Ops Talk Magazine Fall 2017

Covering all aspects of educational facilities and operations.

Talk

Fall 2017

PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT #40934510

The North Saanich Middle School

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In this issue

Message from the president of EFMA, Steve Smoroden............................................................................. 6 Message from the executive director, Glenn Miller............................... 8 Message from the minister of education, Rob Fleming....................... 10 A long and storied career, EFMA member profile on Frank Geyer................................................. 12 B.C. is on fire! School districts band together to help displaced B.C. residents from the forest fires................................ 14 Creating space: Districts choose modulars/portables to help accommodate reinstated class sizes and compositions............................................... 18 Climate action perspectives on risk management...............................22 Wood dust and carcinogens....................................................................26 Emissions reductions and engaged learning through community partnerships..........................................................29 Thoughts on: Shortage of trades people................................................32 Lead in drinking water: Filtration as a fix.............................................34

Published by: DEL Communications Inc. Suite 300, 6 Roslyn Road Winnipeg, Manitoba R3L 0G5 www.delcommunications.com President David Langstaff Publisher Jason Stefanik Managing editor Shayna Wiwierski shayna@delcommunications.com Contributing writers David Barnum | Rob Collison Alan Kavanaugh | Chuck Morris Johan Stroman Advertising Sales Manager Dayna Oulion Toll Free: 1.866.424.6398 Advertising Sales Gary Barrington | Jennifer Hebert | Dan Roberts Production services provided by: S.G. Bennett Marketing Services www.sgbennett.com

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Copyright 2017. EFMA. 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 publisher.

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While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained herein and the reliability of the source, the publisher in no way guarantees nor warrants the information and is not responsible for errors, omissions or statements made by advertisers. Opinions and recommendations made by contributors or advertisers are not necessarily those of the publisher, its directors, officers or employees.

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MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT OF EFMA

Steve Smoroden

W

hat a challenging summer campaign for facility and custodial divisions, AFG projects, summer clean up, new classrooms, and portables to meet restored class size limits. This certainly created a challenging season with competing priorities that made the projects go right down to the wire, and in some cases, into the school year. Several school districts were impacted by the forest fires that raged through the province this year with forced evacuations, which meant a loss of several productive weeks to do these tasks.

This year as an association we donated on your behalf $1,000 to the B.C Red Cross to help people affected by the B.C forest fires. We are all in this together and it is important to come together as a community, just as we do in our workplace to complete the projects that need to be done. Many hands make light work.

Although some of these challenges are new to us this year, we somehow as a group of dedicated professionals have always been able to overcome the obstacles thrown our way and complete the tasks at hand to create a welcoming environment for staff and students upon their return from their summer break. This is done by the teamwork through all the departments, although we all have different roles from directors to managers to tradesmen and caretaking staff. We are all interdependent on each other to complete the projects and have a successful outcome. We are not competing with each other, but working in partnership for the desired and common goal.

The executive team is busy working together to put on the 2018 annual conference and we would like your ideas and suggestions to make it better than ever. The conference is a great event for learning about the newest technologies and products, as well as professional development opportunities for new and old members to keep up to date. It also provides a great networking venue as you get to meet your counterparts from across the province and these people not only become a source you can contact to share and discuss ideas with, but they also become your friends. Is it not easier to phone a friend?

I would like to encourage all of you to pay it forward, share your knowledge and your expertise with all our members by participating in your zone meetings, sharing your successes with fellow members, or perhaps submitting an article idea for Ops Talk magazine.

Our association succeeds only because of you, the members, and your willingness to participate and engage with each other. I think that makes us unique. I also want to thank all the EFMA directors for their dedication and willingness to put their name forward and help keep this association strong and vibrant.

Lastly, I want to thank you all for the honour of being your president once again this year. It truly is a great association with great people. I wish you all the very best in the school year ahead. n

6 Ops Talk • Fall 2017

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MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Glenn Miller

I

am very excited to be appointed to the position of executive director of the Educational Facility Managers Association of British Columbia (EFMA). I have been involved with EFMA B.C. since 1991 and a member of the executive for 10 years. I am pleased to be able to continue my journey in my retirement.

The fall edition of Ops Talk magazine has in the past reviewed the successes and chal-

lenges of the past year starting from the EFMA conference in the previous June and looks forward to the school year ahead. The 2017 conference, held in Penticton, B.C., by all indicators was very successful. Attendance was excellent by both the EFMA members and exhibitors.

We also welcomed 23 new members to the association at the AGM. Over the last five years, 96 new members have joined our group. We were once again pleased to have the Ministry of Education Capital Facilities Branch attend and participate in the conference. They have been an integral partner with our association for many years. The professional development program and lectures throughout the conference were interesting and most relevant for school district operations today; there was something for everyone. Thank you to the conference organizers for your extra efforts in putting together a full conference program.

This past summer was by no means ordinary or routine in facilities across B.C. During the summertime, gymnasiums and portables typically get scrubbed top to bottom and get a coat of urethane on the gym floor or wax on the floors. They then typically sit unoccupied waiting for school to open. But this year some school districts used them as evacuation places or gathering spaces for citizens displaced by wild fires in some areas of B.C. In a number of schools across the province, where computer rooms and other common spaces in schools sit quiet, this year many of these areas were busy being retrofitted and setup to accommodate an increase in student classroom space. For some cities in B.C. that are living through a construction boom, finding skilled tradespersons was challenging, and will likely continue to be challenging into at least the near future.

To really decide whether I believe it was a successful summer for facilities staff here in the Victoria area, I refer to the following witnesses…

On September 5th 2017 at 8:05 a.m. I was having coffee on the front porch of my home. I watched a group of about eight young Grade 2 and 3 students from my neighbourhood bounce past my house and happily wave as they headed for the first day of school. At noon, they were bouncing back past my place when I decided I had to ask the question about their facility (okay, school).

They were eager to stop and chat and offer their feedback. It became quite clear very quickly.

They didn’t notice the gym had new lines on it and a coat of urethane. They didn’t realize they had new desks in the classroom. They didn’t seem to care whether the hallway floors looked shiny. They didn’t really notice that the hallways had all new lights installed over the summer.

And for the next 10 minutes all they enthusiastically talked about is the fact that they finally met their new teacher and told me at length what they are going to be doing for the school year.

Sounds like success to me. n

8 Ops Talk • Fall 2017

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message from the minister of education

Rob Fleming

T

he new school year is an exciting time for everyone in the education sector. It’s a time for a fresh start and a chance to make a good education system a great education system. Less than two months into my first school year as education minister, my goal is still clear: to make K-12 education better for students, parents, and staff in B.C. schools.

Investments in education are a top priority for our government. That commitment is reflected in our recent budget update, which includes a $681-million increase for B.C.’s kindergarten-to-Grade 12 education system over three years, including $521 million to improve classroom supports for children as part of the BCTF agreement, $228 million more for enrolment growth, and $1.7 billion in capital funding over the next three years.

We will also find ways to speed up the pace of investment in capital projects. We want to get from planning to ground-breaking faster. This will take collaboration between our government, school districts, and municipal governments. We all have a role to play in making schools safer for students and ensuring the fastest-growing districts have the classroom space they need. I am looking forward to seeing more projects move forward in B.C. One focus of back to school this year is to stabilize the system and ensure students are ready to learn, with classrooms to learn in. As a result of the agreement with the BCTF, school districts are creating smaller class sizes and hiring new teachers, and that requires more space. Facility staff in schools throughout the province worked hard this summer to get classrooms ready in time for back to school, and in many districts that meant putting up new modular classrooms and portables. Portables provide a short-term solution and I want to ensure you we are committed to reducing the number of portables being used as classrooms in B.C. as quickly as possible.

Part of our commitment moving forward is to review the education funding formula to ensure schools are getting the reliable, sustainable, and predictable funding they need to provide quality services to British Columbians. Educational facility managers work hard every day to make sure our schools are maintained and operating well, and that job hasn’t been easy. We will make sure districts have access to the funding they need to keep their facilities in top working condition.

