This week is your last chance to secure your company’s advertising space in the 2021 SHCA Equipment Rental Rates Guide & Membership Roster.
Click here to view the media kit and contact us today to ensure you don’t miss out on this annual advertising opportunity for your business.
The Government of Saskatchewan has completed $40 million in highway safety improvements all over the province since 2019. This marks year two of a five-year, $100 million strategy to improve safety at intersections and highways in Saskatchewan.
“Our government made a commitment to make significant investments in intersection safety,” said Highways Minister Fred Bradshaw. “I am pleased to see the progress that has been made in the first two years of this strategy and look forward to much more in the next three.”
After the tragic Humboldt Broncos bus crash, the Government of Saskatchewan made a commitment to review every intersection in the province. That review is now complete and safety improvements are being made all across the province as a result. This includes at the intersection of Highway 35 and 335, where all but two of the 13 safety recommendations made by an independent traffic safety engineer are complete. The two remaining recommendations are scheduled for completion in 2021.
“These investments mean a lot to our members,” said Saskatchewan Trucking Association executive director Susan Ewart. “Improved intersections and highways contribute to an overall climate of road safety in Saskatchewan.”
Some of the completed road safety projects include:
The Government of Saskatchewan is meeting its target of improving more than 1,000 km of provincial highways this year, the first of its 10-year Growth Plan goal to build and upgrade 10,000 km of highways. Another $300 million in highways stimulus funds is being invested over the two years in thin-membrane surface upgrades, passing lanes and improvements to municipal roads and airports.
The Government of Saskatchewan has invested more than $9.8 billion in highways infrastructure since 2008, improving more than 15,800 km of Saskatchewan highways.
Lehigh Hanson is pleased to announce the launch of EcoCem®PLUS at its Edmonton cement plant in Alberta. EcoCem®PLUS is an innovative blended Portland Limestone Cement (PLC) available in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
Lehigh’s latest cement product provides strength and durability while significantly reducing the carbon footprint in concrete. Along with supporting the company’s vision of sustainable cement and concrete, EcoCem® PLUS provides the following benefits to its consumers:
“The motivation behind the EcoCem brand of products is to reduce the embodied carbon of cement and concrete,” said Shawn McMillan, vice president, Cement for Lehigh Hanson’s Canada Region. “The introduction of EcoCem®PLUS to the prairie market builds on our commitment to providing environmentally responsible types of cement that deliver excellent performance while dramatically reducing CO2 emissions.”
HeidelbergCement, Lehigh Cement’s global parent company, has committed to reducing 30 per cent of its carbon emissions by 2025 and providing carbon-neutral concrete by 2050. EcoCem®PLUS is the latest of several new products recently developed to help achieve those goals.
Regina-based Clifton Associates Ltd. has been selected to begin engineering work for the Westside Irrigation Project.
Clifton was selected after successfully completing a two-staged transparent procurement process consisting of a request for qualifications and a request for proposals. Clifton’s work will encompass the first stage of the Lake Diefenbaker Irrigation Expansion – the largest infrastructure project in Saskatchewan’s history, which is being undertaken in order to double the amount of irrigable land in the province.
“This is an important step forward to realizing the irrigation potential of Lake Diefenbaker,” said Minister Responsible for SaskBuilds and Procurement Jim Reiter. “Our government looks forward to the commencement of the first phase of this generational project.”
Clifton’s team will start work immediately to complete the overall engineering preliminary design for Phases 1 and 2. Their work is expected to take 12 to 18 months, and will inform the next phases of work, including:
“As prime consultant, Clifton is proud to lead the Saskatchewan-based Westside Irrigation Canal Project engineering team in association with Stantec and Associated Engineering,” Clifton Associates Ltd. CEO Wayne Clifton said. “Our team has deep Saskatchewan roots; each firm brings more than four decades of successful delivery of major projects in this province. We are delighted to be a part of this legacy project that will further reinforce Saskatchewan’s position as a leader in global food security while building on the vision made possible by the creation of Lake Diefenbaker a half a century ago. We look forward to continuing the tradition of prairie innovation – applying Saskatchewan talent to deliver a legacy project for the people of Saskatchewan.”
