Construction in Vancouver - BIV 1367

VRCA news feature

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A Midland Exteriors crew places brackets for exterior cladding and insulation as the Immigrant Services Society of BC’s new Welcome Centre moves toward completion in early 2016. It is the first of its kind in the world and will feature a range of immigrant services plus living accommodations. Construction crew members in the building’s earlier stage were immigrants from Myanmar who came to B.C. escaping persecution. VRCA member Mierau Contractors Ltd. is the general contractor | Jean Sorensen Photo

LABOUR: Immigrants needed to backstop skilled trades Waves of newcomers have built B.C.’s construction companies and expertise

By Jean Sorensen

A

FINDit

s Canada prepares to embrace a new wave of immigration in 2016, B.C.’s construction industry is hoping the new arrivals will play a strong role in filling the growing shortfall of skilled tradesmen and labour as senior tradespeople retire from the construction

industry.

B.C. is seeing tradespeople exiting faster than new entrants are arriving; the BuildForce Canada 2015 labour market report shows B.C. will retire 40,000 skilled workers from 34 trades over the next 10 years with an additional 19,000 needed to accommodate industry growth.

“Immigrants are the group that

constructive comment C3 VRCA gets ready to bust some myths about the industry provincial view C7 BCCA welcomes new year with programs, partnerships, funding

will backstop the gap that is being created,” said BC Construction Association (BCCA) president Manley McLachlan. .

“We certainly support immigration,” said Jack Davidson, president of the BC Road Builders & Heavy Construction Association, whose industry faces a looming skills shortage. The road building industry has filled its short-term

needs into 2017-2018 only because of the downturn in Alberta’s economy, Davidson said.

“Fortunately, we haven’t seen a f u l l-blow n sk i l ls shortage yet,” he said, but added there are shortages of skilled labour such as truck drivers and tunnelboring machine operators.

The federal government has identified the new wave of Syrian

Lifetime achievement award recipient Paul Myers C4 Q&A: BCCA-IN connects new arrivals with employers C6 Graham Construction wins big at gala C8 Legal Specs column: Builders Lien Act provides for proper payout C9

refugees coming to Canada as having skills in two main areas – agriculture and construction, said Immigrant Services Society of BC (ISSofBC) director of settlement Chris Friesen. But for them to get into the workplace, they will need language skills. continued on page C2

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January 12–18, 2016

special news feature | Vancouver regional construction Association

c2 news Labour Continued from page 1

There is a need to develop “more creative ways” of delivering English-language classes to immigrants and refugees, Friesen said. He pointed to a Manitoba program where the provincial government is working with eight employers and using immigrantsupport agency trainers to hold English classes on the job site.

Friesen said this is a model that can be replicated in B.C. “We need a different approach in delivering English skills,” he said. “Employer groups could offer English lessons, as part of an employee benefits package.”

McLachlan said immigrants are not taking jobs away from Canadians, but are often creating opportunity. When a journeyman leaves a work site, that person takes away or limits the ability of the company to train apprentices.

It has prompted the BCCA to lead trips to northern Europe looking for journeymen to bring to Canada to fill the growing void until new entrants, now encouraged by high-school programs, can move forward into the workplace.

“Many training systems offshore are equal or in some cases better in terms of skills readiness than here,” McLachlan said. “In places such as France, Ireland, Scotland and parts of Central Europe, by the time a journeyman is 35 years old, he has 19-20 years’ experience.”

McLachlan said the industry is watching to see what attributes the new wave of immigration brings in 2016.

But potentia l ca nd idates brought into the industry will require some upgrading of skills.

“You can take an electrician from Ireland, England, or France and they have the theory, but they are not familiar with the building code here or the safety

requirements,” McLachlan said.

The BCCA plays a role through its regional association partners in providing seminars to help individuals obtain the courses, such as in safety, so they can work on site.

“Many of the new immigrants and refugees are expected to arrive within the Greater Vancouver area because this is where their ethnic communities exist,” said Fiona Famulak, president of the Vancouver Regional Construction Association (VRCA).

She said the VRCA has much to offer as it has an extensive online and in-classroom roster of courses that can help new entrants upgrade their skills. “As well, we have our U40 Network where individuals can connect socially, practise their language skills and also learn about the industry and the town and region they live in.”

Historically, immigration has created a legacy of success stories for the construction industry.

McLachlan said the first big wave of immigrants affected the modern construction industry in the 1950s and 1960s as Canada needed to upgrade its infrastructure, and labour was badly needed for projects. Immigrants poured in from both northern and southern Europe, bringing skills.

“This country was built by immigrants,” said Robert Lashin, president of Houle Electric, a company with 1,000 employees that has hired immigrant engineers from Jordan.

Lashin is the son of a Ukraini a n-bor n c a r p enter. A nibal Valente, vice-president of PCL Constructors Westcoast, is the son of a Portuguese-born carpenter. “Our fathers worked together for a number of years,” Lashin said. Valente recalls visiting the Lashin home and Lashin’s father Sam being proud that his son was enrolled in engineering

Chris Friesen | director of settlement services Immigrant Services Society of BC

Employer groups could offer English lessons as part of an employee benefits package

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Rendering of the new Welcome Centre in Vancouver, which will be home to new immigrants and refugees beginning in 2016. The facility, the first in the world to group a full range of immigrant services with housing, is being constructed by VRCA member Mierau Contractors Ltd. The facility was designed by Vancouver architectural firm Henriquez Partners Architects for the Immigrant Services Society of BC | Courtesy of Immigrant Services Society of BC

at the University of British Columbia. “I thought it must be a good career,” said Valente, who followed suit. Both men are professional engineers and now head two of B.C.’s largest construction companies.

Hans Haebler left Germany in 1951, exiting after his farm was expropriated by the Soviets following the Second World War. He arrived in Vancouver to start as a construction labourer. “You could work in construction and earn a wage to support a family,” he said. He climbed through the ranks, taking courses, becoming a foreman and then a superintendent. He formed his own company that was the forerunner of Haebler Construction, now run by son Roland, a professional engineer, with a third generation of the Haebler family working with the firm.

The Zirpke family arrived from Germany in 1953 with 15-yearold Peter in tow. The Salvation Army paid their transport and on their arrival in Canada handed each of the four family members $5. “That was all the money we had,” Peter Zirpke remembers, as German currency was worthless. Peter had already been a part

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of Europe’s apprenticeship system and had completed a year of bricklaying in Germany. The family arrived in Montreal, where Zirpke was able to get another year’s apprenticeship before the family came to Vancouver, where he found work. By the age of 21, he had gone into a partnership and started a masonry company.

The approach was different than in Europe, where masonry was used for structural purposes rather than just finishing as in Canada, said Zirpke, who became a specialist in structural or loadbearing masonry walls. After 12 years, the partners split; Zirpke Masonry was established in 1971 and carried out work throughout B.C. until Zirpke retired.

Solid Rock Steel’s founder Benny Steunenberg learned his trade in metal fabrication in Holland but left the war-ravaged country in the 1950s, following a sister to Canada. He worked two jobs to earn money to get the basic tools and an old truck to start a small metal fabricating shop. It has now grown into one of B.C.’s major firms and is run by son Peter, one of nine children.

One of the largest waves of immigration during the 1950s was Italian, with Italian tradesmen strong in all areas of construction. Italian craftsmen and tradesmen permeated nearly every facet of construction, from road building to producing wrought iron for homes out of metal shops along Commercial Drive.

