Sustainability fund carries lasting values

A newly launched sustainability fund will carry Elaina Tattersdale’s name, paying tribute to her memory and her commitment to commercial real estate operations that respect the environment and well-being of building occupants. The initiative of the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM) Foundation has been launched with a $50,000 donation from 2020 IREM president Cheryl Gray and her husband Rick, in honour of their daughter.

“It was important for us, as a family, to honour Elaina’s short time here with something that had meaning to her,” Cheryl says. “Elaina’s legacy will be to encourage those in the industry to improve the environmental footprint that the buildings we manage have on our world.”

A young real estate professional and mother of two daughters, Elaina was an enterprise project manager with Morguard Investments prior to her illness and untimely death earlier this year. The new sustainability fund will align with efforts to reduce consumption of resources, boost recycling and enhance wellness within commercial real estate. In keeping with Elaina’s philosophy that every positive action contributes to an ultimate better outcome, the fund will provide support for a range of projects, big and small.

The IREM Foundation was established in 1977 as a non-profit charitable organization, sharing IREM’s mission to advance the real estate management profession. It sponsors scholarships, specialized funds and recognition programs that place a priority on diversity, supporting young professionals and expanding knowledge and skills for all industry practitioners. Donations in Elaina’s memory are welcome.

“We’re honoured to be entrusted with Elaina’s legacy by supporting sustainability in the real estate industry,” affirms Denise Froemming, executive director of the IREM Foundation.

World’s largest rooftop farm under construction

Construction of the world’s largest rooftop farm is set to complete by March 2020. Lufa Farms’ fourth commercial rooftop greenhouse, located in the borough of Saint-Laurent, will measure 163,800 square feet equal to about three football fields. Construction began in September 2019.

This greenhouse repurposes an existing industrial rooftop to further their vision of growing food where people live and doing so sustainably. “With each greenhouse, we hold ourselves to an ever-higher standard for sustainable design. Our new farm will be the most energy efficient to date and integrate all our learnings from the last 10 years to responsibly grow more vegetables for Lufavores year-round,” says Lauren Rathmell, co-founder and greenhouse director.

The greenhouse will feature double-paned glass and two sets of energy-saving screens for improved insulation, and its integration with the building below provides additional thermal benefit to both structures. The greenhouse will also capture rainwater to be used in the closed-loop irrigation system, as well as offset waste with an on-site composting system. At this fourth and largest site, Lufa Farms will be growing eggplants and more than ten unique tomato varieties without the use of synthetic pesticides.

Lufa Farms’ most recent greenhouse will have a greater surface area than their three current greenhouses combined.

“This rooftop greenhouse will double our growing capacity and allow us to feed 2% of Montreal with fresh, local vegetables. It’s an unbelievable step forward for hyper-local, sustainable urban farming,” says Mohamed Hage, co-founder and CEO.

This milestone also coincides with the tenth anniversary of Lufa Farms’ founding in 2009.

Not all noise nuisances require a remedy

Noise complaints are a prevalent and challenging problem for facility managers. While the most common are related to a loud residential or commercial neighbour, the source of annoying sounds may be environmental (air, rail or road traffic), generated by building-related equipment (HVAC, plumbing or electrical systems), or occupant-induced or controlled (speech, physical activity, entertainment systems).

Pump up the Volume

Two factors affect the sound (or annoyance) level of noise: the sound power produced at the noise source; and the distance and path the noise takes to the point of complaint. Sound and vibration energy can travel long distances, in all directions, and through air, water, wood, concrete and metal. Airborne sound, travelling as air pressure waves, can enter a living space or workplace through small hidden gaps and openings found around piping, ductwork and electrical junctures. Structure-borne sound, on the other hand, can travel through solid building materials, such as ceilings, floors and walls. This can be problematic (and particularly disruptive) when a commercial business, such as a fitness or childcare centre, restaurant or bar, is situated above, below or beside a typically quiet space like a spa or corporate boardroom.

A Healthy Dose of Sound

Complaints about noise do not necessarily mean there is a building deficiency. Some audible noise from building systems or adjacent units is normal for a typical commercial property and does not warrant the implementation of noise control measures. So, before embarking on a potentially complicated (and expensive) investigation into the noise nuisance, it may be worthwhile to consult an acoustical engineer who can determine whether the noise is unreasonable for the building type and whether it is due to excessive sound transmission.

In multi-residential buildings, airborne sound transmission limits are set by the building code. The limits are expressed as sound transmission class (STC) ratings. The higher the rating, the better the sound isolation. The Ontario Building Code, for example, requires a STC rating of 50 as a minimum acceptable value for wall construction and STC 55 in specific areas. The National Building Code of Canada requires an apparent sound transmission class (ASTC) rating of 47, which accounts for flanking paths, instead of STC 50.

Frequently, an acoustical assessment will find that the walls or floor assemblies meet building code standards. These requirements are sometimes lower than occupants’ expectations of quiet enjoyment of their property, resulting in disbelief that they do not support their contention and frustration.

Code compliant wall and floor assemblies often provide sound insulation that is good for high frequencies, reasonable for mid-frequencies and generally fair to poor for lower frequencies. This means voices, which are higher frequency, are typically not heard or are unintelligible, while the deep, low frequency rumbles of an entertainment system’s subwoofers can penetrate structural barriers and be heard despite the wall or floor being to code. Even for high and mid-frequencies, code compliance does not guarantee inaudibility, which also depends on the sound levels on the source and the background sound levels on the receiver side.

Clamouring For Quiet

Unfortunately, there are no criteria set out in the building code regarding sound levels and sound transmission in commercial spaces. It is often up to the discretion of the developer, building owner or facility manager to determine whether a nuisance noise should be remedied, unless limits and restrictions have been set out in a lease agreement. These may be expressed as STC and/or IIC (impact isolation class) ratings, or overall sound levels in decibels (DBA).

Potential noise intrusion issues can be anticipated before, and noise mitigation recommendations incorporated into, a lease agreement to ensure noise and vibration does not, under practical circumstances, intrude into other spaces.

