HomeServe USA Announces Acquisition of the Service Plan Business of Dominion Products and Services, Inc.

NORWALK, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--HomeServe plc, parent company of HomeServe USA (HomeServe), a leading provider of home repair solutions, today announced that HomeServe USA will acquire the assets of the home repair services business of Dominion Products and Services, Inc. (DPS) from DPS, a wholly owned subsidiary of Dominion Energy, Inc., one of the largest energy and utility companies in the U.S. The transaction also includes a long term agreement with DPS to provide home repair services to residential customers served by utilities affiliated with Dominion Energy.

HomeServe continues to grow by acquiring the home repair services business of Dominion Products and Services.

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Based in Richmond, Va., DPS provides service plans similar to those offered by HomeServe that protect homeowners from the expense and inconvenience of unexpected home repairs and emergencies. DPS currently serves the needs of customers served by utilities affiliated with Dominion Energy, as well as for a group of affinity partners composed of investor-owned and municipal utilities.

“This agreement with DPS is another major step forward for HomeServe. It gives us the opportunity to add a significant number of customers, policies and new partner relationships that are complementary to our existing business,” said Tom Rusin, CEO, HomeServe USA. “We have demonstrated over the last few years that we are capable of growing our business both organically and through utility policy book acquisitions. This is largely due to our relentless focus on the customer experience, which we believe is second to none in the home assistance marketplace.”

After the acquisition passes customary regulatory approvals, it is structured to close in two phases, with the portion of the business related to customers served by utilities affiliated with Dominion Energy anticipated to close in December 2017. Then, subject to relevant partner agreements, the remaining portion of the business is anticipated to close before December 15, 2018. After the transaction is successfully completed, HomeServe will have expanded to service 3.6 million customers with 5.8 million repair plans in the continental U.S. and Canada through more than 500 municipal and utility partnerships.

“Dominion Products and Services appreciates the support shown by its employees, partners, and customers over the past two decades as this highly successful business was built. We want our customers and partners to know that the move to HomeServe will be a seamless transition for them and they will be in good hands under HomeServe’s leadership,” said Scot Hathaway, Senior Vice President, Commercial Services. “This is HomeServe’s core business and they have a long and successful track record of building strong partner relationships and providing high quality services to millions of homeowners across the U.S.”

Dominion Energy customers holding DPS service plans will begin receiving information about the transition to HomeServe in the near future. In the meantime, DPS customers can continue to visit www.dominionenergysolutions.com or call toll-free 1-888-216-3718 for information and service assistance. For information on HomeServe, please visit www.HomeServeUSA.com.

About Dominion Products and Services

Dominion Products and Services, Inc. is a full service provider of home protection programs with more than 500,000 customers across the United States offering suite of home protection programs providing financial protection against the costs associated with unexpected home repairs. All contractors are licensed and insured, and all work is guaranteed by DPS. Each year DPS completes more than 52,000 quality home repairs, providing peace-of-mind and exceptional service. Dominion Products and Services, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Dominion Energy, Inc. and is headquartered in Richmond, VA. More information available at: www.dominionenergysolutions.com.

About HomeServe

HomeServe USA Corp. (HomeServe) is a leading provider of home repair solutions serving 3.1 million customers across the US and Canada under the HomeServe, Home Emergency Insurance Solutions, Service Line Warranties of America (SLWA) and Service Line Warranties of Canada (SLWC) names. Since 2003, HomeServe has been protecting homeowners against the expense and inconvenience of water, sewer, electrical, HVAC and other home repair emergencies by providing affordable repair coverage and quality local service. As an A+ rated Better Business Bureau Accredited Business, HomeServe is dedicated to being a customer-focused company supplying best-in-class repair plans and other services to consumers directly and through over 475 leading municipal, utility and association partners. For more information about HomeServe, a 2017 Connecticut Top Workplace winner and recipient of seventeen 2017 Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, please go to www.homeserveusa.com. For information on SLWA visit www.slwofa.com and for SLWC visit www.slwofc.ca. To connect with HomeServe on Twitter and Facebook, please visit www.twitter.com/homeserveusa and www.facebook.com/HomeServeUSA.

City of Hamilton buildings need $216 million in repairs

The city says about a third of its sports, community and public works buildings are in "poor or critical" shape — including 135 facilities overdue for roof replacement.

There is an estimated $216 million repairs backlog for 455 buildings managed by the city's facilities department — particularly community and senior centres, work yards, sports clubhouses and entertainment facilities.

That hefty repair bill, reported to a city budget committee Friday, excludes public facilities like seniors' lodges, police stations, social housing and heritage buildings, which are managed by other departments.


A condition index label of "critical" does not mean a building is unusable, unsafe or about to fall down, said facilities head Rom D'Angelo. Typically, it means one or more important building components — like the roof, boiler, foundation or plumbing — needs a pricey fix.

"It's meant to draw attention to buildings that need major work before the building deteriorates any further beyond functionality," he said.

While buildings are not toppling, the repair budget is looking rickety.

The number of poor or critical buildings will jump from 152 to 260 in a decade if the city continues to spend an "unsustainable" $10 million a year on capital repairs.

The current repair backlog also doesn't include another $157 million in anticipated costs over the next 10 years to improve accessibility in public buildings based on stricter provincial legislation.

Some of the buildings on the facilities "critical" list would be familiar to residents — like the dilapidated, oft-criticized Chedoke golf clubhouse. Ditto for the mouldy, inaccessible Normanhurst Community Centre, which the city closed and declared surplus rather than try to tackle immediately necessary repairs worth more than $216,000.

But the city is also behind on roof replacements for 135 different buildings, ranging from tiny park washrooms to the barnlike public works building at 330 Wentworth St. N.

Not all of the identified problems actually need to be fixed, however.

The city acquires some of the problems when it buys old schools, for example. In some cases, those buildings will be sold, repurposed or torn down, so repairs are not a priority.

Councillors asked for both a map of the worstbuildings as well as an update on potential sales, redevelopment or consolidation of older facilities.

Coun. Chad Collins pointed out one of the most dilapidated buildings, a fire fleet facility on Bay Street North, has been eyed for "repurposing" for more than a decade.

"It's sitting right in an area (beside Central Park) that is the focus for redevelopment and renewal for the city," he said after the meeting. "It would seem like it has more value for us in terms of redevelopment."

Council quietly discussed the potential to sell off or privatize older community halls during closed-door budget meetings last year. So far, the results of those discussions have not gone public.

Some city buildings earned "good" condition index marks, like the new $145-million Tim Hortons Field as well as the city's transit facilities. The city's underground parking garage and all three major downtown entertainment facilities range from fair-to-poor on the index.

What is a Facilities Condition Index?

The FCI is an index that evaluates a building's condition based on the ratio of repair needs to replacement value, expressed in a percentage. A value of 0-5% is considered "good," while 30-45% is considered critical.

Ahern Canada Opens in Edmonton to Sell and Service Snorkel and Xtreme

Ahern Canada, part of the Ahern International division, celebrated its official launch this week with a grand opening ceremony at its new facility in Edmonton, Alberta.

Owned by Don Ahern, Ahern Canada is the fifth regional distribution outlet to open, following in the footsteps of Ahern Australia, Ahern Japan, Ahern Deutschland and Ahern Chile. All Ahern International businesses are focused on the sale and service of Snorkel aerial lifts and Xtreme Manufacturing telehandlers.

Ahern Canada is located at a facility in West Edmonton, strategically located to be able to support the equipment requirements of rental companies and contractors across the country, as well as the resources and energy sectors. The 9,000-square-foot facility houses a large showroom, offices, a spare parts warehouse and workshop for equipment servicing and repairs.

The Edmonton branch will hold a significant stock of both Snorkel and Xtreme spare parts to support equipment in the field, as well as an inventory of new Snorkel lifts and Xtreme Manufacturing telehandlers, ready to fulfil immediate customer requirements.  Ahern Canada also has a field sales team covering Eastern and Western Canada, and offers both on-site and field service and repair capabilities.

Rhett Nickerson, Western Regional sales manager for Ahern Canada said, “The official launch of Ahern Canada is an important step for Xtreme Manufacturing and Snorkel in this region. Our customers in this market are very excited to have a ‘bricks and mortar’ facility that will be fully stocked with spare parts and new equipment inventory, backed by a local team with significant industry experience.”

Matthew Elvin, CEO of Ahern International said, “Canada is a very important market for Xtreme and Snorkel, where we already have many valued customers. The investment in Ahern Canada reinforces our commitment this region, and will help us to deliver improved customer service and easier access to spare parts and new equipment, which we will be stocking at the Edmonton branch. We are very excited about this location, and we are looking forward to serving the Canadian market.”

The well-attended grand opening event took place on Thursday Oct. 19, October and included a traditional ribbon cutting ceremony, as well as facility tours, product demonstrations and a celebration party.

The new Ahern Canada website is now live at www.aherncanada.ca where visitors can browse the product lines, locate operator and service manuals, and learn more about the business.

Local company looking to give back to Creston

"It feels wCreston is home to the husband and wife team Kyle and Jaylene Holder, the proud owners of All Elements Industries. Their company provides residential, and commercial refrigeration, heating, plumbing, and gas fitting services here in the Creston Valley area.

Jaylene is the marketing genius behind All Elements Industries and is a PCSS graduate, born and raised in Creston. “After graduation, I worked and lived in Calgary where I met Kyle. Kyle was working on his journeyman’s’ tickets at the time. During our holidays, Kyle and I would come back to Creston to visit my parents and Kyle fell in love with the Creston Valley. We set the goal to move to Creston and raise our family.”

Over the last two years, All Elements Industries has provided commercial refrigeration services in Creston’s grocery stores, dairy farms, local brewery and recreation centre.

“Two years after making the decision to move to Creston we are proud to say we have six employees. and we now have the ability to provide employment and mentorship to other PCSS graduates giving our employees and their families an opportunity to return to Creston just as we have,” says Jaylene. “It feels wonderful to be able to come back to Creston and contribute to Creston’s economic growth.”

