Past Events

A Cruise up the Highway of Water

It is that time again! BCCR's Summer Social: catch up with friends and colleagues, exchange stories, compare notes and at the same time enjoy a cruise up the Fraser River. The plan is to travel upstream leaving from New Westminster Quay, as far as the Golden Ears Bridge, opened to traffic in October 2009, passing the Pitt River Bridge that was opened to traffic in April 2009 and the site of the ten lane Port Mann crossing that is presently under construction, returning past the Pattullo Bridge which is to be replaced in the next 5 years, and under the 100 year old New Westminster Rail Bridge that is presently being reviewed from both condition and rail capacity points of view to determine its future.

You will see the on-going riverfront developments and marine activities that make the Fraser an integral component of the lower mainland's transportation network.

One of our guides, Ross Gilmour, Project Manager for Kiewit-Flatiron General Partnership, will talk about the $1B Port Mann Bridge portion of the BC MoT Gateway Program.

Join us July 8 on the Paddlewheeler Riverboat and experience the Fraser River at a unique time in its history - 5 new major crossings being constructed within a 10 year period.

Dinner and drinks will be served during the trip. Register early! Space is limited!

The tour is generously sponsored by

The Minefield of Tendering and Requests for Proposals: The Road from Ron Engineering to Tercon Contractors

The recent Supreme Court of Canada decision in Tercon Contractors has owners re-examining their procurement practices. This extended breakfast will review the facts and outcome in the Tercon Contractors case, provide a refresher on the law of tenders/RFP's, discuss the implications of Tercon, the exposure of both owners and of consultants handling the tender/RFP process and talk about various practical issues arising in the procurement process.

Our speaker, Marina Pratchett, is a partner at Fasken Martineau LLP. Her practice is in the area of construction and engineering law. She acts for major public and private owners and developers and large contractors and construction managers in respect of various types of projects including institutional, commercial, industrial, high-rise residential and infrastructure projects. She is also trained and acts as both an arbitrator and mediator of construction disputes.

Marina is a Director and past President of the BC Construction Roundtable.

Join us at this extended breakfast session to learn more about this timely topic.

This event is generously sponsored by

Teaming with BIM
Do the rewards outweigh the risks?

This seminar will bring together industry experts to discuss various applications and experiences of using BIM on actual projects. The focus of the seminar will be on the following areas:

• Introducing fundamental BIM concepts and technologies
• Discussing strategies for organizing BIM projects
• Establishing modeling requirements and responsibilities
• Identifying the challenges and opportunities

Building Information Models (BIMs) include not only 3D geometric models (and, therefore are capable of directly generating 2D and 3D drawings), but also more specific information on a wide range of building elements and systems associated with a building (e.g., wall types, spaces, air handling units, geospatial information, and circulation zones).

Building Information Modeling (BIM) has seen a dramatic growth in adoption rates in recent years. The potential benefits of BIM are numerous: increased productivity, less cost growth, earlier project delivery, enhanced collaboration, less rework, etc. But getting started is not easy. The reality is that BIM adoption is more about process change than technology adoption. So for many, the question is not when to adopt but how - how to get started, how to leverage BIM to its full extent, how to implement BIM in different project environments, and how to set up the necessary processes and protocols to maximize the benefits.

Agenda:

This event is generously sponsored by

Annual General Meeting
The Dynamic Growth of Surrey and The Opportunities for the Construction Sector

Mayor Dianne Watts recently unveiled Phase 2 of Surrey's Economic Investment Action Plan, which includes the multi-million dollar Build Surrey program. The new six-point plan focuses on fostering strong economic growth through capital investment, strategic partnerships and streamlining approvals, and will reinforce Surrey's position as a premier investment location and leader in the sustainability sector. Included in the plan is the development of Surrey City Centre over the next five years transforming the downtown core to create British Columbia's next great cosmopolitan centre. Included in the development will be a new city hall and performing arts centre, flagship library, covered youth park and recreation centre. Guildford, Newton, Fleetwood, South Surrey and Cloverdale will also experience development and opportunities for the construction industry in new facilities.

Jean Lamontagne, General Manager of Planning and Development of British Columbia's fastest growing city, will tell us about the plans to develop new and innovative initiatives to stimulate the economy, create jobs and build sustainable communities. Currently, his team is responsible for the long range and policy planning for the City, current planning which is divided in two teams North and South, building approvals, including building inspections, administration of the tree protection by-law and the planning and operations of all civic facilities.

Retiring director Peter Smith (right) with secretary Bill Frost.