In the case of a fitness club looking to rent space in a commercial building, for example, an acoustical engineer can create scenarios in order to assess the potential for sound and vibration intrusion from physical activities into adjacent tenanted areas. These scenarios may involve using a PA system in the space to recreate the rhythm, amplitude and frequency content characteristics of a typical cardio workout class, including the music played during the exercise routines.

Similar conditions can be created in areas to be used for aerobics, treadmills and weights. Analysis may indicate the need for suitable floor slab stiffeners and isolated flooring to mitigate perceptible vibration or structure-borne noise in adjacent tenanted spaces.

Since the potential for audible structure-borne noise from fitness activities can be difficult to predict, the acoustical engineer may also recommend including best practices for laying floor systems in the lease agreement. Basically, an appropriate resilient underlayment should be installed below the subfloor (usually wood, though concrete is sometimes required) before the surface floor covering (typically a sports rubber flooring) is laid. This technique is effective in controlling or damping sounds in a fitness facility located in a building with ‘sensitive’ occupant neighbours.

Racket Record

To ensure timely investigation by an acoustical consultant and a potentially more economical assessment and mitigation solution (if mandated), it is recommended that facility managers keep a noise log that tracks the time, frequency and characteristics of noise occurrences. While the complainant should input this information, facility management is ultimately responsible for maintaining the log. It should be regularly reviewed and used as a tool to investigate whether there may be any corresponding occurrences far removed from, or seemingly unrelated to, the occupant’s unit. This may lead to the origin or cause of the noise issue in question.

For instance, mechanical equipment (HVAC systems, pumps, motors and chillers, backup generators, elevators, and garbage compactors, among others) can generate enough vibration that, if not properly vibration-isolated, may radiate throughout the building as structure-borne noise. Occupants may perceive this as a neighbouring noise problem, however, the source is actually far removed in a remote part of the building and the sound only occurs at certain times related to that piece of equipment.

Jessica Tinianov is a senior acoustical engineer at HGC Engineering. The acoustical consulting group specializes in the analysis and design of noise and vibration controls for building services, and architectural design for residential, commercial and institutional spaces, including acoustic optimization, sound intelligibility and privacy solutions

Young leaders elected to VICA board of directors

The Vancouver Island Construction Association (VICA) and its membership elected four industry leaders to its 2019-2020 board of directors at its annual general meeting. There were nine nominees from across Vancouver Island.

Chris Williams, Houle Electric (Victoria), and Byron Tarby, National Contracting Solutions (Nanaimo), were newly elected to the VICA board of directors. James Clapp, JLT Marsh Specialty (Victoria), and Scott Torry, AFC Construction (Courtenay), were re-elected. Roger Yager will remain chair of the board and Dave Flint, Flynn Canada, will remain past chair. James Clapp is poised to be appointed vice chair at the first board meeting of 2020 after serving his second term on the board as the treasurer.

Tarby and Williams are both involved in the VICA U40 networks in their respective regions and will offer a fresh perspective to the board as it offers guidance and leadership on behalf of the VICA membership. Their fresh outlook on VICA’s member and industry services, combined with the knowledge and experience from the existing board of directors, sets the construction association up for further growth, development, and industry advocacy.

“I’m thrilled to see some young industry leaders joining the VICA board of directors this year, giving us a well-balanced leadership team in terms of experience and business types. Top that off with a thriving construction industry on Vancouver Island and a dedicated and diligent team at the association, and we’re set up for another year of growth and enhanced member services,” said Rory Kulmala, Chief Executive Officer, Vancouver Island Construction Association

This year, VICA introduced online voting for the election of the 2019/2020 VICA board of directors, offering members an easy way to cast a vote for their elected industry leaders from the office, jobsite, or home.

Outgoing directors include Keith Parsonage, Houle Electric (past vice chair), Tyler Galbraith, Jenkins Marzban Logan LLP, and Marnie Pringle, Starline Windows.

AI-driven energy management platforms

The apartment rental landscape is changing. Utility costs are rising, creating the need for improved energy management. And while inflated home ownership costs are driving increased rental demand, a fact that might suggest more profitable investment returns for owners of apartment buildings, the growing cost of utilities is an ongoing challenge to building management bottom lines.

In the coming years, for instance, electrical costs in Canada are forecasted to increase dramatically. A report from the Canadian Gas Association suggests national Canadian energy costs will increase by approximately $580 billion and $1.4 trillion between 2020 and 2050. Inflation like this applies significant pressure on both apartment building owners and their operational budgets.

We know that buildings, especially multifamily dwellings, consume a tremendous amount of energy. In fact, all of Canada’s buildings make up approximately 33 per cent of the country’s energy use. We also know that the cost of energy consumption can make up 30 – 40 per cent of an apartment building’s operating budget. This energy (electricity and gas) is primarily consumed by the building’s heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment.

Given the forecasted increases in energy costs, traditional means of managing energy consumption and costs will quickly become unsustainable. This is a staggering amount of a building’s operational budget being consumed by electricity, gas and water. Maintaining profitability will require more efficient energy management solutions. When current property management practices intersect with emerging technologies, we have the potential for significant energy savings, improved comfort and enhanced mechanical service response.

Property technology

Using information technology (IT) to increase property efficiency and tenant engagement is known as property technology—or, “proptech”. It’s a new approach to more traditional, manual building operations and tenant engagement methods. In this case, proptech is modernizing apartment building boiler rooms and streamlining manual monitoring of apartment energy use, temperature control and equipment performance.

For both new and tenured property managers, exploring property technology that can help improve building operations financially and mechanically can seem intimidating at first. Where do you start? What is the best investment for your tenants and the age and style of your building? Retrofits are costly, solar panels are a big investment and not practical, and installation of some solutions can potentially be intrusive for tenants.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and big data have made their way into many aspects of our lives. Energy management platforms (EMPs) are no different. EMPs attach to existing HVAC equipment, collecting data about a building’s energy use and the AI “learns” about the building, helping to identify and address opportunities for improved efficiency. Even dated boiler rooms and equipment can typically accommodate these smart systems.

