Mechanical Piping Plumbing Journal 2008

Message from Saskatchewan T DAVE FLAMAND PRESIDENT JUDY NAGUS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR he Mechanical Contractors Association of Saskatchewan is a vibrant and growing association; much the same as our provincial economy. The past year of 2007 was a fantastic year of opportunities in Saskatchewan for business and individuals alike. The mining sector, led by the likes of Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan, Cameco and Areva, helped fuel our growth. This coming year’s economic projections should make Saskatchewan an equally alive and exciting place to be in business and live in this province. One of the biggest impediments to our growth in 2007 and going forward will be the ability to find and train tradesmen. In Saskatchewan we have a “one to one journeyman to apprentice” ratio. This was limiting our companies to bring on new apprentices. As such the MCAS spearheaded the effort to eliminate the fourth year apprentice from counting in that ratio. This will enable more companies to bring on more apprentices in 2008 and in the future as required. It took some time and effort on the part of all of the volunteers from our industry who man the trade boards and various committees to steer this initiative forward. Many thanks to them. The Gas Licensing Act in Saskatchewan is currently up for review. The MCAS has struck a committee of Industry Partners to identify the many issues with this Act that need to be addressed. Through the committee process we will make recommendations to make changes to the Gas Licensing Act. These changes will be relevant to the needs of the industry now and long into the future. The safety and well being of the consumer of our services will be an outcome from this initiative. Another committee that MCAS is active on is the MCAS/Saskenergy Rural Committee. They have approved the release of the Re-Light Video. This video which will soon be made available on SaskEnergy’s and the MCAS web sites will show consumers how to re-light the pilot light on water heaters, gas fi replaces and furnaces. This is an innovative way to help save the consumer the cost of having someone drive many miles to perform a simple re-light. It was becoming increasingly difficult to get service people out to remote customers in a timely fashion, so the online video will go a long way to freeing up resources to deal with more serious service problems in a timely manner. Employee retention is a rather hot topic these days as we all struggle with maintaining manpower levels. One option; and a virtual must have in this day and age, is an employee pension plan. Our member companies asked the MCAS to help find ways to provide this to their employees. The MCAS of Saskatchewan has partnered with Cooper Retirement Services to provide our member companies an option to provide “Group Retirement Needs”. By enhancing employee benefit opportunities with a suite of Retirement Products – Group RRSP, Defined Contribution Pension Plan, and Deferred Profit Sharing, MCAS has given its member companies another tool for employee retention that every company needs. On the training/education front the MCAS has been very active. We are always on the lookout for innovative ways to upgrade and train our industry. One of the most popular courses to come along is the Maintenance and Repair of Natural Gas Fired Appliances. We have just finished a very successful Level One and Level Two offering of this course. The feed back from the people taking this course has been outstanding. We will be putting on a Commercial 17 Mechanical Contractors Associations of Alberta, B.C., Manitoba & Saskatchewan 2008

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Mechanical Piping Plumbing Journal 2008

Mechanical Piping Plumbing Journal 2008 Contents MCA Canada Chairman MCA Alberta MCA British Columbia MCA Manitoba MCA Saskatchewan Alberta British Columbia Saskatchewan Manitoba Demographics & Management Employees Insurance – The Pros & Cons of Subguard® Construction Sector Council Data Richmond Olympic Oval Uses the Ice to Heat Things Up B.C.’s Hydrogen Highway™: The Hydrogen + Fuel Cell Alternative The Manitoba Hydro Tower Project Index to Advertisers

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