3D Building Models Help Bring Sustainability into Construction

For years, construction was an analogue world: bricks and mortar; pen and paper. Buildings were designed and planned using traditional two-dimensional drawings, with errors or miscalculations sometimes only discovered once the structure was already forming on the ground. But thanks to advances in digital technology, the days of poring over crumpled rolls of complex blueprints is over. Read more.

Dirty Jobs: Are We Overlooking a Great Opportunity?

Are dirty jobs great jobs? TV host Mike Rowe says many of the people featured in his show Dirty Jobs are entrepreneurs, investors and multimillionaires. Listen to the podcast.

Atlantic Trade Advisory Committees application request: Construction Electrician; Industrial Electrician; Carpenter

Request for applications (one employer and one employee Nova Scotia representative) for three Atlantic Trades Advisory Committees under the Atlantic Apprenticeship Harmonization Project: one for the Construction Electrician trade; one for the Industrial Electrician trade; and one for the Carpenter trade.

Refer to the Terms of Reference for eligibility criteria.  For example, Employee representatives must have recent and relevant experience working “on the tools”.

Please note, these are three separate committees with three separate applications and three separate qualification criterion. The information documents are the same; however, the applicant will need to use the correct Expression of Interest (EOI) form.

Attached: a letter from the Honourable Minister Regan; a Terms of Reference for the Committees (generic); the expense guidelines; and Expression of Interest forms.

In  order to apply, a resume detailing the applicant’s credentials and a completed Expression of Interest form is needed. The Nova Scotia Apprenticeship Agency Board will select from the applicants and appoint the representatives to the Atlantic Trade Advisory Committee.  Please note, there is an honorarium and expenses paid for attending the meetings as an appointed member.  The first meeting for the Construction Electrician and Industrial Electrician trades (separate meetings) is in Halifax in September 2015.

The first meeting for the Carpenter trade is in Charlottetown, PE in the fall 2015.  The meetings are usually 2 days in length.Applications must be returned by May 8, 2015 to: sarah.lightfoot@novascotia.ca

Inspiring a New Generation

How many of us wanted to be racing drivers, ballet dancers or astronauts when we were at school? Clearly more than ended up achieving those dreams. But then how many, as excitable 11-year-olds, would have said engineering and construction was our career of choice? Would it have been more if the teachers themselves acknowledged the industry as a viable career option for pupils? This is one of the reasons behind the Design, Engineer, Construct! curriculum offered by social education business Class of Your Own. Read more.

Entry-level Training Opens Doors for Aspiring Tradespeople

Pre-employment programs are a win-win for companies and young people interested in pursuing a career in the trades. Read more.

In Search of Skilled Workers: How to Look in all the Right Places

Many suggest that good workers are few and far between but there are places to look and options to find them. These include looking at different demographics for potential workers to using specialty employment firms to taking advantage of innovative services like programs abroad. Read more.

CMD’s 2015 Canadian Construction Outlook

Check out CMD’s 2015 Canadian Construction Outlook. Read more.

Federal budget: infrastructure funding announcements coming

The upcoming federal budget will reaffirm the Conservative government’s commitment to infrastructure spending, Industry Minister James Moore says, adding that a number of major infrastructure announcements are on the horizon. Read more.

Session sparks hopes of jobs at Point Tupper LNG project

If the proposed Bear Head LNG Corp. liquefied natural gas project in Point Tupper will bring jobs, many of the people who attended an open house Tuesday basically said bring it on. Read more.