Mauro Vescera, executive director of Vancouver’s Italian Cultural Centre, said, “There are major construction firms in the city that were started by firstgeneration Italians [and now encompass second- or thirdgeneration descendants] as well as artisans who got involved in construction.”

A few of the well-known names in construction include Bosa, Boffo, and Aquilini, he said.

Vescera said Italian tradesmen

were also known for their concrete work – “the Romans invented concrete,” he noted – and pointed to the success of Newway Concrete Forming, another company with Italian expertise.

“In the ’50s and the ’60s, the Italians and the Germans were the core of the masonry industry,” said Bill McEwen, executive director of the Masonry Institute of British Columbia. The waves of immigration have continued; although the nationalities change, the reasons for people leaving their home country remain the same – war and its aftermath, political or religious persecution or the desire to give their children a better future. Recently, immigrants worked on the new Vancouver Welcome Centre, a 58,000-square-foot facility for refugees and immigrants.

Located at 2610 Victoria Drive, the building is being crafted by Mierau Contractors Ltd. and features housing units with up to 138 beds. It will bring together under one roof all the services – such as legal, medical, English lessons and clothing – that immigrants and refugees require and is the first in the world to combine a full range of services with shelter needs. The facility is being constructed by ISSofBC with an opening date in the first part of 2016.

ISSofBC’s Friesen said that during the form-construction stage of the new structure, “over half the construction workers were former refugees” who have since found jobs in construction. These were individuals who had fled persecution in countries such as Myanmar and were building a new life in Canada.

Taking a role in building a new home for refugees, Friesen said, was a special experience for many of the crew members.

The immigrant’s story The stories of immigrant-rooted families such as the Lashins, Valentes and Haeblers are typical of those who have come to construction in B.C., McLachlan said. They leave their birth country, arrive with little, work hard to achieve success and support their families and encourage their children to succeed and integrate. The first generation is known for hard work, productivity and sacrifices to ensure the family future.

“I can remember stories of how my mother [who kept the books during the early years of Solid Rock Steel] would fall asleep at the table at home,” recalls Peter Steunenberg, adding that she would then rise the next morning and care for a large family.

Steunenberg said his family – and no doubt other immigrant and immigrant-rooted families – are grateful for their new country and the success it has brought.

“If you look at these companies founded by immigrants, they are often the ones that are also giving back to the community in some way,” he said. •

special news feature | Vancouver regional construction Association

January 12–18, 2016

c3

Constructive comment

Construction industry is B.C.’s largest employer VRCA gearing up to bust some deep-rooted myths to attract youth to the industry only one in 85 high-school graduates into its construction trades programs. That ratio needs to be one in five in the next three years if we are to effectively address the 2024 projected shortfall.

Fiona Famulak

T

he importance of the construction industry to B.C.’s economy cannot be overstated. The $15 billion industry generates 8% of the province’s wealth and employs more than 200,000 workers, making it B.C.’s largest employer. The industry is professional, progressive and forward-thinking and builds the state-of-the-art infrastructure that we use every day.

It is therefore ironic that an industry that relies on innovation, new technologies and best-practice procedures has difficulty attracting young talent. Currently in the grip of a skilled-labour shortage that BuildForce Canada forecasts will deepen to just over 25,000 unfilled construction jobs by 2024, the industry attracts

There are myths to bust Added pressure comes in the form of some deep-rooted myths around pursuing a career in the skilled trades that must be countered if the industry is to attract young talent in future.

Those myths include: Myth 1: A career in construction is a second-best choice compared to one that requires a university degree.

According to Skills Canada, only one in 10 jobs requires a university degree. Furthermore, the industry offers a rewarding, well-paid career for thousands of construction professionals – men and women – across the country.

And if you’re worried about working conditions, don’t be fooled by the stock photo of the guy-withhard-hat on site on a rainy day, wielding a hammer. While a cold, wet day on site is inevitable for some, our industry is becoming increasingly more sophisticated and reliant on technology to

improve productivity and to stay competitive.

The opportunities to pursue a “clean” career path in construction, whether to operate stateof-the-art machinery or keep a multimillion-dollar contract on track, are numerous. I encourage you to take a look at the Industry Training Authority’s 2015 Trades Guide, which helps match an individual’s core qualities with the most appropriate skilled trade.

Myth 2: The construction industry offers a limited career path.

The construction industry is multifaceted with myriad opportunities for career advancement.

For example, apprentices may pursue their chosen trade for life, or with a view to owning their own business as early as their mid-30s. They may decide to switch direction and follow the project-management route toward a senior management position. Or they may leverage their trade to travel the country or the world.

This issue’s article on Paul Myers, owner of Keith Plumbing and Heating Co., is testament to how an apprentice, with vision and hard work, can move through the ranks with incredible success.

Myth 3: A career in construction

doesn’t pay well.

The average annual salary of a B.C. construction employee is $55,600. The average student debt for a B.C. post-secondary graduate after a four-year degree is $35,000 – the highest in Canada.

The opportunity for students to pursue an apprenticeship and “earn while they learn” to pay off any debt incurred during their post-secondary years is attractive to many and, in fact, represents the path chosen by a number of our Under-40 Network members who proudly own their businesses and/or their homes today.

It’s time to reset Today’s youth have an essential role to play in the future of the construction industry – not only to ease the projected labour shortage during the next decade, but also to help the industry stay technologically smart, innovative, productive and competitive in future.

We think it’s time to reach deep into the school system and to reset the dialogue with counsellors, students and parents. In 2016, therefore, we plan to host roundtable discussions with counsellors from several schools in the K-12

sector, to identify ways in which we can work together to promote construction as an attractive and viable career path. We will also continue to attend career fairs and information sessions hosted by high schools across the Lower Mainland in order to have faceto-face discussions with students and parents about career opportunities in the industry. We will also continue to work closely with our post-secondary education partners to ensure that graduates are equipped to meet the various demands of today’s dynamic and competitive marketplace.

As a parent or a counsellor, you’ll want your child or student to make the best possible career decision. I therefore urge you to ensure they have access to the industry facts.

And the next time you see a girl wearing a hard hat and wielding a hammer on site on a rainy day, celebrate that she understands the opportunity in front of her and is leading the way. • Fiona Famulak is president of the Van­ couver Regional Construction Assoc­ iation, the largest regional member of the BC Construction Association, which represents more than 700 member companies.

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January 12–18, 2016

special news feature | Vancouver regional construction Association

c4 news KUDOS: ‘It is a good career,’ lifetime achievement award winner says Keith Plumbing and Heating president’s story sets example for ambitious tradespeople

By Jean Sorensen

C

onstruction trades offer good opportunities for young people, and are a way for those who want additional challenges to build a business, says Paul Myers, who 62 years ago joined North Vancouver-based Keith Plumbing and Heating Co. (KPH) as a plumber apprentice.

Then bought the company and built it into one of B.C.’s largest mechanical contractors.

“There is a lot of money to be made in construction,” said Myers, president of KPH and recipient of the Vancouver Regional Construction Association’s 2015 lifetime achievement award.

Even if the tradesperson has no inclination to start a business, it is a good life, he said. “A good tradesperson can do very well and earn enough to support and raise a family.”