“We are looking to get more involved in the community and give back to Creston. We want people to know that we are grateful to be in Creston. We couldn’t imagine that the community would be so supportive of us.” said Kyle.

“Being right in town means that a business doesn’t have to call a company in Kelowna for a repair, saving on travel expenses for local businesses. Our goal is to take care of home, the Creston Valley. All our technicians are highly trained and qualified to work in refrigeration, heating, plumbing, and gas fit repair,” said Kyle. “I originally wanted to be an engineer however my father and five of my six brothers have their own refrigeration or gas fitting companies and after working around them I found I loved to troubleshoot problems and fix them.”

“We are excited to be in Creston and are thankful that the business community and residents of Creston are so welcoming,” says Kyle. “I think Creston is pretty lucky to have Kyle” beams Jaylene “and more importantly we love having our family around while we raise our family in a great community!”

Recently All Elements Industries won Kootenay Business 2017 Best Business for HVAC in the East Kootenays.onderful to be able to come back to Creston and contribute to Creston's economic growth"

Global HVAC Market 2017- Bosch, Panasonic, Daikin, Carrier and Ingersoll Rand

The research study on global HVAC market presents an extensive analysis of current HVAC trends, market size, drivers, HVAC opportunities, challenges, and problems as well as key HVAC market segments. Further, in the HVAC market report, various definitions and classification of the HVAC industry, applications and chain structure are discussed. In continuation with this data HVAC report also covers the marketing strategies followed by HVAC players, distributors analysis, HVAC marketing channels, potential buyers and HVAC development history.

The intent of global HVAC research report is to depict the information to the user regarding HVAC market dynamics and forecast for the upcoming years. The HVAC study lists the essential elements which influence the growth of HVAC industry. Long-term evaluation of the worldwide HVAC market share from diverse countries and regions is roofed within the HVAC report. Additionally, HVAC type wise and application wise consumption figures are also included.

After the basic information, the global HVAC Market study sheds light on the HVAC technological evolution, tie-ups, acquisition, innovative HVAC business approach, new launches and HVAC revenue. In addition, the HVAC industry growth in distinct regions and HVAC R&D status are enclosed within the report. The HVAC study also incorporates new investment feasibility analysis of HVAC.

Do Inquiry Before Purchasing Report Here: http://emarkets.eu/global-hvac-market/#inquiry

Global HVAC Market Segmentation:

The study classifies the entire HVAC market on basis of leading manufacturers, different types, various applications and diverse geographical regions. HVAC market is described by the existence of well-known global and regional HVAC vendors. These established HVAC players have huge essential resources and funds for HVAC research and HVAC developmental activities. Also, the HVAC manufacturers focusing on the development of new HVAC technologies and feedstock. This will enhance the competitive scenario of the HVAC industry.

The Leading Players involved in global HVAC market are Carrier, Nortek, Samsung, Panasonic, Daikin, Lennox International, Johnson Controls, Bosch, Mitsubishi Electric and Ingersoll Rand. Based on type, the HVAC market is categorized into Central system and DX system (Direct-expansion system). According to applications, HVAC market divided into Commercial Building, Automotive, Industrial Buildings and Civilian Buildings.

The companies in the world that deals with HVAC mainly concentrate on North America, Asia-Pacific, Europe, South America, Middle East and Africa. The Leading regions of HVAC market in North America are the USA, Canada and Mexico. HVAC market major contributors in Europe included Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy. China, Japan, Korea & India are some of the dominant countries in HVAC market from Asia Pacific region. From the Middle East and Africa region Egypt, South Africa, Saudi Arabia are Leading countries in HVAC industry. The most contributing HVAC regions in South America are Brazil, Chile, Peru and Argentina.

Request Sample HVAC Research Report at http://emarkets.eu/global-hvac-market/#request-sample

Highlights of Global HVAC Market Report:

Overall the HVAC report offers a whole consequential study of the parent HVAC market, key tactics followed by leading HVAC industry Players and upcoming segments. Former, current and forecast HVAC market analysis in terms of volume and value along with research conclusions is a decisive part of HVAC study. So that HVAC report helps the new aspirants to inspect the forthcoming opportunities in the HVAC market.

For More Related Research Reports Visit : http://incrediblenews24.com/category/business

McCombs Supply Drives Ecommerce Growth with Descartes ShipRush Solution

WATERLOO, Ontario, Oct. 24, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Descartes Systems Group (Nasdaq:DSGX) (TSX:DSG), the global leader in uniting logistics-intensive businesses in commerce, announced that Lancaster, PA-based McCombs Supply, a successful retailer of appliance parts, is using its cloud-based Descartes ShipRush solution for multi-carrier parcel shipping.

Using Descartes ShipRush, McCombs Supply has grown ecommerce shipping volumes by 600% and reduced order fulfilment times by 30% to contractors, service technicians, housing developers, large institutions and consumers.

“In the early 2000s, we saw ecommerce as the next big step in the company’s success,” said Ken McCombs, Vice President, at McCombs Supply Company Inc. “Where we used to ship a few hundred packages-per-day, we’re now shipping 30,000+ per month and over 300,000 per year—and 95 percent of these shipments are through the Descartes ShipRush solution. We also went from shipping 150 packages a day to 150 an hour. When we started growing, I couldn't keep up with online demand but, after we started using Descartes ShipRush, it made growth possible.”

Descartes ShipRush is a cloud-based, multi-carrier parcel shipping platform that helps small-to-medium ecommerce businesses (SMB) and omnichannel retailers print parcel shipping labels for delivery to customers. Integrated with over 60 business systems, including leading ERP, ecommerce and supply chain platforms, Descartes ShipRush helps customers to streamline order processing and reduce transportation costs. Descartes ShipRush automatically imports orders, compares carrier rates, prints shipping labels for major parcel carriers, and uploads tracking information to the relevant ecommerce or business application.

“We’re pleased that our Descartes ShipRush technology has played an important role in the sizable ecommerce growth at McCombs Supply,” said Rafael Zimberoff, VP Product Management at Descartes. “With parcel shipping solutions that integrate front-end ecommerce systems and multiple parcel carriers, organizations of all sizes serving businesses or consumers can gain control of shipping costs and delivery execution to provide a better customer experience.”

About McCombs Supply Company Inc.
In business since 1953, McCombs Supply Co., Inc. offers replacement repair parts for dishwashers, dryers, microwaves, range-ovens, refrigerators, washing machines, HVAC, commercial refrigeration, commercial cooking, and more. Some of our manufacturers we distribute for include – Backer-Chromolox, Broan-Nutone, Exact Replacement Parts (ERP), EZ Flo, Fasco, Jason Manufacturing, ICM, JW Harris, Packard, Robertshaw, Sealed Unit Parts Company (SUPCO) and White Rodgers. We supply contractors, service technicians, housing developments, institutions, and do-it-yourselfers. Learn more at www.mccombssupply.com.

About Descartes Systems Group       
Descartes (Nasdaq:DSGX) (TSX:DSG) is the global leader in providing on-demand, software-as-a-service solutions focused on improving the productivity, performance and security of logistics-intensive businesses. Customers use our modular, software-as-a-service solutions to route, schedule, track and measure delivery resources; plan, allocate and execute shipments; rate, audit and pay transportation invoices; access global trade data; file customs and security documents for imports and exports; and complete numerous other logistics processes by participating in the world's largest, collaborative multimodal logistics community. Our headquarters are in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada and we have offices and partners around the world. Learn more at www.descartes.com, and connect with us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

PE-owned CoolSys buys Certified Refrigeration and Mechanical

CoolSys, which is owned by Audax Private Equity, has acquired Madison, Wisconsin-based Certified Refrigeration and Mechanical Inc, a refrigeration services company. No financial terms were disclosed.

PRESS RELEASE

ANAHEIM, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–CoolSys™, a parent of market-leading refrigeration and HVAC companies nationwide, announced it has acquired Certified Refrigeration and Mechanical, Inc. (“CRM”), a Madison, Wisconsin-based refrigeration services company. With this acquisition, Coolsys establishes its presence for the first time in the Wisconsin region with CRM’s ten branch locations across the state.

“We’re looking forward to bringing CRM and its employees into our portfolio of companies and to doing business across the Wisconsin region,” comments Adam Coffey, CEO of Coolsys. “This represents a significant milestone in our ‘Buy and Build’ strategy designed to achieve company growth through strategic acquisitions of industry-leading refrigeration and HVAC companies.”

CRM is a local, family-oriented company offering statewide commercial refrigeration service solutions to meet its customers’ food service, refrigeration, and HVAC equipment repair and maintenance needs. Serving all major regions throughout the state of Wisconsin, it has established a reputation as an industry leader based on its expert knowledge, experience and technology. It uses the largest state-of-the-art refrigeration training lab in Wisconsin to ensure that technicians are professionally competent to serve all of its customers’ equipment service needs.

“We are excited about joining the CoolSys family of companies as we continue to serve the Wisconsin region,” comments CRM President Gary Schmerler. “We remain committed to delivering the same high level of service our customers have come to expect, while offering added resources and capabilities from CoolSys.”

This acquisition is the third undertaken by CoolSys under its ownership by Audax Private Equity, and the second this year.

About CoolSys
CoolSys is a parent of market-leading refrigeration and HVAC companies, specializing in a full spectrum of best-in-class service experiences and solutions for the retail, commercial, and industrial refrigeration and HVAC industries. CoolSys and its operating businesses cover every stage of mission-critical systems through design, installation, optimization, maintenance, service and repair. Headquartered in Southern California, CoolSys companies have more than 1,200 highly trained, field-based service and installation experts serving the daily needs of more than 2,500 customers across North America. For additional information, please visit www.coolsys.com.

About Audax
Since its founding in 1999, Audax Private Equity has been focused on building leading middle market companies. Audax has invested $4 billion in 107 platform and 621 add-on companies. Through its disciplined Buy & Build approach, Audax seeks to help platform companies execute add-on acquisitions that fuel revenue growth, optimize operations, and significantly increase equity value.