How do EMPs work?

During an initial assessment building experts can identify what energy capacity a property currently has, where inefficiencies exist and, with the correct software implementation and efficiency equations, what opportunities there are for a property to realize energy and energy cost savings in the future.

Once the assessment has been completed and reviewed with the apartment building owner, installation can begin. Installation involves attaching smart sensors and controllers to current equipment, all of which requires very little capital investment in comparison to a full equipment retrofit.

With new sensors collecting the building’s operational and energy use data, information is sent to the cloud. There, it uses advanced algorithms to calculate the best HVAC settings for the building under various conditions. A lean hardware automation system is all that is needed to carry out dynamic changes that can be generated from the cloud. The changes in the building can typically be undertaken in less than a month with virtually no disruption in building operation.

Greater visibility

Like anything that’s learning to perform better, a report card on performance can demonstrate areas where there have been significant improvements made. EMPs can produce a monthly savings report that illustrates savings and energy performance. Keeping tabs on building operations manually is both inefficient and impractical. Ensuring management has a pulse on a building’s internal nervous system is key to smoothly operating a contemporary property, ensuring focus can be redirected to more immediate resident needs. Having greater visibility into a building’s energy performance offers managers peace of mind.

Improved operational efficiency can also mean an overall better value rating for your property. Assessing the value of your apartment building and measuring it against your current operational budget might reveal how much value can be gained by making smart business investments into technological modifications.

As 2020 nears, apartment building owners are faced with revaluating budgets for the upcoming fiscal year, and evaluating what areas of investment are worth time and money. Incorporating smart, AI-driven technology into your future operational plans can help produce better financial returns. Going into 2020 with better savings projections is certainly an attractive way to ring in both a new year and a new approach to efficient energy management.

For more information, visit http://www.paritygo.com

Smaller buildings spared Ontario benchmarking

Owners of smaller commercial and multi-residential buildings in Ontario will still be welcome to voluntarily share energy and water consumption data, but a looming deadline for mandatory disclosure has been withdrawn. A recently announced move to halt the phased rollout of the provincial energy and water reporting and benchmarking (EWRB) program comes just ahead of the scheduled 2020 inclusion of buildings in the 50,000 to 99,999-square-foot range.

“It probably makes sense to take a pause to scrutinize the data they’ve collected from larger buildings thus far and really understand what it is showing,” suggests Tony Irwin, president and chief executive officer of the Federation of Rental-housing Providers of Ontario (FRPO). “That data still has not been released to the public.”

The move is part of a package of initiatives proposed in, or promised in conjunction with, omnibus legislation introduced in late October. Bill 132, the Better for People, Smarter of Business Act, would amend or repeal dozens of provincial statutes, while accompanying government documentation also promises numerous complementary regulatory changes that don’t require legislative approval and aren’t specifically referenced in the bill. The latter includes adjustments to the EWRB rules.

Under the regulation, 2017 consumption data for commercial buildings of at least 250,000 square feet had to be submitted no later than July 1, 2018; 2018 data for commercial and multi-residential buildings of at least 100,000 square feet was due by July 1, 2019. Approximately 9,000 buildings tagged for the third phase are now released from the requirement to submit 2019 consumption data.

“For smaller building owners with fewer staffing resources, the reporting requirements can be burdensome,” an associated Ontario government backgrounder maintains. “The affected group of smaller building owners could save up to a total of $2.7 million from this change.”

This group was already exempt from third-party verification stipulations placed on larger properties. The regulation requires verification from a qualified person — “such as a certified energy manager, building operator, measurement and verification professional or commissioning agent” — in the first year, and at subsequent five-year intervals, that data is submitted for buildings of at least 100,000 square feet.

Industry insiders speculate that smaller landlords were perhaps more nervous about enforced comparison with their peers. “They were concerned that the data gathered from the reporting would be used in future to impose a form of carbon tax depending on whether they performed better or worse than prescribed benchmarks drawn from data submitted,” says Joe Hoffer, a partner and specialist in residential tenancy and municipal law with Cohen Highley LLP.

This is the second time the Ontario government has tinkered with the regulation since taking office. Last year, as part of the Green Energy Repeal Act, EWRB was among select provisions transferred to the Electricity Act to be retained beyond the demise of the original enabling legislation. The Bill 132 backgrounder appears to echo that earlier endorsement.

“The Energy and Water Reporting and Benchmarking program allows building owners to review a building’s energy and water use and compare its own past performance and the performance of other similar buildings,” it states. “Having access to this information helps them manage energy and water usage and costs to make decisions on cost-effective investments for future energy efficiency upgrades.”

Since reporting occurs via ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager, access will remain straightforward for owners/managers of smaller properties who opt to do so voluntarily. However, energy management specialists caution that voluntary opt-in will likely diminish the insight that could otherwise be gleaned from buildings in the 50,000 to 99,999-square-foot range.

“For those who don’t benchmark their buildings or use the reporting tools, they won’t know where they stand versus their peers. For those who use the tools, the reporting will be less valuable with a smaller number of buildings to compare themselves against,” says Rob Detta Colli, manager, energy and sustainability, with Crossbridge Condominium Services.

Barbara Carss is editor-in-chief of Canadian Property Management.

The Second City moving to One York complex

Toronto’s legendary comedy venue The Second City will be settling into its new home at One York by the end of next year, bringing a piece of history to a young and modern complex near the waterfront.

The company plans to build out multiple comedy theatres for live performance across the 28,700-square-foot space on the third-floor retail podium, with a games-driven bar and restaurant. This will also be home to the Toronto branch of its improvisation-based arts school, which has outposts in Hollywood and Chicago, where it first opened in 1959.

The Toronto location opened its doors in the mid-1970s and is currently at 51 Mercer Street in the Entertainment District.

