Reminder: AIBC Electronic Voting Information Session and Online Chat

Interested members and other registrants are invited to take part in a valuable information session on AIBC Electronic Voting. Hosted by the AIBC’s Bylaw Review Committee, this session will cover proposed electronic voting (e-voting) processes for council elections and bylaw amendments.

Date: Monday, March 3, 2014
Time: 3:30 – 5:00 p.m.
Location: AIBC offices

Agenda: 

1. Current AIBC voting processes
2. E-voting explained
3. Pros and cons to e-voting
4. E-voting mechanics
5. Questions & Answers

AIBC Council supports the principle of electronic voting for council elections and bylaw changes and has asked the Bylaw Review Committee to inform and seek feedback from members. Council will then decide whether to recommend bylaws for vote by the members to authorize e-voting as one option for council elections and bylaw votes.

Note that any decisions about e-voting will not impact the current council election.  E-voting would become another voting option and would not eliminate council’s ability to direct mail ballots or bylaw votes at annual meetings.

Please confirm in advance your plans to attend by contacting bylawfeedback@aibc.ca. For those not able to attend in person but wishing to contribute to the discussion or ask questions, there will be an online text chat session with the Bylaw Review Committee on March 3, 2014 from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. (Please see below for online chat instructions.)

All AIBC members are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the proposed AIBC Electronic Voting bylaws amendments. Click here for further information about the overall bylaw review process, and e-voting. Click here for information on Electronic Voting for Council Elections and Bylaw Amendment.  Members with questions or comments are also invited to e-mail the Bylaw Review Committee directly at bylawfeedback@aibc.ca.

Online Chat Instructions: 

• By 2:50 please point your web browser to this address: http://www.aibc.ca/membersite/resources/bylaws/;
• Follow the login instruction as shown here: (Click on the image below to enlarge login instructions.)

British Columbia Building Performance Study

The BC Building Performance Study was undertaken by Light House in partnership with the Building Owners and Managers Association of BC (BOMA BC). The study found that green building certification systems like BOMA BESt are helping existing buildings reduce their energy use by up to 25% in just three years. This study is the most comprehensive of its kind in Canada and looked at energy, water, and waste performance for hundreds of certified green buildings and non-certified buildings across British Columbia. Click here to view the full report.

Ron Thom: Gardiner Museum honours Canada’s best, unsung modernist architect

By Sarah Kelsey
Special to National Post, February 24, 2014

Ron Thom (1923-1986) was one of Canada’s most exceptional architects, but as Adele Weder, the curator of a new exhibit on him, notes, “his work has not yet received the attention it fully deserves.”

The man behind University of Toronto’s Massey College and Trent University in Peterbrough, Ont., has been described as someone who was ahead of his designing times; he’s considered one of this country’s best modernist architects (yet he didn’t even attend architecture school). He was said to have injected soul and humanness into cold, hard concrete.  Arthur Erickson, perhaps Canada’s best-known modernist, said that Thom “is not only a master of siting but stemming directly from this, a master of scale.” He resected the landscape and the site. More…

Renowned architects and artists reveal visions for new Canadian Holocaust Monument

By Alex Bozikovic 
The Globe and Mail, February 26, 2014

Six design teams – including globally renowned architects and artists – have revealed their visions for a new Canadian Holocaust Monument in Ottawa.

The monument, commissioned by the federal government, is planned for a site across the street from the Canadian War Museum. The museum hosted a public presentation of the proposals from the six shortlisted design teams last week. The six are the shortlist from an international design competition launched last May.

The entrants include a high level of Canadian and international talent. The best-known names on the list are architect Daniel Libeskind, who designed the Jewish Museum Berlin and, in Canada, the Royal Ontario Museum’s controversial 2007 expansion; and David Adjaye, the Tanzanian-born British architect who is a rising global star.

The memorial in Ottawa is on a blank slate: a triangular site at the corner of Wellington and Booth streets, which is now empty. The federal government contributed the land and will fund $4-million of the project costs; a fundraising council is aiming for another $4.5-million in private donations.

The six proposals are: More…

Building Envelope Education Program (BEEP) Module V – Skin Problems: Building Envelope Design Issues

Date: Friday, March 21, 2014 @ AIBC 9:30am – 5:00pm 

BEEP Module V focuses on the design and construction of building separators of more extreme environments and emerging technologies. The severity of environmental loads (such as significant pressures, temperature and humidity differences) is also considered.

If you have already taken the AIBC’s Building Envelope Education Program (BEEP) Modules I – IV and would like to attend the final course of the program; or, you have completed the Building Envelope Principles course and want to know more; then this is the course for you.  6 Core LUs will be allotted for this course.

Date: Friday, March 21, 2014
Time: 9:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Location: AIBC office (Suite 100 – 440 Cambie Street, Vancouver, B.C., V6B 2N5) 

Click Here to Register Online  

Note: The AIBC reserves the right to cancel courses should there not be enough registrants.  For further information, please contact Aleta Cho at acho@aibc.ca.

NAWKAW

Formliners and Architectural stains

US Formliner manufactures a complete line of re-usable polyurethane elastomeric form-liners for Decorative Architectural Concrete Facades, Retaining/Landscape Walls, MSE Walls and other decorative Internal and External finishes.  Ten, fifty, and one-hundred re-useable form-liner products are available in more than 300 patterns and undertake customized projects as well. As this lunch and learn is held by appointment only, please contact Sonny Arora for further information, at 778-227-0727 or sonny.arora@usformliner.com.

