Category: Technology

Key Takeaways:

• The British Columbia Road Builders and Heavy Construction Association is embarking on a three-year mission to attract more people to the industry. 
• A $3.9-million grant will fund a tour that takes simulators across the province to give jobseekers a taste of highway maintenance and road building careers. 
• Implementation of the talent attraction program is targeted to begin in Spring 2024 and reach completion in Spring 2026.

The Whole Story

A digital, immersive road building experience is coming to a B.C. town near you.

Jobseekers across the province will have the opportunity to learn more about highway maintenance jobs through a $3.9-million grant to the British Columbia Road Builders and Heavy Construction Association (BCRB&HCA).

The three-year grant will provide funding for BCRB&HCA’s talent attraction program, which will utilize innovative training technologies to showcase key jobs within the industry. With a focus on hiring, training, and retaining new employees for the highway maintenance and road building industry, the program seeks to address a critical shortage of skilled workers for trained highway maintenance positions.

“Helping employers remove barriers to the workplace means more people can work and participate in their communities,” said Sheila Malcolmson, minister of social development and poverty reduction. “Our government is funding this skills training so that more people can get good in-demand jobs in the highway maintenance and road building industry.”

The association explained that highway maintenance contractors in B.C. are facing a shortage of plow truck drivers, heavy equipment operators and mechanics. As part of the program’s outreach to groups that are currently underrepresented in the industry, it will seek to establish pathways for sustained employment and aim to engage women, Indigenous Peoples, veterans, new immigrants, and individuals under 40 years of age via training and partnership opportunities.

Using simulator technologies that place prospective jobseekers in the driver’s seat of snow plows and other types of heavy equipment, the program will travel across the province and provide hands-on opportunities for participants. The roadshow will include:

• A customized 34’ trailer featuring simulators and virtual reality technology.
• Realistic and safe training environments on five different simulators that replicate different models of heavy equipment and attachments
• A participation certificate that recognizes involvement and engagement in the program.

“Investments like these are vital for the strength of communities in BC,” said Matt Pitcairn, vice president, BCRB&HCA. “We look forward to how this program will raise the profile of these jobs, and how they can be an important catalyst for the economic health of the province.”

Implementation of the talent attraction program is targeted to begin in Spring 2024 and reach completion in Spring 2026.

Key Takeaways:

• The companies believe the rapid nature of modular housing and high-tech materials will get housing to communities much faster than traditional methods.
• The materials used are also designed for high thermal performance, meaning lower carbon footprints.
• Production on the homes for the initiative is expected to start this year.

The Whole Story:

ROC Modular Inc., a provider of offsite construction solutions, is partnering with building technology company ZS2 Technologies Ltd. to launch a new initiative that aims to get Indigenous and northern communities badly needed housing fast. 

The initiative aims to take a modular approach to developping many housing units at a rapid rate. The team added that by using the latest proprietary material science from ZS2 Technologies, the homes will be more resistant to the elements, pests and mold.

Utilizing ZS2 Technologies proprietary TechBoard and TechPanels, the homes will also boast superior thermal performance, reducing the embodied carbon footprint of each home.  

“More than ever the need for rapid and accessible housing is a critical need for communities across Canada,” said Scott Jenkins, ZS2 CEO and co-founder. “Together with ROC Modular, a true industry leader, we are offering a thoughtfully designed approach that combines modular construction with leading-edge  materials based on low-carbon proprietary cement technology. This means not only highly resilient homes that can be rapidly deployed, but also houses that are highly efficient and healthier for the families that will call them home.” 

“I am delighted that we can work with ZS2 Technologies to expedite rapid modular residential housing production and provide improved fire resistance, especially in a time of increased wildfire activity,” said Joe Kiss, ROC Modular president and CEO. “Our collaborative offering is uniquely positioned to provide sustainable homes with rapid and cost-effective delivery of much needed housing solutions. This will enable us to deliver a great solution that will provide long-term value to our customers while advancing the sustainability and safety of the off-site construction segment which continues to grow rapidly.” 

The collaboration will begin with the construction of the new modular homes at ROC Modular Factory located in Bow Island, Alta., with production starting in 2023. 

Here are some facts about Indigenous housing conditions from Statistics Canada: 

• In 2021, more than one in six Indigenous people (17.1%) lived in crowded housing that was considered not suitable for the number of people who lived there.
• Indigenous people were almost twice as likely to live in crowded housing in 2021, compared with the non-Indigenous population (17.1% versus 9.4%). However, the gap between the Indigenous and non-Indigenous population narrowed by 1.7 percentage points from 2016 to 2021.
• Multigenerational households were the most common living arrangement among First Nations people living in crowded housing (34.5%), followed by couples living with children (21.7%). Among Métis and Inuit living in crowded housing, the most common living arrangement was couples living with children.
• In 2021, 16.4% of Indigenous people lived in a dwelling that was in need of major repairs.

Key Takeaways:

• Research shows the city’s average approval timeline for developments is 15.2 months.
• The tools will help applicants determine if their applications are complete and compliant.
• They also can identify potential costs, map out timelines, and determine project feasibility before submission.
• The city is also implementing changes to make regulations simpler.

The Whole Story:

Vancouver is partnering with an Australian technology firm that specializes in artificial intelligence to help speed up building permitting. 

Officials announced that they are launching a Project Requirements Exploration Tool (PRET) and eComply. These two new digital tools are expected to reduce staff manual review time and provide residents and businesses with confidence that their application is compliant and complete. 

PRET will allow applicants to explore and understand regulations and requirements for locations throughout Vancouver. Applicants can identify potential costs, map out timelines, and determine project feasibility – all before they pursue a potential application. 

eComply is an online design compliance check tool, developed by Archistar. eComply will allow applicants to upload their designs and drawings, check if they meet city regulations, and receive a compliance report. 

According to the city, Vancouver is the first municipality in North America to partner with Archistar to improve its permitting process. The first iteration of PRET is slated to launch later this summer, while eComply’s initial component will be available early next year.

“Embracing technology for permitting will have a huge impact for Vancouver’s residents and businesses,” said Mayor Ken Sim. “Applicants will receive feedback on any items that are incomplete, missing or not permitted so they can resolve it before they submit their application.”  

The complexity of some applications can result in multiple rounds of manual review between staff and applicants. The interactive PRET and eComply will help to reduce this complexity. 

“Our partnership with the City of Vancouver will help Vancouver residents and businesses to assess land potential at the click of a button,” said Ben Coorey, Archistar chief executive. “Anyone will be able to instantly pre-check their plans for compliance, ultimately making the approval process faster, easier, and cheaper.”

In addition to the tools, Vancouver is also looking to make its regulations simpler.
“On average, more than 70% of the processing time for laneway and low-density homes remains outside of the city with applicants,” said Andrea Law, general manager, development, buildings and licensing. “To help applicants, we continue to simplify policies and guidelines so the application process is less complex.”
Here are some of the actions the city is taking:

• Exploring options to simplify and align existing regulations across all low-density (RS) zones by removing 17 design and administrative requirements so housing can be built faster.
• Streamlining engineering review requirements in all development permit (DP) applications, including removing 20 per cent of conditions and moving an additional 25 per cent to risk-based review.
  Proposing shifting rainwater management requirements from the DP application process to the plumbing permit for new complex buildings in Vancouver so that applicants begin work on their projects sooner.
• Providing in-person permitting info sessions at the Development and Building Services Centre for applicants to meet with staff about their specific project.
• Creating supports to help applicants quickly pay and resolve deficiencies so their application can be processed.

