The Western Canada Group of Chartered Engineers
Serving
members of the British Chartered Engineering Institutions resident in B.C.,
Yukon, Washington and Alaska
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Dateline 22
November 2009
ON THIS PAGE:-
NOTICE OF A.G.M. AND ANNUAL DINNER
CURRENT ISSUES OF THE CHALLENGE NEWSLETTER
NEXT EVENT – ANNUAL GENERAL
MEETING
Followed by
ANNUAL DINNER
ROYAL VANCOUVER YACHT CLUB
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Topic |
After-Dinner
Speaker details to come
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Speaker |
After-Dinner
Speaker details to come
|
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Location |
R.V.Y.C. 3811 Point Grey Road, Vancouver BC
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Date & Time |
Saturday January
23rd, 2010, time 6:00pm
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Register |
Tickets available
from Alan Kay.
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More details |
AGM Agenda, Dinner menu and ticket pricing, to come |
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Guests |
AGM is limited to
members only, for obvious reasons. Guests will be entertained until the AGM
is adjourned. Members are encouraged to bring an unlimited number of guests
to the Annual Dinner.
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REPORT ON NOVEMBER MEETING
The November meeting was a site visit to the brand new Canada Line rapid transit system 0peration Management Centre, located just south of the North Arm of the Fraser river in Richmond. The tour was organized by Grant Bailey, Engineering Manager and assisted by his Maintenance Supervisor. Approximately 22 WCGCE members and guests were present to view the facility.
The group heard a Power Point presentation by Grant on the Canada Line system.
The system consists of some 20 double car trains under fully automatic control, that run on an electric railway which is 18.5 kilometers long, running between Downtown Vancouver and either Richmond or Vancouver International Airport. The system in Vancouver is a subway and then becomes an elevated line when it crosses the Fraser River. Only a short section on the way to the airport is at ground level.
The system cost some $1.9 billion and was financed by the Federal Government and 3 equal partners; 33% SNC Lavelin, the contractor and operator, 33% CDP and 33% bcIMC. The Federal Government provided $1.25 billion and the debt partners $657 million’ Protrans BC is the operating arm and employs about 200 staff, and is contracted to operate the system for 35 years.
The twin tunnels are bored under False Creek and downtown Vancouver and cut and cover for the rest of the underground part. There are two bridges over the north and middle arms of the river, one of which is a cable stayed with a low profile because it is under the approaches to the airport.
The group also went on a tour of the Train Hall where the 41 meter long double car units are on raised platforms to allow easy inspection and maintenance. The Hall has a capacity for 3 trains and a staff of 67 is involved in the maintenance.
The trains are powered by 750 volt DC. There are manual controls at each end of the train to maneuver the cars when off the main line or in an emergency. These controls are covered by a locked panel during normal operation. Rail cleaning is carried out about every 6 months or more frequently as needed. In frosty weather a coating of glycerin is applied to the above ground rails to improve traction.
The group was then taken to the Control Centre where the group was given an explanation of the operation of the facility.
The system operates from 4:45am to 1:45am daily, and is designed to handle 100,000 passengers per day and has already reached 80, 000 which was not expected until 2011. The maximum is on Friday and the lowest is on a Sunday. It has become very popular for people traveling to YVR to catch flights or return from trips. The system is performing above expectations with the only weakness the station cleanliness caused by a few less careful passengers. The only stoppage was due to a medical emergency of a passenger last week.
THE ChallEnge – 2009 ISSUES
Both Summer and winter editions are now available online. An Acrobat reader is required to view the content. Click on the appropriate link for the necessary download(s).
HELP WANTED
WEBMASTER
Your Webmaster is retiring, after 12 years’ maintaining this website. Those interested in taking over this essential component of the Group’s internal and external communications strategy should contact Ian Price or any committee member if interested.
The ideal candidate will be a younger member with intermediate-level computer skills. Here is an opportunity to make a real contribution to the future of the Group. Outgoing Webmaster will be available to hold your hand for a limited time, if necessary.
Future
meetings
- If you have an interesting product or project at
work that you feel our Group members would like to know more about,
please don't hesitate to contact James
Canova, who can arrange
with you a suitable time and date for a talk or tour. Our technical
meetings program comprises an eclectic mix of engineering topics as well
as general items of interest to engineers, and the Group welcomes a
further broadening of its topic base.
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Background
Founded in 1987
as an amalgamation of the Western Canada branches of the Institutions of Civil,
Mechanical and Electrical Engineers, the Group expanded in 1994 to include
members of the Institutions of Structural and Chemical Engineers. In 1998 the
Group expanded again to include the Chartered Institution of Building Services
Engineers. It now represents over 1000 members of these U.K. engineering
Institutions, residents of B.C., Yukon, Washington State, and Alaska.
Mission
The Group exists
not only to extend the Institutions' services to their overseas members, but
also to assist local engineers, EITs and technologists with an interest in
European practices and technology, and/or aspirations to register
professionally in Europe, to join the appropriate Institution.
Activities
The Group runs a
technical meeting and site visit program out of Vancouver, B.C., and publishes
a newsletter, the ChallEnge,
twice a year. Additional services include this Webpage, assistance with the
APEGBC mentoring program, and assistance to members with Continuing
Professional Development
Those visiting
this website in order to research prospects
for an engineering job here in British Columbia, should navigate to a new page identified on our main
services menu. This is based on a letter we have been using as a reply to
inquiries over the last couple of years. We have tried to portray a realistic
appreciation of what your chances of getting a job here might be, and not we
hope either too rosy or too negative a picture.
This page and
all subsidiary pages are currently under continuous development. If there's
anything you need to know about the Group, further details of the Group may be
obtained from the Group Webmaster,
Ian W. Price, B.Sc., C.Eng., M.I.E.E., P.Eng.
2414 Tree Top Lane, North Vancouver, BC V7H 2K5
Tel: (604) 929-7566
Fax: (604) 929-6826
e-mail: wcgcewebmaster@priceng.com, or click on name
above
