Friday 27 March 2015

Membership Report - Specifier: February 2015

As we continue to promote CSC, the need for value in the construction industry is greater than ever. The Vancouver Chapter has increased by two new members which brings membership to 164.

Please help us to welcome our new members:
  • Shawn Kelly, Architectural Technologist – LEED Green Associate
  • Mark Gordon, Technical Sales Rep – of Bailey West

For More Information on Membership:

For more issues, visit our website or visit our archive for past issues.

Wednesday 25 March 2015

Luncheon - Rainscreen and the Resurgence of EIFS

Thursday, April 9, 2015

Presented by Andre Turrin, Technical Director-DuRock, EIFS Council of Canada Board of Directors

This Presentation will:

  • Address the four principal aspects of Environmental Separation that are applicable to EIFS: Protection from Precipitation; Heat Transfer; Air Leakage; and Vapour Diffusion.
  • Delve into the Fire Protection Articles of the National Building Code of Canada that apply to EIFS, most notably those involving Non-Combustible Construction, Spatial Separation, and Exposure Protection.
  • Discuss designing and detailing considerations with special attention to interfaces with other building elements, termination points, expansion joints, and drainage. The presentation wraps up with an outline of the EQI EIFS Quality Assurance Program (QAP), which is an initiative of the EIFS Council of Canada (ECC).

Learning Objectives:

  • Attendees will acquire an understanding of EIFS as a viable option to other cladding systems.
  • Attendees will learn the value of placing the primary resistance to heat transfer, air leakage, and condensation control outboard of the structure.
  • Attendees will understand how EIFS meets the fire protection objectives of the model building code. The three-dimensional colour illustrations enable attendees to visualize how these systems can be integrated into their designs.
  • Attendees will gain an appreciation for the various industry initiatives undertaken by the ECC on behalf of the industry.

Andre Turrin joined DuRock in 1997 and in 2006 he assumed the role of Technical Director for the company. In 2006 Andre was elected to the EIFS Council of Canada Board of Directors, where he continues to serve to this day. Andre actively participated in the development of the EQI EIFS Quality Assurance Program and Andre is a member of the ULC Task Group that developed the three CAN/ULC-S716 EIFS Standards. Andre also participated in a Joint Task Group of the Standing Committees on Environmental Separation, Houses and Small Buildings, and Energy Efficiency in Buildings, which proposed changes to reference the S716 Standards in the 2015 National Building Code of Canada.

LOCATION
Sandman Hotel, 180 West Georgia Street, Vancouver 
Enter Moxie’s Classic Grill escalator entrance. The ballroom is located straight through the restaurant at the back of Moxie’s.

AGENDA
11:30 am - 12:30 pm - Luncheon (full course self-serve buffet style)
12:15 pm - 12:30 pm - Chapter Business
12:30 pm - 1:30 pm - Guest Speaker Presentation

COST
$32.00 plus GST for pre-registered CSC members / Association Executive Directors
$48.00 plus GST for non-members

PARKING
Sandman Hotel Parking: Enter off Cambie Street, pass the Sandman Hotel Breezeway, underground parking to the left, press buzzer to access parkade and take elevator to restaurant level. Cost is $1.25 per 15 minutes.
Easy Park: Across the street on the corner of Georgia and Cambie Streets. Cost is $1.50 per 30 minutes.

SKYTRAIN
Exit at Stadium-Chinatown Station. Walk 2 minutes.

REGISTER ONLINE
Online at Karelo by VISA, MasterCard, or Interac Online.

REGISTER BY FAX
The registration form is available at vancouver.csc-dcc.ca. Payment can be made at the door by cash, cheque, or VISA only.

PRE-REGISTRATION
Pre-registration ends at 2:00 pm on the Wednesday before the meeting.

WALK-INS WELCOME
Missed the deadline? Did not pre-register? You may still attend at $50.40 per person, space permitting, BUT please call 604-868-8406 beforehand.  If you pre-register and do not attend, we may invoice you for the cost of the meeting. If you have special dietary (meal) requirements, please notify us at least 24 hours before the event.

CSC Vancouver is a Registered AIBC Provider.
AIBC Members will receive 1 core LU (Learning Unit) for attending this event.