“Feedback from some members of late have noted improvements on permit processing with one member citing a turnaround for comments from city of Vancouver in less than 16 days,” said Ron Rapp, CEO of the Homebuilders Association Vancouver. “With the recent announcements
from the Province the need to develop effective and positive working relationships between the City and our members is more important than ever.”

While staff prepare to launch PRET and eComply, applicants are encouraged to book an appointment with the Services Centre to address any questions or concerns before submitting their application. Future info sessions for those interested in learning more about commercial and residential renovations, laneway homes, secondary suites, and multiplexes will be available in early fall.

Vancouver has been criticized for its long permitting process. According to the Canadian Home Builders Association (CHBA), the city’s average approval timeline for developments is 15.2 months.

Key Takeaways:

• The project simulated large earthquakes on a 10-story mass timber building, the tallest ever tested on a shake table.
• RJC’s role was testing the energy performance of the building envelope before and after an earthquake.
• The firm said this information is critical for B.C. where a building energy performance requirements are getting higher.

The Whole Story:

What happens to a mass timber building’s energy performance when it is hit by an earthquake?

RJC Engineers, a Canadian-based building structure and enclosure engineering firm, aims to find out. 

The firm was recently in San Diego participating in the historic Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure (NHERI) TallWood research project. The project is a National Science Foundation-funded research effort that aims to investigate mass timber buildings’ earthquake resilience by simulating large earthquakes on a 10-story mass timber building, the tallest ever tested on a shake table. 

Terry Bergen, managing principal at RCJ, explained that part of the firm’s team bumped into the test’s organizer’s and asked if they could participate. 

The tests will provide information on how a compromised building envelope leads to decreased energy efficiency, and what can be done in the future to mitigate a loss of energy through new design decisions.

“Being a structural engineering firm, everybody was more than happy to have us but testing the envelope wasn’t initially part of the program,” said Bergen. “They were just kind enough to let us exercise our curiosity as well.”

The building includes 3-stories of enclosure systems to assess their interaction with the structure to develop and validate seismic design methodology, while also researching the impact on building enclosure. This first-of-its-kind initiative is expected to transform sustainable building design, and reduce the carbon impact of the construction industry in Canada.

RJC’s team is studying the impact of the earthquake testing, ranging in magnitude from 4 to 8, on the integrity of windows, a critical component to the overall energy efficiency and safety of a building. 

“We want to learn how well the envelope will work afterwards and how it will affect performance,” said Bergen.” The energy performance might not decline, and things may or may not be visible. We want to determine if there is a degradation of performance and if we can see it insitu. If they don’t perform well post-event, we would really like to know.”

The firm noted that the Insights gleaned from the testing are particularly crucial in B.C., where new code changes require developers to commit to greenhouse gas intensity targets, with Canada as a whole currently targeting harmonized implementation by the 2030 code cycle. Following a seismic event, even if unbroken, windows can sustain damage causing air to escape through the seals, leading to unseen breaches that are expensive to repair. If state-of-the-art building energy performance schemes stop working as a result, this could drive up carbon emissions through fuel consumption and require repairs.

“When we consider that our carbon-reduced future will require high-performance buildings, none of those envelope systems used to manage our interior climate will work without enhanced air tightness and moisture control,” said Bergen. “If that fails, it isn’t optimized and operational carbon loads go up and it defeats the purpose of energy efficiency codes.”

Bergen said the team has returned from the tests and is currently working on writing up the results. 

Key Takeaways:

• The survey included 275 construction companies
• 73 per cent think that the construction industry in Canada lags other countries in digital technology adoption
• Approximately 80 per cent of construction firms expressed excitement and support for new technologies

The Whole Story:

Canadian builders believe digital technology can help solve some of the industry’s largest challenges. 

A recent survey by KPMG found that Canadian construction companies are counting on digital technology to help address the backlog of Canadian housing and infrastructure projects bogged down by unprecedented demand and a chronic shortage of skilled labour.

The accounting firm’s survey of 275 companies shows that nearly nine in 10 say the lack of skilled labour or trades is impacting their ability to bid on projects and/or meet project deadlines and that digital technology can help make their labour force more effective to address these shortages. 

The survey respondents included general contractors (38 per cent), owners (28 per cent), suppliers (13 per cent), subcontractors (11 per cent) and consultants, such as engineers or architects (11 per cent).

“Technology can help the construction industry address Canada’s housing and infrastructure challenges,” says Tom Rothfischer, partner, and national industry leader, building, construction, and real Estate, KPMG in Canada. “Digital tools, if used smartly, save time and money, reduce waste, and improve worker safety and productivity. In short, they help get projects done on time or ahead of schedule and on budget.”

Rothfischer noted that many technologies employed in the manufacturing sector can be deployed by the construction industry to increase productivity and reduce costs. He cited several examples:

•  3D printing has been adapted to lay concrete and build complex steel shapes. Robots can lay bricks and tie steel reinforcement bars. 
• Drone-based surveying can help contractors quickly and accurately layout work, measure quantities, and monitor progress. 
• Building information modelling (BIM) allows project teams to collaborate more effectively to develop innovative solutions to optimize project cost and schedule. 
• Digital twin technologies build on BIM to integrate real-time data from a built asset with its exact 3D virtual replica to test ‘what-if’ scenarios, including the impact of design changes, construction sequencing, weather disruptions, and operational changes.

KPMG stated that, as in other countries, Canada’s construction industry has been slow to adopt new digital technologies. However, the firm noted that the pandemic, combined with the intensifying labour shortage, has proven to be the catalyst the industry needed to rethink how they go about their business.

“We’re seeing a definite recalibration taking place in the construction sector,” said Rothfischer. “While many are still just at the beginning of their digital build, leaders see the power of technology to reshape the way they work and plan to invest heavily in the coming years. But having the technology is only half the battle. The real advantage will come to those firms who effectively integrate it into their operations – from the back office to the construction site.”

KPMG’s key survey findings:

• 73 per cent think that the construction industry in Canada lags other countries in digital technology adoption
• 67 per cent say the impacts of the pandemic prompted them to invest in technology
• 86 per cent agreed that disruptive technologies can generate savings and efficiency, of whom 50 per cent agreed strongly
• 85 per cent believe disruptive technologies could make their companies more competitive
• 81 per cent say their management and back-office teams and 80 per cent say their project teams and labour are excited about and supportive of new technologies and approaches
• 46 per cent plan to spend more than 11 per cent of their corporate operating budget on tech and digital transformation, 33 per cent anticipate spending between 6-10 per cent, and 20 per cent plan to spend up to 5 per cent.