Southfield buys American Refrigerator Company

Southfield Capital has acquired Andover, Massachusetts-based American Refrigerator Company, an industrial refrigeration service company. Abacus Finance Group provided $20.5 million in financing to support the buyout.

PRESS RELEASE

NEW YORK, NY, November 14, 2017 – Abacus Finance Group, LLC (Abacus), a New York-based direct lending company that provides cash-flow senior financing for private equity-sponsored, lower-middle market companies, announced today that it served as Administrative Agent and Lead Arranger for $20.5 million in senior secured credit facilities to support the leveraged buyout of American Refrigerator Company (ARC) by Southfield Capital Advisors (Southfield).

Founded in 1996 and headquartered in Andover, MA, ARC is the largest independent industrial refrigeration service company in New England. Based in Greenwich, CT, Southfield Capital is a private equity firm that invests in high-growth, lower-middle market companies in the outsourced business services and specialty finance sectors.

“This was our second transaction with Abacus,” said Southfield Managing Partner Andy Levison, “and once again we were impressed with the flexibility of the financing structure that they proposed and the speed of their willingness to commit to the transaction.” “Not only that,” added Southfield Partner Heb James, “they really rolled up their sleeves in the due diligence process which was handled quickly and efficiently.”


“As Andy noted, this was our second transaction with Southfield,” said Tim Clifford, President and CEO of Abacus, “and as before, they brought us a company of exceptional quality. We were well prepared for due diligence having taken a deep research dive into the industry – an important step in what we call our Total Partnership Approach™.”

Abacus team members involved in the transaction included Aized Rabbani and Joe Lee. Legal counsel was provided to Abacus by Goulston & Storrs, PC.

About American Refrigeration Company
Headquartered in Andover, MA, ARC was founded in 1996 and is the largest independent industrial refrigeration service company in New England. ARC provides services for refrigeration and air conditioning system design, alternative refrigerant evaluation, product freezing/cooling response evaluations, energy studies, and computerized plan performance evaluations. ARC also provides construction and equipment maintenance and repair for other industrial and commercial refrigeration and HVAC needs. ARC prides itself in the installation of world class systems for leaders in the food and beverage, cold storage arena, pharmaceutical, and process industries. Visit www.arc.cool for more information.

About Southfield Capital
Based in Greenwich, CT, Southfield Capital is a private equity firm that invests in high-growth, lower-middle market companies in the outsourced business services and specialty finance sectors. The firm targets companies with $4 million to $12 million in EBITDA and partners with management to scale the business through a combination of organic and acquisition growth strategies. For more information, please Visit www.southfieldcapital.com for more information.


About Abacus Finance Group, LLC
Abacus Finance is a direct lending company, focused on providing cash flow senior financing to private equity-sponsored, lower-middle market companies nationwide. Since inception in June 2011, it has closed over $1.7 billion in financings. Abacus targets debt financing opportunities of up to $60 million with a typical hold size ranging from $10 million to $30 million, and finances companies with EBITDA between $3 million and $15 million. Abacus is an affiliate of New York Private Bank & Trust which was founded in 1850.

Enabling faster returns to service when installing flooring

By Casey Ball
Whether building a new facility or retrofitting an existing one, downtime can be a construction manager’s worst nightmare. It can interfere with the project’s overall productivity, creating delays that hold up multiple service providers from performing their duties.

Unfortunately, when the time comes to install or repair a resinous flooring system, downtime is a given for nearly every discipline involved. However, unnecessary delays can be prevented by knowing more about the different types of flooring and their limitations, allowing design/construction professionals to select the system best aligning with the project timeline, budget, and longevity requirements.

To avoid contaminating a new resinous flooring system, other construction activities must often stop, and personnel must clear the area throughout the multistep—often multiday—installation. The applicator’s goal is to then return the facility to service as quickly as possible following the flooring installation. To speed up installations and minimize project downtime, it is best to select flooring systems that apply and cure quickly. Such products include urethane concrete coatings, which can allow foot traffic within four to eight hours of application and full service within six to 12 hours.

Additionally, methyl methacrylate (MMA) systems allow foot traffic after one hour and full service in two hours, with the caveat they typically require additional project setup time to mitigate odours. Conventional epoxy mortar systems are another common alternative, but they typically need a 24-hour curing time before returning to service. The three systems also differ in their number of application steps and total installation times, with urethane and MMA systems offering enhanced efficiencies.

Evaluating resinous flooring system options
For commercial facilities, there are three commonly used flooring system chemistries.

Smile Heating & Cooling – Rated Top 3 HVAC Service Provider in Regina, SK for 2017

Everyone knows there is nothing worse than having your furnace putter out with a home full of family on the holidays.  But with Smile Heating & Cooling just a call away you can be sure that your issue will be resolved quickly and in can make sure that repair costs won’t break the bank!



Smile Heating & Cooling offer a variety of HVAC and plumbing services to the Regina area.  With 24-Hour emergency service and a service guarantee you can be sure you are getting your work done by a team of professionals that will take care of you and your home.

With the winter season already settling in nicely, one of the most important things you can do is make sure your furnace is going to be fully functional throughout the winter.  Smile Heating & Cooling can inspect and clean your furnace to make sure that any major issues that could cause a malfunction are taken care of before a breakdown.  With the flatness and windiness of Saskatchewan, it is very easy for your HVAC system to intake a lot of dust and debris that can clog it up and cause allergies and other health ailments.  Smile Heating & Cooling has professionals trained to clean your ducts and remove the harmful dust and particles.  In addition to cleaning, making sure your entire furnace system is in good working order is very important. And the pros at Smile Heating & Cooling don’t just stop at the furnace, they do a thorough check of your entire HVAC system.  Leaving issues unrepaired can cause further damage in the long run which may cost even more when repairs are needed.

Smile Heating & Cooling understands that an unexpected repair to your furnace, air conditioner, or plumbing can be a financial burden.  That is why they are up front about all costs and prices involved, and offering excellent prices for the services offered.  To help deal with a sudden expense like this, they also offer payment plans to help their customers out.  Make sure to call Smile Heating & Cooling for your HVAC and plumbing needs.

About Smile Heating & Cooling

As one of Regina’s top HVAC service providers, Smile Heating & Cooling can handle almost anything thrown at them.  Their trained staff of certified specialists can handle repairs, installations, tune-ups, and cleaning of air conditioning systems, furnaces, water heaters, humidifiers, as well as heat recovery ventilation systems.  They also offer plumbing services including repairs, clearing and cleaning of drains, diagnosis, inspection, and more.  They have been in the HVAC and plumbing business for years and have a highly skilled staff, in addition to the best prices in Regina.  They are consistent award winners and have hundreds of positive reviews and 5 star ratings by customers.

AC Repair Spring Hill FL Announces the Addition Of HVAC Repair Technicians To Their Service Team!(

(MENAFN Editorial) AC Repair Spring Hill FL hires additional HVAC repair technicians. AC Repair Spring Hill FL has announced that they are adding more HVAC repair technicians to their team to ensure their customers are served quickly and more efficiently. The company has an impeccable track record of providing great service to their customers in Spring Hill and surrounding areas.

'We are happy to announce the addition of more HVAC repair technicians to our service team, says the spokesperson for AC Repair Spring Hill, FL. 'Our Bay Area customers can now expect faster response to their call for repairs and maintenance. All our technicians are extensively trained and fully equipped to carry out immediate repairs.

are qualified to carry out all types of work, including installation of new central air conditioners, duct work, cleaning, and maintenance. They guarantee the best service regardless of the complexity of the repair job. The company even offers an AC repair test drive and guarantees risk-free satisfaction on all their services.
This premier HVAC repair service stands apart from the others on several accounts. They make sure they have detailed knowledge of the work to be done before they start. They offer a two-year warranty on all parts and labor. They guarantee customer satisfaction for 365 days. AC Repair Spring Hill FL has the reputation for getting the job right the very first time, every time. Customers who are not satisfied with the repair work can get their money back.

Apart from impeccable service and offering the fastest response time to complaints, AC Repair Spring Hill FL also provides the most affordable repair service in the area. Customers can get a 35% discount straightaway on any paid repair when they call to schedule an AC or heating repair service.
At $69, their house call is already the most affordable qualified AC repair service available in the Spring Hill Area. Their high quality service and low prices make them one of the most reputed, recognized, and reviewed air conditioning repair and installation services in the area.

AC Repair Spring Hill FL is an A+ BBB rated company that boasts of impressive 4.92/5 star-verified Nearby Now reviews. They have earned numerous accolades, including the Angie's List Super Service Award for two years in a row and the Times Carrier President's Award Winner a whopping nine times. They are the first dealership in Florida to be inducted into the Carrier Hall of Fame.
AC Repair Spring Hill FL offers a 2-year warranty on all parts and labor and a 1-year satisfaction guarantee to all their clients. They service all brands of air-conditioners and heaters and have in stock nearly 95% of commonly required parts and accessories. This makes it easy for them to provide the same day repair service. By adding to the strength of their repair and maintenance team, the company is all set to take their service quality to the next level.

For more information, visit
About AC Repair Spring Hill FL:

AC Repair Spring Hill FL are air-conditioning and heating repair installation specialists serving Bay Area residents and commercial establishments. Their repair professionals have nearly two decades of experience in repairing AC and heating units. The key USP of the company is that they arrive fully prepared for making quick, effective repairs. All their services are packed with superb quality and the surefire guarantee of impeccable performance

Ryerson University building wins ACI award

The Ryerson University Student Learning Centre (Toronto) has won a 2017 Excellence in Concrete Construction Awards from the American Concrete Institute (ACI).

The awards celebrate the most creative projects in the concrete industry. With an independent panel of industry professionals selecting 12 winners on the basis of architectural and engineering merit, creativity, construction techniques or solutions, innovative use of materials, ingenuity, sustainability and resilience as well as functionality.

Ryerson won in the Decorative Concrete category. The new, eight-storey centre features an elevated plaza and glass façade with bridges to the existing library. The building is certified under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver program, and 50 per cent of the roof is dedicated for vegetation.