“The Second City is excited to break ground on three new state-of-the-art theatres, as well as provide increased classroom space for our ever-growing Second City Training Centre, which serves thousands of students of all ages every year,” said D’Arcy Stuart, chief operating officer of The Second City. “This is also a prime opportunity for us to add dynamic multi-use spaces to accommodate groups, meetings, celebrations, and events of all sizes. We are excited to be part of the Menkes vision for the South Core.”

One York is a two million-square-foot complex near Union Station, owned by The Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan (HOOPP) Realty Inc. and developed by Menkes. It includes a 35-story Class AAA office tower, two 70- and 66-storey condominium towers known as Harbour Plaza Residences, a four-story retail podium with 170,000 square feet of commercial retail space, and a four-level underground parking garage.

“The Second City will be the perfect addition to this mixed-use complex, adding entertainment to our exceptional list of retail tenants, and further solidifying One York Street’s position as the ultimate, live, work, play environment,” added Peter Menkes, president commercial/industrial.

UBC ditching single-use coffee cups, plastic food ware

UBC Vancouver will soon have less garbage to clean up across its campus.

The school is ditching plastic food ware and a popular student staple, single-use coffee cups, while encouraging students, faculty and staff to choose reusable options such as their own mugs, water bottles and cutlery.

The move is part of UBC’s Zero Waste Food Ware Strategy—adopted in June 2019—aimed at keeping as many single-use coffee cups, plastic straws, bags and cutlery out of landfills and the environment as possible. Straws will still be available upon request for accessibility purposes.

“Single-use plastic is a global problem that every community is tackling differently,” says Bud Fraser, planning and sustainability engineer at UBC. “As a long-standing leader in global sustainability, UBC has an opportunity to lead the region in reducing single-use items and to make an impact far beyond our community. This is an important step toward a zero waste future for food and beverage on campus.”

Starting in January, all food and beverage retailers on campus will be required to charge customers a separate fee for single-use items—initially coffee cups—to encourage the transition to reusable food ware. To avoid paying the fee, consumers can bring their own travel mug or choose to enjoy their drink in the store using a reusable mug.

Retailers—not UBC—will determine the single-use cup fee, which must be at least 25 cents, and will collect the fees. Retailers will determine how to use the fees, which may include applying them to offset the extra cost associated with transitioning to different products.

Retailers will also move toward offering smarter, more sustainable materials for single-use items, such as wooden cutlery that will be available upon request, and will discontinue certain items, such as foam cups and plastic bags. Customers are encouraged to bring their own cutlery. Improved in-store recycling bins and signage are also part of the strategy.

“Our largest food retailer, UBC Food Services, has already successfully implemented some of these changes, and the new strategy offers a unique opportunity to further reduce waste by extending these successful requirements to the wide range of retailers across campus,” says Victoria Wakefield, purchasing manager at UBC Student Housing and Hospitality Services. “With an aligned strategy that details how food is packaged and served, all UBC food and beverage retailers are able to participate and help elevate our zero waste activities to the level our students and the wider community are demanding.”

Cowbell Brewing wins SFI Certified Wood Award

Cowbell Brewing Co. won the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) Certified Wood Award for using responsibly sourced wood products in the design of North America’s first carbon neutral brewery. The award is part of the Wood Design & Building Awards program. Allan Avis Architects received the award at the Toronto Wood Solutions Fair in Toronto on November 22.

Cowbell chose SFI-certified products for this beautiful brewery, restaurant and event space south of Blyth, a village in southwestern Ontario. It features a closed-loop brewery and an on-site carbon sequestration initiative.

Cowbell’s accessible, family-friendly farm covers 45 hectares and the building covers 2,400 square metres. Situated on a former working cattle farm, the Cowbell Brewing building and property were intentionally designed to recognize the farming heritage in Huron County. This heritage includes architectural style, but also building materials. Historically, barns in Huron County were constructed of stone and timber frames, built to withstand the test of time.

“We were excited to receive this award after the years of hard work and effort it took to complete this one-of-a-kind build,” said Jason Morgan, project architect at Allan Avis Architects Inc. “Cowbell Brewing said from day one that this destination brewery had to be authentic, which included the mandate that we be stewards of the land, having a keen awareness of the impact the building would have on the environment.”

Using certified wood-based building materials to enhance human health and well-being, address climate change, conserve biodiversity, and provide supply chain assurance was at the heart of the Cowbell Brewery design.

“The Cowbell Brewery is a prime example of wood’s versatility and appeal. Builders and architects use wood because it looks great, it’s easy to work with and it comes from a renewable resource,” said Annie Perkins, senior director of Strategic Partnerships at SFI Inc. “This project is also an example of SFI’s work to support solutions to global sustainability challenges through forest-focused collaborations including responsible sourcing and green buildings.”

The SFI Award is part of the only North American program to recognize, award and publicize excellence in wood architecture. The Wood Design Awards program from Wood WORKS! is a national industry led initiative of the Canadian Wood Council.

Flexible workspace is changing Canada’s suburbs

The trend of flexible working is having a profound impact on suburban areas outside of big cities, creating jobs and boosting local economies, according to new research commissioned by Regus.

The study, one of the first to examine the socio-economic impact of flexible workspaces in secondary cities and suburban locations, looked at 19 countries, including Canada.

It revealed that about 144 new jobs are created in Canadian communities that contain a flexible workspace. This can generate $29.55 million in gross value added per year, of which $17.62 million goes directly into the local economy. In the next decade, local contributions could amount to $13.7 billion annually if the trend keeps up, with communities across the country seeing more than three million jobs by 2029.

As big companies adopt flexible working policies in favour of the central HQ model, they are locating more employees to flex spaces outside of major urban hubs. For most, the objective is to improve employee wellbeing, save money and boost productivity.

“This study reveals a shift in jobs and capital-growth moving outside of city centres, where it has been focused for the last few decades, into suburban locations,” said Steve Lucas of Development Economics, and report author. “This can benefit businesses and people, from improving productivity and innovation, to reducing commuting time, which leads to improved health and wellbeing.”