K PH grew out of the North Shore housing boom in the early 20th century, servicing homes beginning in 1911. The Keith family-run business incorporated in 1949. It was largely a residential home plumbing company into the 1950s, and also sold appliances.

Myers joined in 1954 and came to the mechanical contracting business more by chance than design. “I originally wanted to be a commercial pilot,” he said, but a physical exam detected slight colour blindness. He then turned to the trades, hoping to work in northern B.C., bank overtime, and invest in more real estate, which was a special interest. (He had purchased his first lot in North Vancouver for $250, using savings from a Vancouver Sun paper route plus other after-school jobs, at the age of 16 and then flipped it for $500. He was smitten with the potential earnings real estate could yield.)

When Myers applied for the pre-apprentice electrician’s course at Vancouver Technical School, the class was full. “I walked down the hall and there was space i n plu mbi ng, so I walked in,” he said. KPH was the largest firm on the North Shore and he applied to work as an apprentice in 1954, earning journeyman’s status four years later. “But I was a foreman before I was a journeyman,” he said.

Myers said he was not a gifted plumber; he didn’t inherit the natural mechanical skills his father, a machinist, possessed.

But he did have the ability to understand municipal bylaws, had good supervisory skills and a deep-rooted work ethic. (Growing up, he once held three parttime after-school jobs to earn money.) “I could outwork most people,” he said, adding that he also liked the responsibility that came with projects. It soon became apparent he was a natural manager.

Myers was offered a 10-year management contract to run KPH, but it also came with the opportunity to buy the company.

It was a weighted contract: Myers could buy half the company at the front end when “it was not worth very much,” he concedes, but the last half came as the management contract wound down. “So the harder I worked, the more valuable the company became,” he said.

By the age of 40, Myers was firmly in control of KPH. “I inherited great people; today there are second-generation employees and recently a thirdgeneration employee retired,” he said.

T he employees had the potential to do larger projects and Myers expanded the company’s bidding to exploit that talent.

He discontinued the appliance sales and focused on apartment buildings, taking on increasingly large highrise projects and along the way built a new head office for the company.

But he could see a drawback to the multiple-unit residential building market. It was prone to market swings and “you never knew if you were going to get paid,” he said.

Myers expanded KPH’s market focus into a field that would become a company specialty – hospital and laboratory contracts, once considered a death sentence for contractors because of their complexity. But KPH thrived on them.

“I think over the years we have done more hospitals than any company in B.C.,” he said, adding that KPH has the contract for the mechanical systems for the new Comox Valley Hospital under construction on Vancouver Island. Hospitals that KPH crews have worked on include five additions to the Vernon Jubilee Hospital, numerous contracts for the Vancouver General Hospital, the BC Cancer Research Centre, and the Royal Jubilee Hospital Patient Care Centre. Even as hospitals moved into more complex

Paul Myers | President, Keith Plumbing and Heating

There is a lot of money to be made in construction

Paul Myers receives the VRCA’s 2015 lifetime achievement award honouring him for his contributions to the construction industry and for building Keith Plumbing and Heating into one of B.C.’s largest mechanical contractors | Jean Sorensen Photo

public-private-partnerships, KPH continued excelling in the business and opted into other P3 contracts.

KPH also pursued commercial, light industrial and institutional opportunities and performed work on a roster of Vancouver landmark structures, such as the Pan Pacific Hotel, Simon Fraser University and the University of British Columbia.

Myers bought and developed real estate through a sister company of KPH known as Quadra Equities and that brought the development company into the Yukon. KPH’s willingness to work on buildings in northern B.C. and the Yukon led to Quadra Equities buying land near Whitehorse and constructing a KPH office that remains today, taking advantage of government contracts and industrial development. The company constructed three buildings at the time and leases the other two.

“I’ve always been drawn to the North,” said Myers, adding it is a place that he could have gone to live had he not been ensconced in business in the Lower Mainland.

KPH has carried out projects not only in the Yukon but also within the Arctic Circle and Siberia.

Quadra Equities has continued

in light industrial land development, constructing buildings such as the KPH group’s headquarters in North Vancouver.

That development includes offices for Quadra Equities, KPH and Keith Panel Systems (KPS), plus light manufacturing facilities. The industrial building next door to KPH is also owned by Quadra Equities, and several of the surrounding buildings in the area were financed through the company as well.

Myers’ latest expansion has been into architectural wall systems through KPS. The business is now flourishing, with 100 employees and customers in the U.S. and Canada. KPS is a custom fabricator (materials come from the U.S. and are manufactured in Canada and then shipped south again), and an installer of architectural wall systems. One distinctive piece is the donor wall at the Vancouver Aquarium, which features raised glass fish. KPS also holds licensing rights to use a unique process which through raised metal circles reproduces a graphic design, artist’s rendering or photograph on a large wall.

As Myers looks back on the compa n ies that have g row n under his direction and on their

dedicated union employees and managers, he admits he couldn’t have envisioned the success that six decades of work on the North Shore has brought. Myers attributes much of the company’s success to its employees. He firmly believes that the company is only as strong as its people.

In 2015, Myers had the opportunity to thank his North Shore community by giving back. He donated $25 million to Lions Gate Hospital, the largest financial contribution to a hospital foundation in B.C. by an individual, according to the Lions Gate Hospital Foundation. “I’ve been fortunate,” Myers said simply.

KPH has received multiple accolades over the years. The head office is lined with awards from mechanical, construction and labour associations. But the night Myers received the VRCA’s 2015 lifetime achievement award for his six decades in the industry, he received an additional tribute of the highest and rarest kind.

Hundreds of B.C. construction industry leaders attending the awards ceremony gave Myers a standing ovation and applauded his accomplishments.

Myers never doubted the potential the trades could offer. “It is a good career,” he said. •

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January 12–18, 2016

special news feature | Vancouver regional construction Association

c6 Q&A HUMAN Resources: BCCA-IN connects skilled new arrivals with employers Arrivals with jobs have an immediate settlement advantage in their new community

I

dentifying new arrivals to Canada with construction industry skills and helping to link them with potential employers is a key objective of the BC Construction Association’s Integrating Newcomers (BCCAIN) program. Kim Crevatin, a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant who as BCCA’s director of settlement services is involved with finding the skilled workers that B.C. needs to fill looming skilled trades shortages, talks about the program and how it can help both BCCA employers and new arrivals to Canada.

Q. Why and when did the BCCA become involved with this program? And, how is it being funded?

A . T he BCCA-I N program is funded by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada and became operational on September 1, 2015.

Currently in B.C., the construction industry is experiencing growth. As this is expected to continue over the next decade, there will be a significant number of construction occupations, as

well as support occupations, that will experience labour shortages and ultimately go unfilled.

This demand enables BCCA-IN to connect newcomers to Canada with employment that effectively utilizes their skill sets and credentials and provides them with an immediate settlement advantage in their new community upon arrival.

Q. Can you describe some of the individuals who would be eligible for the program?

A. Under this program, assistance is available for: 1) Permanent residents of Canada who have not become Canadian citizens; 2) Protected persons as defined in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act; 3) Individuals who have been selected, in Canada or overseas, to become permanent residents and have been informed by a letter from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada; and 4) Refugees and protected persons overseas who have been selected for resettlement in Canada

by Citizenship and Immigration

Canada.

Anyone who is unsure about whether they can participate in our program is encouraged to contact us and we will assist with determining their eligibility.