“Leading firms are already adopting technology to improve productivity and project management, safety on worksites, and decision-making,” said Mary Van Buren, president of the Canadian Construction Association (CCA). “There is a cost however to investing in digitization that isn’t necessarily shared among all parties in the procurement process. Margins are slim in construction, especially for the small- and medium-sized contractors, making it increasingly difficult for them to adopt these types of innovations in their business operations. This is why CCA continues to work with federal departments in an effort to modernize procurement processes that encourage innovation by supporting shared risk.”

“Leading firms are already adopting technology to improve productivity and project management, safety on worksites, and decision-making. There is a cost however to investing in digitization that isn’t necessarily shared among all parties in the procurement process.”

Mary Van Buren – Canadian Construction Association president

The KPMG survey found a Canadian construction industry grappling with a double whammy of unprecedented increased demand for housing and infrastructure projects, and a severe labour shortage that’s challenging the ability of companies to bid on projects and/or meet project deadlines.

To address this, almost all contractors are examining ways to alleviate current labour constraints to meet demands.

“The efficient allocation of trades is one of the industry’s most-pressing challenges and opportunities,” says Jordan Thomson, senior manager, infrastructure advisory, KPMG in Canada. “Many companies are deploying or planning to deploy digital tools to better improve efficiency on site and do more with less. The application of data analytics, wearables, and internet of thing sensors, and BIM can help to improve productivity, schedule efficiency, and quality, minimize waste, and improve worker safety.”

Thomson noted that as companies embrace technologies, the composition of the workforce will also need to undergo change to incorporate new roles, such as software engineers, BIM designers, data analysts, and drone operators into the project team. 

“With so many construction projects on the horizon, the only way companies will be able to compete, and finish the job on time and within budget is by digitizing and modernizing their operations and ensuring they fully harness the potential of digital technologies,” he says.  

Other survey findings:

• 90 per cent of construction companies are currently experiencing a shortage of skilled labour or trades
• 86 per cent say that the shortage of skilled labour or trades is impacting their ability to bid on projects and/or meet project deadlines
• 86 per cent say that given current labour constraints, they may need to consider other alternatives, such as prefabrication and modularization and/or innovative new tools and machinery
• 89 per cent agree that better project management tools, such as analytics, BIM, digital twins, helps to address labour shortages and improves employee productivity
• 91 per cent believe the education system needs to be “much more flexible” to allow young people to pursue the trades
• 77 per cent say that digital transformation will require hiring new talent within their organization to a “great” and “considerable” extent (44 per cent), and to a “moderate” extent (33 per cent)

The respondents included general contractors (38 per cent), owners (28 per cent), suppliers (13 per cent), subcontractors (11 per cent) and consultants, such as engineers or architects (11 per cent).

Key Takeaways:

• Kelowna officials are partnering with Microsoft to develop AI tools that make building permitting faster.
• The tools include a chatbot to answer bylaw questions and an AI tool that checks applications in real time.
• The city says the tools could speed up the process by 20% to 30% right off the bat.

The Whole Story:

There’s a new project development ally at the city of Kelowna that wants to help get you building – and it’s not human.  

The city has partnered with Microsoft to be one of the first cities in the world to use artificial intelligence to speed up its project development process. The project includes two areas of focus. The first is an information bot and the other is AI assistance for applications. 

“Each municipality, including Kelowna, have their own bylaws that relate to building, their own nuances that can make it tough to understand what applies to your building,” explained Jazz Pabla, the city’s director of information services. 

The information bot can receive inquiries and, based on what is written, give answers comparable what a human would. Rather than having to pore over bylaw documents, users can simply ask the bot. 

“This first part of the project is purely informational,” he said. “It breaks down the barrier between information the government has and what information people want. It’s a more conversational approach to getting that data.”

The second phase of the project aims to put a dent in building permit wait times by trimming down the back and forth between the city and builders. This tool shadows applicants as they fill out their forms and tells them in real time if they are compliant or not. 

“If you can get the application close to 100% compliant and stop the back and forth, what happens is it goes through the system quicker.” 

Pabla said the city is hoping to have some product to show by the end of the year as right now the focus is on the information bot piece. 

The city is also modernizing its back-end system to include the ability to tag applications coming through with AI assistance. Pabla said the thinking is that since those applications are likely to be more complete than other ones, it could change in how the city handles them. 

Another time saver will be the fact that the AI tools can be available online, anytime. 

“24/7, 365, there could be an assistant with stuff to get you going,” he said.That is beneficial as not everyone is available between 8 a.m and 4 p.m.” 

Kelowna’s team is working directly with Microsoft’s Redmond, Washington headquarters on the project. The goal of the project, which  is to take the project

“They recognize that this could significantly increase the amount of housing available in communities if the black and forth were to stop and permits could get out quicker.” 

The city plans to share their solutions, which have been funded by grants, with other municipalities. The city also intends to look at doing automated plan checking which would check for initial application drawings for compliance to eliminate time spent going back and forth there as well. 

“For something as basic as a deck, why would you ever need to talk to someone at City Hall?” he said. “Especially if the drawing and application are done correctly. We should be able to issue that right away. That is the goal: to issue as fast as we can. We want to make developers’ lives easier and we see AI doing that significantly. We also want to make sure we are building well-constructed stuff so we want to balance that.” 

Pabla believes that the tools are likely to generate 20% to 30% time savings right off the bat and that is likely to improve as they get better. 

“We get confidence scores on answers it delivers and we are updating it daily where if it gets an answer wrong, we point it out,” he said. “There could be a world where the applications that come in are fully done properly in AI. It could be sped up and there is a really good use case to have that.”

SiteNews has announced the start of its search for the Top 25 Innovators in Construction.

The annual 25 Innovators in Construction awards will shine a spotlight on companies who are at the forefront of progress. The SiteNews team explained that the goal is to elevate companies who are taking risks, trying new things and blazing a trail for the rest of the industry. 

“Construction finds itself poised for massive change as groundbreaking advancements in various fields – from robotics and artificial intelligence to green technologies and innovative materials. These things are finding their way to the jobsite,” said Andrew Hansen, SiteNews co-founder. “In Canada, numerous trailblazers are pushing the boundaries of what’s possible, shaping the construction landscape for generations to come. To celebrate these pioneers and their exceptional achievements, we are launching our search for the Top 25 Innovators.” 

If you think that your company or a company you know deserves to be included, you can nominate them by filling out this form. Applications will close July 14 and winners will be announced Sept. 7. 

Nominees will be judged by a group of industry experts whose deep experience spans the country. They include:

• Dom Costantini, president of consulting firm BLDR
• Bill Black, president of the Calgary Construction Association 
• Claire Masikewich, director of marketing and development at GeoVerra
• Shawn Gray, digital innovation and customer experience manager at Lafarge
• Joe Di Placito, President and Co-founder at RAM
• Russell Hixson, SiteNews editor

What exactly is a top innovator? Nominees will be judged on the following criteria: sustainability and environmental impact, technological innovation, trailblazing, collaboration and partnerships, and workforce development. The SiteNews team stated that they believe that these categories cover many important areas of innovation happening in the industry that are critical to moving it forward. 

