The Journal of Commerce carried a very interesting story the other day ( Fraud suspected in Calgary construction projects ; May 31, 2010) which underscores the inherent dangers that can face public agencies in the area of construction procurement.  According to Richard Gilbert, the staff writer for the Journal, “a review  of procurement policies by the City of Calgary auditor has revealed the possibility of fraud in the awarding of municipal construction contracts.  The problem occurred during the recent economic boom in Calgary, when the city had a shortage of skilled labour and experienced contractors.  This constraint on...

There has been a lot of discussion about the positive impact that the federal and provincial governments' stimulus package has had on construction specifically and on the economy generally.  While it has been very positive, there are elements about which contractors need to be cautious. The General Contractors Division of VRCA recently reviewed the issue of projects funded under Federal and Provincial stimulus programs.  At this time, many of these projects are subject to a March 31st 2011 deadline for substantial completion.  While VRCA has not heard of any projects in BC that have incorporated specific references to liquidated damages in their contracts, we caution contractors to proceed carefully when co...

I had the pleasure of attending a presentation to the Vancouver Board of Trade by Mayor Gegor Robertson of Vancouver in which he provided an exciting overview of his plans for the future of Vancouver, especially in the area of sustainable practices.  During his presentation, he noted the difficulties facing Vancouver as they strive to deliver many necessary projects in challenging times.  Like most municipalities, the city staff is under considerable pressure to do more with fewer resources with limited time to manage all the details in the tendering process, while at the same time controlling risks inherent in most projects.  Overlaying these considerations, there is pressure to ensure the City of Vancouver embraces sustaina...

Generally speaking, for most people in construction, they will be p eased to see the end of 2009.  The last twelve months have been among the worst we have faced in over thirty years, with building permits half of what they were the previous year, and construction employment down by about 25%.   While we are not fully out of the woods yet, we are beginning to sense some optimism about 2010.  Aside from the excitement of the Olympics, we are seeing some recovery on the residential side of the industry.  Architects and Engineers are reporting that their shops are getting busy again with projects.  We are forecasting that activity will pick up in the second or third quarter of 2010.   In spite of the dismal economic conditions that we had...

At a recent meeting of the VRCA Trade Contractors Division Board one of our members raised an interesting issue.  He had become aware of a new product being imported into Canada which will challenge the usual mindset of contractors.  The product was a fully, self-contained bathroom module that can be pre-ordered to demanding specifications, shipped anywhere you want and simply “plugged in” to a high rise complex.  These units come fully outfitted with toilets, sinks, showers, grab bars, tiles, ceilings and floors.  The role of the mechanical contractor will be to simply hook up the outlets. In my opinion, this is the next logical step that needs to occur in construction, for several reasons. First of all, notwithstanding the current dow...

I have recently finished a book that was recommended to me by Dan Mott, entitled Shop Class as Soulcraft  by Matthew Crawford. In the book, Crawford decries the trend among educators to remove shop classes and replace them with computer labs.  As he writes: "The current educational regime is based on a certain view about what kind of knowledge is important: “knowing that,” as opposed to “knowing how.”  This corresponds roughly to universal knowledge versus the kind that comes from individual experience.  If you know that something is the case, then this proposition can be stated from anywhere.  In fact, such knowledge aspires to a view from nowhere.  That is, it aspires to a view that gets at the true nature of things because it isn’t c...

Excitement is building about this year’s VRCA Awards of Excellence program.  This year we had over 240 entries in 65 different projects, worth over $2 billion dollars.  The judges were impressed with the quality of all entries and were hard-pressed to select just three Silver Award winners in most categories.   It is exciting to sit through some of the judging and to visit the sites that are up for consideration.  Clearly there is great pride on the part of the contractors and their workers when a project is being considered for an award.  It is great to see the ingenuity and creativity exhibited by our members as they work to bring simple drawings on a page into concrete reality.   It is also soberi...

The numbers are in; Permit values edged up 2% in June compared to May 2009; Non-residential permits fell 21%; Residential permit values jumped 29%; Housing starts decline by 10%;  Construction employment increases by 3%.     What does it all mean?       For one thing, these figures demonstrate the volatile nature of the current economy and the difficulty of getting a clear picture of what is happening. As the economic cycle continues to play through, we can expect to see some conflicting numbers that are seemingly contradictory and which make it very difficult to forecast. In general, I trust the reports that have come out and that we are nearing the end of the downturn. However, ...

On July 23, 2009, the BC Government made a very significant and somewhat controversial announcement that BC intends to harmonize its PST with the GST. PST harmonization with the GST will become a reality on July 1, 2010. There has been a lot of discussion in the media about who will win and who will lose in the new tax environment. Clearly for many consumer items that were previously exempt, consumers may face higher prices. For the general business owner, however, eliminating the PST and moving to an HST will remove a significant tax burden on businesses. The PST is an outdated, complex and inefficient tax paid by both consumers and businesses. The PST paid by business is generally incorporated (embedded) into the price of goods a...