Four Canadian Firms Honoured with Special Award During Canadian Consulting Engineering (CCE) Awards Virtual Celebration

Ottawa, Ontario–(Newsfile Corp. – October 29, 2021) – The work of Canadian consulting engineering firms was celebrated online Thursday night, as twenty projects were recognized for excellence during the 2021 Canadian Consulting Engineering (CCE) Awards virtual celebration. Four Canadian firms have received Awards of Excellence for their projects located in China, Alberta, Québec and British Columbia.

Recognized as the industry’s highest honours, the awards are presented to projects by Canadian firms that illustrate the most remarkable engineering feats. “These awards showcase incredible projects and accomplishments by consulting engineering firms across Canada,” said ACEC President and CEO John Gamble. “They demonstrate how ACEC members use ingenuity and innovation to connect communities, grow the economy, and improve safety and sustainability. The impacts and benefits of their work are long-lasting, often immeasurable, and deserve to be celebrated.”

Taiyuan Botanical Garden Domes

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:
https://itbusinessnet.corporatemedianews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/100998_c8d22e54a4a28a1c_001full.jpg

The city of Taiyuan in central China looked to StructureCraft to create three long span gridshell domes covering a world class botanical garden. To achieve a more sustainable and aesthetically pleasing garden, the innovative architectural design from DMAA called for the domes to be supported using wood instead of steel. StructureCraft was both structural engineer and builder for an entirely unique paraboloid scheme which, at 88 metres, creates one of the longest span non-triangulated timber gridshells in the world.

“We are honoured to be recognized with this significant award for the domes. These unique gridshells would not have been achievable without intense collaboration between designers, manufacturers, and builders on three continents who all came together to create a truly world-class innovative structure,” says Lucas Epp, Vice President & Head of Engineering of StructureCraft.

MacKimmie Complex Redevelopment

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:
https://itbusinessnet.corporatemedianews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/100998_c8d22e54a4a28a1c_002full.jpg

As part of its strategic vision towards a carbon neutral campus by 2050, the University of Calgary commissioned a consulting team that included Entuitive for a retrofit of the existing 1970 MacKimmie Tower. The goal was to transform it into a leading edge, high-performance, net-zero carbon building. The Tower is now 85% more energy efficient and has been recognized by the Canadian Green Build Council with a provincial and national Green Building Excellence Zero Carbon Award. It serves as a model of what can be done to existing buildings to help achieve our carbon neutral goals.

“On behalf of an extensive project team consisting of the University of Calgary facilities development staff, multiple consultants, the construction manager and their trade contractors, it is an honour for the University of Calgary’s MacKimmie Complex Redevelopment project to be recognized with an Award of Excellence! Of so many amazing projects that consultants work on to reduce the operating carbon footprint, it means so much to us that this project has been recognized at a national level,” says Ian Washbrook, P.Eng, Principal at Entuitive.

Curé-Paquin Primary School

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:
https://itbusinessnet.corporatemedianews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/100998_c8d22e54a4a28a1c_003full.jpg

The first project in Quebec – and the first primary school in Canada – to receive Zero Carbon Building – Design certification from the Canada Green Building Council, the Curé-Paquin school is a flagship initiative for other school service centres. gbi acted as the lead engineering contractor for building mechanical and electrical services and for energy conservation in the innovative design of this project, which promotes academic success and prioritizes comfort.

“gbi acted as the lead engineering contractor for building mechanical and electrical services and for energy conservation for the design of the Curé-Paquin school, the first project in Quebec-and the first primary school in Canada-to receive Zero Carbon Building – Design certification from the Canada Green Building Council,” says Maxime Boisclair, Eng., LEED AP BD+C, Director, Sustainable Development at gbi.

Trans-Canada Highway Avalanche Mitigation

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:
https://itbusinessnet.corporatemedianews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/100998_c8d22e54a4a28a1c_004full.jpg

Glacier National Park, located 650 kilometres east of Vancouver, is home to a unique transportation corridor containing the Trans-Canada Highway, Canadian Pacific Railway, and a concentrated cluster of high-frequency avalanche paths. Parks Canada Agency engaged McElhanney to improve the corridor’s safety and reliability by implementing industry-leading avalanche mitigation solutions. These solutions, integrated with the complex existing avalanche control program, reduced the avalanche risk to roadway users and the Canadian Pacific Railway, and helps keep Canadians moving year-round.