In addition to claiming the title of Top Innovator, winners will be invited to a special awards dinner in Vancouver, and have their achievement broadcast to SiteNews’ thousands of readers and newsletter subscribers. 

The SiteNews team also thanked the competition’s presenting sponsor, Procore, for their generous support of innovation in the construction sector. 

To learn more about the award, the judges and the judging criteria visit the award page.

EllisDon wants to push construction forward.

The company announced the launch of the EllisDon Construction Technology Accelerator Program. The initiative, in partnership with Impulse Partners, aims to discover and accelerate the growth of pioneering construction technology start-ups. 

“Our industry is at a crossroads, and we need to embrace collaboration if we want to continue to expand our technology solutions,” said Brandon Milner, senior vice president, digital & data engineering, EllisDon. “We are proud to launch an accelerator program in partnership with Impulse Partners and hope it can act as a conduit to increase the development of cutting-edge innovation while driving growth and opportunities for promising start-ups.”

The accelerator program will provide a unique platform for selected start-ups, granting them access to pilot projects, industry experts, networking opportunities, and essential resources to cultivate and scale their businesses in Canada.

“Impulse Partners is thrilled to collaborate with EllisDon to accelerate the transformation of the construction industry. We believe that the program will create opportunities for startups from around the world to showcase their innovative solutions and work alongside industry leaders to bring them to market,” said Thomas Le Diouron, managing partner, Impulse Partners. 

The program will focus on three primary phases:

• Identification of technology-driven solutions with high potential
• Execution of pilot projects to evaluate new solutions on construction sites across Canada
• Integration of the most promising start-ups into EllisDon’s various business units

EllisDon officials explained that as the construction sector confronts escalating challenges, including rising costs, labour shortages, and environmental concerns, embracing innovation is crucial for maintaining competitiveness and promoting growth. 

Key Takeaways:

• Avison Young looked at 14 major North American cities for office buildings that might be suitable for conversion.
• Two major factors were if the office was built before 1990 and if it had floor plates below 15,000 square feet.
• In total, the firm found 8,996 offices that have potential.

The Whole Story:

More than 2,600 office buildings in key Canadian markets could be candidates for adaptive reuse, new research shows. 

Data from global commercial real estate advisor, Avison Young, found that up to 34% of office buildings in 14 major North American markets have the potential to be transformed into housing. The global real estate company’s research looked at more than 26,000 buildings and identified 8,996 candidates for adaptive reuse. 

The markets include four Canadian cities: Toronto, Calgary, Montreal and Vancouver.

“Adaptive reuse is an important conversation we are having around the art of the possible, to demonstrate how this potential solution contributes to placemaking and to the revitalization and vibrancy of our neighbourhoods – particularly our downtown cores,” said Sheila Botting, principal and president, professional services, Americas at Avison Young. “We must reimagine how we want to live, work and play. Adaptive reuse is one of the key components of how we do that as a community.”

The company explained identifying adaptive reuse projects is something Avison Young has been exploring. Using a combination of its proprietary AVANT by Avison Young analytics and third-party analytics, the firm identified buildings built before 1990 and those with floor plates below 15,000 square feet – two anchoring criteria that tend to help isolate buildings that offer long-term potential for conversion. Avison Young applied this search to 10 U.S. markets and four Canadian markets, including those that have witnessed heightened interest in the possible solutions provided by office conversions, like Calgary, Manhattan, and San Francisco.

“Beyond age and floor plate, other criteria must be considered – such as specific building feasibility, costs, location, and surrounding amenities – to determine prime candidacy,” said Stephen Silverstein, principal and managing director, U.S. studio project and construction management at Avison Young. “That’s where conversations with our consultants, project & construction managers, asset managers and brokerage teams come into play, although this initial data set provides a clear snapshot as a starting point of what could be possible for these markets.”

Avison Young stated that across North America, office vacancies have highlighted a flight to quality, with tenants shifting up in the marketplace to choose higher-quality, highly-amenitized offerings with increasing vacancy in class B and C buildings. They believe this presents an opportunity for owners of older buildings to rethink their asset strategy and explore options, whether that is to stay as is, renovate/upgrade, repurpose or redevelop altogether.

“People are rethinking how they use office buildings and how they view the entire downtown,” added Botting. “Whereas most downtowns have mainly office buildings, a mix of uses provides much needed energy and vibrancy – and that’s where adaptive reuse provides a tremendous opportunity to reimagine great spaces for people to connect.”

Calgary-based industrialized construction company DIRTT has announced an American wall and ceiling manufacturer will co-own its ICE software platform.  

DIRTT has entered into a joint arrangement with Armstrong World Industries, Inc. (AWI) for co-ownership of certain intellectual property interest in DIRTT’s ICE software and enhanced commercial partnership opportunities for consideration of approximately USD$11 million.

DIRTT officials stated that the ICE software platform has been integral to its success from inception. They explained that the tool supports the construction process through its integration of the design, sale, pricing, and manufacturing process.

AWI stated that it recognizes the value of DIRTT’s ICE software as a critical enabler for their ProjectWorks design and pre-construction service, including continuing expansion of AWI’s product portfolio with the software.

“We believe AWI’s investment in ICE software is a strong validation of the software’s unique value in digital transformations for organizations creating built environments,” said Benjamin Urban, DIRTT CEO. “DIRTT is excited for this partnership as it will provide additional resources and investment to move ICE software forward, while leveraging the partnership to identify and capitalize on new commercial opportunities and possible revenue growth capabilities.”

Jill Crager, AWI senior vice president, sales operations, said she believes the software can help accelerate the design capabilities of ProjectWorks and significantly increase the speed with which Armstrong can integrate products from across its portfolio into ProjectWorks. 

“We believe this investment supports our digital strategy to serve customers efficiently and effectively with industry-leading design support and will continue to differentiate AWI in the commercial construction industry,” she said.

The joint arrangement will enable further investment in the ICE software platform for the shared interests of both DIRTT and AWI, as well as the potential for additional collaborative activities. DIRTT will also continue to advance the ICE software platform for use in its own business and corporate objectives.

Under the new arrangement, AWI will receive a 50% interest in certain intellectual property underlying DIRTT’s ICE software related to AWI’s product offering. In addition, AWI has also prepaid for certain development services to be provided by DIRTT. 

Tony Brock doesn’t back down from a challenge. 

He embraces it.

As a principal at Centre Group Electrical & Communications, he is always on the hunt for the hardest, most complex jobs in B.C’s Lower Mainland. 

Opportunities in life sciences 

The company started as a two-person operation that exclusively serviced Vancouver’s iconic Harbour Centre building. But it has since grown into a much larger design-build, end-to-end electrical contractor. In addition to designing, building and maintaining electrical systems, Centre works on data/communications systems and security/alarm systems. 

Recently, the company has been tackling healthcare, science and laboratory space opportunities that are on the rise in the region. 

“What makes those projects so complex is the fact that there are so many different systems that run through tight spaces,” said Brock. “It’s a significant amount of various building systems that all have to use the same space.”