I believe in our public education system, and one of our main goals going forward is to build new relationships that are respectful and effective. I look forward to working together with all of you and welcome your feedback. As government invests in public education, we will all see what a sustainable, strong, properly resourced education system can deliver for our students, staff, and teachers. n

10 Ops Talk • Fall 2017

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ILE F O R PR E B MEM

A long and storied career

Frank Geyer

By Shayna Wiwierski

F

rank Geyer was born into a construction family. His father and uncle were both carpenters and his dad would often tell him and his younger brother not to go into construction, to use their brains and not their hands.

says Geyer, director of facilities and

“I got into construction when I was 13,”

‘damn engineers’. After hearing this on

planning at Delta School District #37.

“I worked as a labourer for a couple of contractors over a few summers while my dad worked his way up to general superintendent for a major road builder.

During that time, I remember him coming home from work cussing out the

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Ops Talk • Fall 2017

a regular basis and eventually experiencing first-hand what he meant when I was 16 and working on a major highway project, I knew that I wanted to be an engineer since I thought I could do a better job at it.”

Geyer got his bachelor of applied sciences in civil engineering at the University of British Columbia in 1984 and then went on to work for the same construction company that originally hired him when he was 13 as a project engineer, double-tracking the CP Rail line through the Rockies. He, along with all of the other young engineers in the firm, got laid off in 1986 due to changes in the unionized roadbuilding landscape in B.C., but he wasn’t unemployed for long. Geyer ended up landing a project manager position with the Transport Canada - Airports Authority Group (later Public Works Canada - Air Transportation Sector), making him the youngest project manager in the Pacific Region, and a position that launched his career.

As part of the job, Geyer worked on airports all over northern B.C. responsible for the planning, budgeting, and management of a program of capital major and minor construction/renovations and major maintenance projects.

Although he loved what he did, since he and his family were living in Surrey at that time, he was tipped off about an opportunity to become a project manager five minutes away as opposed to an

hour to downtown Vancouver, so he ended up leaving the position after four years. He then became a project manager for the City of Surrey, B.C., facilities management division.

“I spent just over seven years with Surrey, moving from project manager to senior project manager to manager of design and construction, and then decided I was fed up with developing a great building project, only to turn it over to maintenance for them to screw it up,” he says, which prompted Geyer to go back to school, earn an accreditation in facilities management administration.

adds that he thought this position would be his “be all and end all”, that is until Delta School District came knocking. “I was growing tired of the long commute from Cloverdale to Point Grey each day, so when I was approached by a recruiter to look at the Delta School District, I interviewed with them and decided that I wanted to get back to facility management as well.”

thing

ww w.efmabc.ca

at you and you can fix it.’”

Since Geyer is so busy at Delta School District, he does mention that if he had more time, he would be interested in being more involved with the EFMA executive (he’s been a member since 2003). He says that although he doesn’t currently have the official capacity with EFMA, he

Geyer then moved on to became the first-ever facility manager for a large high-tech company in Burnaby where he was responsible for the planning, management, and operation of four Vancouver-area office/production facilities housing over 1,000 employees, as well as four U.S.-based sales/service centres.

He was there for two years when he was contacted by his alma mater, the University of British Columbia, to become its first associate director of project services in UBC plant operations, and for a short period, the acting director of plant operations.

He accepted the position in October 2002 and officially started in January 2003. As the director of facilities and planning, in short, he is responsible for the leadership, planning, management, and direction related to all aspects of the district’s physical assets. He administers a team of seven highly skilled and dedicated managers, and over 140 unionized trades, custodial, clerical, and technical staff tasked with the stewardship of the 40 district sites. He also is the project manager for major capital projects and the position allows him to use both of his accreditations, professional engineer and facilities management. His broad portfolio also includes him undertaking emergency planning for the district, enrolment projections, real estate acquisitions and disposals, and overseeing the district’s sustainability program.

“It was kind of cool to go back to the university where I spent five years and now I’m responsible for all of their buildings.

It was a huge, big step,” says Geyer, who

“Back when I was reporting to the deputy superintendent of schools, I recall him saying ‘you’re like the Swiss Army knife of the Delta School District, we throw any-

mon Fraser University to be a teacher, so

does think of himself as an ambassador for the association. Geyer hopes that before he retires (right now, he says hopefully in five to six years), he would like to run for an executive position with the association.

In his spare time, he enjoys doing graphic design, as well as website design and management. True to his engineering background, he says his house is always under some kind of renovations. He loves spending time with his wife of 31 years, Christine (who is an education assistant in the Surrey School District), and hopes that once he retires, he will travel more and re-learn how to golf. The couple have three children with the oldest being 25 and the youngest 21.

“Our youngest daughter is going to SiI have to stick around long enough in the education business to help get her foot in the door when she graduates.” n

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B.C. is on fire!

Smoke seen behind school buses in the Okanagan. PHOTO BY HAROLD SCHOCK.

School districts band together to help displaced B.C. residents from the forest fires

W

e have had tense fire seasons in the past few years, but no one was ready for what developed this year. Towns and cities in the interior were placed on evacuation alert and many were presented with evacuation orders. The fires were moving fast and a number of them eventually joined to form the largest forest fire in British Columbia’s recorded history. Major highways and other roads were closed indefinitely as it was too dangerous, and some routes were needed to move evacuated people away from fire areas.

Others chose to remain behind for various reasons.

Where do you place all the people leaving? How do you ensure they get out and keep others from sneaking back in? By August 2nd there were more than 300 buildings destroyed by wildfires.

By September 7th there were still more than 140 wildfires burn14

Ops Talk • Fall 2017

ing across the province. At the time of this writing, thousands are still on evacuation order, and nearly 12,000 remain on evacuation alert. The B.C. Wildfire Service has extended the state of emergency again, up to September 15th at this point.

Schools remained untouched by fire with some just barely squeaking by. Gymnasiums in many school districts were being utilized with cots and blankets set up to receive displaced people. Kamloops and Kelowna both were ready to receive worried moms and dads.

School grounds in a few communities were used to house firefighters and support staff, as well as the military. Extra RCMP members were flown in to Williams Lake to assist with evacuation and road blocks. The Peter Skene Ogden High School in 100 Mile was used as a dorm for both the RCMP and the B.C. fire crews. Lake City Secondary in Williams Lake had been used

by the Cariboo Regional District as an emergency centre complete with sleeping cots, food services, and registration services. The Canadian Armed Forces brought in 300 personnel and used one of the Williams Lake Elementary School grounds to set up camp. Williams Lake School District bus fleet had been used to evacuate people to various other cities, including Prince George, Kamloops, and Kelowna. Busing was also provided for Interior Health, Cariboo Mental Health, the District of 100 Mile House, the City of Williams Lake, and the RCMP. The bus fleet was placed on call to assist with the possible evacuation of Williams Lake. The Prince George School District offered space for displaced administration.

As Alex Telford, the manager of facilities and transportation, mentioned, “It’s been very heart-warming to see all the support that our communities have given and continue to give to one another. We also had wonderful support and offers to help from our neighbouring communities. School districts from many areas were reaching out to find out if they could offer any type of assistance.”

At one point, Canada Post suspended service to Ashcroft, 100 Mile House, 108 Mile House, Lac la Hache, Little Fort, Alexis Creek, Hanceville, Nemiah Valley, 150 Mile House, Riske Creek, Miocene, Horsefly, Big Lake, Likely, Williams Lake, Anahim

A gymnasium in the Kelowna School District being utilized for those displaced by the fires. PHOTO BY HAROLD SCHOCK.

Encampment at Cache Creek at an elementary site. PHOTO BY DEB SANSOME.

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The military slept on site while going to evacuated towns. If numbers of evacuees increased, other district sites were prepared and ready to accept them if need be.