Q. When is the best time for individuals wanting to participate in this program to contact you – before or after entering Canada?

A. Our objective in working with clients pre-arrival is to provide them with the necessary tools or information including: potential employment opportunities; labour market information for B.C. and/or their community of choice; assistance with obtaining additional language, training, and credentialing where required; settlement services and other needs, thus ensuring a smooth transition into the B.C. workforce.

But we are also happy to work with anyone who has recently received their permanent resident status and is already in Canada.

Q. Can you help individuals who may have certification or

Is your employee benefits plan as flexible as you are?

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We can definitely help individuals who have certification or qualification from another country. Our initial assessment of an individual’s skill set will include providing a specific pathway to having their credential recognized in B.C. by our industry and trades expert

Kim Crevatin

qualifications from another country relate those to Canada?

A. We can definitely help individuals who have certification or qualification from another country. Our initial assessment of an individual’s skill set will include providing a specific pathway to having their credential recognized in B.C. by our industry and trades expert.

Q. Does BCCA provide training assistance that can help new arrivals? If so, in what form?

A. BCCA’s four regional association partners offer various industry-specific training and seminars that can help individuals move into the workforce.

They include courses such as confined space entry and monitoring, fall protection, WHIMIS, H2S Alive, elevated work platform and counterbalance for forklift work, to name a few.

Q. Do you also provide further information on living in Canada and what a newcomer might expect when coming to B.C. and living in its diverse regions?

A. Our Regional Employment Placement Specialists (REPS), as well as our website, can provide information about working and living in British Columbia that is specific to our industry, including labour market information, credential recognition, apprentice training, employment opportunities and other information.

Q. Do companies who hire these individuals have any special obligation to these employees such as sponsorship?

A. There is no obligation on the part of the employer with regards to sponsorship as our clients are already permanent residents of Canada.

Q. What can construction industry companies do to help

Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant and director of settlement services, BC Construction Association Integrating Newcomers program

integrate these individuals into the Canadian job market?

Would it help your clients to know if companies have specific nationalities on staff and are therefore well placed to assist with the transition process?

A. Being able to promote clients to companies that currently have employees who come from their own birth country or are of that nationality would undoubtedly be an added benefit to both the individual and the employer.

Having this information in advance would be useful. Our goal is to ensure our clients transition into their new job and community as positively and as seamlessly as possible.

Q. How has the program worked out since it was first announced? How are you finding candidates? Are they being referred by individuals now in Canada who have friends or relatives in their birth country who want to come to Canada?

A. Our client base is the result of various activities to date. We have partnered with SUCCESS, the International Organization for Migration and the Canadian Immigrant Integration Program, each of which have offices overseas and are referring clients. Our representatives are on the ground visiting local immigrant serving agencies and related organizations, churches, private sponsors of refugees and others. We are also seeing applications through our website and a number of them are from those who have friends or family already living in Canada.

Q. How long will this program be in place?

A. Our current contract is set to end in March 2017. •

special news feature | Vancouver regional construction Association

January 12–18, 2016

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Provincial View

BCCA welcomes 2016 with new programs, partnerships and funding A good time for new members to join as BCCA tackles industry challenges Manley McLachlan

B This strategy has set the BCCA upon a course of action which ... has seen the organization at the top of its game, with the closest ties ever to government decision-makers at the highest levels ... and with issues-awareness at an all-time peak across the province

Manley McLachlan President, BC Construction Association

ritish Columbia’s industrial, commercial, and institutional construction sector is in the midst of an extremely active and influential period of change.

It is facing: •si g n i f ic a nt sk i l le d t rad e s labour shortages driven by massive resource and infrastructure development; •increased competition from the private sector to collect construction data for pu rposes that are often at odds with the interests of Canada’s construction businesses; •membership acquisition and retention challenges within the regional construction associations; and •election cycles affecting government processes.

This past year, the British Columbia Construction Association (BCCA) board of directors built a three-year strategic plan that is meeting these challenges and opportunities head-on.

The theme of the strategy was “fresh start” and the resulting plan reflects that philosophy to a tee through three areas of focus:

1. Business development. Deliver a cost-effective suite of products, services, and support that improves efficiency and effectiveness across the industry.

Focus on procurement, workforce skills, safety, advocacy and ethics.

2. Integrated membership development. Work in partnership with the regional construction associations to deliver on membership promises, as well as to deliver business value to buyers of construction services in B.C. 3. Corporate structu re development. Continuously build orga n i zation capacity upon which BCCA business and advocacy ambitions and responsibilities can be fully realized.

This strategy has set the BCCA upon a course of action which, in the space of 12 months, has seen the organization at the top of its game, with the closest ties ever to government decision-makers at the highest levels – provincially and nationally – and with issues-awareness at an all-time peak across the province.

Some of the key opportunities for employers a nd members across B.C. already underway include:

• $1 million skilled trades train-

ing fund launched by LNG Canada, administered by BCCA; • bigger, bolder BidCentral; • refreshed Skilled Trades Employment Program; • new net work of a sso ci ation websites with member “storefronts”; • LNG Canada Connect office in Terrace; • BCCA Integrating Newcomers program with funding from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada; • c on s t r u ct ion i n novat ion strategy; • trades wages a nd sa la ries report; • corporate social responsibility at the forefront of policy development; • construction job board serving the entire industry; and • Construction Foundation of BC staffing up and rebuilding B.C.’s shop classes.

There has never been a better time to support your local construction association as an industry member.

While many of the resources we offer from BCCA are available to non-members, it’s important to remember that without the

As a business owner, you never shut down.

Even when you’re off the clock, there’s really no such thing as quitting time. From managing daily priorities to envisioning the future of your business, our Private Enterprise professionals know that every minute of your day is precious and every choice you make counts. Our performance improvement strategies are designed specifically to optimize private enterprise by eliminating obstacles and maximizing opportunities – allowing you to seize opportunities, no matter when they emerge.

It’s business. And it’s personal.

PRIVATE ENTERPRISE SERVICES Rob Wesley, CPA, CA Greater Vancouver Regional Leader Real Estate & Construction Services T: 604.536.7614 E: rob.wesley@mnp.ca

Craig Donnelly, CPA, CA Vancouver Leader Real Estate Services T: 604.637.1523 E: craig.donnelly@mnp.ca

leadership and support that local construction employers provide through their membership, BCCA would be hampered in its ability to develop and implement these resources that elevate the industry as a whole.

If you are a construction professional with a vision, we need you and your industry needs you.

At BCCA, we look forward to 2016 and we feel the potential of our organization and our industry. We know that potential starts with strong roots in the regions.

If you’re already a member of the Vancouver Regional Construction Association, thank you for the powerful base you provide.

If you’re not yet participating, it’s an exciting time for the industry, and it would be great to have you on board – why not make membership your first fresh start move for 2016? • Manley McLachlan is the president and chief executive officer of the BC Construction Association, the province’s voice of the construction industr y supported by four regional of fices throughout B.C.

January 12–18, 2016

special news feature | Vancouver regional construction Association

c8 NEWS AWARDS: Graham Construction and Engineering wins big at 2015 VRCA gala Gold winners demonstrate ingenuity and teamwork to overcome project challenges

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leven construction compa n ies took home gold at the recent Vancouver Regional Construction Association’s (VRCA) 27th Awards of Excellence ceremony for demonstrating ingenuity and skill in dealing with challenging site conditions to carry projects to completion without disrupting critical and essential services.

