Bill 142 will come into force in two stages - Ontario Attorney General Yasir Naqvi recently announced that the balance of Bill 142, the Construction Lien Amendment Act, 2017 will be fully proclaimed and will also come into force in two stages. All of the substantive changes, regulations and forms, other than those relating to prompt payment and adjudication, will come into force on July 1.

The prompt payment and adjudication provisions, regulations and forms will be proclaimed and come into force on Oct. 1, 2019 in order to allow sufficient time for the Authorized Nominating Authority to be established, to develop a regime for the certification of adjudicators and to certify adjudicators.

Consultation drafts of the regulations have been posted on Ontario’s Regulatory Registry and are available online. The regulations have been posted for a period of 30 days and the public can provide feedback. Bill 142 made numerous amendments to the Construction Lien Act in response to the report titled Striking the Balance: Expert Review of Ontario’s Construction Lien Act, authored by construction lawyers Bruce Reynolds and Sharon Vogel and delivered on April 30, 2016. Their review examined the modernization of lien and holdback rules, prompt payment and the introduction of an adjudication system.

Statistics Canada will be publishing unadjusted data by type of structure and type of work. Each building permit submitted has an identified type of structure and type of work approved for construction. For example, a permit could be issued for an improvement (type of work) to an existing hotel (type of structure). There are six main types of work: new residential and non-residential construction, improvements, conversions, deconversions, garage and carports, and in-ground swimming pools. The value of permits for new construction was $4.5 billion in January, followed by improvements ($1.7 billion), conversions ($69.5 million), garage and carports ($21.9 million), in-ground swimming pools ($3.4 million) and deconversions ($2.8 million).

MCA Canada has updated the Career Section of its website with a particular focus on the Career Development page. Attracting young people into the industry is a must, according to pretty much every industry analyst and stakeholder. To assist you in pointing young men and women to the indutrsy, we have partnered with BuildForce to link a list of  20+ careers to the 'CareersInConstruction.ca' site. These new links provide a wealth of information to prospective tradespeople including sample duties, work conditions, training and certification requirements, salary range and videos about the particualr career. We would encourage you to take a look at the site or post a link to it on your website. You can find it at www.mcac.ca/careers/career-development. 

Doing your taxes shouldn’t be expensive. Here are some tips to save you time and money this tax-filing season. Get your taxes done for you. If you have a modest income and a simple tax situation, volunteers from the Community Volunteer Income Tax Program may be able to do your taxes for you—for free. Tax clinics are usually open from February to the end of April, with some open year-round. To find a clinic near you, use the MyCRA mobile web app at canada.ca/cra-mobile-apps or go to canada.ca/taxes-help. Check out the Canada Revenue Agency’s (CRA) list of certified software, including free products, and join the majority of Canadians who file online.

The federal government is set to spend $11.5 million over the next three years to pursue a regulatory reform agenda to help improve innovation and business investment. “The goal is to make the Canadian regulatory system more agile, transparent and responsive, so that businesses across the country can explore and act on new opportunities, resulting in benefits for all Canadians,” reads budget 2018.

Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI) and the Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC) have announced the launch of a joint venture called GBCI Canada, intended to promote new ventures in green building. GBCI Canada will perform such functions as validating enhanced building performance and promoting emissions reductions, operational savings and human health benefits.

A Game Changer You Need to Know About - Dan Leduc of Norton Rose Fulbright will present a free webinar to MCA Canada members on some of the key changes to the Construction Lien Act (which will now become the Construction Act) in Ontario. The act represents the materialization of the Province’s intention to modernize provincial construction laws to improve efficiency and competitiveness for construction businesses. This new legislation will bring significant changes  which will likely be proclaimed in the next year or so. The topics will include an introduction to prompt payment, adjudication, and other changes that you will need to understand as each will impact your day to day commercial activities. To register, click the link below.

Date: March 21, 2018
Time: 12:00 PM Eastern
Cost: Free to all MCAC Members

The Construction Education Council (CEC) is pleased to present the exclusive seminar, “Dispatcher Training Program.” Over two days, the topics covered will include but not be limited to: the dispatchers influence in the organization and their impact on profitability; communication skills for the dispatcher; understanding a day in the life of the service technician; prioritizing service calls/matching technician ability to calls; customers and problems; what technicians need from their dispatchers; the art of asking the right questions; levels of customer satisfaction; handling difficult customers/steps to rapid service recovery; applying the finishing touches with correct follow-up; managing the service manager; a day in the life of a dispatcher/getting rid of stress/personal action plan.