Fire seen near Loon Lake between Cache Creek and Clinton. PHOTO BY DEB SANSOME.

Lake, Nimpo Lake, and parts of Quesnel. Sections of Highways 1, 5A, 97, 97C, 99, 20, 24, and other less-travelled roads were all closed at various times.

Prince George stepped up in a big way to help out. The military supplied cots for a number of evacuees. A bank and insurance centre were also set up, and was called the Resiliency Centre, which was housed in self-contained trailer units parked on school district property. Pets were allowed to accompany evacuees as they were shown the gym and cots where they could rest. These were open 24 hours per day with public access. School district custodial were on site at all times. Warehouse space was also provided for the SPCA to use 24 hours a day for the protection of animals that had no owners.

The entire Williams Lake senior administration was accommodated in the Prince George board office. Dates had been set up to ensure that payroll, etc. continued uninterrupted. Staff members were in Prince George doing work while the city was evacuated. The district also provided vehicles to trades staff from Williams Lake so they could get back to work.

The military slept on site while going to evacuated towns. If numbers of evacuees increased, other district sites were prepared and ready to accept them if need be.

The University of Northern B.C. (UNBC) had the bulk of evacuees and had a number of logistical issues to deal with. Many of the evacuees were homeless people, as well as others with nowhere to go because of the fires. Nino Maletta, general manager of Capital Projects, said “There will be a post-mortem in January to try and prepare better for the future.” It sounds like Prince George was on the ball and though they likely scrambled like crazy, their team sounds like it went together quite well.

Cache Creek Elementary has been another encampment for the firefighters. Two staff members from Gold Trail School District (Ashcroft/Cache Creek and other communities) lost their homes during the Boston Flats fire. Deb Sansome, director of facilities commented, “Robert, our bus driver who lost his 16

Ops Talk • Fall 2017

home in Boston Flats, put aside his own concerns and assisted in evacuating others. Jim, another driver, while his home out at Loon Lake was threatened, stepped up to evacuate those in the Clinton area. To those who stayed and worked at the district, we are grateful. They too deserve a nod for making it to work every day.”

She continues, “A special note of thanks to the Kamloops School District who came to the rescue evacuating the Ashcroft Hospital in the early days of the fire.”

Sites were set up to accommodate pets. People from all over pulled together to assist where they could. The B.C. Red Cross has been accepting donations to go directly to the victims of the fires. As mentioned above, many people were away from their homes because of evacuation orders for long periods of time and many people do not have a home as fires raged through their properties. The response from school districts and staff from these districts has been outstanding. The fire season has been a struggle. Wildfire Service posted updates as frequently as they could. Multimedia was used from Facebook to Twitter, to newscasts, etc. The overall scene changed every day. Information coming out each day gave almost a play-byplay account, and for citizens affected, it was very traumatic.

Below is another one of their releases from mid-July.

Every day new information is posted. On July 15th B.C. Wildfire Service had this information: • 161 fires burning • 14 new fires since Friday • $77 million spent fighting fires to July 15th • 17,400 number of evacuees • 5,714 homes received provincial funding (up to July 15th) This has been a very busy year fighting fires. We are lucky to have had firefighters helping our firefighters from various provinces in Canada, Australia, Mexico, and possibly other areas as well. We are all indebted to these people. In some areas, because of the build-up of heat, fires may smolder underground and flare up next year. We all need to be vigilant.

Thank you to the school districts and staff for helping out and for offers of assistance. Well done! Thank you to Alex Telford in Williams Lake, Deb Sansome with Ashcroft, and Nino Maletta in Prince George. n

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Cre ating space Districts choose modular/portables to help accommodate reinstated class sizes and compositions

By Shayna Wiwierski

A

One section of a modular being lifted by crane to be swung into place.

Supreme Court decision means that a collective agreement from 2002 will be restored.

In November 2016, the Supreme Court of Canada made a decision that the Government of B.C. was required to reinstate the class size limits, class composition provisions and staffing ratios that were unconstitutionally removed in 2002. Effective for the 2017/18 school year, the limits for primary classes are 20 students for kindergarten and 22 students for Grades 1 to 3. Class compositions for intermediate and secondary classes vary from district to district.

Composition is generally in reference to the number of special needs students in the class, as well as the number of teacher assistants, counsellors, and librarians per student in a school.

“Composition plays a huge role as there are students that require more attention than others,” says Tristan Schaufler, director of facilities, transportation, and capital projects for the Langley School District #35. “When you look at the composition of classrooms, you can have students that function on a common level, and based on that, they would be considered one body, whereas if the student requires more support, they may count as two students. So, what happens is you may have a class that doesn’t have the same number of students, but the amount of the workload would be equivalent with a classroom that has a different composition.”

As a result of the reinstated class size limits, districts are finding that they need more classroom support to meet the demand. Schaufler says that each district does an assessment so that they can realize that in certain cases they can absorb the classroom size and composition, and in other times, they can’t. As a result, they end up looking at creating more classroom space.

A lot has happened since 2002, and other dynamics playing in is the slow decline of students in more urban areas because of the cost of living, meaning that districts would have had to consolidate schools.

“You would have schools with less than 200 students in it 18

Ops Talk • Fall 2017

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and the cost of running the school, including the location, would make it a suitable candidate to be closed and the students transferred. There were lots of consolidations and closures since 2002 across the province, which now multiplied the problem that’s existing today in terms of creating space,” says Schaufler.

addition to the $180 million announced in this year’s budget, bringing the total to $330 million. The funding will provide for the hiring of 1,500 new teachers, adding to the approximately 1,000 previously announced in the budget. This fund will also provide for creating the space that is required for the influx of students.

As a result, the province has provided districts with the Classroom Enhancement Fund, announced in May 2017, which gives a $150-million funding boost to the education system. The $150 million is in

Schaufler says that his department looked at every school in the district and ended up creating 30 more classrooms that were currently existing for other purposes. They also have installed 21

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Ops Talk • Fall 2017

portable classrooms in the district, which currently has 49 schools.

“As the budgets came in, they were expecting districts to hire new teachers and additional teaching and support staff, so we had to create the space that was required,” he says. “There are different ways to go about that, and one of them is bringing in portables.”

Chuck Morris, director of facilities for the Saanich School District, says they added four new portable classrooms to their 18-school district. Two were funded by the ministry and the other two they funded themselves. Each portable holds up to a maximum of 30 students, which fits with the new class size composition, and are around 960 square feet with their own heating system. He says that there is a bit of prep work involved with installing the modular as you need to prepare the ground in a certain fashion.

“You need to remove a foot or so of the ground and bring in other material and compact it. You also apply for building permits,” says Morris, who adds that they put out an RFP to a number of companies in the area and the winning bid came from Freeport Industries, based out of West Kelowna. The other company providing portables and modulars to the area is Boxx Modular, which delivers modular solutions through Britco.

Luckily, Schaufler’s district put the order in early and they received them at the end of this past June. Since the composition rule was just reinstated, he says that a lot of other districts were waiting and ended up not getting portables since the manufacturers couldn’t keep up. Morris adds that his district was happy to receive four portables as they were able to convert quite a bit of space in schools, but that may change down the road.

“The student population is starting to climb once again,” says Morris. “Watching our growth over the next few years and working with our long-range facilities plan, we may need to add new modulars and plan for additions to accommodate students if the trend continues.” n

Climate action perspectives on risk management

Left: As climate change events, such as flooding, increase in frequency and duration, students’ safety and quality learning environments are threathened. Centre: The challenges associated with climate change must be interweaved into operational and long-term planning. Right: Given the long lifecycle of most facilities, conducting site and building resilience assessments will identify climate change adaptation requirements that should be incorporated into facility development plans.