Graham Construction and Engineering LP was the big winner at the gala, held October 21 at the Vancouver Convention Centre West, with the company receiving the Member of the Year Award, the Gold Award of Excellence for general contractor on a project over $40 million for its work on the Vancouver International Airport’s operations centre (which houses emergency and maintenance services) and a VRCA Safety Award for achieving a zero-frequency injury rate in the category of general contractor with 50,000-99,000 person hours.

The YVR airside operations centre challenged crew with stringent security conditions imposed on personnel plus the need to ensure construction work did not disrupt airport operations.

PCL Constructors Westcoast I nc. a n d A lph a Mech a n ica l Contracting Ltd. received Gold Awards of Excellence for successfully completing the Vancouver Aquarium expansion and revitalization project. A critical phase of the work was ensuring vital fresh- and salt-water systems serving the aquarium’s inhabitants, which included rare and endangered species, were kept intact as work progressed. Gold Award winner Matcon Excavation & Shoring Ltd. faced a similar challenge when it searched for buried utilities on the cramped North Shore site of the Lynn sewage pump station, a vital link in Metro Vancouver’s sewage system. It also carried out a seismic retrofit as part of the station’s

upgrade.

The awards evening also honoured companies that brought forward new ideas and technology. “Our industry is dynamic, innovative and forward-thinking, as many of these projects demonstrate,” said VRCA president Fiona Famulak.

The WorkSafeBC-sponsored awa rd for sa fety i n novation went to Jacob Bros. Construction Inc. Its crew, faced with a remote coastal site, bad weather and limited labour, and wanting a safer and faster system for filling large sacks with gravel, devised the Sack-o-matic. Dual Mechanical Ltd. earned a Gold Award for the challenging installation of a leading and innovative biogas collection system that can increase a farmer’s revenues from bio-waste.

This year’s awards also recognized companies that contributed to the community. “There is a real spirit of giving back to the community,” said Tony Everett, chairman of the VRCA Awards of Excellence committee. Two companies were recognized for their contributions: ITC Construction Group for the Ronald McDonald House BC and Lafarge Canada Inc. for the Mossom Creek Hatchery rebuild. ITC donated all its construction services, assisted with the fundraising efforts and proactively came to the table with ideas on how to value-engineer the project. Lafarge supplied all the concrete, associated formwork, labour and project management services to replace the hatchery after the wood-framed facility was destroyed by an accidental fire in 2013.

This year’s 11 Gold Award winners were selected from 128 entrants and 37 projects with the project value representing $500 million in construction. Leaders making contributions to the construction industry were also honoured.

Everett said the growing trend of collaboration is a major factor in the industry’s ingenuity and resourcefulness when tackling challenging projects.

“Companies involved in a project’s team were able to improve the look of the building, or its performance, by inputting ideas into the plans and specifications before and after construction started,” Everett said. “The gold winners have really demonstrated their creative ability to improve projects by bringing forward new products, ideas, or means of performing the work.”

A Gold Award winner is picked from three Silver Award finalists. The 2015 Gold Award winners in the various categories plus the 2015 leaders honoured in the construction industry are listed below.

General Contractors – Over $40 Million Graham Construction and Engineering LP for YVR airside operations building

General Contractors – $15 to $40 Million PCL Constructors Westcoast Inc. for Vancouver Aquarium expansion and revitalization project

General Contractors – Up to $15 Million Mierau Contractors Ltd. for University of the Fraser Valley Student Centre

Founder’s Trade Award – Over $3 Million Pacific Blasting & Demolition Ltd. for its contribution to Pacific Centre Mall – Sears Redevelopment

President’s Trade Award – $1 to $3 Million StructureCraft Builders for its contribution to Guildford Aquatic Centre

Chairman’s Trade Award – Up to $1 Million

Paul Myers from Keith Plumbing and Heating Co. Ltd.

Matcon Excavation & Shoring Ltd. for its contribution to Lynn sewage pump station upgrade

Construction Workplace Health and Safety Innovation (sponsored by WorkSafeBC)

Mechanical Contractors – Over $2.5 Million Alpha Mechanical Contracting Ltd. for its contribution to Vancouver Aquarium expansion and revitalization project

Jacob Bros. Construction Inc. for Sack-o-matic.

Safety Houle Electric Ltd.

Mechanical Contractors – Up to $2.5 Million

In recognition of its superior safety record in the category Trade Contractor 200,000 or more person hours

Dual Mechanical Ltd. for its contribution to Seabreeze Farm

Scott Construction Group

Electrical Contractors – Over $2 Million Canem Systems Ltd. for its contribution to 443 Maritime Helicopter Squadron hangar

Electrical Contractors – Up to $2 Million Status Electrical Corp. for its contribution to UFV Student Centre

Manufacturer and Supplier Structurlam Products LP for its contribution to Wood Innovation and Design Centre

Judges’ Award ITC Construction Group for its contribution to Ronald McDonald House BC Lafarge Canada Inc. for its contribution to Mossom Creek Hatchery rebuild

In addition to the Gold Awards for project-specific excellence, awards were also presented to member companies and individuals for outstanding accomplishments and to recognize innovation and commitment to safety.

Life Member Inductee Grant McMillan

Lifetime Achievement

In recognition of its superior safety record in the category General Contractor 100,000 to 199,999 person hours

McLeod Masonry International Corp.

For achieving a zero-frequency injury rate (Trade Contractor 10 to 49,000 person hours)

Graham Construction and Engineering LP For achieving a zero-frequency injury rate (General Contractor 50,000 to 99,999 person hours)

Omicron Canada Inc. For achieving a zero-frequency injury rate (General Contractor 200,000 or more person hours)

Education Leadership Award Randy Callaghan from PCL Constructors Westcoast Inc.

Outstanding Woman in Construction Alma Garnett from Convoy Supply Ltd.

U40 Excellence in Construction Fraser McIntosh from Bird Construction

Member of the Year Graham Construction and Engineering LP

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special news feature | Vancouver regional construction Association

January 12–18, 2016

c9

Legal specs

Builders Lien Act ensures proper payout Trust provisions have teeth that can bite company directors and officers Norm Streu and Christopher Hirst

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The trust provisions of the lien act allow a beneficiary of the trust to recover directly and personally against the directors and officers for monies that were used in breach

ost people in the construction industry have at least a limited understanding of how liens work. Few, however, consider the powerful additional rights and obligations created by the Builders Lien Act under its trust provisions.

The trust remedy exists independently of the lien remedy against the land. The remedy is based on the provisions of the lien act that impress all funds received by a contractor or a subcontractor on account of the price of the contract or subcontract with a trust for the benefit of persons engaged in connection with the project by that contractor or subcontractor. By virtue of this trust, funds cannot be appropriated by the contractor or the subcontractor for any other purpose, until such time as all persons engaged by them and who have supplied materials or services for the project have been paid.

The purpose of the trust is to help assure that money payable by owners, contractors, and subcontractors flows in a manner

which is in accord with the contractual rights of those engaged in a building project. It creates legal obligations to ensure that all money paid on the project stays within the construction payment pyramid for that project and is not applied for other purposes.

The right to assert a trust claim arises independently of the right to asser t a va l id l ien cla i m.

