By Jordan Whitehouse
As goes the Canadian construction industry, so usually goes this one. And right now, while there are strong pockets of activity in BC, Ontario, and elsewhere, overall construction activity may be hitting a plateau. Still, there are lots of good things happening in mechanical insulation, says Steve Clayman, director of energy initiatives at the Thermal Insulation Association of Canada.
For one, Ontario’s recent establishment of water and energy benchmarks sets a good precedent, he says. “Other provinces are in various stages of political speak, but everybody is kind of making noises about buildings and just how much energy they use and how much water is being wasted,” says Clayman.
All of it could translate into a significant economic boost to mechanical insulation, he adds. “Our contention being that it makes absolutely no sense to install high efficiency boilers and chillers and all the bits and pieces that go with it without, at the very least, taking a look at a condition of the insulation on duct and pipe and what have you going into and out of this.”
Clayman was a part of a group that looked at pipe and duct insulation thickness for NECB 2015. Their work resulted in, in some cases, increases in thickness of up to 50 per cent. It’s made a difference on Canadians’ energy bills, he says, and it’s good to see the industry take on this green thinking and run. “It’s almost as if the industry was stuck in a place for a long period of time, and of late, the past five years or so, companies are coming up with different approaches to insulations, more R-value per inch than has been traditional. And we’re starting to see those products come into the market.”
As for other trends to keep an eye on, Clayman says the usual one of customers wanting more for less continues, as does the big one threatening the entire industry: way more workers leaving the industry than entering it. Within a decade, about a quarter of a million people are expected to retire from the Canadian construction industry. “That’s why these various trade organizations are desperately trying to encourage more women to get into construction,” he says. “And Indigenous peoples as well. Right now, some contractors are facing a limitation on the amount of work that they can undertake just because they don’t have qualified skilled installers.”
Overall, though, Clayman thinks the industry is moving in a positive direction. People are realizing that more has to be done — and can be done — to reduce energy consumption. “I’m in Vancouver right now, for instance, one of the only cities in Canada that has its own charter regarding energy efficiency.” That attitude is migrating into the interior of BC, he says, while elsewhere similar innovation is happening.
“The more we get exposure, the more people talk about it and consider it. Because once the piping is behind the walls and in the ceilings — out of sight, out of mind — it’s who cares, who knows? But it’s a big factor.” •