O

ne of EFMA’s purposes is advising educational organizations on the provision of safe, wellmaintained, quality learning environments for all students. As such, we share a collective responsibility to envision the future while addressing emerging enterprise risk-management issues. A holistic approach is essential to ensure optimal emergency planning and sustainable, effective capital planning.

Climate change is transitioning from a policy discussion to protect future generations, to a risk-management issue impacting organizations at the operational level. Wind storms, flooding, temperature extremes, loss of habitat, or droughts are often seen as climate change trends with little impact on school operations. As these events increase in frequency and duration, however, student safety and quality learning environments are threatened.

Local emergency response plans must be increasingly robust to address scenarios that would have seemed unlikely a few years ago, but also flexible and tailored to individual school sites and capacities. Other challenges include evolving policies and practices (including school curriculum), changing safety and environmental legislation, accelerated infrastructure deterioration caused by weather extremes, and evolving societal expectations.

The challenges associated with climate change must be interweaved into operational and long-term planning. Operational procedures should be reviewed to mitigate the impacts of an extreme weather event that could trigger an emergency response. Collaboration with local governments and utility

22

Ops Talk • Fall 2017

companies will identify synergies, including those related to educational programs. Given the long life cycle of most facilities, conducting site and building resilience assessments will identify climate change adaptation requirements that should be incorporated into facility development plans.

Budget considerations, of course, underpin planning activities.

Capital project proposals should include energy consumption impacts, maintenance implications and environmental benefits, as well as quantify estimated cost and cost-avoidance outcomes. Emergency preparedness can have significant onetime and ongoing operational costs. Documented risk assessments typically address the probability and impacts of potential emergencies. In the context of climate change, additional consideration of local weather trends will assist decision-makers with resource allocations.

Fortunately, many resources are available to assist with the climate change aspects of enterprise risk management. Guidelines published by WorkSafeBC and School Protection Program often have environmental implications, while other published guides have a specific environmental focus (e.g. LEED, ISO 14001, etc). Emerging centres of excellence include the Climate Action Secretariat, local governments, NGOs, commercial companies, and various school districts throughout British Columbia.

Given the complexity of climate change impacts on school districts, the hierarchy of environmental risk management is a useful guide to ensure continuing safe, well-maintained learning spaces:

1. Learning – raising awareness of climate change impacts

According to the provincial government, “British Columbia is already experiencing the impacts of climate change: average temperatures are increasing, sea levels are rising, and variable and extreme weather is becoming more frequent”. Whether engaged in long-term planning or preparing for an emergency, we are reminded of the importance of considering our changing environment when developing options for a well-maintained, quality learning space.

that will affect future generations, while providing emergency preparedness training and resources to protect existing staff and students.

2. Adaption – offset the effects of long-term change.

3. M itigation – minimize the amount of change that occurs.

4. Resilience – absorb changes while maintaining functionality.

5. Emergency Preparedness – ability to respond to unforeseen events.

6. Emergency Response and Recovery – returning to normal operations as quickly as possible.

Mitigation

adaption

Guided by risk management principles, a holistic perspective when leveraging existing expertise will help ensure we meet our collective responsibility to both the current and future generations. n

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Wood dust and carcinogens

By Alan Kavanaugh, CRM, CCPI (Member NFPA)

O

ver the past several years there has been an increase in inspection activity and updates of dust collection systems in regards to industrial arts (IA) technology wood shops located in many high schools and middle schools. It should be noted that the primary focus of the Dust Mitigation program for these types of occupancies deals with the prevention of explosions and subsequent fires. In this article, we will discuss the potential health concerns, and in particular, potential cancer concerns in regards to wood dust and exposure to wood dusts in school shops.

exposed to wood dust in England devel-

Exposure to wood dust has long been associated with a variety of adverse health effects, including dermatitis, allergic respiratory effects, mucosal, and non-allergenic respiratory effects and cancer.

tional cancers refers to workers involved

It should also be noted that the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IRAC) has classified wood dust as a carcinogenic to humans. A study completed in 1965 observed that a large number of furniture workers and other wood workers

oped a rare form of nasal cancer (Adenocarcinoma).

In this study, the highest risks appear to be to those workers exposed to hardwood dust including beach and oak, as well as various other tropical species. There have also been attributed allergic reactions in regards to people working with cedar. It was also noted in this study that the cancer developed on-average over a 20-year period and that most of the exposure levels were much higher than those seen in today’s industry.

Worksafe BC in their section on occupawith furniture and cabinet-making as being exposed to a form of nasal cancer from wood dust. Safety Data Sheets (SDS) sourced on pine sawdust and the Tampa International Forest Products sheet on hazard warning for untreated wood dust and wood products also discuss potential carcinogenic exposures from wood dust, in particular nasal cancer. There are other studies taking place at this time.

Worksafe BC and OH&S organizations are designed to provide recommendations, guidelines, and regulations to ensure a safe work environment is provided for all employees in the workplace. Worksafe BC and other organizations have provided documented exposure limits for many types of biological and chemical substances, including wood dust.

Controlling exposure All safety programs should have policies and procedures, as well as references to documentation like Worksafe BC and OSHA regulations. They should include an ongoing risk analysis system, which is continuing to accumulate information at all times, noting potential risky and hazardous operations so plans can be developed to mitigate potential for injury and subsequent losses.

Finer dusts appear to have more of an exposure to workers that other wood-type flying’s.

Basic Safety – Reducing exposures to wood dust 1. Standard ventilation (dust-control systems) should be provided.

2. Dust-control systems should be cleaned, inspected, and maintained on a regular basis.

3. Filter masks should be worn.

4. Eye and face protection should always be provided.

5. Type of wood (species) should be investigated before use to ensure it is safe to use in a school environment.

Conclusion So in closing, remember the following steps: 1. Conduct a Risk Analysis or Needs Assessment: This is the Who, What, Where, Why, and When section.

Exposure to wood dust has long been associated with a variety of adverse health effects, including dermatitis, allergic respiratory effects, mucosal, and non-allergenic respiratory effects and cancer.

26

Ops Talk • Fall 2017

2. Accumulate information on your IA Technology Shops (Safety Surveys): The more information you have, the better informed your final decisions will be.

3. Identify all Risks/Hazards: Allows you a starting point from which to develop plans on ways of mitigating potential losses from occurring. Be specific.

4. Monitor your progress, make changes if needed:

Stay informed. Many changes take place on a regular basis in regards to safety equipment, facility safety, dust mitigation, health issues, as well as the needs for continued maintenance and repair procedures for existing facilities.

Talk to risk management professionals – people in your industry, other teachers, staff, and various other organizations.

Someone may have tried an idea already that you are thinking about using. n

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Ops Talk • Fall 2017

Alan Kavanaugh is the senior risk manager at Suncorp Valuations.

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Please recycle.

Emissions reductions and engaged learning through community partnerships

By David Barnum, Johan Stroman and Rob Collison John Luccier’s Grade 7 class hosted a school-wide Freezing Friday to save on energy and emissions.

I

n June, John, a Grade 7 teacher at Roberts Creek Elementary, and Johan Stroman, community partner in learning, presented students with certificates to

celebrate their completion of a science, math and applied design program on energy conservation. John is one of a growing number of teachers on the Sun-

and raising awareness of energy conservation and climate change. As one of the students, Megan said, “Three degrees cooler (i.e. 18 Celsius) wasn’t really freezing at all”.

ager), who envisioned this unique

Now John’s students want to see a bigger change! Rob Collison (SD #46 facilities and transportation man-

energy savings day. The students’ pro-

Facilities+School+Community partnership, is now working directly with students. Instead of a one-day event, students are asking Collison for a weekly posal will see building heating turned down two degrees each Friday all year,

shine Coast embracing Energy Matters – a program driven by the School District #46 facilities department funding to engage students in curriculum, energy, and inquiry.

His Grade 7 class hosted a school-wide Freezing Friday event in early March.