Therefore, if the lien period is missed or even if the lands are not lienable for some reason – for instance, when the construction project involves a highway – a trust claim can still be made, subject to a one-year limitation period.

One aspect of the trust that really gives it teeth is the provision creating liability for any director or officer who “knowingly assents to or acquiesces” in a breach of trust. It is often the case that these claims arise when the company that committed the breach is insolvent and, accordingly, the trust provisions of the lien act allow a beneficiary of the trust to recover directly and personally against the directors and officers for monies that were used in breach of the

trust provisions. Generally, the knowledge aspect of the breach is not hard to establish in closely held companies and therefore directors and officers run the real risk of personal liability for breaches of the trust provisions.

F i n a l ly, whet her a p erson has actual knowledge of the existence of the trust or not is immaterial, as the case law indicates corporations and their directors, officers, and agents will be deemed to have knowledge of it.

There are also quasi-criminal penalties for persons who appropriate or convert trust monies in contravention of the trust provisions of the act. A contractor or subcontractor commits an offence if that person acts in breach of the trust provisions and can be liable to a fine of not more than $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than two years or both.

Where the contractor or subcontractor is a corporation, a director or officer who “knowingly assents to or acquiesces” to the breach by the corporation will be considered to have committed the offence in addition to the corporation.

Note t h at cont ractors a nd subcontractors have the right to retain funds known as setoffs in certain circumstances.

They are not required to pay if they have a valid claim that the amounts submitted do not reflect the amounts owing and they can still retain proper costs and back-charges from amounts owed.

The right to a setoff is subject to an obligation to continue to retain the trust money until such time the setoff is proven. In other words, if it is disputed that the amount is properly owed, then the money must still be held in trust until the issue is resolved and the money cannot be used for some other purpose.

The Builders Lien Act was created to provide powerful remedies to ensure that participants on construction projects are paid in full. The trust is one such powerful remedy that participants ignore at their peril. • Norm Streu is the president and chief operating officer of the LMS Reinforcing Steel Group. Christopher Hirst is a partner and the leader of the construction and engineering group, Alexander Holburn Beaudin + Lang LLP.

January 12–18, 2016

special news feature | Vancouver regional construction Association

c10 NEWS INNOVATION: Jacob Bros. put VRCA award in the bag Remote location led crews to devise Sack-o-matic

By Jean Sorensen

W

hen the construction crew for Jacob Bros.

Construction wa s faced with the task of filling numerous large bags with gravel at a remote run-of-river project on the Sunshine Coast, the men looked for the best practice.

It led to the development of the Sack-o-matic, a device that makes it easier for both men and equipment on site to load the bags, which can weigh 9001,400 kilograms when filled with gravel.

T he ba g s were ne e d e d for ditching to hold back water, stabilizing ground, positioning pipe around corners and capping off man-hatches in pipe to prevent rocks and soil from entering. The device has earned the company the Vancouver Regional Construction Association’s 2015 award for Workplace Health and Safety Innovation. The award is sponsored by WorkSafeBC. “It was really a case of desperation breeding ingenuity,” said Mike Barstead, superintendent of safety for Jacob Bros. Construction. “When you are in a remote location, the things you need are often not readily available to you.”

The crew was working at Box Canyon, above McNab Creek and 20 kilometres northeast of Gibsons, a site accessible only by water. The weather and rugged terrain made the site challenging, and men worked 11-hour days with 11 days on the job and three off to meet a constricted schedule. The project involved construction of concrete intake structures at high elevation on three separate creeks and about nine kilometres of steel and highdensity polyethylene (HDPE) penstock, all connected to a single powerhouse located on McNab Creek.

Jacob Bros. Construction crew (left to right) Zak West, Jesse Miller, Courtney Borgfjord, Davis Rennie and Jeff Underwood devised a safer and faster way to load large sacks with fill using the Sack-o-matic at their remote run-of-river project on the Sunshine Coast | Photo courtesy of Jacob Bros. Construction

The job demanded that the crew fill up to five bags a day as the work progressed.

Barstead said the traditional means of filling the large sacks was one person holding open a sack while a second employee shovelled material into it. The fill material was crushed gravel from an on-site crusher that used local rock material. The second and faster means was using a forklift to hold open the sack, while an excavator’s shovel dumped material into the sack.

Both ways had d rawbacks.

Manually shovelling material

into a large sack required two men and the process was slow, labourintensive and physically taxing.

The second method required two machines, and often one machine was busy elsewhere on the site.

Barstead said the crew, led by foreman Zak West, looked for a better means of safely accomplishing the task. The crew used a scrap high-density polyethylene penstock pipe that was nearby and adapted it with the cylinder’s 102 centimetre height serving as a receptacle for the bulk bag. The piece of penstock, which had a diameter of 107 centimetres, held

the bag open, Barstead said. The penstock’s edges were cut in a gap-toothed pattern over which crew members hooked the top and handles of the bag to provide support while it was filled by the excavator.

There is no difficulty in removing the bag from the pipe, he points out. “It’s like an elephant’s foot – as the elephant lifts up its foot, the foot [because there is less weight on it] gets slimmer,” he said. “That’s why elephants never get stuck in mud.” The same principle applies when a machine lifts the bag out and the

action causes the crushed material to move towards centre rather than stay snug against the penstock’s walls.

The Sack-o-matic has the ability to free up a machine and does not require manually holding the bag open. The innovation could also be used if a large number of bags were required, such as in a flood, as one loader could dump into several Sack-o-matics and expedite the process of making large sacks.

Crew members estimated they reduced the time spent filling sacks by 75%. •

TECHNOLOGY: Robot boosts speed and accuracy at Glass World Robotic trimming helps company wrap up an installation within a few hours of receiving an order

By Jean Sorensen

A

bbotsford-based Glass World pr ides itsel f on filling same-day orders, and robotics and computer-aided trimming are playing a key role in helping the company keep its commitment to deliver its bathroom and shelving products almost instantly.

“Call us before 11 a.m. and we will have the bathtub out to you before the end of the day,” said president Daryl Waddell, son of

company founders Gail and Dale Waddell, who started the business as a window- and auto-glass replacement facility in 1986.

“We have 14 vans and installers on the road,” he said. On an average day, the installers visit more than 65 homes in the Lower Mainland installing bathroom and shelving products.

T he focu s of t he bu si ness changed to bathroom products when the Insurance Corporation of B.C. fixed its hourly rate for shop time at a level that made it

uneconomical to continue with vehicle-repair work, Waddell said.

A request for glass shower doors started the company on its current path and expansion as Waddell quickly saw the potential of a new and thriving market in the burgeoning home construction market in the Fraser Valley nearly two decades ago. Since then, Glass World has grown into Western Canada’s largest manufacturer of acrylic bathtubs, shower bases, shower stalls and shower doors and shower glass. It also fabricates

wood shelving, bathroom vanities and bathroom cabinets.

Glass World, Waddell said, imports all its own materials and has its own manufacturing facilities on eight acres of land in Abbotsford – a feature that gives the company a unique ability to customize units, as well as full control over meeting customer deadlines.

Robotics and computer-aided trimming were a natural progression for Waddell, whose interest in automation prompted him to

install what he calls “half a robotic man” for moving product around. Waddell saw the potential for using robotics, especially where accuracy was important, such as in the trimming of newly manufactured products. So when the U.S. economy went into recession and the auto industry – a major user of robotics – stalled, Waddell went south looking for a surplus robot to bring to Canada.