Access to a local office space is expected to save Canadian workers a combined 9,348 hours (389 days) per year. Persons with disabilities and those taking on care-giver roles could also find more work opportunities with such convenient office space.

Convenient office space has a further societal advantage, by providing working opportunities to people who might otherwise be unable to travel to an office. This could include disabled people, as well as those with caring responsibilities. As the labour markets tighten, local flexible workspaces could open new routes to top talent.

Economists found that an individual flexible workspace or co-working centre in suburbia can not only create jobs outside the centre for people who live nearby, but also fuel local businesses and services and form a “sandwich economy.”

“Access to flexible workspaces in smaller markets keeps spending power closer to home,” says Wayne Berger, CEO, IWG Canada and Latin America (IWG owns Regus). “We’re seeing an increase in demand from companies of all sizes for flexible space in smaller cities and towns. Larger businesses are opting for a ‘hub and spoke’ real estate model, while smaller enterprises want to cluster and collaborate — so many are choosing flexible workspaces close to home.”

If current trends towards regional flexible working continues, these communities could see more than three million jobs created by 2029, the equivalent to a city the size of Montreal.

Committed to commercial restoration

Fires, floods, and other disasters pose as much threat to commercial properties as they do to residential. This is especially true when the costs of damaged assets, disrupted operations, and lost business are added up.

“Depending on the business, being offline for an extended amount of time could result in hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost revenue, if not more,” says Beck Wells, Vice President of Commercial Operations with FirstOnSite Restoration. “There’s a real need in the commercial restoration industry for dedicated, timely, and efficient disaster recovery services.”

That can be easier said than done – especially in situations where disaster recovery crews are challenged to split their focus between large volumes of residential calls and commercial jobs with greater scope.

“Residential and commercial restoration jobs can be very different,” adds Wells. “The project management required for a large manufacturing plant that has had its roof blown off is quite different than a basement of a residence that has been flooded. While you may have a commercial project management team that can handle that warehouse job, when they are receiving 40 other residential jobs at the same time, they will not be able to give their full attention to the commercial project.”

A dedicated team for commercial
Certainly, commercial recovery projects often require the dedication of a singularly focused team. Recognizing this, FirstOnSite formed a “Complex Commercial Team” in 2018 that is focused solely on providing dedicated disaster recovery services within the commercial space. In so doing, the firm can allocate specific crews for both residential and commercial jobs while avoiding the challenges that can come with attempting to respond to both sectors at the same time.

To support its Complex Commercial Team, FirstOnSite has also invested in a Large Loss Team, which can be called in to tackle projects that require a committed team for the largest scale and longer projects.

“Our Complex Team handles the day to day commercial work while our Large Loss Team can step in to handle a larger, long-tail project,” says Wells. “They could be there for a couple of months or even a year when needed, but the focus is that they provide their expertise from start to finish on projects that take longer to complete without distractions. Meanwhile, the Complex Team is still actively handling day-to-day commercial work so that our customers receive the service they deserve.”

“There are two different areas of focus within our commercial division because there are two different needs,” he adds. “Jobs are responded to immediately, and can be seamlessly transitioned to the best-suited teams and experts.”

No simple tasks
There is no such thing as a ‘typical’ job in commercial restoration. Project priorities and considerations will differ between each property and can be informed by anything from the nature of the business (e.g., retail, industrial, office), the scale of the damage, or the clients themselves. Herein, there is a benefit to having commercially-focused experts at the ready and deeply familiar with the challenges that await them.

“Commercial jobs are complex. It’s not as simple as going in and cleaning up a basement; you need to know the customer’s business priorities,” explains Wells, adding, “We may walk in and think we know what needs immediate attention, but our client may, in fact, say, ‘Actually, we need that assembly line taken care of first,’ So it’s about paying special attention to our customer’s needs in order to protect their business and reputation.”

Spreading the word
To date, FirstOnSite’s Complex and Large Loss Teams have been called in to tackle a number of highly-specialized jobs across Canada. They have included bringing large-scale retail outlets back online to helping high-profile university campuses get back to class. On more than a few occasions, the two teams have worked in tandem to tackle immediate, large scale disaster relief efforts with long-term recovery components.

All in all, says Margo Malowney, VP Marketing and Communication at FirstOnSite, making a dedicated team of commercial restoration specialists available to commercial clients has benefited both FirstOnSite’s clients and its operations: “Having that national network of Complex and Large Loss Team experts who are on call and ready to go means we can react quickly for our commercial clients while not taking away any focus or resources from our equally vital residential partners. And as our customer base grows, we’re making sure those teams are growing to match the demand.”

FirstOnSite Restoration is a leading Canadian-based disaster restoration company providing remediation, restoration, and reconstruction services nationwide, as well as for the U.S. large loss and commercial market. For more information on FirstOnSite’s Commercial and Complex Loss services, visit their webpage.
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B.C. Building Trades names new executive director

Andrew Mercier will take over the reins of the B.C. Building Trades Council (BCBT) as executive director in December.

Mercier will replace Tom Sigurdson, who joined the council in 2010 after a lengthy career in political and legislative affairs. Sigurdson will remain with the council as an advisor until March 2020.

“With his past political experience and advocacy, and his stellar work as legal counsel for Teamsters Local 213, Andrew is well-positioned to lead B.C.’s unionized construction sector into the next decade,” said BCBT president Phil Venoit. “We’re thrilled to have him in this role.”

Mercier graduated from Dalhousie University’s Schulich School of Law in 2017, joining the Teamsters as legal counsel that same year, where he was responsible for grievance arbitration, judicial reviews and labour relations.

Fighting on behalf of working people came naturally for Mercier, having watched his mom, a nurse, spend years battling the Workers’ Compensation system after enduring multiple back and knee injuries at work.

