NEWS FEATURE

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ONTARIO LAUNCHES SKILLED TRADES ONTARIO The Government of Ontario officially launched Skilled Trades Ontario on January 25th, a new crown agency to replace the former Ontario College of Trades to improve trades training and simplify services.

The new agency is expected to promote and market the trades, develop the latest in training and curriculum standards, and provide a streamlined user-friendly experience for tradespeople. The goal of the changes is to result in more workers for in-demand jobs and prepare Ontario for a strong economic comeback.

The new online services will help apprentices manage their careers in one place with online access for scheduling classes and exams, submitting forms, paying fees and more.

Ontario is hopeful the changes will reduce the skilled labour shortage the province currently faces – estimated to reach 350,000 by 2025 – by making it easier for more people to learn about and enter the trades, including reducing processing and registration times for applicants from 60 days to 12.

“We’re redrawing the system to address Ontario’s labour shortage and make the trades a career of choice for more people,” said Monte McNaughton, Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development. “By creating this new agency, we are working for workers and delivering the generational change that labour leaders and employers have been calling for.”

An independent Board of Directors will lead the agency in delivering on the government’s Skilled Trades Strategy to break the stigma surrounding the trades, simplify the system, and encourage employers to hire more apprentices.

Ontario predicts by 2025, one in five jobs will be in the trades. Data suggests the need to replace retiring workers is greater for trades workers than other occupations. In 2016, nearly one in three journeypersons in Ontario were aged 55 or older. skilledtradesontario.ca

Monte McNaughton

HRAI AND ESCO INSTITUTE TO DEVELOP NEW REFRIGERANT SAFETY PROGRAM HRAI and the ESCO Institute have jointly developed a Low GWP (global warming potential) Refrigerant Safety Program for the Canadian market. As many new low GWP refrigerants coming to market are mildly flammable (A2L), additional safety precautions and protocols are expected to be followed during the learning experience.

The new program will be made available online and include an assessment component to give HVAC/R professionals a chance to learn how to safely handle, store, transport, and service new systems.

Consulted industry stakeholders unanimously agreed that the training should be mandatory for tenured technicians and uniform across all provinces. HRAI has begun discussions with some provincial regulators to make this a reality.

HRAI anticipates the program to launch in June 2022. hrai.ca

ENERCARE ACQUIRES SYLES MECHANICAL SERVICES Enercare has acquired Syles Mechanical Services, a residential and commercial HVAC, plumbing and electrical services provider located in Tecumseh, Ontario.

Syles has been in business for more than 50 years. The addition will see Enercare’s presence in Southwestern Ontario expand by more than 55 employees, along with a fleet of 30 service vehicles.

“Part of the reason Enercare has grown is because we have been quite mindful and deliberate in building relationships with a long-term view,” says Enercare senior vice president Nick Perreten. “As we seek to grow, we’re constantly looking at relationships with businesses that will allow us to provide even greater value to customers and communities.”

Enercare, based in Ontario, is one of North America’s largest residential and commercial HVAC/plumbing service companies with approximately 5,000 employees under its Enercare and Service Experts brands in Canada and the U.S. enercare.ca

VERSION 6 OF THE BEST SOFTWARE AVAILABLE The Hydronic Industry AllianceCommercial (HIA-C), a committee of the Radiant Professionals Alliance (RPA), has released version 6.0 of its free Building Efficiency System Tool (BEST), an interactive commercial building HVAC system efficiency comparison application.

Now available for download, the revised software adds the ability to compare projected costs and energy usage for all HVAC systems and hot water consumption in any building based on what is known, and almost all inputs may be adjusted once the design process begins.

The new version includes the ability to model multiple heating and cooling sources. This enables modeling of all electric systems using cascaded heat pumps and backup fossil fuel sources and more. HIA-C.org