“We bought one,” he said. “My accountant and I both learned to program it and we taught others

special news feature | Vancouver regional construction Association

January 12–18, 2016

c11

NEWS

NETWORKING: Building relationships key to building career U40 Network offers connections and industry expertise

By Jean Sorensen

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or Fraser McIntosh, the recipient of the 2015 Vancouver Regional Construction Association award honouring a member within the U40 Network of young professionals, being successful in construction today is all about building trusting relationships through networking.

“The construction industry is really a small community,” said McIntosh, a founding member and past chair of the U40 Network. New entrants face the challenge of building a reputation based upon their relationships and their achievements in construction, and the U40 Network plays a key role in helping them do it.

“You have to work to earn the trust of others in the industry,” McIntosh said. “A network like the U40 can help build those relationships. These are individuals you may one day be working with or they are individuals who become mentors to you.”

At U40 Network events, community projects and mentoring breakfasts, individuals forge friendships and build expertise.

Meeting senior executives in the industry and listening to their stories of how they built companies or advanced through the ranks can provide insight for young people into how to build a career or business successfully.

The common message heard, McIntosh said, is that successful individuals are good at networking and they value a good relationship with others in the industry.

McIntosh came to the construction industry through a natural progression. He grew up on a Fraser Valley potato farm helping run the family’s farm equipment while a next-door neighbour did civil earthwork with backhoes, an excavator and other heavy iron on site. It was through his cousins’ construction company that he

Technology Continued from page 10

here,” he said.

The robot now trims the skirts of acrylic tubs. “It [the robot] is deadly accurate,” he said, adding that uniformity is useful when filling multiple orders such as bathroom fixtures required for modular units, multiple-unit residential buildings or hotels.

“They [the units] are the same size every time. That makes a big difference for the drains and the overflows, and you are getting a nice flat connection.”

Despite a busy production line that can turn out 150 bathtubs per day, the robot breezes through its workday. “It produces in an eighthour shift what would take 11 guys to do on an eight-hour shift. Right now, though, it is barely putting in

Fraser McIntosh, recipient of the 2015 VRCA award honouring a young professional in the construction industry, accepts the award at the VRCA Awards of Excellence | Photo courtesy of the VRCA

landed his first job as a labourer doing in-ground pipe installations. It was tough and dirty work.

“I didn’t like being soaked to the bones before my first coffee break,” he said. “One winter I decided I better head to the British Columbia Institute of Technology and take the architectural and building engineering program.”

In his second year, he did a coop term with Bird Construction.

It was a relationship that stuck.

“At the end of the school year [2005], I was hired full-time,” he said, adding that the challenge of working for a major company exposed him to a number of different learning opportunities such as Kwantlen Polytechnic University’s geothermal installation, and construction of the new University of British Columbia ice rink for the 2010 Winter

a five-hour day,” he said.

Glass World also uses a computer numerical control (CNC) programmer to convert a design (produced by computer aided design [CA D] software) into numbers. The numbers map to co-ordinates on a graph and they control the movement of a cutting machine. Two CNC-guided machines, made by Biesse in Italy, are being used on the trim line for wood shelving for bathrooms and cupboards.

Waddell said the company’s use of CNC programming for trimming aids it in producing custom designs for clients. A CAD computer generates an image of a closet or shelving unit, based on a client’s specifications and needs. Once the client approves the design, the specifications can be programmed into the

Olympics.

“My first project was a WalMart in Duncan on Vancouver Island. After that it was Morgan Crossing in South Surrey. That project, a large retail and condo development on 35 acres, presented a lot of learning opportunities such as the building of roads, fire suppression, different construction systems and building finishes, he said. The RCMP E Division headquarters, built to a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold standard, in Surrey followed.

“It was a joint venture with a company from France and an opportunity to learn from their team on site,” he said.

He travelled to Fort Nelson in northern B.C. to head up a project that was a First Nations community centre with wellness

and dance arbour.

“It was one of the neater projects. It was a circular timber frame building and we worked with a great crew out of 100 Mile House.” But it was also an opportunity to learn about the rigours of building in northern climates.

“You learn how to schedule work in severe conditions,” he said.

He then worked on the Kamloops Royal Inland Hospital clinical services building. It was another LEED Gold structure and another lesson in project management.

“There was a tight schedule and quality assurance was a top priority,” he said, adding that the company was tasked with stringent dust control and climate monitoring at the site to mitigate effects on the existing hospital.

Each project has been a learning

A robotic trimmer at work in Glass World’s Abbotsford manufacturing facility. Computer-controlled automation helps the company meet tight deadlines with pinpoint accuracy | Glass World

CNC-guided cutting machine and the material trimmed accurately to produce the pieces needed for assembly of the custom unit.

Waddell credits the company’s

dynamics and progressive growth to its youthful management that is open to new ideas. “We are all in our mid-40s,” he said, adding the team works smoothly together.

experience with a different challenge. The U40 Network has helped guide him along the way.

T he camaraderie of the professional group has provided a sounding board to address problems, whether involving personnel, technology, site challenges or other obstacles. Often others are facing the same difficulty or have dealt with a similar problem successfully.

“It can be anything such as a material supply problem,” he said. “Then someone will suggest how to fix it and also how to be proactive to prevent it happening again.”

But it’s not all work. The U40 networking events are also fun and include a casino night, a cr u i se, go-k a r t i ng a nd pub nights. The group also serves the community by raising money or providing labour and materials for several local charities.

The Zajac Ranch for Children, which hosts summer camps for children affected by chronic, life-threatening or debilitating conditions, is the community support project that McIntosh sees as one of the group’s greatest accomplishments during his time on the U40 Network executive.

“The thing I am most proud of is the way the group has participated in helping to build the Zajac Ranch,” he said. Each year, the group of young professionals volunteer, obtain donated materials and spend the day carrying out repairs at the ranch to ready it for the summer influx of kids.

The U40 Network has drawn in professionals of all ages and from all aspects of the construction industry and continues to expand its membership. But McIntosh credits much of the success to the strong support of the VRCA board of directors and to VRCA president Fiona Famulak. •

“We all started as kids together.”

Waddell started working for the family business at age 13, pushing a broom before climbing through the ranks to the presidency. As well as broadening his market and embracing new technologies, Waddell is also looking to the future. “We do have a succession plan,” he said of the business that now boasts 83 employees.

“We have a number of good young people coming up.”

Manufacturing plants of the future may use more robotics to raise productivity but will continue to need people to guide and direct them – despite a quip Waddell is familiar with.

“They say the plant of the future features a dog, a man, and a robot,” Waddell said. “The man is there to feed the dog and the dog is there to guard the robot.” •

January 12–18, 2016

special news feature | Vancouver regional construction Association

c12 Q&a human resources: More employers needed to hire first-year apprentices Industry requires the right blend of apprentices and journeypersons to retain expertise

P

CL Constructors Westcoast Inc.’s Randy Callaghan is the Vancouver Regional Constr uction A ssociation’s (VRCA) recipient of the 2015 Education Leadership Award, which recognizes an individual for his or her contribution to industry training and education. It is the second time that Callaghan has won the award; he was first recognized by the VRCA in 2004. In 2007, he was also recognized by the Industry Training Authority (ITA) of B.C. with an award for excelling in his field.