“She suffered a lot,” recalls Mercier of his mom’s pain. “When you watch someone close to you experience the bureaucratic and regulatory structures that are supposed to serve working people, you soon realize that those systems can in fact disempower or even hurt people, too.”

By 2018, Mercier had expanded his political experience to include a run for Langley City Council on a platform of affordable housing and transportation. The first-time council candidate finished 128 votes shy of election.

Mercier is now ready for another challenge, this time to advance the interests of B.C.’s 35,000 unionized construction workers. He sees bringing back compulsory trades, launching an independent Labour Code review for the construction sector and securing additional projects under the province’s Community Benefits Agreement framework as priorities.

“A healthy, robust construction sector is important to our provincial economy as well as to the thousands of men and women who work so hard building our roads, our bridges, and our buildings,” said Mercier. “We have a huge role to play ensuring that these workers who build our province are well-trained, well-paid, well-represented, and able to go home at the end of every day to their families.”

New Sudbury Centre lauded for sustainable operations

New Sudbury Centre, the largest shopping centre in Northern Ontario, was recently awarded with a Leadership in Environmental Advancement Program “LEAP” award from HOOPP in the Sustainable Operator category.

Among its many sustainable achievements, the BOMA BEST gold-certified centre became the first commercial property in Sudbury’s pilot organic recycling program.

On the community engagement front, the property is involved in numerous activities to drive sustainability change, such as joining in EarthCare Sudbury, a partnership between the City of Greater Sudbury, organizations and hundreds of residents to enhance the environment and create a healthier community.

Annual events like Inspired Green Living and the Junction Creek clean-up, and the cigarette butt recycling program, are other initiatives.

Within the building, the operations team has created an annual HVAC replacement system as part of the centre’s ten-year capital plan, along with investing in major projects such as the new building automation system and LED lighting.

Strong demand for 1 Square Phillips in Montreal

The first phase of the 1 Square Phillips condo in Montreal is underway, with strong buyer demand, reports project developer Brivia Group. The 500 units in what will be the tallest residential tower in the city are more than 60 per cent sold.

Menkes Shooner Dagenais Letourneau Architects and Hill West Architects of New York are overseeing the architecture of the 61-storey building.

A dog park, a 12,000-square-foot fitness centre with a yoga studio, pool and spas, a refrigerated receiving area for grocery deliveries, and heated sidewalks are just some of the condo elements, along with a 5,700-square-foot Sky Lounge that includes a games room and co-working zone, with an adjoining green space.

“This unique composition of volumes and the spectacular outdoor green space on the 50^th floor will provide stunning views of Montreal’s cityscape,” said Anik Shooner, architect and senior partner with MSDL Architectes. “This tower emerges from an oasis created in the heart of the island; residents will enjoy tranquility and nature while they take advantage of all the activity downtown.”

Claude Cormier, landscape architect and senior partner with Claude Cormier & Associates, is designing the 4,100-square-foot outdoor terrace that will be protected in winter by an integrated heating system.

“In creating this exceptional outdoor space, we were inspired by historic Square Phillips that commemorates Edward VII as it intersects with modern-day Montreal,” he added.

Plans call for a low-carbon footprint. The project’s high density, its variable refrigerant flow heating/air conditioning system, and its highly energy-efficient unitized curtain wall are being designed. There will also be three green roofs, white roof membranes and numerous trees to further mitigate the effect of heat islands.

“This project exceeds all of today’s expectations,” noted Kheng Ly, Brivia Group’s founder and CEO. We have never seen this much interest from Montrealers for living downtown,”

State of Condition (Asset) Management for Apartment Operators

Membership in the Certified Rental Building Program (CRBP) is an effective means of maintaining a high standard of quality when managing your building or working with tenants. When prospective or existing tenants see the familiar green CRB Program logo and checkmark on your property, they will immediately know that they can “Rent With Confidence”.

The CRB Program, North America’s only multi-residential certification program, was founded under six disciplines which all affiliated property managers must comply with in order to receive the certification for their buildings. In this six-part series, we will examine each of the disciplines in detail and explain their importance to the program.

Discipline 6 – State of Condition Management or Asset Management

State of Condition Management or Asset Management (SoCM) is the newest Standard of Practice (SOP) discipline area to be added to CRBP. It was developed to provide owners and property managers alike with the opportunity to have their building/property assessed from a municipal property standards perspective.

Unlike the other five disciplines that are generally assessed by CRBP’s third-party auditors as being either compliant/non-compliant or not applicable, SoCM requirements are assessed based on the auditor’s conditional evaluation in areas that directly relate to the condition of asset or physical state of building. CRBP refers to this audit practice as a “State of Condition Assessment.” It includes looking at the following areas:

State of Condition

Elevator (Landing(s) & Cab(s)
Elevator Licences & Room
Roof & Roof Anchor, where applicable
Hallways
Stairwells
Garbage Chutes
Laundry Facilities
Storage Lockers
Workshop/Maintenance/Cleaning Room
Boiler Room
Compactor Room
Waste/Recycling Area
Amenities
Lighting
Parking
- Outdoor
- Outdoor Covered
- Underground Garage

CRBP’s Use of Independent Third-Party Auditors

Use of independent third-party auditors ensures credibility and respectability with rental-housing consumers and outside political stakeholder communities. FRPO CRBP has contracted with three respected and reputable independent third-party auditing firms as a means to ensure that each property enrolled in the CRBP is in compliance with program’s SOPs.

SoCM Assessment Audit

There is a level of subjectivity in each auditor’s State of Condition building assessment audit. CRBP is fortunate to have three auditing firms that have experienced personnel who have quite literally audited hundreds of apartment buildings across the province. The auditor’s job is to ensure that CRBP-approved properties are properly maintained and meet the CRBP benchmark standard of being “well-maintained.”

Their assessment report provides asset managers/owners/property managers alike with an independent third-party assessment on the conditional state of physical asset or the building itself. Note: CRBP’s three auditing firms are not providing an engineer’s assessment. Rather, it is a professional property assessment similar to that undertaken in detailed municipal property standard review.