Clifton has spent more than a decade intensively involved in a variety of irrigation studies within Saskatchewan. They are among the most experienced engineering firms across Western Canada and have delivered on other large-scale infrastructure projects in the past. Clifton provides a strong team to review the environmental scope of the work required to complete the initial stages of the necessary provincial and federal regulatory approvals and permits. There will be careful assessment of potential impacts to environmental protection, downstream users and communities, including consultations with First Nations and other stakeholders as part of the process.
Announced in July 2020 by Premier Scott Moe, the Lake Diefenbaker Irrigation Project is expected to double the amount of irrigable land in Saskatchewan, a significant step to completing goals set out in the 2030 Growth Plan.
Phase 1 of the Lake Diefenbaker Irrigation Expansion Project will include the rehabilitation and expansion of the existing Westside irrigation canal system, increasing irrigable land in Saskatchewan by 80,000 acres. Phase 2 will further expand and buildout the Westside Irrigation Project, adding an additional 260,000 acres of irrigable land. Phase 3 will see the buildout of the Qu’Appelle South Water Conveyance Project, adding an estimated 120,000 acres of irrigable land.
The Lake Diefenbaker Irrigation Expansion Project is expected to offer several future benefits, including:
Plenty has changed in the world over the last 70 years, but one thing that has remained constant is the stable existence of consulting firm Associated Engineering. Founded in Edmonton, Alta., following the Second World War, Associated Engineering has grown to become one of the Canada’s most significant long-serving engineering consulting firms with 21 offices across Canada and employing more than 1,000 staff. The company is the largest of the privately held, employee-owned engineering firms in the country, working with public and private sector clients here and internationally.
“The fact that we are a private firm means we take complete ownership of the work that we do, the relationships that we have with our clients and the products that we produce,” said Paul Pinder, a professional engineer and vice president and general manager of Associated Engineering for Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
During the past 12 years, the firm has been awarded one of Canada’s Best Managed Companies, earning Platinum membership status in the respected national program. It has also been a carbon neutral company since 2009.
Associated Engineering provides community planning and engineering services for water and wastewater, transportation, municipal and industrial infrastructure, buildings and environmental projects. Beyond this, the company also provides infrastructure management and certified operational training and support to many clients, in the interest of public health and safety, through its ATAP subsidiary.
The firm also provides in-depth environmental science and management services for bridges, roads and highways, community and industrial development, infrastructure rehabilitation and airports. Other services include solid waste management, landfill design, composting, odour control and environmental impact assessment.
The company entered the Saskatchewan market in 1953, opening an office in Regina to service clients in southern Saskatchewan. It quickly established itself by providing the engineering work for the initial Buffalo Pound project, which would supply water to Regina and Moose Jaw.
The company later expanded to offices in Saskatoon and Prince Albert with the Saskatchewan head office situated in Saskatoon. Pinder oversees all three offices, as well as the Winnipeg office and the ATAP subsidiary.
In Saskatchewan, Associated Engineering focuses on projects in the transportation, municipal infrastructure, water, wastewater, intakes, bridges, environmental, buildings and asset management sectors. The Saskatchewan employee complement currently sits at 140 staff across the three offices. Much of the firm’s work in the province is done in small communities, Indigenous communities and smaller cities, complemented by projects within bigger centres, such as Saskatoon and Regina.
“Many communities in the province are in need of an effective water treatment plant or have an existing facility that is inadequate, have insufficient capacity for the community’s size, are unable to consistently meet drinking water requirements or may be so dated that they simply need replacing,” said Pinder.
“Smaller communities and smaller cities are often in greater need of engineering assistance from firms like ours as they don’t have the tax base of the bigger cities like Regina and Saskatoon who are large enough to have in-house engineering departments. This is where we come in. We provide many small communities, or even cities like Moose Jaw or North Battleford, with the engineering expertise they need when they need it without being a continuous financial load on their operating budget. The same can be said of highly specialized and complex projects in the larger cities as well, where our extensive experience and specific expertise, such as water and wastewater treatment, can really be brought to bear.”
Associated Engineering also does a significant amount of work with the Saskatchewan Ministry of Highways and Infrastructure on transportation infrastructure design and construction.
“Everything that we do in this sector is engineer-based, either design engineering or construction administration. When we are commissioned for transportation infrastructure by the Ministry, we do an in-depth review of what is required and come up with a detailed design solution and a tender package. Then we also provide service in construction management and operational assistance,” explained Pinder, a transportation engineering specialist.
Associated Engineering also has a strong partnership with SHCA to assist them in the work that they undertake.