RCI has approved this meeting for 1 RCI Continuing Education Hour (CEH).
Members to request attendance certificate.

Monday 23 March 2015

Words from the Chair - Specifier: February 2015

Hello everyone, I am donating my column space for the recognition of and tribute to Mr. Jim Dunsmore, a longtime member and supporter of this chapter and association. I am a better person having known him these last 20 years. I am sure that wherever he is, it is a better, brighter place!

Kimberly Tompkins, CTR
Chapter Chair
CSC – Vancouver Chapter


It is with a heavy heart that I write a few words about the loss of my friend and mentor Jim Dunsmore. I know there are many in our industry who have had the good fortune to enjoy Jim’s generous and outspoken nature, his quirky sense of humour and insatiable thirst for fun.

As a relative new comer some 12 years ago, I credit Jim’s patience and encouragement for helping me grow and to better understand the building and construction industry.

As many will attest, Jim was always approachable and never short of an opinion or gentle piece of advice.

Giving back to our industry and helping to develop “fresh blood” was either consciously or subconsciously in Jim’s DNA.

Over the years, Jim and Christy have grown to be more than just industry colleagues but rather close family friends with both getting to know my wife and girls and as well as some of my extended family. We have numerous memories shared over the years but one in particular stands out to me. One summer early in our budding relationship, Jim was enlisted by my wife Tammy to distract me with a round of golf while she organized a surprise birthday party. Now I must admit that Jim and I both have always had erratic golf games that ebb and flow from promising to horrendous from hole to hole and sometimes even shot to shot! During this particular round, Jim’s game was trending down somewhat more than usual with no bounce-back in sight. It wasn’t until the 16th when he took out his lob wedge to take care of a 6 foot putt that we knew it was time for some Sunny D!

As we think back about Jim and what he has meant to us let us embrace and pay forward those qualities Jim exuded: courage in the face of life’s challenges, giving back, getting involved, welcoming and encouraging others, appreciating what and who you have in your life and of course, always having fun.

I know that many of us have reached out to Christy and will continue to make sure she understands the legacy and impact Jim has had on all of our lives.

—Les Yard

Jim was my mentor, a friend and peer. When I was learning to be a specification writer and especially when I became an independent spec writer and needed assistance, I was never afraid to give Jim a call, because he was always willing to help anyway he could. Jim had a quirky sense of humour and always kept everyone entertained. We will surely miss him, my warmest condolences to Christi.

—Ted Wetmore

One of the most entertaining golf rounds in of my life was with Jim Dunsmore and Jim Findlay at one of my first CSC Golf Tournaments. I can’t remember the year but this dynamic dual had our foursome in stitches from start to finish. We even managed a very respectable score even after contributing generously to the most balls lost category. I was so pleased to spend some time with Jim and Christie at last years CST Golf Tournament event. We had fun reminiscing over all the good times and once again we where both laughing and smiling ear to ear. Jim loved to golf and even more to make people laugh with his tenacious sense of humour. Jim was just fun to be around. What a great professional and all round wonderful guy to work with as well. Today my thoughts are
with you both, Jim and Christy.

—Dean Connie

Jim Dunsmore, What can I say, words seem so insufficient...

He was a very passionate man, passionate about his work, and his love of life. Whenever I spoke to him of matters Specifications – the grouch would show, and his concerns about how poor were the relationships between the Specifier and those Architects/Designers. He was convinced that they thought Specifiers were mind readers. I did not have the honour of having him on one of my projects, but got to know him best through both CSC and some social ventures.

Ah! Social ventures…those were fun, and times when Jim and his ever supportive and beautiful partner Christie would truly shine. Bev and I were enticed to join a dance studio by our daughter, ostensibly so the old goat would be able to do the Father Daughter dance at her wedding. We had a ball! As in loads of fun. A couple of times during the time we were dancing, we had “dress up or costume” dances. Jim and Christie would be there in full costume complete with wigs etc...Jim often in drag, and except for the 5 o’clock shadow was very striking.

The last time I saw Jim was one evening in November. I went to visit my Mother-in-law at Royal Columbian, and took a side trip to see if Jim was in for his regular dialysis and he was. I learned of his pending Kidney Transplant, and between Christie, Jim and I we reminisced about the costume dances. Knowing that the donor was a woman dance studio friend, we speculated about the transference of the likes and dislikes that might occur. This particular friend was fond of leopard skin prints and we wondered if Jim might also become so inclined.