R·torso·C, a home sitting on an area of 66 m2 (710 sf) in central Tokyo, Japan, won the overall Excellence award and also topped the Low-rise Buildings category. The project team—including architectural firm Atelier Tekuto—pruned away the corner of a rectangular volume to create a sense of spaciousness in the interior of the four-storey building.

The Market Street Parking Garage project in downtown Wichita, Kansas, took the first place in the Repair and Restoration category. Whole structural components, including concrete columns, beams, and floor slabs had to be replaced in this old structure. The whole project took 12 months and more than 1337 m3 (1750 cy) of concrete. Project team includes Law Kingdon Architecture and engineering firm Krudwig Structural Engineers.

Denver International Airport’s Hotel Transit Center in Denver won in the Mid-rise Buildings category. The 15-storey building comprises cast-in-place concrete elements and a variety of framing techniques. The upper 10 floors of the building cantilever out 16 m (55 ft) on each side by using concrete columns that leaned away from the structure. A large portion of the building’s façade is clad in a running-bond precast concrete architectural system requiring a complex custom form liner. Engineering firm S.A. Miro and architects from Gensler worked on this project.

The Embassy Lake Terraces in Bangalore, India, claimed the High-rise Buildings category. It is spread across 5.8 ha (14.5 acres) with nine towers architecturally nuanced to take advantage of its lakeside location. The apartment floors employ a wall and slab system. Five of the nine towers are twisted at the 13th level by 30 degrees—the slab there is designed as a post-tensioned voided transfer slab. Columns at the transfer level are flared to take care of the transfer of shear to the column. The floors above are on cantilevers extended 7 m (23 ft) beyond the columns at transfer level. The basements and the podium level are designed with a waffle slab system. Andy Fisher Workshop and Innotech Engineering Consult worked on this project.

Johnson County Gateway in Overland Park, Kansas, won the Infrastructure category. The project added much-needed lanes and reconfigured existing interchanges throughout the I-435/I-35/K-10 corridor. Two collector distributor roads were built on either side of I-435 to alleviate traffic weaving to exit onto city streets. Twenty-two bridges and two diverging diamond interchanges were constructed as part of this project. More than 458,733 m3 (600,000 cy) of pavement concrete were employed in this $288 million project.

Comfort Systems USA (FIX) Upgraded to “Buy” at Zacks Investment Research

Zacks Investment Research upgraded shares of Comfort Systems USA (NYSE:FIX) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Wednesday. Zacks Investment Research currently has $50.00 price target on the construction company’s stock.

According to Zacks, “Comfort Systems USA, Inc. is a national provider of comprehensive heating, ventilation and air conditioning installation, maintenance, repair and replacement services. The Company operates primarily in the commercial and industrial HVAC markets, and perform most of their services within manufacturing plants, office buildings, retail centers, apartment complexes, and healthcare, education and government facilities. Comfort Systems USA merged with the best regional experts, and now provides nationwide reach through 36 subsidiary companies that are prepared to build, service or retrofit any mechanical, HVAC or electrical system. Whether the project is Design-Build or Plan and Spec, Comfort Systems USA can help from the design phase to construction with qualified professionals, quality products and an experienced contractor team. “

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on FIX. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Comfort Systems USA to $43.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, October 30th. Gilford Securities downgraded Comfort Systems USA from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, November 10th. Finally, Guggenheim downgraded Comfort Systems USA from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, November 10th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The company presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $58.67.

Shares of Comfort Systems USA (FIX) opened at $43.80 on Wednesday. Comfort Systems USA has a fifty-two week low of $31.90 and a fifty-two week high of $44.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 1.30. The company has a market capitalization of $1,645.05, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.27.
Comfort Systems USA (NYSE:FIX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 26th. The construction company reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.02. Comfort Systems USA had a return on equity of 22.10% and a net margin of 4.63%. The company had revenue of $480.85 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $469.53 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.54 earnings per share. Comfort Systems USA’s quarterly revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. equities research analysts expect that Comfort Systems USA will post 1.78 EPS for the current year.

In other news, Director Alan Krusi sold 2,000 shares of Comfort Systems USA stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.24, for a total transaction of $86,480.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Brian E. Lane sold 19,389 shares of Comfort Systems USA stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.35, for a total value of $821,124.15. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 203,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,597,939.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 70,473 shares of company stock valued at $2,986,454 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 3.48% of the company’s stock.

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FIX. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its position in Comfort Systems USA by 6.8% during the 2nd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 2,715 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $101,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Riverhead Capital Management LLC increased its position in Comfort Systems USA by 85.2% during the 2nd quarter. Riverhead Capital Management LLC now owns 2,963 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $110,000 after purchasing an additional 1,363 shares in the last quarter. Advisor Group Inc. increased its position in Comfort Systems USA by 27.2% during the 2nd quarter. Advisor Group Inc. now owns 3,304 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $122,000 after purchasing an additional 706 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Comfort Systems USA by 11.5% during the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,257 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $195,000 after purchasing an additional 542 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Comfort Systems USA during the 3rd quarter worth about $202,000. 92.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Comfort Systems USA Company Profile

Comfort Systems USA, Inc is a provider of mechanical contracting services, which principally includes heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), plumbing, piping and controls, as well as off-site construction, electrical, monitoring and fire protection. As of December 31, 2016, the Company installed, maintained, repaired and replaced products and systems throughout its 35 operating units in 84 cities and 91 locations throughout the United States.

HVAC Refrigerant Market 2017- Global Industry Analysis, By Key Players, Segmentation, Trends And Forecast By 2022

HVAC Refrigerant Market 2017

Wiseguyreports.Com Adds “HVAC Refrigerant – Global Market Demand, Growth, Opportunities, Manufacturers, Analysis of Top Key Players and Forecast to 2022” To Its Research Database.

Description:

In this report, the global HVAC Refrigerant market is valued at USD XX million in 2016 and is expected to reach USD XX million by the end of 2022, growing at a CAGR of XX% between 2016 and 2022.

Geographically, this report is segmented into several key Regions, with production, consumption, revenue (million USD), market share and growth rate of HVAC Refrigerant in these regions, from 2012 to 2022 (forecast), covering
North America
Europe
China
Japan
Southeast Asia
India
Global HVAC Refrigerant market competition by top manufacturers, with production, price, revenue (value) and market share for each manufacturer; the top players including
DuPont
Honeywell
Mexichem
Daikin
Arkema
The Linde Group
Actrol
Carrier
Emerson Climate
Sinochem Qingdao
Liangyou Environmental Protection Chemicals
Ficox Chemical
Shanghai KuAo Refrigeration Equipment
ZHEJIANG V&T GROUP LIMITED
NRI
Carly
Parker
SIG
Juhua
SINOLOONG

Request for Sample Report@ https://www.wiseguyreports.com/sample-request/1294227-global-hvac-refrigerant-market-research-report-2017

On the basis of product, this report displays the production, revenue, price, market share and growth rate of each type, primarily split into
R410A (sometimes known as Puron)
R-22 (also known as Freon)
On the basis of the end users/applications, this report focuses on the status and outlook for major applications/end users, consumption (sales), market share and growth rate for each application, including
Residential HVAC
Commercial HVAC
Industrial HVAC

Enquiry before Buying @ https://www.wiseguyreports.com/enquiry/1294227-global-hvac-refrigerant-market-research-report-2017

If you have any special requirements, please let us know and we will offer you the report as you want.

Table of Contents:

Global HVAC Refrigerant Market Research Report 2017
1 HVAC Refrigerant Market Overview
1.1 Product Overview and Scope of HVAC Refrigerant
1.2 HVAC Refrigerant Segment by Type (Product Category)
1.2.1 Global HVAC Refrigerant Production and CAGR (%) Comparison by Type (Product Category)(2012-2022)
1.2.2 Global HVAC Refrigerant Production Market Share by Type (Product Category) in 2016
1.2.3 R410A (sometimes known as Puron)
1.2.4 R-22 (also known as Freon)
1.3 Global HVAC Refrigerant Segment by Application
1.3.1 HVAC Refrigerant Consumption (Sales) Comparison by Application (2012-2022)
1.3.2 Residential HVAC
1.3.3 Commercial HVAC
1.3.4 Industrial HVAC
1.4 Global HVAC Refrigerant Market by Region (2012-2022)
1.4.1 Global HVAC Refrigerant Market Size (Value) and CAGR (%) Comparison by Region (2012-2022)
1.4.2 North America Status and Prospect (2012-2022)
1.4.3 Europe Status and Prospect (2012-2022)
1.4.4 China Status and Prospect (2012-2022)
1.4.5 Japan Status and Prospect (2012-2022)
1.4.6 Southeast Asia Status and Prospect (2012-2022)
1.4.7 India Status and Prospect (2012-2022)
1.5 Global Market Size (Value) of HVAC Refrigerant (2012-2022)
1.5.1 Global HVAC Refrigerant Revenue Status and Outlook (2012-2022)
1.5.2 Global HVAC Refrigerant Capacity, Production Status and Outlook (2012-2022)

2 Global HVAC Refrigerant Market Competition by Manufacturers
2.1 Global HVAC Refrigerant Capacity, Production and Share by Manufacturers (2012-2017)
2.1.1 Global HVAC Refrigerant Capacity and Share by Manufacturers (2012-2017)
2.1.2 Global HVAC Refrigerant Production and Share by Manufacturers (2012-2017)
2.2 Global HVAC Refrigerant Revenue and Share by Manufacturers (2012-2017)
2.3 Global HVAC Refrigerant Average Price by Manufacturers (2012-2017)
2.4 Manufacturers HVAC Refrigerant Manufacturing Base Distribution, Sales Area and Product Type
2.5 HVAC Refrigerant Market Competitive Situation and Trends
2.5.1 HVAC Refrigerant Market Concentration Rate
2.5.2 HVAC Refrigerant Market Share of Top 3 and Top 5 Manufacturers
2.5.3 Mergers & Acquisitions, Expansion

…….