“We work with SHCA with many contractors all the time. So not only do they support us, but they are also a part of the process,” said Pinder.
Currently, Associated Engineering is doing a significant amount of work in Langham, a small community west of Saskatoon, including sewage pump station upgrades, a lagoon upgrade and infrastructure assessment.
Another larger project Associated Engineering has been contracted for in Saskatchewan is the development of The Greens on Gardiner, a major residential subdivision located in southeast Regina. Associated Engineering also led the design and construction of upgrades for the La Ronge and Air Ronge municipal utilities to provide back-up systems to keep tap water flowing during power outages – an issue many northern communities face.
Associated Engineering has also been involved with the City of Martensville Athletic Pavilion, snow management facility, the Avenue H Reservoir, Raw Water Intake and Pump Station in Saskatoon, the Regina Bypass, Chief Mistawasis Bridge and environmental site assessment for the Town of Lumsden’s landfill. A listing of Saskatchewan projects can be found on the company’s website at www.ae.ca.
Projects and overall work load has continued for the firm across Canada despite COVID-19. Fortunately none of the offices have had to be shut down yet; however, many of the employees started working from home when the pandemic started. Any staff who remained in the offices, or have returned to the offices since, follow health guidelines, contact and cleaning protocols stringently.
“Work never really slowed down for us because provinces and municipalities confirmed engineering as an essential service. A community that is in need of a critical infrastructure project, like a new water plant, cannot put something like that on hold, so we have kept most projects moving through the pandemic,” said Pinder.
Despite COVID-19, Associated Engineering assures its clients that its project delivery remains the same. Staff are available by phone, email, teleconference or videoconference. Project managers will continue to reach out to clients about project updates and reviews and answer any questions.
“Our goal is to keep building better communities; we do that in three ways. The first is more obvious with building better infrastructure that supports the health and economic wellbeing of our towns and cities; the second is contributing to important local charities – we believe in our social responsibility to the communities in which we work; and the third is developing and training our staff to provide them career growth and opportunities while creating a great culture within our firm. What we do is all in the service of public protection, environmental stewardship and fiscal responsibility. In this way, we shape a better future for all of us.”
Photos courtesy of Associated Engineering
On Dec. 11, SHCA held its 2020 Industry Awards program, which serves to acknowledge the outstanding work of SHCA members throughout the province.
We are very proud of the work all our members do, but here are a few projects that stood out in 2020. Congratulations to the award recipients!
The Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) announced earlier this week that it will hold this year’s average employer premium rate at the 2020 rate of $1.17 and will cap industry level rates at 10 per cent. This board level hold is to provide a measure of economic relief to Saskatchewan businesses struggling with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Under the WCB’s rate model, the 2021 average required rate should have been $1.23 per hundred dollars of payroll without the board level hold. The increase was driven by a combination of factors, including the economic slowdown caused by COVID-19 and an increase in compensation and health care costs.
“Given the level of uncertainty surrounding Saskatchewan’s economy as a result of the pandemic, the WCB board proposed a hold for 2021,” said Minister responsible for the WCB Don Morgan. “By holding the rate at $1.17, the WCB will save employers approximately $13.4 million in 2021 premiums. This is in addition to approximately $1 million employers saved on interest and penalties in 2020.”
Premium rates are generally determined by two key factors – claims costs and payroll.
“We recognize the impact of the COVID-19 virus across the province. Payroll is down, as many businesses struggle to stay afloat,” said WCB CEO, Phil Germain. “This assistance from the WCB will benefit those employers. This is just another example of how we all – including workers, employers and government – work together to overcome the many challenges caused by the current pandemic and subsequent economic slowdown.”
Prior to the premium rate plateauing in 2019, the average premium rate had been steadily declining, in conjunction with an overall reduction in work-related illnesses and injuries. In fact, the current average premium rate is 43 per cent below the 17-year high of $2.05 in 2004. However, WCB officials advise the rate may rise in 2022 if payroll costs remain low while claims costs continue to rise.
“We’ve seen a tremendous collective effort in recent years by workers, employers, safety associations and stakeholders to bring down the number of workplace injuries in our province,” said WCB chair Gord Dobrowolsky. “We’re making significant progress. In 2019, for the fourth year in a row, 88 per cent of Saskatchewan employers reported zero injuries in their workplaces. As well, the workplace total injury rate in our province has dropped by over 50 per cent since 2008.”
