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SAVE THE DATE
Technical Meeting Schedule
June 15, 2010
New Innovations in Structural Adhesive Products
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Fall 2010 Joint Door and Window Technical Workshop
WDMA-BC's continuing series of members' meetings to discuss
and offer information on issues affecting the industry is going 'on the road'
again this fall.
Stay tuned for final date and location announcements soon.
By popular request, a 'Door-specific' meeting will be on the
agenda, in parallel with a 'Window-specific' meeting. Upcoming modifications to
the Provincial Building Code and the 2009 Provincial Energy Efficiency Act have
brought much change to the exterior side hinged door industry, and the WDMA-BC will offer information and advice to prehangers and manufacturers
interested in better understanding these changes.
The NAFS (North American Fenestration Standard), including
recent door-specific changes, covers both windows and side hinged entry doors
and is expected to become part of BC's building code in 2011. The WDMA-BC is
uniquely qualified to help prehangers learn about and comply with these
regulations, although specific requirements for side hinge entry door testing
and component substitution remain somewhat uncertain.
We look forward to a great discussion, and will work closely
with our membership to address the new requirements.
If you're a prehanger hoping to learn more, and agree with
us that the WDMA-BC is the best place to go for assistance and advocacy, now is
the time!
Comments, questions, and requests for topics of future
Technical Meetings are always welcome.
Please contact Zana Gordon either by phone 778.837.8843 or by email zgordon@wdma-bc.org
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Our Golf Sponsors
Top Tier
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Energy Efficiency Regulations for Doors in BC
Erik Kaye and David Bruce
Ministry of Energy Mines and Petroleum Resources
The
Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources has enacted new standards for
windows, doors and skylights under the provincial Energy Efficiency Standards
Regulation (EESR). EESR standards apply to all products manufactured, sold,
leased or otherwise disposed of in British Columbia.
For more information on this topic click here. |
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A Word from the President
Spring is in full swing, the Olympics only a memory. We enjoyed a great time on the course last
week with the GCA and WDMA participants, being blessed with mostly sunny skies
and good company. Thanks to all the
players, organizers and of course our sponsors for putting together another
successful spring tournament.
I was able to speak with a number of our members and it
appears most are quite optimistic in their views of this years construction
outlook. Most claim to be reasonably
busy already, with plenty of work being quoted going into summer. There seems to be positive forecasts from
most interested groups. Virtually all
areas in the lower mainland are showing housing starts to be 25 to 100+ % over
last year. And the replacement market
is still doing quite well, although concerns over the coming HST have this
sector on edge.
WDMA-BC is hard at work with a number of task groups. The Wood Door Working Group is getting close
to completing its study on the thermal performance of solid wood doors. We should see a report soon. The Side Hinged Door Performance Task Group has
completed a number of meetings and is near to having our local test labs do
some preliminary testing to determine baseline door performance. And the Replacement Window and Door Installation Task Group is
hard at work with initial meetings and fact finding on the retrofit market in
BC. They will be working hard with
interested groups and local agencies to create a West Coast Best Practices
Guide for installation of retrofit window and door products. There is still opportunity to join this
group, contact Pat Phillips if you are interested.
I am also hearing and seeing the increased awareness and
enforcement of building code requirements and the BC Energy Efficiency Act. These agencies are definitely taking a more
proactive role regarding compliance. Whether you are a supporter or not, it can
only help to make our industry better when the rules apply evenly across the
board. Remember that while the WDMA-BC works with government and regulatory agencies on your behalf, it is in
your interest to become involved as a supporting member of the WDMA-BC.
Terry Adamson, WDMA President
General Manager, Westeck Window and Doors
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Vancouver Island Technical Meeting
Report by S. Greenhill, Masonite
WDMA-BC's continuing series of members' meetings to discuss
and offer information on issues affecting the industry went on the road again
recently - this time to Duncan BC.
At least twice a year, Technical Meetings are held outside
the lower mainland as part of the effort to get the association out to its
members, wherever they may be based in the province.
The Duncan meeting was well attended, and we were pleased to
see several prospective new members show an interest.