7 Global HVAC Refrigerant Manufacturers Profiles/Analysis
7.1 DuPont
7.1.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors
7.1.2 HVAC Refrigerant Product Category, Application and Specification
7.1.2.1 Product A
7.1.2.2 Product B
7.1.3 DuPont HVAC Refrigerant Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)
7.1.4 Main Business/Business Overview
7.2 Honeywell
7.2.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors
7.2.2 HVAC Refrigerant Product Category, Application and Specification
7.2.2.1 Product A
7.2.2.2 Product B
7.2.3 Honeywell HVAC Refrigerant Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)
7.2.4 Main Business/Business Overview
7.3 Mexichem
7.3.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors
7.3.2 HVAC Refrigerant Product Category, Application and Specification
7.3.2.1 Product A
7.3.2.2 Product B
7.3.3 Mexichem HVAC Refrigerant Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)
7.3.4 Main Business/Business Overview
7.4 Daikin
7.4.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors
7.4.2 HVAC Refrigerant Product Category, Application and Specification
7.4.2.1 Product A
7.4.2.2 Product B
7.4.3 Daikin HVAC Refrigerant Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)
7.4.4 Main Business/Business Overview
7.5 Arkema
7.5.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors
7.5.2 HVAC Refrigerant Product Category, Application and Specification
7.5.2.1 Product A
7.5.2.2 Product B
7.5.3 Arkema HVAC Refrigerant Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)
7.5.4 Main Business/Business Overview
7.6 The Linde Group
7.6.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors
7.6.2 HVAC Refrigerant Product Category, Application and Specification
7.6.2.1 Product A
7.6.2.2 Product B
7.6.3 The Linde Group HVAC Refrigerant Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)
7.6.4 Main Business/Business Overview
7.7 Actrol
7.7.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors
7.7.2 HVAC Refrigerant Product Category, Application and Specification
7.7.2.1 Product A
7.7.2.2 Product B
7.7.3 Actrol HVAC Refrigerant Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)
7.7.4 Main Business/Business Overview
7.8 Carrier
7.8.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors
7.8.2 HVAC Refrigerant Product Category, Application and Specification
7.8.2.1 Product A
7.8.2.2 Product B
7.8.3 Carrier HVAC Refrigerant Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)
7.8.4 Main Business/Business Overview
7.9 Emerson Climate
7.9.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors
7.9.2 HVAC Refrigerant Product Category, Application and Specification
7.9.2.1 Product A
7.9.2.2 Product B
7.9.3 Emerson Climate HVAC Refrigerant Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)
7.9.4 Main Business/Business Overview
7.10 Sinochem Qingdao
7.10.1 Company Basic Information, Manufacturing Base, Sales Area and Its Competitors
7.10.2 HVAC Refrigerant Product Category, Application and Specification
7.10.2.1 Product A
7.10.2.2 Product B
7.10.3 Sinochem Qingdao HVAC Refrigerant Capacity, Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2012-2017)
7.10.4 Main Business/Business Overview
7.11 Liangyou Environmental Protection Chemicals
7.12 Ficox Chemical
7.13 Shanghai KuAo Refrigeration Equipment
7.14 ZHEJIANG V&T GROUP LIMITED
7.15 NRI
7.16 Carly
7.17 Parker
7.18 SIG
7.19 Juhua
7.20 SINOLOONG

Manufacturing plant in Mascot evacuated after HVAC unit catches fire

Workers had to evacuate after an HVAC unit caught fire on the roof of the EXEDY America Corporation plant off Holston Bend Drive in Knox County.

Workers at a manufacturing plant in Mascot had to evacuate after a roof HVAC unit caught fire Thursday morning.

Crews with Rural/Metro Fire in Knox County responded to a fire at the EXEDY America Corporation plant on Holston Bend Drive around 10:00 a.m.

Crews said the HVAC unit was fairly large and caught fire, sending smoke into the facility. Crews were able to put the fire out quickly before it could spread or do significant damage to the plant.

Jeff Bagwell with Rural/Metro said crews have responded to a similar HVAC unit fire at this plant in the past. The company manufactures drive train components for various types of personal and commercial vehicles.

Ontario cap and trade brings in $2B this year

TORONTO — Ontario's cap-and-trade auctions brought in nearly $2 billion in its first year, ahead of entering a joint market with Quebec and California next year.

The final auction took place last week and results released Wednesday show that 83 per cent of current credits were sold, giving the province $422 million.

That means that the province's system aimed at lowering greenhouse gas emissions has brought in $1.9 billion for green projects in 2017, such as energy efficient improvements at hospitals, green rebates for homeowners, and bike lanes.


Environment Minister Chris Ballard said in a statement that Wednesday's results show the system is functioning as it should.

It puts caps on the amount of pollution companies in certain industries can emit, and if they exceed those limits they must buy allowances at auction or from other companies that come in under their limits.

Ontario's three previous auctions sold out of current credits. The government has previously said it didn't expect every single auction to sell out, as the market fluctuates.

Keith Brooks of Environmental Defence said the latest results are a strong showing, considering the uncertainty around the future of cap and trade in Ontario.

"I think it shows that cap and trade is off to a really good start," he said. "I think it shows that businesses have understood how the markets are going to work."

The Liberal government has signed an agreement to link with Quebec and California's carbon market on Jan. 1, but the Progressive Conservatives, who are ahead in the polls, have promised to dismantle the program and instead implement a carbon tax if they win next year's election.

Critics in Ontario have slammed both cap-and-trade's cost to consumers — an extra 4.3 cents per litre to the price of gasoline and about $80 a year to natural gas home heating costs, as well as indirect costs — and the potential cost to the economy.

The auditor general has said that when Ontario links its market with Quebec and California, an estimated $466 million will leave the Ontario economy over three years, because it will be cheaper to buy allowances from those jurisdictions.

But the Liberal government has staunchly defended the plan, saying it is far more cost effective and is more effective at reducing emissions than a carbon tax. The Tories decry the Liberals' cap-and-trade program as a "cash grab."

Welcome Wagon rolled out to new Brock businesses

SUNDERLAND – The Township of Brock and the Brock economic development advisory committee literally rolled out the Welcome Wagon to a few new businesses in recent weeks.

Through the Red Welcome Wagon program, the committee welcomed new business owners of Modern HVAC Inc., River Street Café, and Doggity Do in Sunderland.

Modern HVAC Inc., located on Regional Road 10 just outside of Sunderland, is a family owned and operated business offering sales, service, and installation of high efficiency heating, cooling and hot water equipment. Modern HVAC Inc. is owned and operated by brothers, Colton and Clayton Jung.


River Street Café, formerly Katie's Café in downtown Sunderland, is a restaurant that offers a wide variety of coffee, tea, espresso, specialty drinks and homemade baked goods. In addition, River Street Café offers an extensive lunch menu as well as catering services and rental opportunities for small gatherings. River Street Café is owned and operated by Tracey Douglas.

Doggity Do, located next to River Street Café, is a pet supply and grooming business. Doggity Do is owner Carolina Weir's second business within Sunderland as she also owns Country Loonies.   

Carleton Place mayor wants clarification regarding HVAC bids

Carleton Place will proceed with A-L Air for the installation of the new heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system at Carambeck Community Centre.

Council members carried a motion during the physical environment committee meeting on Nov. 7 to issue a purchase order for the price of $181,945 plus HST.

The upgrade of the HVAC system is the result of a grant from the Canada 150 Community Infrastructure Program the town received.


Three quotes were obtained by the town for the work (purchase and installation): Carleton Refrigeration Heating & Air Conditioning Ltd., $198,650 plus HST; A-L Air; and CorCann, $236,000 plus HST.

Carleton Refrigeration Heating & Air Conditioning Ltd. is based in Carleton Place, A-L Air is located in Ottawa and Corcann HVAC Inc. calls Almonte home.

Coun. Ross Trimble inquired if A-L Air has done work previously for the town. Too, he asked about a reference check.

“They have not worked for the town, but they are a well-known firm in Ottawa,” chief administrative officer Paul Knowles answered.

Mayor Louis Antonakos had two questions.

“First, was this a designed system by a consulting firm or engineering firm,” he asked. “Did they come up with the specifications for this proposal or was it an expression of interest to solve a problem ... how exactly did they bid on this?”

“It was a design build,” Knowles responded.

“If it was a design build, who evaluated the proposals?” the mayor inquired.

“Walter (Walter Renwick),” Knowles said.

In March 2017, Renwick was appointed as project manager to oversee a handful of town projects in 2017, including the new McNeely Avenue fence and Neelin Street Community Centre (arena) addition.

“Two local companies bid ... did the evaluator go strictly on price or did he consider a number of factors?” Antonakos asked. “If it is strictly on price, we could be getting a lower price, but it may not be the type of work we want.”

“What was the criteria for evaluating these three proposals? the mayor inquired.

“If it was a project designed by an engineer and these three bid on the same item, same concept, same design ... fine,” Antonakos continued. “I am not a mechanical engineer and I have not seen the three proposals.”

The mayor has continuously stressed to developers in Carleton Place, when local trades are used in local projects, the community becomes stronger.

Antonakos wanted an explanation on why the evaluator chose the lowest bid ... are we getting a lesser design, something less complicated?”

“I cannot answer that,” Knowles said.

“I have some concerns with this,” Antonakos said. “The difference between the Carleton Place firm and A-L Air is not significant ... what are the nuances ... I want more information.”

The mayor stressed he absolutely supports the upgrading of the infrastructure at the community centre ... “I will support it regardless of the direction we take.”

Deputy Mayor Jerry Flynn noted: “Of course, I would like to see someone from Carleton Place do it, but on the other hand ...”

Knowles interjected, all bidders brought an engineer out to Carambeck Community Centre to look at it.

“Then they would have gotten professional advice before submitting their quotes,” Coun. Brian Doucett stated. “I am fine with it.”

Coun. Theresa Fritz, council’s ambassador on the childcare services committee, noted: “We had a meeting last night ... the board wanted me to articulate that this is a welcome project for the staff that work there as well as the families of the children.”