What happened? They turned down the school temperature three degrees for the day, highlighting the costs and impacts of energy use. The result was an astounding 80 per cent drop in natural gas use for the day. 220 elementary students came dressed in sweaters for a cooler day, stimulating interesting discussion

Student action projects support learning in new Grade 4 to 9 curriculum competencies.

Educational Facility Managers Association of B.C. | www.efmabc.com 29

Sample classroom investigations for a participating Grade 7 classroom.

providing energy conservation leadership and raising awareness of energy costs and climate change.

Another district teacher Kaia Nielsen, was supported to meet with Jay Walls of the high school teachers to explore solar power, panels, and see how well they perform in B.C.’s south coast climate compared with the U.S. southwest.

Students see their inquiry aligned with the school district intention to embark on three major school solar PV installations.

It is all part of the district-wide strategic goal and cultural shift towards energy conservation. Through this unique model, facilities may realize an annual compounding target of at least five per cent energy savings annually. Projected over

the year, this one-day-per-week action can save the school over three tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions and nearly $1,000 in energy costs.

data. By sharing and reporting real data, the projects have higher relevance, creating high student interest and parental awareness.

Collison plans to work with the school and track the savings over the year to provide a report to the board and to inform district-wide energy conservation ideas for the next few years. He hopes to see more schools and classrooms join the program and reduce energy use through school or home energy conservation projects.

David Barnum, curriculum coordinator, notes that this collaborative community partners learning approach supports School District 46’s Strategic Plan, enabling Heartwood Solutions’ sustainability consultant Johan Stroman to support teachers and classrooms. Paul Bishop, the district’s director of instruction, echoes Barnum and adds, “We see an immense value in providing students a means to connect directly in an authentic and engaging manner with our facilities staff and our community’s many skilled professionals.”

Collison provides teachers and students access to their school energy data – providing a direct connection between student idea generation, school leadership actions, and measurable energy savings

Through a series of half-day workshops, teachers reimagine how they might en• Serving Western Canada since 1977 gage students on energy conservation • Serving Western Canada since 1977 topics. Energy Matters offers a range of • The right price for the right job approaches and best practices options - 2017 • Serving Western Canada since 1977 77 and encourages teachers and students • The right price for the right job th to innovate; to create their own energy www.castertown.com Largefor local • The right• price theinventory right job ARY VERS ANNI challenge. Teachers are provided release time to learn, plan their units, and share www.castertown.com • Large local inventory EDMONTON www.castertown.com • Large local inventory their findings.

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Program objectives 1. P rovide teacher and student support to implement placebased, energy projects: • Release time and professional development • Lead customized, energy conservation projects in schools • Generate real-time facilities data to show energy savings 2. Create innovation around content and approach to B.C. curriculum: • Link conservation with core learning principles and subject outcomes

• Activities connect sustainability to critical/creative thinking, communication, and personal/social responsibility competencies • Create real student leadership projects 3. Embracing community partners in learning: • Bring local expertise on energy and climate change to the classrooms • Energy Matters supports students’ engagement in placebased learning • Facility staff realizes energy behavioural change goals

centered inquiry and action. Experiential learning included use of Kill-a-Watt metres, solar model cars, and some local draw prizes to “incentivize” school initiatives.

Students used their learning to turn off 500 lights in a week; locate measure and unplug an old empty refrigerator, and conduct a week-long shortened home showers. Teachers were surprised at student engagement and interest in the topics. One teacher noted that students clearly were concerned and empowered to take action at home.

Teachers first thought that providing meaningful climate change action would be a challenge for themselves and students. However, with up-front support, encouragement and a hopeful message, students soon discovered that small actions really added up and that their initiatives and communications inspired big savings at school and at home.

The Energy Smarts initiative/partnership is set to attract more teachers and evolve with student interests. Collison couldn’t be happier.

“It’s neat to see students, teachers, and administration getting into a program, that benefits us all in so many ways,” says Collison. “I’m pretty sure we’re into double-digit savings now.”

To learn more about the Energy Matters program in SD #46, please visit youtu.be/Qe6-3Tarlek or contact Johan Stroman at johan@heartwoodsolutions.ca. n Educational Facility Managers Association of B.C. | www.efmabc.com 31

T houghts on

Shortage of trades people

By Chuck Morris

S

ince the downturn of oil, keeping staff has become much easier. There was a time when the trades were leaving in droves for the oilfields because

of higher wages, living-out allowances, and other benefits that we just could not match. Leading up to those days, I recall training electricians on much more than what they trained for to ob-

tain their Red Seal. Fire alarm systems, P/A systems, phone systems, intrusion, and CCTV training was offered so we could end up with a valuable crew (for the school district). Plumbing was no different.

32

Ops Talk • Fall 2017

The result of this was that staff members became quite valuable to the “outside” world and the lure of bigger dollars, always an attraction for many, enticed some of them away from our employ. That was a real problem because after spending a lot of dollars on training, some would then turn around and resign and we would have to go through the process of posting and trying to find someone eligible who could fit in. They would of course have to be cleared on their criminal record check, and then we would look at offering training again so they could respond with knowledge and deal with broken-down systems in the schools.

Luckily those days have waned and that is not quite the issue any longer. However, in some geographic areas of this province, we have discovered we are unable to find certified trades people.

More often than not, some of us have posted for positions and now must leave these posted until they are filled. With our aging workforce, this is becoming a very real problem. Why are we not even receiving applications (from qualified trades)?

There is so much work in parts of British Columbia at this time that contractors are having difficulty acquiring the people they need to fulfil their contractual

There is so much work in parts of British Columbia at this time that contractors are having difficulty acquiring the people they need to fulfil their contractual obligations for projects. obligations for projects. With that difficulty they are experiencing, they are forced to pay higher wages and benefits to attract and keep the people they find.

Obviously, this has a major impact on our type of business. The Collective Agreement restricts us from paying some staff more to allow us to entice others to apply, and to allow us to keep those who may be thinking of leaving.

It is a difficult situation compounded by yet another factor.

With the proliferation of Airbnb and others like it, vacancy rates are at, or very near, zero in some parts of B.C. Couple that with the housing market responding to people coming into the country to buy, and those from the Lower Mainland and other areas in the province moving to more affordable locations, continuously driving the cost of a simple home beyond the reach of so many people.

In some areas of B.C., even if we could pay a decent wage, lack of an affordable home will prevent someone from moving to your area to work for you. This is a serious problem. In many of these areas, if you could find a home to rent for your young family, the monthly payments are now well in excess of $2,000 to $3,000 per month. Couple that with the damage deposit you have to pay and a pet deposit that matches your damage deposit, as well as first month’s rent, oftentimes you part with $4,000 to $5,000 up-front just to get into a rental.

How do we attract people and keep them? Where will they live? It is an exercise in frustration as we delve into solutions only to find none. Stay tuned, hopefully there is an answer out there for us. n

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Filtration as a fix In Canada, lead has historically been used in the plumbing and waterworks industry. Despite its usefulness, lead has been proven to create very serious health problems for people (particularly children and pregnant women) who ingest it. Despite the availability of drinking fountains, water coolers and water bottle filling stations with specially-designed filters that are certified to meet or exceed NSF/ ANSI Standard 53 to remove lead from the water source itself, only a small percentage of schools and institutions actually have these types of units installed.

here is a growing concern in Canada today about how much lead is in the water we consume. For decades, many have assumed that lead in water was a thing of the past. After all, most cities have municipal water systems that test, monitor, and remove such things, right?

A Google search of “Lead in drinking water in schools” produces a long list of 2016 news stories from across Canada identifying areas where lead has been identified in the drinking water supply.

Additionally, news coverage of the public disaster in Flint, Michigan has brought a heightened awareness of the harm that lead can cause.

For schools and other large public facilities, where drinking fountains, water coolers, and bottle filling stations are commonly used, one of the questions raised with this increased awareness is, “are point-of-use filtration products an effective method to remove lead that has leached into drinking water from the plumbing supply system?” To answer this question, we need to look many different factors.