Speakers included: - Jeff Meursing, Intertek Testing and Ivo Tanner, QAI
presented the Joint Window and
Door Compliance and Certification Workshop previously presented in October 2009
in Surrey.
- David Bruce, Ministry of Energy Mines and Petroleum
Resources
Special thanks are owed to Erik Kaye of the Ministry of
Mines, Energy and Resources for taking time to address the group. The WDMA-BC
believes that constructive dialogue between industry and government will always
result in mutual success, and we appreciate Mr. Kaye taking the time (and the
train).
Pat Phillips reported on the current
status of the Replacement Window and Door Installation Task Group while Brian
Hepburn reported for the Side Hinged Door Performance Task Group. The previous year's Vancouver Island Technical Meeting was
held in Victoria. Moving 'up Island' to Duncan this year successfully reached a
wider group of members, and we look forward to continuing our road trip
sessions in the future. Comments, questions, and requests for topics of future
Technical Meetings are always welcome. Please contact Zana Gordon by phone 778.837.8843 or email zgordon@wdma-bc.org |
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WDMA Replacement Window and Door
Installation Task Group
With the aging housing stock in British Columbia and
the increasing demand for energy efficient homes, replacing inefficient windows
and doors is one renovation item that can give you the best "bang for your
buck". When improperly installed,
these products can compromise the building envelope and fail to deliver
expected the energy efficiency, possibly even creating a worse situation than
you started with.
This is why the
quality of replacement window and door installation is becoming an increasing
concern. Following our October 2009 technical meeting that featured a panel
discussion on replacement window installation, a straw poll of those present
indicated that the great majority felt strongly our industry should address the
issue. This led to the creation of the Replacement Window and Door Installation
Task Group that will work towards the creation of a Best Practices Guide for
replacement window and door installation in British Columbia
For more on this article click here
If you would be interested in providing input or if you have any
questions about the Task Group, please contact Pat Phillips pphillips@vanislewindows.com or Devin Pickles dpickles@starlinewindows.com. |
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Side Hinged Door Performance Task Group
The most recent meeting of the Side
Hinged Door Performance Task Group was April 9, 2010. Discussion centered on whether the
AAMA
111-09 document would provide a starting point, (following the lead of
the CWDMA
task group) toward testing of a generic product with limited component
substitution. It was agreed that in order for this document to be useful
in
providing a foundation for our testing the supporting documentation will
need
to be available for the testing agencies doing the evaluations.
To help the task group along,
Intertek and QAI have each agreed to conduct a set of tests at no charge
to the
group. The purpose is to establish a benchmark for component assembly.
One set
(1 inswing, 1- outswing), of tests will be run on a standard prehung and
one
will be built with an upgraded sill. We hope to have the drawing
complete and
the tests done by mid June and then meet to discuss the results.
For more information on this Task Group you can contact the Chair - Brian Hepburn |
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Installation Issues Task Group
The Installation Issues Task Group was contacted with an updated
detail to review from Murray Frank of Constructive Home Solutions for the HPO
Manual. The task group will meet to review the detail.
New details are also being developed for the installation of
windows into ICF (Insulated Concrete Form) walls. Once these details are available,
the task group will be invited to review them as well.
CMHC has released a new and interesting study on how the location of the air seal affects water leakage rates. The report was distributed and will be discussed after the task group
reviews it.
A meeting date has not yet been set; it is dependent on the ICF
details being completed and the CMHC report being reviewed.
For more information on this Task Group you can contact the Chair - Devin Pickles
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Preliminary estimates confirm widespread real GDP declines in 2009
April 28/10
This morning, Statistics Canada released its preliminary 2009 estimates for provincial real GDP by industry (the final and official growth numbers are usually those calculated from expenditures on a provincial accounts basis). These estimates confirmed that the contraction of activity last year was widespread across the country with all provinces but one (Prince Edward Island) experiencing a decline in total real GDP. However, there was a relatively wide dispersion of declining activity. Two provinces saw negligible contractions (Manitoba and Nova Scotia), whereas outsized drops were recorded in Newfoundland & Labrador, Saskatchewan and Alberta. For the complete report click here
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