Canadian Construction Industry Champions Receive 2014 CCA Awards
SAN ANTONIO, TX, Wednesday March 25, 2015 — The Canadian Construction Association’s (CCA) awards recognize the important contributions of individuals, organizations and projects that promote and enhance the Canadian construction industry, whether through innovation, projects, or dedication to the industry.
The 2014 Canadian Construction Association award recipients are:
Awards of Recognition
- General Contractor Award of Recognition – Jason Ball, Ball Construction
- Trade Contractor Award of Recognition – Kevin McEvoy, Guildfords
- Civil Infrastructure Award of Recognition – Frank Rizzardo, Emcon Services
Awards of Excellence
- Gold Seal Association Award – Newfoundland and Labrador Construction Association
- Community Leader Award – Norm Castonguay, Asbex Environmental Contractors and Heritage Grade
- Partner Association Award – Association de la construction du Québec
- International Business Award – Sièges Ducharme
- Environmental Achievement Award – PCL
- National Safety Award – Grand Valley Construction Association
- Excellence in Innovation Award – PCL
“It gives me great pleasure to highlight these individuals, companies and associations for their contributions that benefit the Canadian construction industry”, said Serge Massicotte, CCA’s chair. “The CCA award recipients truly are an inspiration for us all to try reach the next level.”
More information, including videos from the awards gala and a list of past recipients, is available on the CCA website atawards.cca-acc.com.
About the Winners
General Contractor Award of Recognition – Jason Ball, Ball Construction
President of Ball Construction based in Kitchener, Ontario, Jason Ball is a past chair of the Grand Valley Construction Association and the incoming chair of the Ontario General Contractors Association. Jason joined the CCA board in 2007 and has been serving as the chair of the General Contractors Council since 2013. Under his leadership, the GC council has been active in promoting innovation, through its approval of the CCDC’s initiative in developing documentations to support integrated project delivery (IPD) projects and the council’s research into lean construction to improve productivity and reduce waste. Read more and watch video of awards gala
Trade Contractor Award of Recognition – Kevin McEvoy, Guildfords
The Newfoundland and Labrador branch manager for Guildfords, an insulation contracting firm, Kevin McEvoy is a past chair of the Newfoundland & Labrador Construction Association, a board member for the Construction Labour Relations Association and a director at large for the CCA. On the CCA Trade Contractors Council, Kevin is valued for his astute insights, his ability to generate discussion, identify priorities, and for offering his expertise. He has been involved in issues such as the naming of subtrades, prompt payment, strategic planning outcomes, safety prequalification, the updating of the Trade Contractors Guide and Checklist, and apprenticeship and labour supply. Read more and watch video of awards gala
Civil Infrastructure Award of Recognition – Frank Rizzardo, Emcon Services
President of Emcon Services of Merritt, British Columbia, and a past chair of CCA, Frank Rizzardo has generously given his time to benefit the Transportation Association of Canada, the World Road Association, Western Canada Roadbuilders and Heavy Construction Association, the BC Road Builders and Heavy Construction Association as well as the Merritt & District Chamber of Commerce, Applied Science Technologists and Technicians of BC and the local Rotary Club. Every successful business uses innovative ideas to keep them at the leading edge whether they consciously acknowledge it as innovation or not. When the BC Ministry of Transportation first presented the idea of exploring Road Weather Information Stations, Frank offered his three road maintenance areas to be the test sites because he believed in providing better information to the public and his staff about the road conditions. During his time as CCA chair, Frank was also integral in lobbying for the $53-billion Long Term Federal Infrastructure plan that fosters economic growth and prosperity. Read more and watch video of awards gala
Gold Seal Association Award – Newfoundland and Labrador Construction Association
The Newfoundland and Labrador Construction Association (NLCA) has continued to steadily increase awareness of the Gold Seal program year after year, and has recently partnered with its provincial government to further advance education and skills for the construction industry. This initiative will offer a new suite of training support for employees in the construction industry to meet acknowledged labour market training needs. 50 employees from member businesses in all regions of the province have been identified to undertake the initial training, which will take place in the association’s Centre of Excellence. Participants will also be able to video conference in through the education and training space at Academy Canada’s various campus locations as a result of the industry stakeholder partnership. All employees are new entrants to the Gold Seal Certification program and will go through the Gold Seal application process. Read more and watch video of awards gala
Community Leader Award – Norm Castonguay, Asbex Environmental Contractors and Heritage Grade