Forbes - The Freedom Tower in New York City took more than seven years to complete. Last year, The Guardian showed a video of a 57-story building being built in 19 days in China. There’s a lot of buzz these days about drones, 3D printing and robots. It’s easy to brush these technologies off as fads or luxuries until you understand some of the use cases that are being applied by integrating these emerging technologies.  

This month's MultiMedia Program is brought to you by Bibby-Ste-Croix - Bibby Ste-Croix is the premier domestic manufacturer of cast iron soil pipe, fittings and couplings for drain, waste and vent plumbing systems. Cast iron is truly a green plumbing choice as their products are manufactured by using ~100 percent recycled post-consumer scrap metal, and our products are 100 percent recyclable once taken out of service. For nearly a century Bibby has been providing quality cast iron products. When you choose cast iron, you know you are getting a safe and reliable system that will stand the test of time. Cast Iron – Tried and True. For more information please visit Bibby-Ste-Croix’s website at www.bibby-ste-croix.com or call 1-800-463-3480.

1639 – Harvard College is named after clergyman John Harvard, who bequeathed his entire library and half of his estate.
1781 – William Herschel discovers Uranus.
1859 - John Brown brings first black slaves escaping to Canada on the Underground Railroad.
1928 - Eileen Vollick is the first Canadian woman awarded a pilot's license.
1930 – The news of the discovery of Pluto is telegraphed to the Harvard College Observatory.
1971 - FLQ leader Paul Rose given a life sentence for the murder of Québec Labour Minister Pierre Laporte.

March 21 to 23 - CMPX 2018 is the Canadian Mechanical & Plumbing Exposition, Canada’s National Show for the HVACR and Plumbing Industries. The CMPX 2018 doors open on March 21, 2018 for three days, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, filled with new products and technologies, exhibitor experts from around the world that you can talk to in person, and an impressive slate of educational sessions and presentations. It takes place at the 200,000-square-foot show floor at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, North Building. Over 500 exhibiting companies will be shipping their latest new products and technologies to display at CMPX. Click the link below or go to www.cmpxshow.ca.

You are invited to participate in the upcoming CanBI Regional Session in Montréal on April 11th & 12th, 2018. You’ll hear from industry leaders on the latest technology trends, BIM processes and  methodologies.  You can take advantage of the early bird rate before the deadline on March 15, 2018.

• March 12–15: CCA Conference, Banff, AB
• March 15: MCA Saskatchewan AGM, Regina, SK
• March 21–23: CMPX Mechanical & Plumbing Exhibition, Toronto, ON
• March 25–29: MCA America Convention, San Antonio, TX
• April 4: NTCCC Prompt Payment Summit
• April 18: MCA Manitoba AGM, Winnipeg, MB
• April 22–29: MCA Ontario Conference, St. Lucia
• May 3–6: MCA British Columbia Conference, Whistler, BC
• May 7–9: MCA Canada Midyear Meetings, Ottawa, ON
• May 8: MCA Canada & CIPH Day on the Hill, Ottawa, ON
• May 31–June 3: MCA Alberta Conference & AGM, Kananaskis, AB
• June 4–5: 24th Skills Canada Competition, Edmonton, AB
• June 10–15: UA National Skills Competition, Edmonton, AB
• June 17–19: CIPH Annual Business Conference, Whistler, BC
• July 11: CEC Annual Golf Tournament Fundraiser, Milton, ON
• September 7–9: MCA Toronto Conference & AGM, Muskoka, ON
• September 19–22: MCA Canada Annual National Conference, Whistler, BC

Membership Advantage Program partner Perkopolis Changes Login Process - Perkopolis has now simplified the login process for MCA Canada members. Simply go to the site at www.perkopolis.com. On the top right corner click 'Register'. Type in your email address and click submit. Please note that if MCA Canada does not have your email address, or the address of your staff wishing to use the discounts, simply send the email addresses to daryl@mcac.ca and they will be added to the site which will then allow you to set up your account.  Perkopolis is an employee discount program that provides access to exclusive discounts on a number of products and services across Canada such as clothes, travel, entertainment, electronics and much more.

Based in Canada, Operation Eyesight has brought sight-restoration and blindness-prevention treatment to millions of people since our founding in 1963. Today, our work is focused in Ghana, Kenya, Zambia, India and Nepal – places where blindness can be deadly, especially to those who are very young, old or poor. MCA Canada continues to be involved through the support of our offices and members. Every penny counts.