Do you have an employee who has a son or daughter currently studying to be in the mechanical contracting industry? Are you a member of an MCA student chapter? If so, we’ve got good news: CEC and Federated Insurance can help offset the financial burden. We are accepting applications for our annual scholarship until June 30. This is the 12th year that Federated Insurance has generously sponsored the scholarship. For further information please contact Tania Johnston at 613-232-5169 or tania@mcac.ca.

• Download scholarship criteria
• Download scholarship application

Congratulations to Plan Group in Ottawa for achieving their MSCC Certified Contractor designation. The designation distinguishes elite contractors in Canada that maintain exceptional health and safety standards, deep experience, rigorous training, responsive customer service and best business practices. To find out how you can differentiate yourself from the competition, visit www.servicecontractor.ca.

This year’s Annual CEC Fundraising Golf Tournament has moved to an exciting new venue, the Royal Ontario Golf Club in Milton, ON. The Royal Ontario is a prestigious course that everyone will enjoy. The tournament will take place Wednesday, July 12. Enjoy an amazing golf course, a great BBQ lunch, on-course games, a prime-rib dinner, prizes, trophies and much more. Registration is now open and there are plenty of exceptional sponsorship opportunities. See you on the links!

MCA Canada is a proud sponsor of this year's Skills Canada National Competition, which takes place in Winnipeg from May 31 to June 3. Every year, more than 500 young people from all regions of Canada come to this event to participate in over 40 skilled trade and technology competitions. By providing a forum where Canadian youth can compete at the national level, Skills/Compétences Canada provides hands-on work experience related to skilled trade and technology careers.

Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains said the goal is to have an open market and eliminate red tape.

The obligation of employers to ensure safety at workplaces such as construction jobsites has not changed despite increased use of medical marijuana and its possible legalization by the federal Liberal government, says a legal expert active in the field.

Check out the following programs offered by the CEC and our local MCAs in the months ahead!

• MSCC Sales Academy – Toronto, ON – April 19-20 and May 17-18
• Project Scheduling Essentials – Hamilton, ON – May 9 and 15
• Project Scheduling Essentials – Saskatoon, SK – May 16 and 17
• Proactive Service – Vancouver, BC – June 15

Municipalities issued $7.5 billion worth of building permits in February, down 2.5 percent from January. The value of residential building permits fell 1.5 percent from January to $5 billion in February. A decline in single-family construction intentions was moderated by an increase in the multi-family component. Meanwhile, municipalities issued $2.4 billion worth of building permits for non-residential structures in February, down 4.5 percent from January. The institutional component decreased 16.2 percent to $609 million, the value of permits issued for industrial structures fell 2.7 percent to $395 million, while the value of commercial permits rose 1 percent to $1.4 billion.

21,800 factory jobs were created in March, thanks to the biggest month-to-month surge in manufacturing since 2002. The manufacturing sector as a whole added 24,400 jobs, mostly in Ontario and Alberta.

Those looking for a better way of doing business in construction can learn more about the fundamentals of lean at the upcoming Lean Construction Institute of Canada (LCI-C) annual conference and training day.

• April 11: MCAC and CIPH Day on Parliament Hill, Ottawa, ON
• April 20: MCA Hamilton AGM & Trade Show, Hamilton, ON
• April 20: MCA Alberta AGM, Edmonton, AB
• April 21: CANS De-Icer, Halifax, NS
• April 26: MCA Manitoba AGM, Winnipeg, MB
• April 26-27: MCEE Tradeshow, Montréal, QC
• May 5-7: MCA British Columbia/Alberta Conference, Victoria, BC
• May 11-19: MCA of Ontario AGM, Edinburgh, Scotland
• May 25: CANS Golf Tournament, Halifax, NS
• May 26-28: CCA Meetings, St. John’s, NL
• May 31-June 3: Skills Canada National Competition, Winnipeg MB
• June 6: MCA Canada Western Regional Meetings, Saskatoon, SK
• June 15: MCA Sask/Ron Young Memorial Golf, Moon Lake Golf and Country Club, SK 
• June 22: MCA Sask/ASHRAE Golf Tournament, Deer Valley Golf Club, SK
• June 23: MCA Eastern Regional Meeting, St. John’s, NL
• June 25-27: CIPH Annual Business Conference, Ottawa, ON
• July 12: CEC Golf Tournament, Royal Ontario Golf Club, Milton, ON
• July 13: CANS Developing Executives Meet and Greet, Halifax, NS
• September 21: CIPHEX Roadshow, St. John’s, NL
• September 29: CANS 155th AGM, St. Andrew's By-The-Sea, NB
• September 29-October 1: MCA Toronto AGM, Collingwood, ON
• October 2-4: CCA Meetings, Niagara Falls, ON
• October 15-18: MSCA Educational Conference, Boca Raton, Florida
• October 17: CIPHEX Roadshow, Edmonton, AB
• October 19: CIPHEX Roadshow, Regina, SK
• November 6-9: MCA Canada’s 76th National Conference, Maui, Hawaii

We still need your help! Operation Eyesight has prevented more than 35 million people from facing the needless tragedy of preventable blindness. Their work is focused in places where blindness can be deadly, especially to those who are very young, old or poor. MCA Canada's members, offices and staff have made significant contributions to help in this worthwhile cause but we still have a long way to go.