What’s so bad about lead?

Lead has been widely used to transport water for many centuries. Such use was 34

Ops Talk • Fall 2017

so common that the word “plumbing”

According to the Canadian Water Qual-

derives from plumbum, the Latin word

ity Association, it was almost four de-

for lead.

cades ago when industry learned that

In Canada, lead has historically been used in the plumbing and waterworks industry. Despite its usefulness, lead has been proven to create very serious health problems for people (particularly children and pregnant women) who ingest it. Lead is toxic – even at low levels, continuous exposure causes a variety of health problems, including permanent nervous system, brain, and kidney damage, hyperactivity and other behaviour and learning issues, memory problems, severe headaches, high blood pressure, hearing

lead could dissolve into the water supply from the pipes and fittings, it was decided then to limit the amount of lead used in alloys and materials in the water sector. Today that limit is 0.25 per cent, as defined by the NSF 372 Standard.

How much lead is too much lead?

Scientists and toxicologists would correctly state that no amount of lead consumed is good for the human body. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) defined a reference level of five micrograms per

problems, impaired growth, reproductive

deciliter (µg/dL) to identify children with

problems, digestive problems, and muscle

elevated blood lead levels. These chil-

and joint pain. In some instances, expo-

dren are exposed to more lead than most

sure to extreme lead levels has even re-

children.

sulted in death.

The U.S.-based Environmental Protec-

Lead is more easily absorbed by sensi-

tion Agency (EPA) has established a lead

tive tissue such as that found in growing

“action level” for public water systems of

bodies, and the effects are cumulative,

15 parts per billion. If more than 10 per

irreversible, can exacerbate other health

cent of water sampled, system-wide, hits

problems and can last a lifetime. For these

this level, then corrosion control treat-

reasons, vulnerable populations such as

ment may be necessary. The level is dif-

babies, infants, young children, seniors,

ferent for schools. If a school finds that

people with existing health issues, and

their lead level exceeds 20 ppb coming

pregnant and/or nursing mothers should

from a particular outlet at first draw, the

avoid ingesting lead at all costs.

outlet should be taken out of service.

Responsibility for safe drinking water According to Health Canada, the responsibility for making sure drinking water supplies are safe is shared between the provincial, territorial, federal, and municipal governments. The dayto-day responsibility of providing safe drinking water to the public generally rests with the provinces and territories, while municipalities usually oversee the day-to-day operations of the treatment facilities.

Health Canada’s Water Quality and Health Bureau plays a leadership role in science and research. Its mandate and expertise lies in protecting the health of all Canadians by developing the Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality in partnership with the provinces and territories. These guidelines are used by every jurisdiction in Canada and are the basis for establishing drinking water quality requirements for all Canadians.

The drinking water supply can be broken down into three parts: the source water, the drinking water treatment system, and the distribution system which carries the treated water to homes, businesses, schools, and other buildings. Drinking water can become contaminated by the products and materials with which it comes into contact. Water is a solvent and can leach metals and other chemicals from pipes, fittings, fixtures, and other products.

Health Canada works with national and international standards-setting organizations to develop health-based performance standards for these products and materials to make sure they are not contributing harmful contaminants to your drinking water. Complete details on acceptable water quality, testing protocols, and overall drinking water guidelines can be found on the Health Canada website.

Filtration as a solution The CWQA states that lead in municipal water can be removed by applying an NSF 53 certified product. NSF/ANSI Standard 53 certified products effectively reduce lead from incoming water levels with 150 ppb of lead to below EPA action levels (15 ppb) for up to 3,000 gallons.

NSF/ANSI Standard 53 for Drinking Water Treatment is the nationally recognized standard for evaluating and certifying drinking water treatment systems for the reduction of contaminants from drinking water. Water filters are tested and certified to NSF/ANSI 53 to ensure they reduce contaminants, including lead, per the requirements of the standard.

For schools and other public buildings with existing drinking water outlets, an NSF 53 certified product can be retrofitted, alternatively, new fountains, coolers or bottle fillers can be installed which come equipped with a filter built right in. Regular maintenance is required when using filters as a lead remediation method. Should water flow decrease, the filter may need to be replaced sooner, as this may indicate that your building may have experienced a spike in particulate lead that has compromised the filter’s ability to filter lead and other particulates. Always maintain your filters per the manufacturer’s specifications provided with your unit, and replace your filters should output flow level be dramatically reduced, regardless of whether you are approaching the stated maximum capacity of the filter.

To confirm whether a particular brand of filter has been officially certified by an accredited certification body, be sure to check both the Water Quality Association and NSF International website listings. If you do not find the filter you are considering on one of these sites, it may not perform to the level you need for lead contamination.

Conclusion Despite the availability of drinking fountains, water coolers and water bottle filling stations with specially-designed filters that are certified to meet or exceed NSF/ANSI Standard 53 to remove lead from the water source itself, only a small percentage of schools and institutions actually have these types of units installed. For older institutions built before 1986 that may have elevated lead levels in their water up to 150 ppb, upgrading to a filtered model or retrofitting NSF/ANSI 53-certified filtration onto an older model may be a viable solution to reduce lead in drinking water. n

Educational Facility Managers Association of B.C. | www.efmabc.com 35

Viessmann biomass heating technology is a reliable, economical, and environmentally responsible option

W

hen it was built seven years ago, the Bluenose Academy in Lunenburg, N.S., became the greenest building in Atlantic Canada and the first government building in the province with a fully integrated wood pellet-fired biomass heating system. It is also the first building in Canada featuring a biomass heating system to obtain LEED® Gold certification.

With the Old Town of Lunenburg – a UNESCO World Heritage Site – in close proximity, the Bluenose Academy design team was tasked with designing a contemporary school building within a heritage context and achieving LEED® Gold certification.

The Bluenose Academy in Lunenburg, NS was the greenest building in Atlantic Canada when it was built seven years ago. It was also the first government building in the province with a fully integrated wood pellet-fired biomass heating system.

Faced with rising and unpredictable fuel oil costs and with natural gas not available at the site, the design team was charged with integrating innovative renewable energy technologies into the building design. The team ultimately settled on using wood pellets as a fuel source as a more economical and pricestable option.

A Viessmann Pyrot KRT-540 wood pelletfired biomass boiler (rated at 1843 MBH) was commissioned as the school’s primary source of space and DHW heating. In fact, the decision to install this boiler was a major factor that helped Bluenose Academy achieve their LEED® certification.

The heating system also includes a Vitorond 200, VD2-560 oil-fired boiler (rated at 1941 MBH) to provide backup and additional capacity during peak loads, as well as six Vitosol 200-F SV2 flat-plate solar thermal collectors (Bluenose Academy was the recipient of the Canadian

36

Ops Talk • Fall 2017

Not only has the biomass heating system proved to be reliable, it has also saved the school a significant amount of money on fuel costs.

Wood pellets are stored in a 26-ton capacity steel silo and delivered to the boiler by the Pyrot’s feed auger.

Solar Thermal Project of the Year by the Canadian Solar Industries Association – CanSIA – in 2012).

Wood pellets are stored in a 26-ton capacity steel silo and delivered to the boiler by the Pyrot’s feed auger. When fuel gasification and combustion are complete, an automated deashing system extracts ashes from the combustion chamber and transfers them to an ash bin.

Today, the Bluenose Academy’s heating system is still operating as reliably as it has since day one. Not only has the biomass heating system proved to be reliable, it has also saved the school a significant amount of money on fuel costs.

In fact, the school’s annual fuel expenditures are approximately half of what they would be if the facility was heated by oil – the most widely used heating fuel in Atlantic Canada. On top of that, having a net-zero carbon footprint, the boiler accounts for annual CO2 savings of 550.5 tons.

The heating system at Bluenose Academy with its biomass boiler at its core, stands as a testament to the reliability, safety, and economic viability of modern wood pellet-fired heating technology from Viessmann.