“This past summer was particularly challenging,” she continued. “It was extremely hot, and then last winter it was extremely cold because of the state of the system.”

“This is something everyone will benefit from – staff, patrons and families alike,” Fritz added.

“Significant upgrades to the building’s electrical system are required to provide enough power to operate the new HVAC system, due to the addition of air conditioning to the building,” Knowles noted.

As a result, on Nov. 7, council members also approved the engagement of J A Patterson Electric of Carleton Place Ltd. to upgrade the electrical service in the building. The estimated cost: $70,000 plus HST.

This price includes “Hydro One costs and a generator to power the building while the new electrical service is being installed, as well as Patterson’s cost to install the electrical panel,” Knowles advised.

The budget for this work (HVAC and electrical) is $300,000.

“This falls within our budget,” Knowles said.

He added, owing to the terms of the grant, the project must be completed by 2018.

Stoney Creek Recreation Centre reopens in mid-November

Stoney Creek Recreation Centre is reopening in mid-November.

An early opening was delayed, meaning  patrons were unable to begin fall programs on Oct. 2 as originally anticipated.

“The doors will be reopening on Nov. 17,” says city communications officer Suzanne Vukosavljevic, adding that unfortunately fall programs  will still be impacted. “Drop-in programs will be available and winter programming will be starting up as normal in January.”


The centre has been closed for repainting of the ceiling in the pool area, along with routine maintenance and warranty work on the HVAC heating and cooling control system since June 13.

The city hired CIP Commercial and Industrial Painters, Ontario Duct Cleaning, Airon and HTS to conduct the work, estimated at about $150,000.

Patrons have been making use of other area facilities in the interim.

All purchased clip cards, along with monthly and yearly memberships have been honoured at neighbouring locations.

The city also boosted programming at the surrounding sites to ensure there were increased services in the community.

Vukosavljevic said the centre didn’t reopen in time because once work got underway, it was discovered that there was additional work required on the steel structural girders above the pool.

“This work needed to be completed prior to reopening the facility to the public,” she said. “The city very much appreciates residents’ patience and we welcome patrons back to enjoy this wonderful community facility when it reopens.”

The $10.8-million centre has had a troubled history ever since it twice failed to meet the required federal deadline for completion to receive funding. The city had to cover the federal government’s $4.3-million portion of the facility’s cost.

The 26,000-square-foot centre opened in 2012 after a number of deficiencies had emerged in parts of the facility. The pool and slide had some structural issues. There also were glazing problems that had to be rectified by the contractor, AquiCon.

The centre also had to be closed twice in 2013, once to fix a hydro vault after it was flooded and a few months later to repair damage to the heating and cooling system.

Stoney Creek resident Liz Walker, who’s been a member of the recreation centre since it opened and participates in the water fit program, said she’s happy the facility is reopening, but finds it “annoying” that it continues to have so many issues.

“It (the centre’s recent closure) didn’t bother me because I was only going for water fit, but I’m sure for other people it was very frustrating, especially for families with kids going for swimming lessons,” she said. “I find it funny that the centre has all of these problems. If it was an older building, you could understand it, but right from the start, there’s been trouble.”

Vukosavljevic said the city responds to required repairs “as quickly as possible,” in order to help minimize impacts to programming for both new and existing facilities.

It is common for new facilities to require repair and warranty work, she said.

Vukosavljevic said, unfortunately, programs were impacted a number of times at the Stoney Creek Recreation Centre, due primarily to the nature of the issues which required repair.

“In each case, the repairs required closure in order to complete the work,” she said. “A third party qualified coatings inspector has reviewed the work on site and is satisfied with the quality of the surface preparation and painting recently completed during the closure. The work completed will last.”

Ribbon Cutting Opens Sales Centre for Solmar's Edge Towers

A three-tower development coming to the corner of Hurontario Street and Elm Drive will significantly extend the Downtown Mississauga skyline, both upwards and southwards. Solmar Development Corporation's Edge Towers assigns the expertise of Roy Varacalli and Cusimano Architect to a towering trio of 35, 40, and 55-storey highrises. The first of the complex set to undergo its realization, the 35-storey tower was spotlighted this past weekend at a grand opening event attended by the development team and Mayor Bonnie Crombie.

With a ceremonial ribbon cutting, the on-site sales centre was officially unveiled. The marketing materials inside the sales centre — including a large scale model — prominently feature the 20-kilometre Hurontario LRT that will border the property. Touted as the first project to take advantage of the upcoming rapid transit connection, Edge Towers is primed to play a crucial role in the city's maturation and intensification, a new phase of growth that will inevitably come once the $1.4 billion LRT goes online in 2022.

It's precisely Mississauga's development potential that has Mayor Bonnie Crombie excited for the future. "We're trying to build a complete city, a more livable and walkable city," said Crombie. "And there's a real buzz about Mississauga; investment is coming in."

Crombie put that investment in a more palpable sense, counting approximately 22 towers due for construction in the next five to ten years. "Mississauga is a place people want to be in. We have a thriving economy, we're business friendly and we have stable governance."

The building's architecture differs from the glass box typology that has run rampant in the GTA. At Edge Towers, a multi-level podium of glazing and precast concrete will anchor the project to the ground. From there, the tower's square footprint gives rise to a volume of clean lines until it reaches its first stepback. The volume dissipates in scale as its west and east elevations are carved away, leaving a staggered silhouette on the Mississauga skyline. "A lot of buildings are fashionable and they go out of date," said Roy Varacalli, architect of Edge Towers. "We always try to do buildings that are monumental or timeless."

The western edge of the site will be home to a public park, a $6 million piece of land that was injected with another $3 million to design it. Here, Terraplan Landscape Architects has imagined a contemporary urban park rather than a traditional neighbourhood park, and peppered it with fanciful play equipment, a dog run, and a sheltered seating area inspired by the architecture of the building. A bidirectional walking trail loops through the park while a green perimeter fashioned with naturalized plantings contributes to the urban forest.

Led by Adriana Mot, Dochia Interior Design has crafted a classically articulated interior scheme that emphasizes airiness through colour and composition. The lobby and glass-enclosed galleria aim for a "timeless elegance" designed with stained glass murals and dramatic pilasters. The building's traditional styling continues up to the fourth floor party room, which spans the entire width of the building. A vegetated outdoor terrace wraps the party room on three sides with multiple lounge areas and a central pergola covering an open flame fire pit. A wellness centre and a fully wired media centre will also be at the ready when residents get their keys.

Over 1,200 units will eventually be built across the elongated property, with 293 residences situated in the first phase. The Tower One Collection, spanning levels six through 30 and starting at $319,900, features one and two-bedroom floor plans ranging in size from 484 square feet to 880 square feet. Start of construction is anticipated for spring 2018.

Traffic safety, gypsy moth program get big funding in Oakville budget

Additional funds for pedestrian safety and aerial spraying to combat gypsy moths were among the last-minute items approved by the 2018 Oakville Budget Committee on Tuesday, Dec. 12.

The group completed its deliberations and recommended approval of a 1.75 per cent residential property tax increase.

The recommendation would actually see a 2.58 per cent total increase to the Town of Oakville budget.


However, the 2.58 per cent increase will be reduced to a 1.75 per cent overall hike, once the town’s increase is combined with a proposed 1.9 per cent increase in Halton Region taxes and an expected zero per cent hike in education rates.

The recommended budget increase, which must still be approved by council on Dec. 18, is smaller than the 3.04 per cent rise previously proposed.

Town staff attributed this to larger than anticipated assessment growth.

Some of the items approved by the committee during the Tuesday meeting included $90,000 in funding for the 2018 RBC Canadian Open; $25,000 for the Cultural Grants program; $90,500 for the construction and operation of a bocce ball court at Glenashton Park; $25,000 in funding for five additional radar speed display signs; $204,000 for the Flashing 40 km/h Zone Sign Program; $200,000 in funding for the Pedestrian Safety Program; $40,000 for Oakvillegreen’s Backyard Tree Planting Program; and $205,000 for the gypsy moth aerial spraying program.

“We have gone through a great deal of consultation with the community on the budget process this year. We have heard from community leaders across all of Oakville. We’ve had very good feedback as to where we’re at as a community,” said Ward 6 Coun. and budget chair Tom Adams.

“This motion responds to a number of the issues that we have heard. As a council, we certainly hear about speeding on our local roads a fair bit and this provides our staff with some additional tools to deal with that. It puts the payment toward the Cultural Grants that this council and the cultural community has been looking for for a long time … It provides funding for the art we see, the Canadian Open and it does provide funding for the Oakvillegreen Backyard Tree Planting program.”

The town is currently looking for $189.6 million from the tax levy.

Not every proposal that came forward received approval.

While the committee did not outright reject a request from the Bronte Business Improvement Area (BIA) for around $88,000 to fund its Canada Day festival, it did vote to have town staff work with the BIA to find an approach to Canada Day that is appropriate for 2018.

The committee also voted to provide the BIA with a $15,000 event grant, $25,000 worth of support and $1,500 worth of fee waivers for the Canada Day event.

The proposed $2.2 million council chamber renovation was also a subject of discussion, with Ward 4 town and regional Coun. Allan Elgar reiterating his concerns about the expense.

Town staff said the room needs to be expanded to accommodate the two additional councillors who will come when council grows to 15 members following the 2018 municipal election.

They said the chamber’s information technology (IT) system and heating and cooling systems also need be replaced, and the room needs to be brought up to Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) standards.

Elgar argued much of the council chamber is already accessible and said what is not could be altered for a lot less than $2.2 million.

“I have a huge issue with the amount of money we are allocating, especially since 100 per cent of it is on the taxpayer’s tab,” he said.

“We’re asking for a Cadillac we don’t need.”

Ultimately, the committee decided to have town staff take another look at the design and costing of the council chamber renovation.

Town staff previously proposed a $321.5 million operating budget and a $128 million capital budget.