1 Core LU

IKO Industries

Roof design & mechanical attached systems

IKO presents a lunch and learn that focuses on the proper designs of roofing systems, how they are designed and coordinated with additional mechanical systems, and the cost effective methods to achieve it. These events are free of charge and include a lunch! As this event is held by appointment only, please contact Severin Wolf if your firm is interested in hosting an IKO Lunch and Learn, at (604) 833 – 7880, or by email at Severin.Wolf@IKO.com.

1 Core LU

Vancouver Island Construction Association

The Vancouver Island Construction Association Update on Bid Central

Join Greg Baynton, CEO, VICA and Jonathan Smallwood, Manager of Business Development, BC Construction Association, to hear about the changing construction market on Vancouver Island, and application and competitive advantage in the changing marketplace. Discussion will also include; e-bonding, the Bond submission process,  and the protocol for digitally signed and sealed bonds, which required for all online bidders providing bonds on BidCentral. Taking place at the Ambrosia Centre (638 Fisgard St. Victoria, BC), on March 5, 2014, 11:30am to 1:15pm. There is no charge to attend however those interested are asked to contact Don Lovell to RSVP at donwlovell@gmail.com.

1 Core LU

Examination for Architects in Canada (ExAC) Results Announced

On February 14, 2014, candidates for the 2013 ExAC session were mailed their results.  If candidates have not yet received their results, please contact Registration and Licensing staff.  It is with great congratulations that the AIBC announces that in British Columbia, the pass rate for candidates who passed all sections of the examination was 83%.  It is a testament to the hard work and high level of professionalism of intern architects in British Columbia.

For intern architects interested in applying for the ExAC this year, applications for the 2014 ExAC will be available on the ExAC web site from June 1, 2014 to July 15, 2014: www.exac.ca.  The 2014 examination will be held on November 3 and 4, 2014.  The AIBC will also be announcing an ExAC info session for 2014 in the near future.

Congratulations to all successful candidates and good luck to those who will be working towards completion in 2014.

PARKit Design Challenge

The City of Surrey announced the call for submissions for their 2014 PARKit Design Challenge. Individuals and groups are invited to submit their unique ideas for a creative, sustainable, outdoor public space capable of supporting mobile food vendors. The winning team will receive $15,000 to fabricate and install their design. Honorariums will be awarded to second ($500) and third place teams ($250).

The 2014 PARKit Design Challenge is a public call for the design and installation of a summertime pop-up park located adjacent to Surrey Central SkyTrain station, in the North Surrey Recreation Centre parking lot.  The entry deadline is May 16, 2014.  Click here for more information.

In Passing: Dana S. Marek Retired Architect AIBC (1942 – 2014)

Dana S. Marek Retired Architect AIBC, passed away on January 11, 2014 at the age of 72. Dana graduated with a Masters Degree from the School of Architecture, Politechnika Warszawska in Warsaw, Poland in 1967. Wife to Emil Marek, Retired Architect AIBC, her school colleague, and Mother of son Michael, she started her architectural journey in Warsaw, Poland, then in Benghazi and Tripolis, Libya  then in Vancouver, BC, then in Seattle, Washington and finally retired in Vancouver. Most of time she worked together with  Emil. She had to excel her professional knowledge throughout her life time to meet challenges in those four countries. She emigrated to Canada in 1982 and in 1989 she graduated again with the MASA Degree (Master of Advanced Studies in Architecture) from the UBC. In Vancouver she was Co-Owner of Emil Marek Architect Inc.; the architectural practice with a primary focus on the Seniors projects. Diagnosed with cancer in February 2013 she passed away on January 11, 2014.

Affinity Institute Inc.

Construction Contracts: Managing Risk and Avoiding Costly Mistakes

This conference brings together decades of experience to walk you through the essential and unexpected issues that arise at all stages of the contractual project, from procurement and drafting to termination and dispute resolution. You will come away with the skills necessary to confidently navigate your way through construction contracts and any complications that may arise. Taking place on Tuesday, May 27, 2014, 8:30 AM – 4:30 PM, at the SFU Segal Graduate School of Business (500 Granville Street, Vancouver, BC). Please visit the Affinity Institute Inc. for more information and registration details, or call 778-926-0862.

6.5 Core LUs

New Registered Educational Provider: Urban Racks

Urban Racks provides bike parking solutions. The company aims to offer safe, secure options that meet cyclists’ needs. Services include custom design, site assessment & planning; installation & project management; extended warranty; and maintenance programs.

To learn more about all AIBC Registered Educational Providers, click here.

New Registered Educational Provider: IKO Industries Ltd.

IKO is a family-owned company that has been committed to manufacturing quality residential and commercial roofing products since 1951. IKO is a leader in the global roofing and waterproofing industry, and aims to set the standard for quality, durability, and innovation.

To learn more about all AIBC Registered Educational Providers, click here.

New Registered Educational Provider: Nawkaw Corporation

Nawkaw is a premiere stainer of masonry and concrete. The company’s products are in use around the world and are used under extreme conditions, from desert heat to bone-chilling cold.

To learn more about all AIBC Registered Educational Providers, click here.