“Thank you for this award, our team is very grateful. This project involved bringing international technology into Canada to resolve major transportation challenges in a highly active avalanche area. The fast return rate has made a remarkable difference in public safety, Parks Canada’s operations, and Canadian engineering standards’ advancement,” says Naginder Jabbal, P.Eng., C.Eng., PMP, Transportation Business Leader at McElhanney Ltd.

About StructureCraft

StructureCraft is an Engineer-Build company specializing in timber and hybrid-timber structures. They have been engineering and building efficient, signature structures for architects, owners, and general contractors of North America and Asia for 20 years. StructureCraft accomplishes this by bringing the old-world tradition of Master-Craftsman to bear upon the new-world of high tech construction. They are industry leaders in the “mass timber revolution” – answering the pressing need for increased quality and construction efficiency, at the same time reducing site erection time and risk.

About Entuitive

Entuitive is a consulting engineering practice operating in seven offices and three countries. They are committed to uncompromising performance and their practice encompasses integrated structural engineering, building envelope, restoration, special projects, renovations consulting, advanced performance analysis, bridge design, construction engineering, and fire consulting services for both new and existing structures. Entuitive’s more than 270 employees are dedicated to fulfilling the business objectives of a broad range of clients, including architects, contractors, developers, and property owners throughout all phases of the asset lifecycle. They engineer for a sustainable future. Entuitive is the engineering consultant for many internationally recognized transportation projects, including Calgary’s New Central Library, the Port Lands Flood Engineering & Enabling Infrastructure Project in Toronto, the Eglinton Cross Town LRT in Toronto, the Union Station Enhancement Project in Toronto, the Manhattan West Platform in New York City, and 9th Ave SE Parkade and Platform Innovation Centre in Calgary.

About gbi

Since 1963, gbi has been providing professional consulting engineering services in various fields for public and private clients. The team of gbi specialists has developed a critical mass of experience allowing its customers to rely on reliable and sustainable infrastructures. Our primary objective is to optimize your projects in order to reduce operating costs and save energy.

About McElhanney Ltd

Established in 1910, McElhanney has built a reputation as a trusted and experienced professional consulting firm with longstanding relationships with local clients and communities across Western Canada and beyond. We offer over 30 integrated services in geomatics, engineering, geospatial, planning, environmental services, and landscape architecture. McElhanney follows the spirit of our founder, W.G. McElhanney, by delivering stellar projects, large and small.

Learn about all CCE Award winning projects

In November, follow ACEC’s national and international award winning #20DaysOfExcellence in Engineering campaign on social media. Visit www.acec.ca/awards/2021 to view videos of the winning projects and to learn more about the impact of consulting engineering on our quality of life.

About CCE Awards co-sponsors

ACEC represents companies in Canada that provide professional engineering services to both public and private sector clients. These services include the planning, design and execution of all types of engineering projects, as well as providing independent advice and expertise in a wide range of engineering and engineering-related fields. For more information about ACEC and the 2021 Canadian Consulting Engineering Awards, please visit www.acec.ca.

Canadian Consulting Engineer is a privately-owned magazine for professional engineers working as consultants in the construction field. It is published by Annex Business Media. This year’s award-winning projects are described in full in the October/November 2021 issue of Canadian Consulting Engineer at www.canadianconsultingengineer.com/digital-edition/.

-30-

Multimedia (photos, project descriptions, videos)

Taiyuan Botanical Garden Domes | project page
MacKimmie Complex Redevelopment | project page
Curé-Paquin Primary School | project page
Trans-Canada Highway Avalanche Mitigation | project page

For more information, please contact:

Leanne Plamondon
Communications & Marketing Manager
ACEC-Canada
plamondon@acec.ca 
343-804-9921

Ben Epp
StructureCraft
bepp@structurecraft.com
778-771-2352

Olivier Laniel
gbi
olaniel@gbi.ca
514-779-4586

Peter Saunders
Editor
Canadian Consulting Engineer
psaunders@ccemag.com
416-510-5119

Pam Raymond
Entuitive
praymond@dialogdesign.ca
628-444-6140

Heather Bennett
McElhanney Ltd.
hbennet@mcelhanney.com
403-776-9677

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/100998