Callaghan, who for the past 14 years has watched how the industry has advanced trades training, talks about the strides made but also the need for improvement in certain areas.

Q. How and why did you become involved in education in your career with PCL and the industry?

A. I have always been passionate about the apprenticeship system and Red Seal program, having gone through it myself.

As a journeyperson, I saw a lot of value in the system because it confirmed one’s training. Since I started with PCL in November 2001, I have been involved in the hiring of skilled trades in B.C. and the Yukon and saw a great opportunity to get involved in the education system in the province. PCL is a great support and encouraged me to join Vancouver Regional Construction Association’s education committee. Participating gave me an opportunity to see the scope of work carried out and what work needed to be performed to ensure we had the right blend of apprentices and journeypersons going forward.

Q. Are you currently involved in high-school programs that encourage young people to enter the trades or are you helping to transition them into summer work and jobs?

A. Yes, to both. My involvement is all about educating students on the benefits of a trade as a career option. I’m currently involved with 10 different school districts throughout B.C. Seven of them by supporting and sponsoring the carpenter ACE-IT [Accelerated Credit Enrolment to Industry Training] program. ACE-IT is a great trade program that offers the exact same Level 1 technical training that they would get at a post-secondary institute. In support, PCL provides these students with hard hats, safety vests and safety glasses so they are site ready. We also hire as many of these students as we can. I’m proud to say several of the students we hired a few years

ago have completed their apprenticeships and are now PCL site supervisors.

We also encourage other employers to hire these individuals.

To facilitate this, we have worked with several local school districts to support work-experience programs. This is unpaid short-term work experience that students can participate in and WorkSafeBC coverage is supplied by the B.C. Ministry of Education.

Usually companies involved can provide some kind of monetary benefit afterwards if satisfied with the student. At PCL, we provide a $500 scholarship to the most hard-working student.

School districts are also taking initiative in promoting the careers in the trades as a viable option. With the support of the Industry Training Authority and the Ministry of Education, there are now trade discovery programs at Grades 10 and 11. The students and parents are seeing the opportunities in our industry. Now we need the employers to do their part by hiring these students.

Q. You have also been involved at post-secondary institutions.

Can you outline some of the work that you have done there?

A. I’ve been working with British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) for years. Last year, I was on BCIT’s program advisory committee for carpentry and I continue to sit on that committee. Every year I deliver presentations to BCIT’s foundation classes, which are pre-apprenticeship training. I explain what an employer looks for in an apprentice, how to get a job and how to keep a job. I’m also involved with ITA and serve as a carpentry representative on an advisory committee. PCL has been a strong supporter of postsecondary training facilities.

During PCL’s centennial year in 2006, we donated $500,000 to BCIT, which has one of the largest trades training programs in the province and also $500,000 to both NAIT [Northern Alberta Institute of Technology] and SAIT [Southern Alberta Institute of Technology] in Alberta.

And just this year we donated $75,000 to Okanagan College.

Q. Do you sit on any association or government boards that deal with education and if so, what is your role and how do you promote education?

A. I’m a member of the construction sector advisory group for the ITA; a chair of Skills Canada BC’s carpentry competition and a national technical

committee member for Skills Canada; and a board member of the Canadian Apprenticeship Forum (CAF), which is a research group that connects apprenticeship stakeholders across Canada and hosts forums on valuable topics and best practices.

Through all these roles, I am a lways focu sed on new opportunities that can bring new people to our industry and support the apprenticeship system.

I can provide a voice for the industry in these groups and also ensure the industry knows how these organizations are working to meet their needs and we are bringing forward the right people with the right skills to meet future shortfalls.

Q. Based upon your experience working in the industry, how are we doing in terms of encouraging young people to enter the trades?

A.We’ve done a great job promoting the trades and apprenticeship programs; now we need to make a commitment to hire them.

But there’s always work to do.

We need to continue to create publ ic awa reness of the opportunities that the trades can bring. Even though we are doing some great work promoting the trades to young people, we need to ensure they – and parents who are guiding their children – realize that a trade career can lead to a wide range of employment opportunities. Training is a route into the construction industry, but it is also a route into management or starting a company. It can be just a beginning.

Q. Where do we need to provide further opportunities?

Is it in the schools or on the job sites? Are employers doing enough?

A. We need more employers to step up and hire first-year apprentices who have been through important foundation classes.

If we cannot find that person a placement, he or she will be lost to the industry and go elsewhere.

We are telling parents that this is a great opportunity for their children and they are investing in their child’s future, so we need to hire these first-year apprentices. Otherwise, parents are going to be saying to us, “Where is all this demand for my son or daughter in the trades when they can’t find a job?”

First-year apprentices do require a commitment and require more input from the employer than a person who is further along in his or her apprenticeship. But, if no one hires firstyear apprentices, there will be no third- or fourth-year apprentices or journeypersons. CAF research

I am seeing many more women in the courses and on site; they are showing that they can work as hard as or harder than the men on site. There is a focus on aboriginal youth today because their demographics are showing amazing growth numbers.

They are a great source of new entrants into our industry. Immigrants are another source of new entrants and expertise. We are waking up to the realization that we need to provide opportunities to immigrants. We have too many cab drivers who have higher credentials than their driver’s licence.

Even though we are doing some great work promoting the trades to young people, we need to ensure they – and parents who are guiding their children – realize that a trade career can lead to a wide range of employment opportunities

Randy Callaghan Recipient, Vancouver Regional Construction Association 2015 Education Leadership Award

has shown that for every dollar employers spend on an apprentice, they get $1.48 returned on their investment.

Companies should realize that first-year apprentices also provide a means of lowering costs of a project. Not all tasks need a fourth-year apprentice or journeyperson to complete properly.

Q. How have you seen the education system change for the trades? Are more women and more aboriginals entering the trades?

A. I think the biggest positive change we have seen is in the secondary schools. As well as programs such as ACE-IT, we are seeing the introduction of Trades Discovery Programs to students in Grades 10 and 11 that allow them to sample four or five different trades. The programs help students discover which trade they like – or may not like.

Or, they may decide against the trades but still take away valuable life skills.

Q. While the focus has been on entry-level training, is there a need to continue to upgrade skills and pursue management courses?

A. When I look around the industry today there is a lot of grey hair, and that is expertise that is going out the door. When a superintendent who has been on the job for 36 years leaves, you are hiring not just one person to replace him. You should be teaming up your people to help pass that expertise down. The Red Seal journeyperson process is just the beginning of this learning process. BCIT offers construction supervision and construction management courses that give journeypersons a start as lead hands and help them move toward supervisory duties, working with senior superintendents. The Gold Seal certification, which is a higher credential that ensures recognition of supervisor and management expertise, is available to individuals who have been in a supervisory role for five years and can help take that individual further up the ladder.

The message is really that education is a lifelong commitment.

When I review job resumes I look to see if that person has invested in himself or herself by pursuing education opportunities. If that person doesn’t consider himself or herself an investment, then why should I? Q. Are there any programs out there that you think are excellent, but may not be getting the publicity that they need?

A. BCIT has two excellent programs. One is the Trades Discovery Program that is like a sampler. Individuals can try different trades to see what they like before moving into a foundation course. The second BCIT program is a discovery program directed at women. Women can try multiple trades and determine what they like. It is open to all ages. These are both great programs. •