About Viessmann Viessmann is a leading international manufacturer of top-quality, efficient, and environmentally responsible heating solutions. Over the years, Viessmann has pioneered technologies that have continuously set standards and made the company into a technological innovator and pacesetter for the entire industry. n

Educational Facility Managers Association of B.C. | www.efmabc.com 37

Continuous insulation, why you should have it

D

o you want to reduce the risk of condensation and humidity in your buildings?

Increase the energy efficiency of

Continuous insulation is defined as “in-

greatly increases the building’s en-

sulation that is continuous across all

ergy efficiency

your systems and keep the heat inside?

terior, exterior, or is an integral part of

With the right insulation product, you

any opaque surface of the building en-

can address all these aspects with a

velope.” Moreover, it can be used with

single product.

a variety of wall systems and cladding

Why you need it

materials.

Continuous insulation can serve several

Effective insulation systems slow down

structural members without thermal

• P roperly sealed joints minimizing air

bridges other than fasteners and ser-

movement, which reduces infiltration

vice openings. It is installed on the in-

and leaks

heat movement and reduce moisture

Furthermore,

transfers at an affordable cost.

can be placed on the interior or exterior

The importance of good insulation

continuous

insulation

side of the wall, thus meeting climatedependent moisture vapour control code requirements. Finally, it is possible

• Lower risk of condensation and moisture infiltration

important functions in a high-performing wall system, including continuous thermal insulation, moisture vapour control, and water and air barriers.

These features provide the following benefits:

Insulation products limit heat ex-

to use continuous insulation alone to

change between the inside and outside

meet energy code requirements without

• Increased thermal performance

of a building in order to make it more

any cavity insulation, for the ultimate

• Lower operating costs

efficient. For the highest thermal per-

“warm wall” design.

• Reduced air infiltration and exfiltra-

formance, the construction must be designed to have high thermal resistance (R-value). It is a proven fact that con-

Continuous insulation of a building comes with several benefits:

tion • Decreased risk of water condensation and moisture penetration

tinuous insulation is the most effective

• Elimination of thermal bridges, which

method to generate energy savings, as

increases the overall performance of

• Efficient installation

it eliminates thermal bridges through

the wall assembly

Decreased air leaks, increased energy efficiency

steel, wood, and concrete structures.

• Money and energy savings, which

Air leaks are a common problem in a building envelope. They’re essentially the result of uncontrolled air movement and can cause several other problems: • Condensation • Moisture • Mould growth • Lower air quality inside the building

Understanding water condensation When it comes to condensation, it is important to know that warm air can hold more water vapour than cold air.

When warm air cools, the relative humidity percentage increases and can 38

Ops Talk • Fall 2017

Continuous insulation can serve several important functions in a high-performing wall system, including continuous thermal insulation, moisture vapour control, and water and air barriers.

reach a saturation level called the dew point. Then, if the air cools even more, the water vapour surplus – which cannot be contained in the air – turns into water droplets, thus forming condensation.

Air leaks through the building envelope are caused by air pressure coming from one or more sources, such as wind pressure, the stack effect, or pressure created by heating, cooling, and ventilation units.

Increased energy efficiency Model national energy codes are improving the way we approach com-

state and local energy codes continue to put greater emphasis on energy conservation, code developers and experts

mercial and residential exterior wall

are turning to a greater use of continu-

construction by emphasizing the use of

ous insulation for its known ability to

continuous insulation systems, which

reduce thermal bridging and increase

provide a continuous insulation layer

energy efficiency at a reasonable instal-

over an entire wall, not only in cavities.

lation cost – while providing operating

Building science experts have known

cost paybacks through reduced energy

for some time that continuous insula-

bills.

tion is a very effective way to insulate building envelopes for energy savings.

Energy losses caused by air leaks from

Now, modern building codes are put-

a poorly insulated building can repre-

ting this knowledge into practice.

sent a high percentage of heating and

Voluntary energy efficiency programs have been encouraging and rewarding the use of continuous insulation for some time. Model building and energy

cooling costs. Both in summer and

As noted above, continuous insulation

codes are finally catching up with this

winter, good insulation helps regulate

is needed to achieve high-performance

proven best practice for wall insula-

the inside building temperature.

wall assemblies. As newer national,

tion. n

Educational Facility Managers Association of B.C. | www.efmabc.com 39

Are your accessibility lift maintenance costs out of control?

It is recommended to split the maintenance contract into two separate tenders, passenger elevators and accessibility lifts.

Below: There are two main classes of elevating device mechanics licensed to work on elevating devices in the province of B.C.

D

o you find the actual costs for service and maintenance on accessibility lifts is always above what was quot-

ing device mechanics licensed to work

ed by your maintenance provider and

waiters, and freight elevators. Class H

the lifts are never reliable? You are not

mechanics are trained and specialize in

alone as this is the case for a lot school

accessibility lifts. Commercial accessi-

districts across the province, and it is

bility lifts have only been around since

simply a result of a flaw in the tendering

around 1974, prior to this there were

process for maintenance contracts.

only Class A mechanics. As the codes

Although they are both considered elevating devices, there are extreme differences between an accessibility lift and a passenger elevator. Most school districts feel they can save money by offering their maintenance contracts to one provider as the number of units in a contract should be an incentive to reduce costs and therefore win the bid.

The problem with this process is it excludes the companies that specialize in accessibility lifts.

There are two main classes of elevat40

Ops Talk • Fall 2017

on elevating devices in the province of B.C. Class A mechanics are trained and specialize in passenger elevators, high-rise elevators, escalators, dumb-

and requirements for accessibility lifts were developed to meet the needs of this new type of equipment, so was the need to development mechanics that specialized in this field. This created a new class of elevator mechanics, Class H. Although Class A mechanics are permitted to work on accessibility lifts, as this class historically covered all elevating devices, their training and experience specific to accessibility lifts is very limited, and in some cases, non-existent. Class H mechanics are only permitted to work on accessibility

devices, and their training and experience is focused on these devices only.

All accessibility lifts installed in the province are installed by companies that specialize in this area using Class H mechanics. Wouldn’t it make sense that these same mechanics would provide the service and maintenance as well?

When school districts put out a tender for the maintenance of all their elevating devices and allow only one provider, only companies that employ passenger elevator mechanics (Class A) can bid on the entire contract even though they may not have any mechanics experienced with accessibility lifts.

A company that specializes in accessibility lifts and employs only accessibility lifts mechanics (Class H) cannot bid on the entire contract as these mechanics are not trained, or permitted, to work on passenger elevators.

Ph: 204.757.4534 Fx: 204.757.4618

The best approach is to split the mainGYMNASIUM tenance contract into two separate EQUIPMENT tenders. One tender should include all the passenger elevators and the other INDOOR & tender should include all the accesOUTDOOR sibility lifts. This allows companies SPECTATOR that specialize in passenger elevators SEATING to maintain and repair the passenger elevators, and companies that specialSCOREBOARDS ize in accessibility lifts to maintain and repair the products they specialize in.

This will also prevent unqualified mechanics from trying to diagnose and repair products they have no experience or training in. This adds many extra hours in labour costs, misdiagnosis, 679420_RoyalStewart.indd 1 and unnecessary part replacements, as well as the frequency of breakdowns.

Using the right mechanics for the job reduces the overall costs for maintenance as these mechanics have the training and experience necessary to perform their work efficiently. More importantly, a properly maintained accessibility lift is more reliable and safe to transport those that need them the most. n

FOR OVER

50 YEARS we have been Canada’s oldest and most trusted sports contractor. When your equipment is built

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Educational Facility Managers Association of B.C. | www.efmabc.com 41

Doors are an essential part of school security

M

HD McGregor Hardware Distribution is a full-service wholesaler that will work with schools to take site measurements for doors and frames for complete package renovations. Through dedication, hard work, and first-class service, we have become one of the leading hardware wholesalers in Canada.