President of Asbex Environmental Contractors and Heritage Grade with offices in Montreal, Quebec, and Ottawa, Ontario, Norm Castonguay is a role model and leader for community empowerment. For example, in the summer of 2014, he renovated the cabins of Camp Amy Molson, an under-privileged inner-city Montreal children’s camp, securing the camp’s existing camp rating and enabling maintaining their funding. In another example, challenged by a skilled-worker shortage, he worked with the John Howard Society to employ former prisoners. Norm’s commitment also reaches into sports and last year he received the Dive Canada President’s Award for his exceptional support. Read more and watch video of awards gala
Partner Association Award – Association de la construction du Québec
Association de la construction du Québec was awarded the CCA Partner Association Award for its work on providing training services to its members, for forging strong ties and increasing collaboration with its regional associations and for devising a strong strategy for restoring the industry’s image. Read more and watch video of awards gala
International Business Award – Sièges Ducharme
Sièges Ducharme, located in Montreal, Quebec, has been providing spectator seating solutions for a wide range of venues since 1959. Its expertise in resolving fixed-seating requirements for the institutional market – schools, colleges and universities; libraries; places of worship; healthcare facilities and military bases – is well known, and its reputation for excellence is based upon its ability to identify and respond to facility challenges by providing custom solutions. It is this reputation that has allowed Sièges Ducharme to expand into the international market. Its resilience and perseverance allowed the firm to maintain its presence and successfully undertake new projects all over the United States even after the U.S. economic downturn in the 2008. Although this firm designs, manufactures, and installs seating, they are treated more like a contractor than a manufacturer because of their value-added services, including innovation, product customization, and installation services. Read more and watch video of awards gala
Environmental Achievement Award – PCL
PCL was awarded the CCA Environmental Achievement Award for their work on the Wood Innovation and Design Centre (WIDC) in Prince George, British Columbia. The six-storey WIDC is the tallest contemporary wood building in North America and is a showcase of innovative uses of wood that will lead to community sustainability and resiliency. The structural concept used in the WIDC is “dry construction,” virtually eliminating the use of concrete above grade. The wood used to build the WIDC stores some 1,280 tonnes of carbon dioxide, equivalent to taking 339 cars off the road for a year, or the energy needed to operate a home for 151 years. An example of the green practices used in the WIDC is cross-laminated timber (CLT) made out of mountain pine beetle-killed pine. This is an area where Canada is ahead as no manufacturers in the United States currently produce the product. Another green practice was the approach to fire resistance. Rather than protecting the wood structure from exposure to fire by covering it with non-combustible material, the wood was left exposed but the sizes of members were increased. Read more and watch video of awards gala
National Safety Award – Grand Valley Construction Association
What makes Grand Valley Construction Association (GVCA) so effective in safety is customization. Investing in a highly-respected safety expert who works closely with each member, the association facilitates each meeting and focuses on their unique needs and concerns. The association offers a suite of opportunities that include Safety Groups, Safety Lite, Safety Training, and Safety Chapters, each of which provide access to health and safety training and information. The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) has increased the number audits of firms in the last two years. The GVCA provides in-depth preparation for the audits and its members score 100 % on almost every audit. The association’s Safety Group members are also experiencing significantly lower Lost Time Injury Rates than average and the association is proud of its year-over-year performance improvement. Read more and watch video of awards gala
Excellence in Innovation Award – PCL
PCL was awarded the CCA Excellence in Innovation Award for their work on Calgary’s Airport Trail Tunnel, a cast–in-place tunnel structure housing six traffic and two LRT lanes. Starting the design in April 2011, the tunnel was completed in October 2012. The project team was able to meet the schedule due to an innovative approach that maximized the flow rate of the concrete pour without exceeding the pressure limits of the formwork. The pressure exerted by the poured concrete produces an electrical output signal that is received by the small face of the transducers mounted flush with the inside of the form at pre-determined points, and is transmitted to a portable instrument box that measured and recorded pressure data. The box then converts that signal and communicates the data to a visual display as well as a data log. Onsite personnel monitors the pressures as the concrete is being poured and communicates the information to the pouring crew. As pressures approached the limits of the formwork design, crews can be informed and the pour-rate can be slowed accordingly. Conversely, the pouring crew can also be informed if the rate of pour can be increased without compromising the integrity of the formwork. Read more and watch video of awards gala
Contact
Kirsi O’Connor
Director, Marketing & Communications
613-236-9455 ext. 417
koconnor@cca-acc.com