One recent example is a 75,000 square foot buildout with office and laboratory rooms Centre worked on for biotechnology company Zymeworks. Brock explained that Centre’s team used BIM technology, Bluebeam software, prefabrication and lots of pre-planning to make the challenging build go smoothly.

“We were heavily involved in pre-construction,” said Brock. “We designed the system before we even had boots on the ground, pre-purchased a majority of our system materials and prefabbed a lot of the assemblies that went to site.”

He explained that the power of combining BIM and prefabrication means racking, conduit raceways and common assemblies can all be designed ahead of time, shared with other trades and then prefabricated before being assembled on site. 

“That’s why Zymeworks went so well,” he said. “We are able to design our jobs so we coordinate with the mechanical people so we can avoid any clashes. Where we putting boxes or pipes is exactly where they went. We installed it once. The construction industry is horrible for letting issues be handled at site level which creates a lot of down time. You want to be able to be productive every step of the way, push the construction schedule and deliver the project as promised. This is important to our customers.” 

A new direction 

He had a vision to transform the company into an elite contractor that specializes in highly complex jobs that scare off others. 

“I wanted to do the cool and unique projects, not the run-of-the-mill stuff, the interesting jobs that our people can really get behind,” said Brock. “They are fairly sophisticated jobs, the design is usually intense and that really plays to our strong suit. We feel better delivering those projects at a fair price. We don’t like to compete for the bottom and that’s where a lot of those average jobs usually go.”

The strategy is working. Since Brock took the reins, the company has more than doubled its revenue and its workforce has grown to more than 95. He believes that one of the reasons the company has been able to attract workers in an extremely tight labour market is its approach to building, as it takes away much of the stress of being on site. 

“Nobody likes to redo their work,” said Brock. “People are happy when they can be efficient and have all the materials they need. They aren’t frustrated on a day-to-day basis.”

Doing what you say

One of the biggest values Brock has tried to instill in the company is transparency with customers. 

“If we say we are going to do something, we do it to the best of our abilities. I’ve always been against over-promising and under-delivering,” said Brock.

This means properly forecasting labour, not taking on too much work and having the right team that can deliver projects. Because of the variety of work out there, it’s important that the right team is allocated to the right project for it to be successful. 

“We get a lot of requests for our foreman from our customers to work on their project which is very rewarding and speaks to the talent of our field team,” said Brock. 

There is also a family aspect to the company that keeps the team motivated to do their best. 

“We are a team with young families and would love to see our children move into the business. I have two boys and seeing them as electricians and involved in Centre would be really rewarding. So it’s important to me that we don’t fail.” 

Brock added that his vision is to grow and develop the company’s skills to become the province’s premier electrical, data/communications and security systems partner while pushing forward the team’s commitment to efficiency and delivery.

There’s no substitute for experience.

Years of renting and selling equipment gave Axiom Equipment Group a huge leg up when it decided to manufacture its own brand of equipment. 

Randy Gay, general manager for Axiom, got his start at a small, family-owned contracting company that had equipment. Around 2010 they decided to start Axiom Lift Equipment to rent and sell scissor and boom lifts. That continued until late 2017 when they merged with Saskarc Equipment Group to form Axiom Equipment Group. 

Randy explained that Saskarc, a steel fabrication company, ended up getting into equipment as it was needed on the sites they were fabricating for. They started Saskarc equipment in 2012 which retained light towers, generators, air compressors and more. 

Randy explained that the acquisition strategy was to add different types of equipment to the fleet and diversify the product range.

One of the initial major projects Axiom helped out with was the Keeyask Hydro Dam in Manitoba. The team rented lots of equipment to projects near Kitimat in B.C. and elsewhere in the west.

“We are based in Oxbow, Saskatchewan, basically in the middle of nowhere, so those remote, Western Canadian projects were kind of the speciality,” said Randy.  

The company took a major turn when they began to investigate the possibility of manufacturing their own line of equipment to sell. In 2019, Axiom’s team went to the Bauma equipment show in Germany to take the next step.

“We connected with some manufacturers in Europe that were building products and we partnered with those companies to build a generator and light tower based on our specs,” said Randy. “We started developing the products and building relationships with manufacturers.”

He explained that Axiom’s years of dealing with rental customers was invaluable in the manufacturing process. 

“Being a rental company, we kind of knew what all the competitors were building, what was good, what was bad. We took all the good ideas, put it into a prototype,” he said. “We towed those units around Western Canada and visited all of our customers.”

The team asked them for their thoughts, incorporated those changes and then in 2021 they started sending production models out into the field. 

“Having that knowledge probably saved us years of time,” said Randy. “We are still improving and changing and that’s even with knowing what we know from ten years of rental experience. If we didn’t have that we would be years behind.” 

One major factor that Axiom didn’t count on was the COVID-19 pandemic. Shipments of product experienced some delays so the team pivoted. 

“We recognized that this was a problem and we tried to be proactive,” said Randy. “We stuck our necks out a little bit and in 2021 we ordered all the product for 2022. It was a risk but it definitely has paid off and we are pretty much continuing to do that every year now.”

The company has since quadrupled in size and continues to refine its equipment. Randy believes that in addition to the company’s previous rental experience, another major factor in Axiom’s success is customer service.  

“Customer service has been something we have done since day one,” said Randy. “When you are in the rental business you have to react pretty fast to customer issues and concerns. The second thing is we have taken all that experience to understand what goes wrong, what the biggest pain points are for customers in the field, and we have tried to solve those and put that into our machines.”

The company is also part of the industry shift towards more sustainable practices. They have developed an electric light tower, a hybrid light tower (diesel engine but also has solar/battery), and also have some technology on their generators that lets customers store power. 

Randy noted that Axiom is also looking at expanding. 

“From a territory point of view, we are trying to solidify our market share in Canada,” he said. “I think we have done a pretty good job of that these past few years. Then we will be looking at going down south.”

Key Takeaways:

• The mass timber pedestrian bridge was prefabricated off-site and then installed 65 feet above street level in Toronto.
• After four days of assembly, the bridge pieces were lifted and installed in one day.
• Limberlost Place is expected to be completed next fall.

The Whole Story:

A two-story mass timber pedestrian bridge has been installed at Limberlost Place, marking a major milestone for the Toronto project.

PCL announced that the bridge was erected 65 feet above street level, connecting level five of Limberlost Place to level six of the college’s Daphne Cockwell Centre for Health Sciences at George Brown College (GBC).

“It was incredibly exciting to witness the installation of the mass timber pedestrian bridge at Limberlost Place,” says Nerys Rau, GBC’s Project Director for Limberlost Place. “It was really impressive to see the placement done with such methodical precision.”

Installation of the bridge included prefabricating individual cross-laminated timber pieces at an off-site location before being shipped and built on site. After four days of assembly, the team executed a complex and intricate one-day lift to install the structure. 

“Thank you to all of our partners, consultants, and extraordinary tradespeople who have been integral in achieving this significant milestone. This accomplishment truly showcases the exemplary level of skill, and patience it takes to ensure everything goes according to plan,” said Myke Badry, PCL Toronto’s district manager. “Congratulations to the entire project team as we move one step closer to the completion of this revolutionary project that is setting a precedent in mass timber construction.”