Over the years, the name has been shortened to be affectionately known as MHD. Our service and reliability is legendary and has made MHD the ultimate source for school districts to avail of our knowledge and high-quality products.

MHD covers the full gamut of lock products, from meticulously crafted architectural hardware to quality key blanks

and high-security products such as Assa, Medeco and Primus by Schlage.

We also do a terrific job in the padlock business. MHD specializes in the Allegion brands such as Schlage, Von Duprin, and LCN, as well as SARGENT from Assa Abloy. MHD has a full line of Abus, BEST, and Master for padlocks, ideal for school security standards. We are also fully stocked in original BEST keyways, which specializes in SFIC and high-security keys.

Due to the mass amounts of equipment and furniture inside schools, it is understandable that often schools have huge issues with security breaching through burglaries or attempted burglaries.

Keeping in mind these factors, it is imperative that both interior and exterior

doors remain secure from the elements, general use, and battery against them.

Often there is steel on the exterior doors to allow for high security. Interior doors found within schools are usually wood, however they may be specialty rated for various needs, including acoustic rating for sound proofing and fire ratings to adhere to Canadian building codes.

MHD is part of the McGregor Group of Companies which has several architectural hardware consultants (AHC’s) on staff. We will be there to ensure you are maintaining the building code. As the schools’ systems change to prepare for the future, we may see more common place to implement a school lockdown procedure. It is important to monitor door access, both students and staff leaving the building as well as entering. For the highest level of security, it means all components of the door hardware is working in concert together.

The mechanical and electronic hardware must be specified and supplied to ensure compatibility. MHD has the

Northern Roof-Life Specialists

staff and experience to assist in the full

Consulting • Condition Reports • Thermography Specifications and Tendering Quality Control Inspections

system design. At the end of the day, the total safety of all people within the school is imperative, to keep not only the children and students safe, but the teachers as well.

When it comes to providing security for

Dawson Creek, BC

Terrace, BC

Grande Prairie, AB

250-782-6878

250-641-4204

780-538-4190

Dick Van Genne RRO

Mike Van Genne

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schools, MHD continues to be one of the most reliable resources for both customer service and the supplying the highest-quality brands. We work with school districts providing an array of products to ensure the safety of the students and

Email: mel@topsideconsulting.ca ACCEPTED INSPECTION FIRM

RCABC and ARCA Accepted Inspectors

staff, including door hardware and locksmith supplies, offline locks and access control, high-security locks and cylinders, quality metal washroom partitions, school lockers, and accessories.n

42

Ops Talk • Fall 2017

www.mcgregor-hardware.com

* Locksmith Supplies * Access Control * High Security Locks and Cylinders * Quality Metal Washroom Partitions * School Lockers and Accessories

McGregor Hardware Distribution inventories the best brands.

Our service and reliability is legendary and has made MHD one of the best hardware wholesalers in Canada.

HIGH SECURITY CYLINDERS MHD is an Authorized Distributor of both ASSA and

MEDECO High Security Keys and Cylinders

DELUXE LOCKERS: 20Ga Door (cold-rolled steel), 16Ga Frame (cold-rolled steel), 24Ga Body (pre-painted galvanized steel), Stainless steel handle box, 14Ga 5-Knuckle hinge, 10Ga Hasp with magnetic catch, Rubber bumper silencers on inner face of door, 3 Coat hooks per compartment (single tier and double tier)

Realizing Ops Talk comes out twice a year, many job postings may not work if advertised here. But in a number of areas of British Columbia, positions are very hard to fill, and as such, are posted and titled as ‘ongoing’ or ‘posted until filled’. These are the ones that you may find will work for you.

Careers BULLETIN

If you know you have something coming up in the fall or springtime, maybe it might be prudent to have us advertise the position in here as at times, timing may work.

At times, one of our readers may have a few thoughts on this topic and how best to attract talent, especially in areas where certain trades or professionals are difficult to get.

Districts, if you are having trouble filling positions for whatever reasons, let us know as we can offer wide distribution in this magazine in this careers section.

Name of Position: Director of Community Services District/Entity: Tsilhqot’in/Carrier/Sekani http://makeafuture.com Posting Date: September 21, 2017 Closing Date: Open until filled

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For more information please contact us

As the largest supplier of innovative cleaning products and equipment in Canada, we provide educational facilities with Wesclean is Western Canada’s largest dedicated supplier of a wide range of janitorial solutions and environmentally innovative cleaning products and equipment. For over 40 years, responsible cleaning alternatives. we have provided janitorial solutions and environmentally responsible cleaning alternatives.

Look to us for high quality products, industry-leading We are driven to provide our clients with high quality products, equipment, hands on professional training and the highest equipment and hands-on professional training, while level of customer support. maintaining theservice highestand level of customer satisfaction.

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Website: www.timeaccessinc.com 44

Ops Talk • Fall 2017

1-888-337-2929 wesclean.com

1-800-663-9877 planetclean.com

1-800-667-2263 acm esupplies.ca

1.888.337.2929 www.wesclean.com weslcean.com

Index to advertisers B.C. Insulation Contractors Association.................................... 31

IRC Building Sciences Group...................................................... 19

B.G.E. Service & Supply Ltd........................................................28

McGregor Hardware Distribution...............................................43

Canstar Restorations...................................................................... 3

Rede Energy Solutions Ltd........................................................... 13

Caster Town..................................................................................30

Reliable Controls Corporation...................................................IBC

Craven Huston Powers Architects.............................................. 13

Rocky Point Engineering Ltd......................................................28

Dobbin Sales Ltd............................................................................. 9 Emco Corporation....................................................................... 15 Encorp Electronics....................................................................... 17 Encorp School Program................................................................27 ERV Parent.....................................................................................33 ESC Automation/Delta Controls............................................. OBC ETP Energy Technology Products..............................................33 ETP Service Ltd.............................................................................33

Roofing Contractors Association of British Columbia.............20 Royal Stewart Ltd......................................................................... 41 Schoolhouse Products Inc............................................................23 Soprema Inc...................................................................................39 Sound Solutions Inc...................................................................... 32 Spears Sales & Service Ltd..........................................................28 Time Access Systems Inc............................................................44

Extron Electronics..................................................................24, 25

Topside Consulting (2004) Ltd....................................................42

Fortis B.C....................................................................................... 11

Viessmann Manufacturing Company Inc..................................37

Garaventa Lift B.C........................................................................ 41

Wesclean........................................................................................44

Houle.............................................................................................. 21

Wesco Distribution/Philips Lighting.....................................IFC

IBC Technologies............................................................................ 5

Western Bus Parts & Service Ltd................................................45

Interior Turf Equipment............................................................... 12

Winmar............................................................................................. 7

SUITE 300, 6 ROSLYN ROAD, WINNIPEG, MANITOBA, CANADA

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• • • • • 46

Creative Design Advertising Sales Trade Publications Video Production & Editing Qualified Sales & Editorial Team

Ops Talk • Fall 2017

MACH-ProView

™

LCD

NOW with TRENDview

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Reliable Controls unveils the new MACH-ProView™ LCD with TRENDview. This freely programmable, combination BACnet® Building Controller (B-BC) and BACnet Operator Display (B-OD) resides on Ethernet, Power over Ethernet, Wi-Fi or EIA-485 networks. Backed by an industry-recognized 5 year warranty and a nation-wide network of certified Authorized Dealers, the new MACH-ProView will empower you to stay in touch with your building's performance.

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You’re in safe hands You can be safe in the knowledge that your building automation system is being taken care of by ESC Automation experts. We deliver a comprehensive and meticulous service, from installation to maintenance, ensuring you get a solution that’s right for your building.

Our systems help you manage operating costs effectively by identifying inefficiencies and acting upon them (even remotely) to keep your buildings running smoothly and reduce your energy costs.

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