Some of the main projects for 2018 include:

• $21.1 million to complete the Trafalgar Park/Oakville Arena revitalization project;

• $10.8 million to start construction on the South East Community Centre (as part of the Former Hospital Site Project);

• $9.6 million for the town’s Road Resurfacing and Preservation Program;

• $7.1 million for road maintenance work along Speers Road between the Bronte GO Station and Fourth Line;

• $4.9 million for road maintenance work along Sixth Line between Threshing Mill Road and Dundas Street;

• $4.6 million for Kerr Street widening and grade separation;

• $3.9 million for new dockage for the Bronte Outer Harbour;

• $3.7 million for the Emerald Ash Borer Management Program;

• $2.7 million for replacement buses;

• $2.7 million to purchase land for the new Fire Station No. 9 in the Burnhamthorpe Road and Sixth Line area;

• $2.6 million for a new library branch in North Oakville.

The budget will go before council for final approval on Monday (Dec. 18) at town hall at 7 p.m.

Continuing Education: Acoustics

Continuing Education

Humans are visual creatures, and architects are particularly visual humans—first the drawings and then the photographs are often mistaken for a building’s whole story. But the experience of architecture is more powerful and subtle than eyes alone perceive. Especially in community gathering places, acoustics play a vital role in shaping a building’s character and the quality of experience it facilitates. From theater to library to ashram, designers are working with acoustics to bring their projects into the round.

Few buildings are designed for acoustics more deliberately than performance spaces, as Chicago-based Studio Gang’s new Writers Theatre illustrates. The 36,000-square-foot building comprises two performance spaces (a main stage and a smaller black-box venue) opening onto a glass lobby structured by timber trusses. Located in Glencoe, Illinois, and completed in 2016, the new theater replaces a much smaller-capacity venue in which Writers grew up. Theatrical intimacy has characterized the spoken-word company since its start in 1992, and the design team strove to maintain that quality even as Nichols Theatre, Writers’ new 250-seat main stage, more than doubled the capacity of the previous venue and quadrupled its acoustic volume.

The spatial design fosters intimacy using a thrust stage around which the audience is seated, with no edge or change of level to separate the front row from the performance. But the acoustics for Writers’ typically unamplified performances presented a complex challenge in the larger room. The human auditory system measures the volume of a space by subconsciously comparing the difference between the time direct sound arrives along the line of sight and the time reflected sound arrives from the space’s perimeter surfaces. The farther away these surfaces are from the listener, the later their reflections arrive; the later the reflections, the more degraded the sense of acoustic intimacy. “In acoustic terms, a fourfold increase is vast,” says Carl Giegold, a partner with Threshold Acoustics, Chicago-based consultants to the project.

Threshold uses the metaphor of storytelling around a forest campfire to describe its solution for creating the feeling of being close to or alone with performers, even with more distant surfaces. The actors onstage represent the light, heat, and story around which the audience gathers; unlike the walls of a room, the boundary of a forest clearing—tree trunks and canopy—is diffuse and vague. Translating this experience into built form, the design surrounds the audience with a diffusive screen. Bricks salvaged from the facade of Writers’ previous home (a 1938 structure demolished to make way for the new building) are offset 8 inches from the primary theater’s perimeter walls. They form a highly articulated surface that changes in shape and amplitude as it rises from floor to catwalk. “The complex patterning of the screen mimics the randomness of the outdoor environment,” says Giegold, “and defeats the acoustic boundaries of the room.”

Importantly, the brick screen does not absorb the sound; instead, it breaks sound waves into random energy. “We kept that energy in the room,” says Giegold. “We diffused it and sent it back to envelop the audience in an ambience rather than in a series of hard reflections.” While the sound continues to infuse the theater with energy, it no longer betrays its size.

Having dealt with undesirable reflections from distant surfaces, the designers then set about further enhancing intimacy by introducing a few deliberately distinct reflections from spots near the actors. Small but critically placed and shaped reflectors are located on the underside of the catwalks, and a couple of sail-like reflectors are suspended between them. These take the sound on stage and throw it across the room, so that an actor speaking with his or her back to one side of the audience is nonetheless intelligible. “We end up with a distinctive, intimate character that is the hallmark aesthetic of Writers Theatre,” says Juliane Wolf, a design principal at Studio Gang.

While a theater needs as blank an acoustic slate as possible, libraries’ acoustic needs are increasingly various. The Old Galt Post Office Idea Exchange in Cambridge, Ontario, by Toronto-based RDHA, and the new Central Library in Austin, Texas, by San Antonio– based Lake|Flato and Boston-based Shepley Bulfinch, represent a new breed of library: they are intended as dynamic, polyvalent gathering places. With spaces that can accommodate diverse programming, they address more challenging acoustic issues than libraries have historically faced.

Dubbed Canada’s first bookless library, the Galt Idea Exchange, scheduled to open in spring 2018, engages creative people of all ages. The project renovates a 9,000-square-foot heritage post office, adding a new transparent pavilion that doubles the post office’s floor area and cantilevers 20 feet over the Grand River. The lower level offers a black-box theater and multipurpose room, audiovisual recording suites, and studios for playing musical instruments on loan. An atrium connects to the main level, which includes a periodicals reading room, café, and restaurant. Upstairs, the Children’s Discovery Centre and the adult Creation Space offer opportunities ranging from robotics and 3-D printing to woodworking and sewing. Part of a municipal library system, the Idea Exchange complements an existing book-based library in the community.

Similarly, the Austin Central Library, a 200,000-square-foot facility that opened in October, celebrates books and reading. Jonathan Smith, an associate partner at Lake|Flato, calls it the best daylit library in America, due in large part to a six-story atrium that includes extensive skylights, clerestories optimized for their solar orientations, and a generous east-facing curtain wall. The facility also extends its capacity for community engagement with a 250-seat event space, meeting rooms, art gallery, café, screened porches for reading overlooking Lady Bird Lake, and a rooftop garden, as well as dedicated multiuse areas for children and teens.

“The goal for any community space is to provide a comfortable acoustic environment for multiple applications,” says Payam Ashtiani, a principal with Mississauga, Ontario–based Aercoustics Engineering, consultants to the Galt Idea Exchange. To achieve that goal, the acoustic design must address three primary factors: room acoustics (the behavior of sound in the space), sound isolation (the exclusion of noise from outside the space), and mechanical-noise control (the control of sound from building services). Ken Dickensheets, principal of Austin-based Dickensheets Design Associates, acousticians for the Austin Library, concurs. He adds that acoustic analysis early in the design process maximizes the opportunities for cost-effective solutions.

The distribution of program elements, for example, can simplify acoustics by locating zones that require quiet away from sources of noise, including mechanical equipment. The Austin Library’s event space is on the lower level for this reason, as are the Galt Idea Exchange’s performance and recording spaces.

Once the opportunities for passive solutions have been fully taken advantage of, floors and walls can be designed to further isolate spaces. An assembly’s Sound Transmission Class (STC) rating describes its ability to attenuate the transmission of sound in the audible frequency range. In general, good acoustic separation between adjacent spaces can be provided with demising partitions that have an STC rating of 45 to 50.

At the Idea Exchange, STC-50 is achieved for multipurpose-room walls with two layers of ⅝-inch gypsum board on either side of 3⅛- inch, fiberglass-insulation-filled steel studs. For the recording suite, which requires a higher STC rating, the insulated studs are doubled on either side of a 2-inch air gap. To prevent sound flanking (the transmission of sound around, over, or under the primary partition separating two spaces), the suite’s concrete floor slab is isolated from the structure with neoprene gaskets.

Within a room, reverberation time (RT) is defined as the interval in which sound decays by 60 decibels (dB). (Decibels are the logarithmic unit used to measure the intensity of sound.) To prevent collaborative spaces’ becoming too noisy, the target RT for the Idea Exchange’s Creation Space was less than one second, with a low of 0.6 seconds for the recording studios. For the atrium, an RT of 1.2 to 1.5 seconds maintains the feeling of a large, open space without allowing noise to build to a din.

The Idea Exchange primarily uses perforated acoustic drywall to achieve the desired Noise Reduction Coefficients (NRCs). The material meets a budget that Tyler Sharp, principal at RDHA, describes as difficult, given the ambitions of the project. But it also has desired aesthetic qualities, says Sharp. Its continuous, uniform dot pattern flows evenly across the atrium ceiling’s angular geometry, and the dots relate neatly to the pattern of the curtain wall’s ceramic frit.

To achieve the NRC required for its atrium, the Austin Library uses acoustical plaster on the ceiling and undersides of projecting floor slabs. A relatively expensive material that shows abuse, acoustical plaster suits these out-of-the-way applications. Two large, south-facing walls designed to reflect daylight into the library are clad with perforated metal panels backed with acoustical batts to prevent them from also reflecting sound. “The fact that this giant volume isn’t echoey makes the building feel more approachable,” says Smith. “It doesn’t show in the photos, but when you’re there, you have a great feeling in the space.”

If acoustic tranquility is welcome even in the new, more dynamic breed of library, it is a necessity in the Temple of Light, a sanctuary and meeting place for the Yasodhara Ashram, a yoga retreat and study center in the mountains of southeastern British Columbia. The new temple, designed by Vancouver-based Patkau Architects and completed this summer, replaces an earlier one destroyed by fire.

The temple responds to the collective memory of the original space (which comprised eight rotationally symmetric bays, like its replacement). But it also takes cues from the spectacular clifftop site, with its views of Kootenay Lake and the surrounding forest, and from the lotus flower, an important symbol in the yogic tradition, says Luke Stern, manager of design research at Patkau.

Constructed of prefabricated wood panels’ acting in concert with glulam arches and shear wall elements, creating an integral shell, the temple is the focal point of the spiritual life of the ashram. The form of the primary volume, pinwheel in plan, is made up of eight interlocking petals, curvilinear yet built of straight members, and radiating from a central oculus.

Because of the project’s modest budget of $2.75 million, the design team could afford only a simplified approach to acoustic modeling. The acoustic consultants, Vancouver-based RWDI, offered advice based on the sound quality of a simple dome, without the compound curves of the eight petals, in which the RT would reach 3.5 seconds or longer. (An echoey gymnasium has an RT of about 2 seconds.) The architects knew that the design’s curves would mitigate the long RT but considered additional measures to be in order.

