Jeremy Nixon, P.Eng.,BSS Brown & Beattie Ltd. The EV Revolution is Here Electric Vehicles are no Longer a Niche – Rather They Have Become Part of the Mainstream Humankind continually seeks improvement, never satisfied with the status quo. Often, improvement is borne out of need to solve problems of the day. While at other times, as an [...]
Jeremy Nixon, P.Eng.,BSS Brown & Beattie Ltd. Five Commonly Asked Questions about Engineering Q: Regarding Construction Act holdbacks, why is this man- datory/needed? What is this used for? A: These are for preservation of liens and no other purpose. Anyone who provides products and/or services have lien rights, which would [...]
Jeremy Nixon, P.Eng.,BSS Brown & Beattie Ltd. Why Do My Reserve Fund Projections not Match Reality? There is perhaps no more regular means to start a debate in Condominium communities than Reserve Fund Planning. Unlike operational expenses such as insurance, snow and landscaping services, and professional management fees, which have relatively predictable, or at least less potentially [...]
Should we question the reparability of new buildings? Author: Stephen MacDougall, P.Eng. Although a lot of things in our lives are disposable and tend to get replaced when they break, buildings cannot simply be replaced when there is a problem, we need to be able to fix them. The need and ability to repair buildings has always [...]
Fire Damage Repairs; when Demolition is not an Option Author: Stephen MacDougall, P.Eng. This historic Ontario building may have looked significantly different today if a 2015 fire in one of the prominent Main Street buildings had progressed much further. As it was, the fire resulted in widespread structural damage to the exterior [...]
Trends, Expectations & Realities in Residential Window Renewal Written By Jeremy Nixon, P.Eng., Managing Engineer Making the decision to replace windows in your buildings and homes is a big one. It can seem daunting with all of the choices available out there, not to mention building code requirements and technical performance data (which I’ll save us [...]
Spray Foam: The Not So Perfect Insulation Written By Stephen MacDougall, P.Eng. In the quest for increased thermal performance of building envelopes as required by modern Building Codes, the use of spray foam insulation has become more popular in recent years, particularly in residential buildings. Polyurethane spray foam insulation has been suggested by some in [...]
Demystifying Reserve Fund Studies Written by Bruce Davidson, B.A.Sc, EIT. Even before 2001, when the current Condominium Act started to require reserve fund studies at least once every three years, the industry was grappling with how to make the best use of this financial planning tool. In broad strokes, a reserve fund study is prepared [...]
Who Can Provide Reserve Fund Studies? Written By Tim Beattie, P.Eng. By now, just about everyone involved with condominiums has heard of the new Condominium Act. Even those remotely involved with the industry have likely been to a seminar or read articles about how it is going to change their life when it becomes the document that governs [...]
Green Roofs- An Opportunity for Condominiums Written By Tim Beattie, P.Eng. Condominiums built in a conventional manner are becoming less attractive in this era of increasing green technology. Modern cities are heating up, effectively stewing in their own haze, with smog associated comfort and health problems. Research has shown that traditional, stagnant building rooftops are seriously [...]