While overall injury rates are down, the number of serious injuries continues to be a concern. In 2019, serious injuries accounted for 12 per cent of total workplace injuries in the province, but more than 80 per cent of compensation costs. The WCB is working with customers and stakeholders to innovate the WCB’s claims and injury prevention strategies. The development of the Fatalities and Serious Injuries Strategy in 2019 was the first major step toward reducing injuries and improving disability management and return to work in Saskatchewan. Find out more about the strategy at www.worksafesask.ca.
Employers can also play a significant role in keeping their premium rates down. Work-related injuries can be prevented by instituting a comprehensive workplace safety program. A solid disability management and return-to-work program will also help reduce costs and assist injured workers to recover and return to work safely and as soon as possible.
Employers can log into their secure WCB online account starting on Dec. 7, 2020 to view their 2021 industry premium rate, including their experience rating and certificate, if eligible. Employers who don’t have a secure WCB online account can sign up for one at www.wcbsask.com.
Effective Dec. 7, 2020, your 2021 WCB premium rate notice and certificate of achievement will only be available through your WCB online account.
Effective Dec. 7, 2020, your 2021 WCB premium rate notice and certificate of achievement will only be available through your WCB online account.
The Saskatchewan WCB is going paperless because it is an environmentally sustainable approach to significantly reduce the amount of paper printed and mailed. Going paperless also allows for quick and easy access while keeping employer information secure.
You can get access to your 2021 premium rate notice by logging into your secure WCB online account. There you will be able to view and print your premium rate notice, experience rating letter and certificate of achievement, if eligible.
Your WCB online account also allows you to view claim reports, file your annual payroll report, view your statements, obtain clearances and access other helpful information.
To view this information online, you must be an administrator on your secure WCB online account or be an agent with access to view reports.
The Re-Open Saskatchewan Training Subsidy (RSTS) program has been launched in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The program is an employer-driven, short-term training program that provides eligible employers with financial support to train employees.
Funding to support training can help employers adjust to the impacts of the pandemic and safely align business activities with the re-opening phases of Saskatchewan’s economy.
The program is operated by the Saskatchewan Ministry of Immigration and Career Training.
Benefits of the subsidy:
For information about the subsidy or to apply, visit www.saskatchewan.ca and search “RSTS.”
SHCA members will fall under the Transportation and Logistics section to qualify.
In a new initiative to assist Canadian construction companies to gauge their level of construction innovation, the Canadian Construction Association (CCA) has joined forces with KPMG in Canada to launch the complimentary Digital maturity assessment tool for the construction industry.
Construction is rapidly evolving into a tech-savvy industry with the use of drones, automated vehicles and virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR). Advancing innovation is a top priority of CCA’s five-year strategic plan and vision to “Build a better Canada.”
New digital technologies, innovations and disruptive business models mean many construction organizations need to keep pace with the transformative changes required to drive growth, meet customer demands, increase productivity and attract the right digital talent to truly reap the benefits of the digital age.
With access to KPMG Canada’s proprietary online Digital maturity assessment tool, construction companies of all sizes can now confidentially assess their digital readiness in a few minutes.
“The need for digital transformation to stay competitive in construction has been heightened by the pandemic,” said Mary Van Buren, CCA president. “This online tool will especially aid small and medium-sized construction companies by providing a benchmark of their efforts and insight on areas of future focus.”
“We believe it’s vital for companies to assess where they are on their digital journey to ensure technology and business strategies are aligned and delivering return on investment,” said Lorne Burns, KPMG Canada’s national industry leader, Building, Construction and Real Estate. “COVID-19 has highlighted the importance of embracing digital technologies to inform strategic decision-making, build resilience, enhance competitiveness and protect asset value amid disruption and uncertainty. We’re thrilled to be joining forces with CCA on making our tool available to the construction industry.”
Teaming up with KPMG Canada, a report on the findings will also be published at CCA’s 2021 annual conference.
The KPMG Canada Digital maturity assessment tool can be accessed by visiting https://home.kpmg/ca/en/home.html.
The Government of Saskatchewan wants to remind everyone this winter season that when passing snowplows, it’s not a race. Give some space.
Highway snowplow operators often work early mornings and late into the night, as long as it’s safe for them to be on the road. There are many passionate and dedicated people inside our snowplows and they do it to keep us safe.