The temple’s unusual geometry was designed in part to mitigate the focusing issues that afflict simple domes. There are no parallel surfaces that would cause significant harmonic resonances or flutters, says Stern, and where concave surfaces occur, they are not centrally focusing, so that acoustic hot spots from each of the eight petals don’t overlap. Moreover, those hot spots mainly occur above head height.

At the base of the petals, which are finished in white-painted gypsum board, glazing provides views of the temple’s lakeside setting. To prevent sound’s ricocheting off the hard surface of the glass and back to the building’s occupants, the architects segmented and angled the glass to direct reflections upward, beyond head height. And to absorb excess acoustic energy, a pinwheel array of 96 melamine-foam baffles is suspended from the oculus at the top of the dome. The overall envelope of this acoustic chandelier supports the temple’s floral metaphor, as if they were the anthers and filaments of stamens.

Since the building opened, it has hosted musical performances as well as meditation, yoga practice, and instruction. “The acoustics have far exceeded expectations,” says Stern.

In common with the designers of Writers Theatre, the Old Galt Post Office, and the Austin Library, Stern describes acoustics as an oftenneglected aspect of architectural design. “They really can negatively affect people’s experience of a space, no matter how wonderful it is formally,” he says. Conversely—as these projects illustrate—when acoustics are taken as a significant design parameter from the start, they enrich the multisensory experience that is architecture.

Masonry Industry Applauds Provincial Government on Infrastructure Plan

MISSISSAUGA, Ontario, Dec. 05, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ontario's masonry industry sees a great deal of potential for a longer-lasting and more sustainable built fabric in Ontario's new infrastructure plan.

On Nov. 28, Minister of Infrastructure Bob Chiarelli released Building Better Lives: Ontario's Long-Term Infrastructure Plan. This plan set forward guidelines to address the evolving infrastructure needs of communities in the province.

The Ontario government is currently in year three of a 13-year, $190-billion infrastructure spending plan. This new plan will inject guiding principles into how this money will be spent as it relates to infrastructure projects, mainly concerning environmental sustainability and infrastructure resilience. As advocates for infrastructure buildings built to a high standard, the masonry industry is optimistic with the substance this recent announcement.

Ontario's masonry sector particularly welcomes the Province's commitment to applying a life cycle assessment to infrastructure planning. As the Plan notes, this type of assessment can be used to measure an asset's environmental impact over its lifespan, helping to identify lower-carbon design, materials and construction options. This type of assessment will also subject buildings to high-standard testing, enabling evidence-based decisions to be made regarding a building's impact.

Life-cycle assessments are complex, with many moving parts. However, when it comes to materiality, the masonry industry is encouraged that preference will be given to building materials which contribute to the overall performance of the building, the reduction of greenhouse gases from construction to decommissioning, and the durability of the material over the life of the building.

Masonry products embody many attributes which contribute to a strong life-cycle assessment. The term durability is practically synonymous with masonry, as it has been a trusted material for thousands of years. An important test within a LCA is the longevity of a product. Masonry requires minimal maintenance over a 75-year period or longer, and therefore outlasts most building materials when assessing life cycle. 

Masonry products also play an important role in reducing greenhouse gases and improving overall performance.

The masonry industry has embraced new technologies to reduce its carbon footprint. Innovative manufacturing processes such as Carbon Cure and Carboclave work to mitigate carbon emissions before a brick or block is ever laid. In fact, concrete masonry products function as a carbon sink, sequestering carbon from the atmosphere throughout their service life. Through this, block can play an active role in mitigating a building's carbon impact.

Masonry is a local product; most Ontario communities are within 250 kilometres of a masonry manufacturer or dealer. This translates to less greenhouse gases being emitted moving products to the construction site, while also supporting thousands of Ontario jobs.

Masonry is also ideal for reducing a building's HVAC capacity, as the products can play a role in temperature regulation. In addition, concrete block boasts superior noise attenuation properties, an asset important in the performance of a building in both schools and hospitals.

Ontario's new plan shows that the Government is committed to building its assets right the first time. The masonry industry applauds the provincial government in taking this new, innovative step in the right direction towards more sustainable infrastructure planning. The infrastructure projects affected by this plan will become important assets utilized by Ontarians for generations to come.

No air conditioning upgrades planned at Peel schools any time soon

Despite the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario’s (ETFO) attempt to push the provincial government to address extreme heat and humidity conditions in elementary schools in September, it doesn’t appear as though there will be any air conditioning upgrades to schools in Peel any time soon.

Last week, the Durham District School Board announced its $17.6 million plan to add full air conditioning to seven existing schools and partial air-condition to 22 more schools.

However, this year, the Dufferin Peel Catholic District School Board conducted a feasibility study looking into air conditioning upgrades.


All of its schools built since the year 2000 are fully air-conditioned, but 65 schools built before then have either partial air conditioning or none at all.

In September, Daniel Del Bianco, the board’s superintendent of planning and operations, said equipping those schools with full air conditioning would cost between $35 and $40 million dollars and there are also operational costs to consider.

The project in Durham would cost its board an extra $564,000 in operating costs.

The DPCDSB is also backlogged with $225 million in renewal needs for its 149 schools and it is funded $23 million annually to address renewals and operational maintenance.

The feasibility study was presented during an administration and finance committee meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 28.

According to that report, equipping the 65 schools with full air conditioning would take approximately 15-20 years to implement. On the other hand, bringing cooling stations into schools would cost an estimated five to seven million dollars and would take five to seven years to implement.

Spokesperson Bruce Campbell said there was a lot of discussion on the topic, but ultimately, the board will wait until they begin their budget talks early in the new year to determine the most feasible option moving forward.

Meanwhile, the Peel District School Board has 177 schools operating with partial air conditioning and seven that don’t have air conditioning at all.

Spokesperson Kayla Tishcoff said there are no plans to make additions to air conditioning in schools at this time as the board would have to figure out how much it would take to bring all of those schools up to par.

Building of Sherman’s North York dream home was a ‘disaster’ that led to litigation

After litigation against the house’s designers and builders, the Shermans recouped $2 million of the contracted amount to construct the home, according to a 2006 judgment.

When Barry and Honey Sherman bought their North York property in 1985, they planned to spend $2.3 million to build their dream home.

But they noticed problems with the home within months of moving in, in 1991, with Barry describing it as "a disaster."

After litigation against the house's designers and builders, they wound up recouping $2 million of the contracted amount to construct the home, according to a 2006 judgment.


The civil litigation that involved both the Shermans, who were found dead in the house on Friday, was one of many Barry was embroiled in, and offers a rare glimpse into the couple's private life.

They went on to sue at least five of the people and companies involved in the home's design and construction, including Jack Winston Designs, Thomas Marzotto Architects and Ewing Construction.

All but two settled.

The remaining two defendants, 21 Degrees Heating and Air Conditioning and Walter Kenyon of Walter Kenyon Designs, had designed the home's heating and air conditioning system.

The Shermans sued 21 Degrees and Kenyon for negligence related to the design of the HVAC system, and 21 Degrees for breach of contract.

According to the judgment, "Mr. Sherman testified that there were so many things done wrong with respect to the construction of the house that it was a disaster."

Sherman, the founder of generic drug giant Apotex, was one of the richest men in the country, with an estimated net worth of $4.6 billion. He built Apotex from a two-employee company in Toronto into a global pharmaceutical organization that employs more than 11,000 people around the world.

Court records show Barry's company Apotex was involved in about 150 civil cases in the Superior Court of Justice.

When Apotex announced the launch of Apo-Rosuvastatin, a generic version of Crestor produced by AstraZeneca, in 2012, they estimated their generic version of the drug could save the Canadian health-care system up to $3.4 billion.

"We are pleased that our efforts in litigation have delivered yet another blockbuster to the Canadian generic market," Apotex CEO Jack Kay said in a statement.

"Apotex continues to lead the way in launching generic products sooner, enabling more affordable health care for Canadians."

The house near Bayview Ave. and Highway 401 was listed for sale this month at $6.9 million.

The 12,000 square foot house is an "architectural modern masterpiece of poured concrete and steel construction," according to an online real estate listing. The home has indoor and outdoor pools and hot tubs, a tennis court and underground parking for six cars with a heated ramp. The five-plus-one bedroom, nine-bath home is two storeys and features hardwood floors and a balcony.
The lower floor is anchored by a massive garage, bordered by the indoor pool, a sauna, and changing room. Neighbouring rooms include a sitting room, recreation room and hobby room, and a nanny's room with an ensuite kitchen and bathroom.

A deck and porch jet off the main floor, and the kitchen is surrounded by a family room, breakfast area and dining room.

The expansive main floor and second floor are illuminated by a skylight in the centre of the home. The upstairs master ensuite includes two dressing rooms on the way to the bath, and off the master bedroom is a gym or sitting area featuring a spiral staircase and skylight.

Marco Drudi, of Drudi Alexiou Kuchar LLP, represented 21 Degrees in the civil suit.

"Barry and Honey Sherman sued my clients, as well as many, many others and from my recollection, they settled with many of the defendants," Drudi told the Star on Monday.

In their statement of claim, the Shermans asked for $500,000 in undefined damages for breach of contract or negligence from 21 Degrees and Kenyon. By the end of the trial, they sought nearly $34,000 in special damages and general damages of an unspecified amount.

21 Degrees launched a cross-claim against Kenyon and Jack Winston Designs.

In 2006, the judge presiding over the case found that 21 Degrees breached their contract and that both 21 Degrees and Kenyon were negligent.

But because the Shermans failed to prove they suffered any damages, the judge awarded them no damages and dismissed the case.

Two years later, an appeal to the Divisional Court was quashed.

Jack Fitch of Hughes Amys LLP, counsel for the appellants in the appeal, said in an email that he had no comment concerning the case, "or the tragic recent events involving the principals involved."