Designed by Acton Ostry Architects and Moriyama Teshima Architects, Limberlost Place is a tall wood, net zero carbon emissions building and PCL’s largest mass timber project to date. Home to George Brown College’s School of Architectural Studies, the School of Computer Technology and the Brookfield Sustainability Institute, students will learn in and from this innovative and future-proof facility. The 10-storey building is expected to be completed by the fall of 2024 and will open for classes in January 2025.

Tony Yang, a civil engineering professor in University of British Columbia’s Faculty of Applied Science, is on a mission to usher in the next generation of construction technology. 

He is leading a multi-university research project to reset national building standards for mass timber construction. Yang believes his latest research into carbon neutral, disaster-resilient timber construction may be the answer to addressing Canada’s urgent housing needs and climate change commitments by 2030. 

The “Next Generation Wood Construction” project – a collaboration between 13 universities and 12 government and industry partners – has received $6.25 million in funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Council of Canada (NSERC), the largest NSERC Alliance grant in history. 

Yang’s focus is to ensure that new materials, technology and guidelines for mass timber construction of up to 20 storeys are viable, economical and robust by 2028. 

“Traditional construction has a lot of significant issues. There is a lack of skilled workers, there are long construction times, lots of waste with materials, poor quality assurance, and it’s affected by weather,” said Yang.  “This next generation of mass timber construction will mark a turning point for how we build in this country – and potentially the world.” 

Multiple challenges 

Yang explained that Canada, like many other countries, is facing multiple challenges: build more housing and replace deteriorating infrastructure while reducing carbon emissions. 

“The truth is, we are at the core of it, we are producing it and we must address it. If we don’t, many coast areas will be underwater,” said Yang. 

He explained that the United Nations is projecting a rise in global population to 9.7 billion by 2050, more than 195,000 square kilometres will be needed to house this new population worldwide – equivalent to building the city of Vancouver five times every month for the next 30 years. 

Yang believes that given the building industry is Canada’s third largest carbon emitter – and with Canada expected to spend $11 trillion by 2067 on new infrastructure, as well as to replace deteriorating infrastructure – there is more need than ever for smart, sustainable building innovation. 

According to Yang, wood could be the answer to multiple problems. 

He explained that with a much lower environmental footprint than concrete, or even recycled concrete, mass timber constructions holds enormous potential in helping Canada meet its climate goals of a 30 per cent reduction in carbon emissions by 2030, and to reach carbon neutrality by 2050. 

Currently, mass timber construction goes up to only 12 storeys under Canada’s national building code. The project will deal with four key themes to enable safe, energy-efficient and sustainable mass timber construction of up to 20 storeys: 

• Structural and serviceability performance 
• Fire safety 
• Building envelope and energy performance 
• Sustainable construction technologies and practices

Other new technologies

In addition to leading the work on structural and serviceability performance, Yang is heavily involved in the research to develop sustainable construction technologies, such as quake-resilient modular construction, robotics and AI.   

Yang explained that while modular construction is already used Singapore, the U.K., U.S. and Canada, these methods are not applied in quake-prone regions. Yang’s team aims to develop new modular construction that will excel at withstanding earthquakes in high seismic zones, while reducing the carbon footprint of such construction. 

Yang and his collaborators are months deep into the research, and his team has already developed a prototype for a high-performance timber modular building. 

When it comes to AI and robotics, Yang and his team are already working on prototypes. 

“In the old days, that technology was not ready, but now it is. In the next few years we can develop design guides and codes. The whole goal is to replace the need for skilled workers on sites. Using robots is quick and efficient.”

They plan to begin testing a large-scale prototype construction robots soon. 

“The next generation of construction technology is here,” said Yang. “We are going to reshape the way we do business to make infrastructure more economical, more resilient, faster to build and be a leading edge industry.” 

He expects that the construction industry will be able to use these technologies in the field as early as 2028.

RAM Consulting is setting up an innovation hub in Alberta

The B.C.-based project delivery firm announced the new office and innovation hub in Calgary marks the company’s first interprovincial expansion and is expected to bring up to 200 jobs to the region over the next four years.

The Calgary office will develop, test and implement ideas intended to benefit infrastructure development. The centre in Bow Valley Square is already operating with more than 20 employees and will be supported by the expertise of Encepta Corp., which the company acquired in 2021.

In a press release RAM said it chose Alberta for its expansion in part due to the province’s “can do” attitude, which aligns with the company’s corporate culture. RAM added that the city’s affordability and availability of strong technical talent to support its diverse clients solidified the company’s decision. Invest Alberta supported RAM along the way by providing market and funding information and facilitating partner connections.

“Our mission to create vibrant communities through safe and sustainable infrastructure extends to supporting those communities through local partnerships, such as with the Women in Consulting Engineering Calgary Chapter and Brown Bagging for Calgary’s Kids,” said Joe DiPlacito, president of RAM. “In moving to Alberta, we are expanding our business and investing in the community.”

RAM specializes in project and construction management, multi-discipline engineering services, and quality and safety management in the transportation, telecommunications, utilities and energy sectors. 

A B.C. contractor is on a mission to revolutionize construction. 

Pitt Meadows Plumbing and Mechanical Systems (PMP) has been on a path for over a decade to transform its own techniques and processes using BIM, robotics, prefabrication and more. Now, they are looking to share what they have learned to help the entire industry progress. 

Jumping in with both feet

Sam Revel, PMP’s Senior Prefabrication Manager, explained that the company’s journey to the cutting edge began from the top. 

“It really started with Steve Robinson, our president,” said Revel. “He was looking at the marketplace we operate in and looked to Europe for inspiration. We were trying to see where the industry was headed.” 

One of the initial changes the company responded to was Revit becoming more common with architects and consultants. 

“We jumped in with both feet, also starting a prefabrication shop. It was one BIM modeler and 7,000 square feet of space and we have kind of built it out from there. We ran down that path and followed where it was going, just looking at what the next thing is for the industry.” 

PMP has stayed up to date on the cutting edge by attending international fabrication and manufacturing conferences where they were able to learn about modeling, offsite construction, automation and robotics. 

“Everyone is talking about the same things: the transition to modelling and offsite construction and the leap into manufacturing and robotics,” said Revel. “There is no official term for this shift, but many are calling it ‘Industrialized Construction’. We are using that as a guiding light going forward. The next step is changing all the components we make into standardized products rather than individual snowflakes.” 

Looking to the ‘Future of Work’

To spur on the Industrialized Construction revolution and to generate interest in modern construction PMP is partnering with Viega to host an event about the Future of Work. 

The April 22 Future of Work Event will be at PMP’s shop, located at 20142 113B Avenue in Maple Ridge. It will feature a morning session for parents and students to learn about how construction careers and how work is changing.

There will be an evening session for the industry to network and learn more about Industrialized Construction and what cutting edge companies are doing. 

The event will feature a keynote address from Autodesk’s VP of Industrialized Construction Strategy and Evangelism, and YouTube’s Queen of Prefab, Amy Marks. She will discuss what the next 25 years in construction will look like, highlighting innovative solutions and the endless opportunities available to people seeking a career in the trades, engineering, manufacturing and construction. Marks will also discuss how these changes will lead to a more sustainable and efficient industry.  