SoCM Audit Assessment – Benchmark Rating

Additionally, our auditors provide a SoCM rating for each building. It is benchmarked against CRBP’s established benchmark rating. Participating members must meet or exceed the benchmark rating to qualify as CRBP’s “Best of the Best” apartment property – well-run, professionally-managed, and well-maintained buildings.

SoCM Audit Assessment – Why is it Important?

Lets renters know that an apartment building/property is being well-maintained
Industry tool to assist in the prevention of municipal/provincial licensing
Provides an independent third-party assessment on the conditional state of an asset
Identification of any critical areas impacting life, safety, and health for residents and staff
May identify building conditional issues/areas in need of capital improvement
Improves the value of the asset, mitigates shareholder/investor risk, and enhances resident satisfaction

If you have been following along and reviewing CRBP’s Six Standard of Practice Disciplines, then you will no doubt realize that this program is detailed in perspective and covers the very inputs/policies/practices that define what professional property management means in the Canadian and North American multi-res market. FRPO’s CRBP was designed and developed to change the image of the industry and to demonstrate self-governance. At the same time, it indicates to your shareholders and investors alike that by being a part of CRBP, your organization is taking a proactive approach to mitigate/manage risk, enhance your public image/reputation, and equally as important, provide a value-added apartment homes and living for Canadians.

For further information about the CRBP and how to apply for the certification, please contact the Federation of Rental-housing Providers of Ontario (FRPO) – Ted Whitehead, Director of Certification, or visit our website today at www.frpo.org.

Carbon tool launched for building materials

Carbon Leadership Forum, in partnership with a coalition of industry leaders, has launched the public beta of the Embodied Carbon in Construction Calculator (EC3) tool. The building industry now has a powerful tool to take action on an area of growing concern — embodied carbon emissions of building materials.

The free, open-access tool, based on the industry’s first database of digitized Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), will allow architects, engineers, owners, construction companies, building material suppliers and policy makers to easily evaluate and reduce embodied carbon emissions from construction materials, effectively empowering them to reduce embodied carbon within buildings at scale.

The building and construction sectors have a vital role to play in eliminating carbon, as it is responsible for nearly 40 per cent of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Architecture 2030 reports that between now and 2060 the world’s population will double the amount of building floor-space, equivalent to building an entire New York City every month for 40 years. Much of the carbon footprint of these new buildings will take the form of embodied carbon — the emissions associated with material production and building construction.

“It is critical that owners, designers, engineers, contractors and policy makers turn their attention to building materials and seek information that will pave the way to reduce embodied carbon,” said Kate Simonen, director of the Carbon Leadership Forum and professor in the College of Built Environments at the University of Washington. “Recognizing this imperative, the Carbon Leadership Forum and nearly 50 industry leaders came together to offer their expertise, committed to a tool that was free to use and part of a growing open-access embodied carbon data ecosystem.”

The EC3 tool is the first free tool that allows for supply chain specific analysis of embodied carbon data, utilizing the first searchable and sortable database of all United States and Canadian Environmental Product Declarations for concrete, steel, wood, glass, aluminum, insulation, gypsum, carpet and ceiling tiles.

In addition, the EC3 tool is revolutionizing the EPD process. It is the first tool to create a digital EPD form and to translate all EPDs into that form for viewing and analyzing the data. Prior to the introduction of this free, open-access EPD database and visualization features, users were hampered with PDF-based EPDs.

Users can now easily estimate upfront embodied carbon emissions associated with material production and construction processes. By enabling simple visualization of a project’s potential and realized embodied carbon impacts, along with the ability to see baselines and set reduction targets, users can accelerate the industry’s efforts to address the problem of embodied carbon on a global scale.

The EC3 tool was officially launched at Greenbuild, November 19-22, 2019.

Visit https://buildingtransparency.orghttps://buildingtransparency.org and register to have access to the EC3 tool.

Westinghouse HQ gets new lease on life

Wedged between the industrial waterfront and Hamilton’s downtown, Westinghouse Electric Corp.’s Canadian headquarters had been a symbol of economic prosperity for decades. Then, in 1987, four years after the electrical manufacturer relocated its HQ and the last staff had finally moved out, the building began to fall into disrepair. Despite changing ownership hands multiple times over the next 30 years and several attempts at revival, the formerly bustling seven-storey structure in the Ontario city’s east end remained empty, impacting the surrounding community. As the historic landmark’s windows were boarded up, so too were those of businesses in the Barton Village neighbourhood that were hurt by the loss of thousands of local patrons.

When the building was listed for sale again two years ago, few had high hopes for it given the property’s real estate history, including previous failed attempts to convert the site into residential use, derelict state due to neglect and heritage status (designated in 1988), which would likely scare away prospective buyers. But not Meir Dick. The founder of Electric City Developments was captivated by the iconic building and saw its purchase as an opportunity to breathe new life into it and help revitalize the area.

“The building has a magnetic energy you can’t ignore,” says Dick, who has a background in startups focused on positive social impact and is a member of the Barton Village Business Improvement Area’s board of directors. “I wanted to create something that would bring long-term value to the community.”

Co-funded by Hamilton investors, Electric City Developments acquired Westinghouse HQ in June 2017. The building has been re-envisioned for a new age to become a hub for commercial and cultural activities, and a blueprint for urban neighbourhood renewal. It offers 40,000 square feet of one-of-a-kind Class A office space and 10,000 square feet of ground floor event space and auditorium that is open to the public for events ranging from weddings and conferences to pop-up art galleries and concerts.

“Reviving Westinghouse HQ has been a real collaborative effort,” says Dick. “The redevelopment team considers itself stewards of the building with a duty to preserve not only its architecture but its history and connection to the community.”