BCIT student Mahdi Askarzadeh (on left) with Arezou Pouria.

UBC student Ali Ghamsari Esfahani (on right) with Roger Woodhead.

From Rips to Retractable: A New Roof for BC Place

For 26 years, BC Place has welcomed visitors and residents alike to British Columbia's biggest celebrations. From sporting events and concerts, to trade and consumer shows, BC Place has hosted more than 26 million guests and generated hundreds of millions of dollars in economic benefit since opening in 1983. Now, work is underway to give this iconic provincial venue a new look and feel, including the largest cable-supported retractable roof of its kind in the world. Revealing over 7500 square metres of clear blue sky, the new roof will transform BC Place into a truly year-round facility and an architectural signature for our province.

Our speaker, David Campbell, is the Engineer of Record and the Principal in Charge of the design and engineering of the new roof for BC Place Stadium, leading an international design team for the project. Early in his career he was a project analyst and designer for the original air-supported roof of the stadium which is now being replaced by innovative cable supported roof with retractable centre oculus.

David Campbell began working with Geiger Associates in 1979 and was made an Associate and head of the Vancouver BC office in 1982. He is one of the founding principals of Geiger Engineers 1988 and has managed the firm as its Chief Executive Officer since its beginning. In over 30 years of engineering practice, he has had a significant role in over 30 large spectator sports facilities. In addition, he has provided construction engineering consulting to contractors for number of major sports buildings. David is chairman of the ASCE Special Structures Committee and has authored numerous technical papers on longspan and tensile membrane structures.

This event is sponsored by:

TransLink: Future Plans for Transit in the Region

Late in 2009, TransLink secured an additional $130 million of revenue annually that allowed them to maintain current service levels and meet the ongoing financial obligations made in previous years. The additional funding does not allow the expansion program needed to keep pace with population forecasts for Metro Vancouver or the sustainability objectives and goals for the region. But there is still a significant amount of work, both underway and being planned, to position TransLink for the expansion of services so desperately needed.

Fred Cummings, VP Engineering and Implementation will provide an update of current programs and projects for 2010, and will highlight what's on the horizon for TransLink. With a focus on opportunities for the design and construction industry, Fred will also provide a description of some recent organizational changes and the new roles TransLink's subsidiary companies will be playing.

Fred Cummings was recently named Vice President, Engineering and Implementation, at TransLink. Previously, he served as the Vice President of Major Construction Projects, a position he held since 2006. Prior to that, he was the Project Director for the Golden Ears Bridge. He currently serves on the Evergreen Line Project Board, and is responsible for the implementation of TransLink's capital program including the replacement of the Pattullo Bridge, the introduction of a regional smart card and the implementation of controlled access faregates on Metro Vancouver's transit system.

The Coast Meridian Overpass
An Incremental Launching of a Cable Stay Steel Superstructure

In early 2008, KWH partnered with SNC-Lavalin Constructors Pacific (SLCP) and with SLCP Consulting Design Engineers & International Bridge Technologies of San Diego, and embarked on an ambitious incremental launching effort for the Coast Meridian Overpass design-build project. The goal was to incrementally launch a cable-stay steel superstructure

The Coast Meridian Overpass is the first "incrementally launched" cable-stayed steel bridge in North America. The steel structure is hydraulically pushed over the CP Rail yard's 50+ rail tracks. The structure is launched in 5 different intervals as the bridge gets added to, each section being longer that it's predecessor. The final launch "push" was 450 meters long and weighed over 4600 tonnes. This innovative construction method has overcome many constraints holding back this essential structure which will allow a divided city to come together.

Speakers:
Mike Christian - Quality Manager, SLCP
Mike Christian has over 12 years experience on various major construction projects. Mike works for SNC Lavalin who is amongst the largest and most comprehensive engineering construction firms in North America.

Chris Hall - Senior Bridge Engineer, IBT.
Chris Hall was the lead design engineer on the Coast Meridian Overpass Project with over 15 years of experience in the design of complex and cable supported structures.

Robert Gale (Chief Bridge Engineer) KWH Constructors + Rob Third (Director) George Third & Son
KWH Constructors, a Division of George Third & Son Steel Fabricators, have been erecting and launching steel bridge superstructures, and erecting other complex structures, for more than 20 years. KWH Constructors recently received international acclaim in 2007 for launching the horizontally curved steel superstructure of the Kicking Horse Canyon Park Bridge for the Trans-Canada Highway in a mountainous, isolated region in the province of British Columbia.