There will also be vendor booths and opportunities to get hands on with some of the latest manufacturing and construction technology. 

“How does this transition impact the industry?” said Revel. “The afternoon is really about bringing that info to our industry partners. We are trying to share this impact with the B.C. marketplace. A rising tide raises all ships.”

An Industrialized Construction revolution

Revel said PMP is wanting to connect with others in the B.C. industry and encourage them to join the Industrialized Construction revolution.

“We need to change our expected experience of construction,” said Revel. “Right now it is crazy. Everything is bespoke and custom. Everyone is trying their best to collaborate, but we end up with trade stacking and inefficient work. We need a cohesive approach” 

Revel noted that if B.C. is going to address the skilled trades gap, the housing crisis and hit climate goals, the overall process of construction has to change.

“The ultimate goal is to close the gap between the typical 75 per cent efficiency in construction to the 95 per cent efficiency of manufacturing,” said Revel. “Construction has been stagnant with efficiency and I think an Industrialized Construction revolution is the only way we can increase it from where we are.”

Attend the Future of Work event April 22

Sign up here and use promo code “SITENEWS20” by April 11 to get 20% off tickets to the afternoon industry networking event. This event is geared towards general contractors, suppliers, trade workers, developers, owners and others in the construction sector. 

FREE Tickets for students and their parents to attend the morning event are also available. This session is geared towards those interested in learning more about careers in the trades, engineering, manufacturing and construction. 

The days of flipping through a phonebook to find a contractor, architect or engineer are over. Most likely, someone’s first impression of your company will be from an internet search.

Is your website communicating your brand and your values?

We sniffed around cyberspace and rounded up some websites that we believe tell their company story particularly well through images, design and text. Here they are in no particular order.

Low Tide Properties

Sleek, clean and modern, the site features slick animations. Nope, they aren’t a tech company, but at first glance you might think so. Their copy puts it this way “Technically, we’re people who work in real estate. But we’re not real estate people”. 

DIRTT

Beautiful photography is the star of DIRTT’s website. It has a seemingly endless supply of it. One of their brand plays is that images have one single rounded corner, sometimes this happens on hover, leading to a truly unique website. It also features some orange accent colours but it never overstays its welcome.

Pomerleau

With headers like “Your talent will shape our history”, and the sheer amount of careers related pages, this is a company with a strong website-based talent recruitment strategy. And with their flashy blues and quick animations, you can’t help but feel this is an energetic, exciting place to work. With its mostly inverted colour scheme – dark backgrounds and white text – this is a website that really pops.

Ingenuity

This site main header cleverly flips between words like “happiness”, “detail”, “productivity”, “creativity” and more to tell the brand’s story. The perfectly curated yellow pops over darker colours. The stamp logo, combined with black and white photography, communicates a classic feel that suggests experience.

Zeidler

The headers in Zeidler’s site half float over imagery and backgrounds, pulling different sections together. The attractive red branding is used strategically as an accent colour throughout the site. You can definitely see the influence of Apple design with the clean Helvetica fonts over white backgrounds. Everything feels intentional and curated – the highlighted projects, photography and the copy.  

Chandos

It’s big, it’s bold and not shy about sharing. Chandos immediately shows off its B Corp certification and commitment to be net zero by 2040. While red and blue colours are old hat for many companies, they make it feel new with modern flourishes. The navigation is clean, focused and simple, despite the site actually being much larger than it seems.

Scott Construction Group

Scott’s tagline says it all: “The construction company with a human touch.” The animated pen markings make it feel like someone carefully went over all the content, guiding and pulling the viewer’s eye. The company’s diamond logo shape is utilized creatively in buttons and to punctuate messages. The company’s focus on people went a step further recently, when it achieved B Corp certification.

EllisDon

3D interactive graphics set this one apart from others in the sector. The whole site employs a diverse set of well selected, vibrant palettes of blue that avoid being another bland blue corporate brand. The massive site also features gorgeous page transitions and isn’t afraid to tastefully use smaller text when needed. This creates an elegant feel and stands out from others.

Skender

Skender expertly uses impactful text over top of imagery and their focus on SkenderLean® immediately gives the impression that it is cutting edge. The designer also cleverly used gradients to soften sharp red colours so as to not overwhelm the viewer.

Wales McLelland

Clean, clear and concise – this site works hard to make everything easy on the eyes. The messaging and font strikes a balance between being friendly and engaging, but also still technical. The strong use of video helps tell the brand’s story throughout the site. Stats are blown up over high-quality images so visitors come away with all sorts of unexpected information nuggets.

Marcon

With its beautiful graphics that expand while scrolling, this site tells a visual story. The thoughtful patterned backgrounds and headers translate well and orange is used to emphasize important words. The overall quality of cutting tool videos was also high. There is something so satisfying about watching a lathe carve through a piece of metal.

PCL

It’s no surprise that the largest builder in Canada would have a sophisticated website. Yellow and green brand artifact animations are sprinkled throughout, adding layers of branding beyond just a logo. The text is clean and concise, making good use of subheads. While the site is massive, layouts are kept simple, making it seem less daunting to navigate. While it has some flashy elements, PCL resisted the urge to go overboard.

RAM Consulting

Blocky, structural, precise – RAM’s font, which sits over images, clearly communicates engineering. The design shows restraint with limited use of headers. This draws the reader into learning more rather than just quickly glancing and scrolling through. Ram also has a striking logo that they aren’t afraid to show off on a large scale.

Rize

Sometimes less is more. Rize lets the viewer’s imagination fill the void by use of white space. The impactful bold use of orange permeates the whole site. And while some companies have a “blog” section, Rize blazes its own path, calling theirs “Thinking”. It’s filled with engaging articles that position the brand as a thought leader. Even the project descriptions show personality, with one reading “Hello, our first rental”.

Magil

Magil went with a crisp, clean look and nice image wipe reveals. Their icon animates behind text to give them a larger than life brand presence as you’re scrolling through. The design achieves a larger than life brand presence while scrolling as the icon animates behind text.

Anthem Properties

You have to admit, “Growing Places” is a killer tagline for a developer. The site features seamless scroll animations on the homepage and large, clean menus for easy navigation. Black and white branding could have been dull or overly serious. Anthem made it their own with hip curated photography of team members wearing the colours and having fun.

*Bonus websites:

Aryze

How many websites turn your mouse into a spotlight? It also features beautiful textures, super clean layouts, good use of white space and sophisticated font selections. There was a great deal of thought and intention put into this site to make the navigation pleasing and the visual hierarchy clear.

Key Takeaways:

• Level Bot Technology is developing an app that can use voice transcription technology to capture and communicate data on jobsites.
• The technology will be able to integrate into existing solutions, like Procore.
• Level Bot believes the app could also be used to help translate information for workers who speak different languages and to identify those who are struggling with mental health issues.

The Whole Story:

Brey Tucker wants to talk about talking. 

For years, he’s been pondering how workers communicate information on jobsites and how it can be assisted by voice technology.  