Westinghouse Electric Corp.’s Canadian headquarters has been re-envisioned for a new age to become a hub for commercial and cultural activities, and a blueprint for urban neighbourhood renewal. Photo: Tom Vogel Photography

Led by local architectural firm mcCallumSather and general contractor Collaborative Structures Ltd. (CSL), restoration and renovation work on the 1917-built building began in earnest in January 2018, and was completed this past June. It involved the addition of modern fixtures and technologies, including high-efficiency LED lighting, a high-performance building envelope with an insulation value of R-25 in the walls and R-20 in the roof, supports for rooftop photovoltaic solar array and a water-source heat pump to meet the developer’s sustainability targets. The water-source heat pump is considered to be the most energy-efficient heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system on the market, drastically reducing natural gas consumption and subsequent greenhouse gas emissions during the heating season.

“It works like a radiator system found in many homes,” says Drew Hauser, director at mcCallumSather, which is also the project’s mechanical engineer and heritage consultant. “It relies on hot water from boilers and cold water from a fluid cooler to travel around the building and provide space conditioning via terminal units that extract the heating and cooling from the water and distribute it into the different areas.”

In accordance with Westinghouse HQ’s heritage designation, the majority of the building’s brick and cut-stone façade has been preserved. However, many of the old windows were not salvageable. According to mcCallumSather, repairing all 360 would not allow for energy performance and acoustic rating upgrades, and it would have been cost-prohibitive. So, the architect opted for a strategy that combined replacement and repair. With the city’s approval, more than 300 new high-performance, double-glazed, argon-filled windows with low-E coatings that closely match the building aesthetic were installed. They provide elevated occupant comfort and maximize energy conservation. Each of the walnut wood-framed, double-hung windows on the ground floor were restored. These were kept because their detail is of the highest quality and the space has the most public access and impact.

Inside, the redevelopment team was under no obligation to complete heritage work as it was not part of the designation. However, their passion for the project resulted in the restoration of many exceptional (and unexpected) architectural features of the original Prack and Perrine-designed building.

“When we first entered, I was taken aback as the whole ground floor was covered in pink marble tile. It was a sea of salmon,” recalls lead architect, Hauser. “The radiators were still in the building and I dug around the feet of one of them. Not knowing what was there, if anything, I unearthed the marble mosaic floor that lay beneath the existing tile. It was like finding treasure.”

Guided by photographs of the 100-year-old, five-storey structure at each stage of construction (the sixth and seventh floors were added in 1928) and drawings obtained from the National Archives of Canada, the team carefully peeled back interior finishes during demolition to expose intricate plaster mouldings, structural clay tiles (or speed tiles, as they were commonly called in the 1900s), terrazzo flooring and gigantic steel trusses, among other hidden gems – all of which were preserved and enhanced to pay homage to the past, tell the story of the building’s rich history and serve as inspiration to its current occupants and a whole new generation of businesses in the community. But perhaps the greatest discovery was the hidden theatre that was uncovered at the west end of the building.

“You wouldn’t have believed what this particular space looked like when we first started,” says Hauser with great excitement. “A large portion of the intricate detail around the perimeter was covered up and the room was divided into six separate rooms. Three layers of ceiling tile concealed the elaborate plasterwork, which thankfully protected it for all these years. Likewise, we were unaware of the original maple wood flooring until we started removing the layers on top and discovered it was fully intact and looked brand new.”

mcCallumSather’s interest in bringing Westinghouse HQ back to its initial grandeur extends beyond its role on the redevelopment team. The firm is its first anchor tenant, moving in at the start of 2019, and occupying the entire second floor. Like the rest of the building, mcCallumSather thoughtfully adapted the space for the 21st century by injecting a sleek, minimalist aesthetic while staying true to the authentic architecture. It also reflects the way in which the firm and its employees function.

“We collaborate in pods, without distinction between our mechanical, interior design and architectural studios,” explains Hauser. “As a result, the space is project focused.”

Spread across an expansive 10,000 square feet, mcCallumSather’s light-filled ‘office’ is organized in zones. At one end, teams can huddle around big tables to discuss, debate and share ideas and work side-by-side. Furniture was chosen to accommodate different working styles, with options for standing or sitting so everyone is comfortable. As there are no dedicated desks within the floorplate and each employee has a locker to store personal items, the firm has seen a reduction in clutter, making for a cleaner, more spacious environment.

mcCallumSather’s light-filled ‘office’ is organized in zones. Teams can huddle around big tables to discuss, debate and share ideas and work side-by-side. Photo: Banko Media.

At the other end of the floor are soundproof phone booths, which are ideal for important calls and to avoid disturbing colleagues, and a library.

In the centre of the space, delineating between the collaborative and quite zones, are boardrooms and the design studio, framed by the striking steel trusses unique to the second floor. These were sprayed with black intumescent paint to protect them in case of fire. While the finish highlights the architectural feature, the protective coating will expand significantly when exposed to high temperatures, insulating the components to prevent structural failure.

Much like the trusses, many of the original details remain an integral part of the space. The terrazzo tile floors have been conserved where possible and their imperfections left exposed. Where the former Westinghouse president’s office and boardrooms were once located, the exquisite ceiling mouldings were kept with missing sections and all.

mcCallumSather is helping other tenants with their interior build-outs, as well. Currently, more than two-thirds of the building is leased, including the third and part of the fourth floors, and the bottom level. Equal Parts Hospitality will manage the entire ground floor venue upon occupancy in October. The company, which conceptualizes, funds, builds and manages hospitality industry assets, fit-up the space with a European boutique hotel lobby aesthetic.

Electric City’s Dick says he’s been fielding calls from interested tenants for the fifth and sixth floors. As for the top floor, he’s hoping to attract a world-class tenant. Formerly a drafting space, it features vaulted ceilings 25-feet high at their peak, skylights and 360-degree views of the Niagara Escarpment and Burlington Bay.

“It’s pretty magical,” he says, adding it’s much more than rentable office space. “It’s a place to build your brand in a building with a foundation for excellence that represents not just Hamilton’s history but the community’s as well.”

Clare Tattersall is acting editor of Canadian Facility Management & Design.

Top photo courtesy of Banko Media