We will miss Jim, and all that he brought to our lives.

—David McGuigan

I had the opportunity to work with Jim indirectly through our Vancouver office on a number of projects back in the early and mid nineties. I also had the pleasure of many a good conversation at CSC Board of Directors meetings with Jim (the CSC Vancouver Chapter representative from the other side of the rock pile as he described himself), and meeting with him at Vancouver Chapter breakfast meetings over the years, when I was asked to participate as guest speaker on various subjects.

Very sorry to hear of his passing.

—Peter Semchuk

Download the entire issue for this article and more.
For more issues, visit our website or visit our archive for past issues.

Wednesday 4 March 2015

Luncheon - Building Information Modeling (BIM): “Looking through Paper – into a Digital Wonderland”

Thursday, March 12, 2015

Presented by Geraldine Rayner, Architect AIBC BA DipArch RIBA LEED® AP

BIM is the 'in' word but what does it actually mean and how does a BIM process impact the deliverable from design to build and from build to operate?

This session aims to be thought-provoking, challenging currently accepted processes, encouraging consideration of alternative electronic means of communication and pondering the benefit to be gained from being able to see through the paper, to read the data.

  • What are you and your staff actually doing when they work with a BIM enabled piece of software? 
  • What are the standards, BIM PEP’s (Project Execution Plan) and LOD / MPS’s (Level of Development / Model Progression Specification) and why do we need them? 
  • What are Owners / Operators hearing and starting to ask for? 
  • What are the risks in moving, or not moving, in this new direction?

We communicate increasingly via email, instant messenger, texts and tweets as well as over the phone. Books and magazines are going digital and posting letters is becoming a thing of the past. We listen to digital music and watch digital TV; yet, in the AEC industry, we continue to communicate design intent on paper. Deliverables at the end of a project are typically 2D black & white paper drawings and binders full of paper, none of which is searchable, editable or even available immediately at handover. How can we look beyond paper; through into the world of data?

Geraldine Rayner is a Director of Summit BIM Consulting. With over 30 years of experience, she leads an innovative team focused on leveraging digital technology for the AECO Industry. She is committed to showing designers, contractors, developers and owner-operators the huge benefits, both short and long term, of working in a BIM environment and to ensuring that the data embedded in the models is structured to support the operation of a facility throughout its entire life cycle.

LOCATION
Sandman Hotel, 180 West Georgia Street, Vancouver 
Enter Moxie’s Classic Grill escalator entrance. The ballroom is located straight through the restaurant at the back of Moxie’s.

AGENDA
11:30 am - 12:30 pm - Luncheon (full course self-serve buffet style)
12:15 pm - 12:30 pm - Chapter Business
12:30 pm - 1:30 pm - Guest Speaker Presentation

COST
$32.00 plus GST for pre-registered CSC members / Association Executive Directors
$48.00 plus GST for non-members

PARKING
Sandman Hotel Parking: Enter off Cambie Street, pass the Sandman Hotel Breezeway, underground parking to the left, press buzzer to access parkade and take elevator to restaurant level. Cost is $1.25 per 15 minutes.
Easy Park: Across the street on the corner of Georgia and Cambie Streets. Cost is $1.50 per 30 minutes.

SKYTRAIN
Exit at Stadium-Chinatown Station. Walk 2 minutes.

REGISTER ONLINE
Online at Karelo by VISA, MasterCard, or Interac Online.

REGISTER BY FAX
The registration form available at vancouver.csc-dcc.ca. Payment can be made at the door by cash, cheque, or VISA only.

PRE-REGISTRATION
Pre-registration ends at 2:00 pm on the Wednesday before the meeting.

WALK-INS WELCOME
Missed the deadline? Did not pre-register? You may still attend at $50.40 per person, space permitting, BUT please call 604-868-8406 beforehand.  If you pre-register and do not attend, we may invoice you for the cost of the meeting. If you have special dietary (meal) requirements, please notify us at least 24 hours before the event.

CSC Vancouver is a Registered AIBC Provider.
AIBC Members will receive 1 core LU (Learning Unit) for attending this event.