 513-9802 ext. 228 Fax: (905) 513-9830
IT’S
YOUR
At MediaEdge, we realize how important it is for you to have an effective vehicle to promote your
association. We also realize how much hard work and dedication is required to create such a product.
Let our dynamic team help you build an association publication that your members will rave about, a
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MESSAGE.
Whether we’re creating a product from scratch or building on an existing publication, you can trust
MediaEdge to develop your magazine into the cutting-edge publication you want and deserve.
THE EDGE.
Robert Thompson Vice President • Toronto 866.216.0860 ext. 229 • Fax: 416.512.8344 •
Winnipeg 866.201.3096 • Gainesville 877.234.1863
GIVE IT
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At MediaEdge, we realize how important it is for you to have an effective
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Upcoming Events
TCA Membership Campaign
October 15 -19, 2007
TCA Headquarters, Richmond Hill
Construct Canada 2007 November 28 - 30, 2007
Metro Toronto Convention Centre (MTCC)
Christmas Lunch
Friday, November 30, 2007
Metro Toronto Convention Centre
Tickets go on sale October 1, 2007
An Evening in Camelot Gala
Saturday, February 2, 2008
The Old Mill Inn
For further information, please contact: Mary Thorburn or Barbara Bryon • Tel: (416) 499-4000, Ext. 14/57
Email: [email protected]; [email protected] • www.tcanetworks.com
SALIT STEEL
NIAGARA FALLS
RONCO STEEL
BURLINGTON
SALIT STEEL
BOWMANVILLE
YOUR PARTNER IN THE CONSTRUCTION
INDUSTRY FOR OVER 100 YEARS
REINFORCING STEEL
BLACK• EPOXY COATED • GALVANIZED• STAINLESS• WIRE MESH
ESTIMATING • CAD DETAILING • FABRICATION• PLACING
REBAR SALES OFFICE
79 MAIN STREET EAST, GRIMSBY, ON, L3M 1N7
PH: 866-725-4878 FX: 905-309-0344
www.salitsteel.com
OR
www.stainlessrebar.com
Upcoming Events
Young Construction Executive Club
Poker Tournament
YCEC/TCA Board of Directors Golf
Annual Tree Planting
Pub Night
June 14, 2007
Blaney McMurty’s Office, 2 Queen Street
September 27, 2007
Richmond Hill Golf Club
October 2007
City of Toronto Park, Etobicoke
November 2007
Madison Pub
For further information, please contact: Evelyn Kilcullen • Tel: (416) 499-4000, Ext. 18 • Email: [email protected] • www.tcanetworks.com
The Construction Institute
Workshop: The Pitfalls of Bidding and Tendering
June 11, June 18, June 25, 2007
Mondays, 8:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Program: Leadership Development Program, Level II
Workshop: Ethics
June 21, 22, 23, 2007
Thursday-Friday-Saturday
The Kingbridge Centre, King City
Program: Management of Construction, Level I
September 2007
Course: Risk Management
Monday, September 17, 2007
10 weeks, Mondays, 6:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Course: Blueprint Reading and Estimating, Level I
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
10 weeks, Tuesdays, 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Course: Construction Law
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
10 weeks, Wednesdays, 6:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Course: Planning and Scheduling
Thursday, September 27, 2007
10 weeks, Thursdays, 6:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Program: Leadership Development Program, Level I
October 24-26, 2007 and February 27 - 29, 2008
Seminar: Construction Liens
November 2007
Course: Fundamentals of Construction
Fall 2007
10 weeks, Wednesdays, 6:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Course: “Small Business” Construction Essentials
Fall 2007
7 weeks, Saturdays, 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
September 2007
For further information, please contact: Roxanne Drisdelle • Tel: (416) 499-4000, Ext. 15 • Email: [email protected] • www.theconstructioninstitute.com
index to advertisers
Anchor Rebar Supply Inc.
Kingston, ON ............Page 50
BFI Canada Inc.
Concord, ON..............Page 50
Capacity Plus Inc.
Mississauga, ON..........Page 9
C. J. Stafford & Associates
Toronto, ON ................Page 9
New Century Software Inc.
Richmond Hill, ON . ..Page 50
Belmont Rose
Granite Corp.
Markham, ON ..........Page 50
Bondfield Construction
Company Ltd.
Concord, ON . ...........Page 49
Capannelli Law
Professional Corporation
Toronto, ON...............Page 51
Construction Safety
Association of Ontario
Etobicoke, ON . .........Page 41
Ontario
Construction Secretariat
Etobicoke, ON . ...........Page 3
Bender Sealhard ECS Inc.
Mississauga, ON....... Page 51
Canwell Insurance &
Financial Services Inc.
Cedarcrest Architectural
Specialities Ltd.
Courtland, ON ..........Page 51
C.W. Smith Crane
Service Ltd.
Scarborough, ON . ....Page 19
Ontario Fill Exchange Inc.
Newmarket, ON .......Page 50
Dymin Steel Inc.
Brampton, ON ..........Page 38
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Priestly Demolition Inc.
Aurora, ON ...............Page 23
Flynn Canada Ltd.
Mississauga, ON ......Page 14
Salit Steel Ltd.
Grimsby, ON..............Page 52
GAL Power Systems
Nepean, ON . ............Page 13
Sprint Insight Inc.
North York, ON .........Page 49
Goldman, Sloan
Nash & Haber
Toronto, ON.............. Page 11
Ultimate ICF Inc.
Newmarket, ON ..Page 28-29
Vanbots Construction
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Markham, ON .... Inside Front .
......................................Cover
The Guarantee Company
of North America
Toronto, ON ..............Page 41
Vicking Pump
of Canada Inc.
Mississauga, ON........Page 54
Harris Rebar
Stoney Creek, ON .....Page 39
Walters Group
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......................................Cover
Kasian
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Toronto, ON ..............Page 26
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Magest Inc.
Stratford, ON ............Page 21
MBS Steel
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Mississauga • Windsor • London • Montreal • Quebec • Sussex, NB
Winnipeg • Calgary • Edmonton • Vancouver
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Weston, ON ..............Page 22
Canadian Manufacturers & Distributors of
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Peri Formwork
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Bolton, ON . ..............Page 50
Firstbrook,
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Toronto, ON ..............Page 51
Gowlings
Toronto, ON ..............Page 33
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Mississauga, ON ......Page 41
7/17/2007 1:08:56 PM
WeirFoulds LLP
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......................................Cover
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Walters Group
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Michael LeGresley & Victor Smith,
Co-CEOs, Giffels, An Integrated Consulting,
Design-Build and Asset Management Company
grew up with
WeirFoulds.
To find out more, call Glenn Ackerley
at 416.947.5008 or email him at
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Protect your future. Gain a competitive advantage. WeirFoulds LLP.
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michael lee-chin crystal - Toronto Construction Association

Transcription

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