“It’s important to remember these aren’t just highway workers in our plows, they’re someone’s family,” Highways Minister Joe Hargrave said. “They are the unsung heroes of highway safety, and they all deserve our thanks. So let’s make sure we do our part and give them the space they need to work and ensure they go home safely.”
“It’s important to remember these aren’t just highway workers in our plows, they’re someone’s family”
– Highways Minister Joe Hargrave
Saskatchewan’s snowplows have blue and amber flashing lights. When these lights are on, it means the snowplow is performing winter duties and you should be careful. Winter duties include plowing, sanding, salting and inspecting roads. Some road bridge repairs also occur during the winter.
Here are some rules to keep in mind when passing slowplows on our highways:
Operators regularly inspect highways to determine if plowing, salting or sanding is needed to ensure safe driving conditions. They report conditions to the Highway Hotline, which publishes timely information on Saskatchewan road conditions.
Always check the Hotline before you travel by visiting www.saskatchewan.ca/highwayhotline or calling 511.
You can also find information related to provincial highways by following the Saskatchewan Highway Hotline on:
Pre-construction work for safety improvements to the Fond Du Lac Airport is underway.
“Our government is committed to investing in the north and this includes air travel in northern Saskatchewan,” Highways Minister Joe Hargrave said. “Maintaining and improving infrastructure that is critical to services like air ambulance and firefighting is vital for those living in the north.”
The cost for construction, awarded to Saskatchewan-based SHCA member Whitford Construction, comes in at $14 million.
The project safety improvements include:
Rock crushing began in early November with construction scheduled for completion in the fall of 2021.
“This project is important, since it is essential for moving people to and from the community,” Fond Du Lac Chief Louie Mercredi said. “This has become much more urgent due to the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic. As such, further delays to this project may restrict landing and take-off weights while increasing a number of other costs associated with air transportation.”
The Government of Canada, through the Airports Capital Assistance Program, has provided $12.1 million in funding over three years for the project. The Government of Saskatchewan will fund the remaining cost totalling $1.9 million as well as the ongoing cost of operations and maintenance, averaging $215,000 a year.
The Government of Saskatchewan will improve more than 1,000 km of provincial highways this year, the first of its 10-year Growth Plan goal to build and upgrade 10,000 km of highways. Another $300 million in highways stimulus funds will be invested over the next two years in thin-membrane surface upgrades, passing lanes and improvements to municipal roads and airports.
The Government of Saskatchewan has invested more than $628 million in northern highways and airports since 2008, including $60.3 million this year.
With COVID-19 cases on the rise, new strains cropping up and a slower than hoped rollout of vaccines, it is essential to remain vigilant and follow worksite health and safety protocols as well as general public health measures, says the Canadian Construction Association (CCA).
The health, safety and wellbeing of our workers and the communities in which we operate has always been the top priority of the more than 20,000 member firms of CCA.
“We are proud of our industry and the firms of all sizes who quickly adapted and consistently implemented health protocols across Canada,” said Mary Van Buren, CCA president. “This pandemic highlighted the value of past infrastructure investments, including maintenance, that ensured that the increased volume of goods, food and medical supplies moved efficiently across our roads and bridges, that we could work from home because of broadband connectivity, that we have clean water to drink and for hygiene and that we have hospitals where we receive excellent care.”
The Canadian construction industry already has in place and implements highly disciplined health and safety protocols on construction sites and at manufacturing facilities. Companies have significantly amplified these by adhering to CCA’s COVID-19 Standardized Protocols for All Canadian Construction Sites. CCA and our partner associations have a wealth of resources available to member firms to assist them during the pandemic.
“It is vital to Canada’s health and economy that our strong track record of safety in the first wave continues into this second and potentially more challenging wave,” said Van Buren. “I know many of us are frustrated by this long road, are experiencing pandemic fatigue, and making personal sacrifices. Together, we can stay the course so that Canadians continue to benefit from the essential work and services provided by construction. There is light at the end of the tunnel.”
With cases steeply rising and ICU units reaching full capacity in some locations throughout Canada, there is also a growing urgency around following general health guidelines and other government measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, such as eliminating all non-essential travel, wearing a mask in public, getting a flu shot, limiting your contacts and washing your hands frequently.
The construction sector is one of Canada’s largest employers. The industry, 70 per cent of which are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), employs more than 1.4 million Canadians and contributes 7.5 per cent of Canada’s Gross Domestic Product. The risk is high if we do not maintain our vigilance in the fight against COVID-19.