“I’ve been thinking about voice technology for a while now,” said Tucker. “I used to be a skyscraper architect. One of the things we looked at was using voice in virtual reality. What struck me was how powerful voice is when you can create a transcript and add info to plans. That was sitting in my mind for ten years.” 

While working as director of innovation for ETRO Construction he found that despite being given digital solutions, workers still shared some information with their voices. 

“One of the biggest problems in site capture was just getting data into the site platform,” he said. “It doesn’t matter what solution is used, site workers hate data entry – but they talk a lot on site. They talk through walkie-talkies and between people. That is where the data is. It’s in their minds.” 

While working for Autodesk on how to integrate with BIM he suggested using voice AI but was told it was too big a risk. Instead, he was allowed to leave and pursue it on his own with Ventana Construction.

“They had been building their own management solutions for 20 years and had been talking about taking what they had to market,” said Tucker. “I told them about this voice idea and how simple it was to gather evidence and capture communications. They were into it and that was how it came together.”

The result was Level Bot Technologies, and they plan to release their communication and site documentation app this fall. Tucker explained that the app will be able to message others, gather data and fill out forms by just using one’s voice and chat bot technology. The app is flexible and can integrate with existing platforms many companies use, like Procore. 

He believes this could be especially useful for sites that have multiple languages being spoken. 

“What is awesome about natural language processing is that it can do translation on the fly in real time,” said Tucker. “If you have a form in English, any of the languages we support can distribute that information to the worker in their preferred language.”

Tucker said this could be used to ensure that critical safety information is relayed, understood and documented. The first two languages that the app will support are English and Spanish. Tucker says the app will see real beta testing on a site in a few months, but right now the team has only been testing singular features.

“The main thing about the app is that it is really simple, so messaging, answering forms and capturing evidence can all be done on any smartphone,” he said. 

Level Bot also wants to address one of the industry’s biggest issues: mental health.

“One of the biggest things we see happening is construction that is concerning is the mental health crisis,” said Tucker. “There’s lots of depression, high suicide rates. As of last year, it was more likely for you to commit suicide than to die from a work-related incident.” 

They are looking at partnering with health technology companies to develop a free questionnaire to assist in identifying workers who are struggling. Tucker noted that there is also promising research into how voice technology could be used to detect fatigue, depression and even some forms of cancer. 

“We want to keep the industry as healthy as we can and want to support unions and trades who are looking to do something about the mental health crisis,” said Tucker. “We won’t ever be a health provider but will enable this for builders with health provider partners.”

After serving four years as Kingston and the Islands MPP, Ian Arthur announced he would not be seeking re-election. 

Ontario NDP leadership praised him for leading the battle to get more family doctors in Kingston, and by being an outspoken and purpose-driven advocate for action to address the climate crisis.

While he was proud of his political career, he wanted to do something bold in the private sector to solve some of the country’s biggest issues. 

“Serving as MPP was a huge honour and I am happy I did it but I wanted something else,” said Arthur. “I was interested in getting back into the private sector and working in an area with room for innovation where I could be disrupted.” 

When he saw the progress being made in robotics technology, he decided to tackle the issue of affordable housing and construction timelines. 

“I’d been watching the technology for years and found it interesting and saw it reaching a tipping point where it was in a viable place to get into the sector and start building,” he said. “I think the link started while I was a politician. We did a lot of work on housing to increase availability of affordable housing. But we were faced with the reality that while there are some provincial policy levers we can pull that do have an effect, the breadth of problems facing construction were not going to be addressed by policy alone.”

Finding a robot 

The same year he left politics he founded Nidus3D with Hugh Roberts. Roberts has worked in construction and development spaces for over a decade and has expertise in operations, R&D, sales, and strategy.

Their first step was building out a relationship with Denmark-based COBOD, the only company that manufactures a printer with the capability to match Nidus3D’s vision

The BOD2 printer’s modular truss structure presents several advantages for construction printing. The printer can be configured exactly to each project. It can also be upscaled and downscaled to suit larger and smaller projects that you may have in your pipeline. Nidus went to Demark to tour COBOD’s facility and watch the printers in action. The Nidus team then spoke with other COBOD customers about their experiences.

A ‘let’s get building’ approach 

After that, Nidus3D scraped together some capital through a small pre-seed round to buy its first printer. It arrived last February for commissioning and the team started building. Since then, they have been making Canadian history: 

• In partnership with Habitat for Humanity Windsor-Essex, and the University of Windsor, Nidus3D delivered North America’s first residentially permitted multi-unit 3D printed building. The build included four self-contained 560 square foot homes and was partially funded through Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s Innovation Fund. 
• Near Kingston, Ont., Nidus3D constructed the first-ever 3D-printed, multi-storey, mixed-use concrete building in North America. The 2,300-square-foot, two-storey building has a workshop on the ground floor and a residence on top.

Arthur explained that they are pushing the young, 3D-printed building industry forward not just because they want to, but because they have to. 

“Hugh and I have driven a practical, ‘let’s get building’ approach’ while a lot of other groups in the sector bought the tech on a more experimental basis to play around a bit,” he said. “That is partially out of necessity. We did secure some small, pre-seed money, but we have to secure projects to secure revenue so it is a necessity for us to get out and deliver projects and that is a big factor pushing us forward.” 

While these small, one-off projects are proving the viability of the technology, Arthur noted that 3D printing is far better applied on a larger scale. 

“When we run our forward-looking numbers that’s where it really becomes cost competitive,” he said. “Our build costs on probably ten units and above per site is, I think, universally competitive with any technology in Canada and it’s only the beginning of this technology.” 

This year the company plans to demonstrate the true benefits of 3D printing by spending roughly three months building a small, eight-building sub-division of about 24 units. 

Addressing housing and labour issues

Arthur hopes that in the coming years, the technology can be used to address housing affordability and labour shortages. 

“We make buildings with hundreds of different materials, thousands of components, tens of thousands of different process steps,” he said. “While we have had incredible material advances over the years, none of it has solved the process problem. I think this is one of the first things I have seen that addresses that process problem.”

Arthur noted that while Nidus3D’s projects get larger and more complex, the number of people required doesn’t increase. 

“The best case scenario for training workers still won’t meet demand. This technology still has challenges, it still needs to improve and be optimized for efficiency, but it does begin to address that process problem,” he said. “When we do deploy a larger printer than we have now, it still only needs three people and as you scale that you begin to see what it could have a profound impact on the building sector and housing supply in Canada.”  

Arthur doesn’t want to stop at 3D printing. While the goal is to scale the 3D business, he wants to look at ways to optimize the rest of the construction process, including mechanical systems, lighting systems, door and window installations, flooring and more.  “How can we use technology to make these things faster to deploy? Maybe we rethink how we deliver those systems?” said Arthur. “We have to start thinking about building in new ways. The industry is scaling in inefficient, slow, complex and unpredictable ways. We can’t scale that, we will just fall further and further behind. If we don’t find groups and technology that break that down and rebuild from ground up will never solve these problems.”  

Video shows tour of Canada’s first 3D-printed home: