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President’s Message - Business Picking Up In Summer Months
By VINCE DI GAETANO, MCA Toronto President
MCA Toronto is pleased to announce that we and our industry partners at the United Association of Plumbers, Steamfitters and Welders have reached a Provincial Agreement for 2010 to 2013. As partners, we believe we have reached consensus on several items that will make us even more competitive in this growing market. We look forward to serving our industry and our customers as we move into the summer months. Since January 2010 the MCA Toronto man-hours have been lower than in past years. However, our members have reported that the work load is certainly showing signs of huge growth as the summer progresses. Hopefully, this increase will proceed into the fall and winter as well. ... read more...

Building Information Modeling (BIM) Revolutionizing the global M construction industry.
The key to any successful project is clear, concise understanding between architects, engineers, construction professionals, facility managers and owners. Today, Building Information Modeling (BIM) is breaking down barriers and bridging communication between extended design and construction teams, providing consistent and reliable information across the scope of a project. BIM is an integrated process that improves project understanding and allows for predictable outcomes. This visibility enables all project team members to stay coordinated, improve accuracy, reduce waste and make informed decisions earlier in the process – helping to ensure the project’s success. The process produces the Building Information Model which encompasses building geometry, spatial relationships, geographic information, and quantities and properties of building components. In addition to creating in 3D, BIM also offers three additional elements in virtual construction – scheduling capabilities, cost estimating and life-cycle management... read more...

Blitz On Young and New Workers
Ministry of Labour (MOL) inspectors will focus on young and new workers over the next four months. Starting in May and continuing until August, inspectors will pay particular attention to young and new workers in multiple sectors – including construction... read more...

Young Workers - What factors put young workers at risk?
By JOHN SAMMUT, CRSP, Manager, Training & Advisory, CSAO
A young worker is defined by Statistics Canada as a person between the ages of 16 and 24. Comparing young workers (16 to 24) to older workers (25 to 65) reveals a correlation between injuries and age.
Why are young workers at greater risk than older workers?  Type of industry in one factor. High-risk sectors such as construction tend to create unfamiliar hazards for young workers. In the year 2000, young workers in Ontario construction accounted for 1084 (18 per cent) lost-time injuries out of the industry total for all ages of 5998. The frequency of these injuries decreased among older age groups in the industry... read more...

New CSA Standard Helps Protect Canadians Working In Confined Spaces
Every day on Canadian job sites, the failure to recognize a workspace as a confined space, or understand its related hazards, has the potential to lead to significant injury or death for workers and first responders. Today, CSA Standards officially announces CSA Z1006 Management of Work in Confined Spaces, a new standard that specifies requirement and guidelines for managing work in confined spaces and coordinating rescues... read more...

CSA, ASME and ASSE Sign Harmonization Agreement Requirements For Selected Plumbing Components
Three premier North American standards development organizations, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), the American Society of Sanitary Engineering (ASSE), and CSA Standards have signed an agreement to harmonize five standards concerning automatic compensating valves, anti-siphon fill valves, trap seal primers, pressurized flushing devices (flushometers), and water temperature limiting devices. The harmonization agreement is designed to help bring clarity to the plumbing community, especially to the manufacturers of devices covered by the harmonized standards... read more...

A Review of ICI Activity in 2009 and Future Prospects for 2010
By RISHI SONDHI, Construction Information Coordinator, OCS
The recession which devastated Ontario’s economy in 2009 is officially over. In the words of the famous musician Jim Morrison: "This is the end… my only friend, the end. "Indeed, a wide range of indicators, from retail spending to housing sales, have shown that the worst is well behind us. Keeping in mind that interest rates in some markets are close to zero (negative if you factor in inflation) and that the stimulus spending will likely ramp up this year, it’s safe to say that the risks of a double-dip recession are almost nonexistent for 2010... read more...

BILL 168 - Countdown to Compliance and the New Obligations for Ontario Employers
Ontario employers face a deadline to ensure that appropriate policies and training, which address the new requirements imposed by Bill 168 and the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA), are in place and completed by June 15, 2010. The amendments introduce a new, comprehensive approach to addressing violence and harassment in the workplace through policy and procedure. What follows are answers to some Frequently Asked Questions regarding the new requirements...  read more...

The WSIB 2014 Funding Plan - Why it Failed
As the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) is about to tackle the state of the board’s financial health in earnest, a question that must be addressed is this: Why is it that after almost 30 years of tackling the unfunded liability ["UFL"] the UFL appears to be as much a problem today as it was in 1984?  At the Queen’s Park Standing Committee on Public Accounts on Feb. 24, 2010, the committee’s Chair, MPP Norm Sterling (Carleton-Mississippi Mills), put it this way: "I was in Bill Davis’s cabinet in 1984 when we had this 30-year plan to solve it (the UFL) in 2014, and we appear to be no further ahead now."  I have been pushing for what I have termed a "Funding Summit" for about a year-and-a-half now. I first raised the suggestion in November 2008. Seventeen months have passed since then and while I fully expect that the Board will eventually journey down that road, much valuable time has been lost... read more...

MCAT 2010  Safety Committee