CEC’s brand-new five-part webinar series on information technologies in the workplace starts tomorrow.

Presented in partnership with MCA Hamilton Niagara, this five-part series will give participants insights into trends and traps facing companies today, and best-practice tips, tools and techniques used to help IT implementations in small to mid-sized businesses.

Learn more about ways your company can plan for, and use its IT resources more effectively, and register to attend this important series.

MCA Canada is pleased to announce that it has named its scholarship series after now-retired and long-time president Richard McKeagan.

McKeagan served for more than 28 years as president and CEO of MCA Canada. During a career that spanned more than 40 years, he was instrumental in launching such initiatives as the Construction Education Council, the Mechanical Service Contractors of Canada, and the National Trade Contractors Council of Canada.

MCA Canada awards its suite of scholarships annually to post-secondary students and graduates wishing to pursue careers in the mechanical contracting industry.

The MCA Canada Board of Directors voted to rename the scholarship series to the Richard McKeagan Scholarship Series as a tribute to McKeagan's long service and meaningful contributions to this association.

The newly formed Nova Scotia Prompt Payment Coalition is calling on the provincial government to enact appropriate legislation to improve the payment timetable in Nova Scotia’s construction sector.

In last week's edition of Just the Fax, we introduced the members of the 2018–19 MCA Canada Board of Directors. Unfortunately, we omitted four members from our list. Not pictured here are board members Brad Diggens, Tim Padfield, Scott Munro and Quentin Bevan.

Front row (L to R) are the members of the MCAC Executive Committee: Derek Ermen, Wayne Davidson, Dave Flamand, Jack Bavis, MCAC CEO Pierre Boucher, Dave Holek

Back row (L to R): Charlie Webb, Dale Miller, John Warnica, Luc Kadziolka, Mike Miller, Brad Mason, Scott Kerr, Joe Givens, Ian Arbuckle, Serge Robert, Charles Savoie

Not pictured: Brad Diggens, Tim Padfield, Scott Munro and Quentin Bevan.

Bringing the digital age to the construction site has been a long and slow journey and the emergence of global centres of innovation are aiming to accelerate that effort.

More than half of all workplace tasks will be carried out by machines by 2025, organizers of the Davos economic forum said in a report released Monday that highlights the speed with which the labour market will change in the coming years.

More than 1,000 students have completed the 10-day PM CEC/University of Waterloo course since its inception in 2000. This latest session is sure to be another sellout. If you have new hires or people looking to upgrade or refresh their PM skills, this is the course for them! As a bonus, the program is Gold Seal-accredited for those who wish to pursue their certification.

American engineer Fluor has announced that it will use IBM’s artificial intelligence (AI) system Watson on large projects from inception to completion. The aim is to predict how engineering, procurement, fabrication and construction will perform, and then measure in real time how they do.

The year 2017 marked a considerable change in how construction technology was viewed. Industry-wide, the conversation shifted from the need to adopt technology to the best strategies and technology solutions for maximizing investment. Heading into the new year, construction was primed for full digital disruption. 

Click below for the latest prompt payment in the construction industry payment tables.

Manufacturing sector grew 1.2 percent in the month, its strongest showing since November 2017.

1535: Having landed in Quebec a month ago, Jacques Cartier reaches a town, which he names Montreal.
1780: John André, a British Army officer, is hanged as a spy by the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War for assisting Benedict Arnold’s attempted surrender of the fort at West Point, New York, to the British.
1870: The papal states vote in favor of union with Italy. The capital is moved from Florence to Rome.
1871: Mormon leader Brigham Young, 70, is arrested for polygamy. He is later convicted, but the U.S. Supreme Court overturns the conviction.
1879: A dual alliance is formed between Austria and Germany, in which the two countries agree to come to the other’s aid in the event of aggression.
1909: Orville Wright sets an altitude record, flying at 1,600 feet. This exceeded Hubert Latham’s previous record of 508 feet.
1950: The comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schultz, makes its first appearance in newspapers.
1964: Scientists announce findings that smoking can cause cancer.
1967: Thurgood Marshall, the first African-American Supreme Court justice, is sworn in.
1980: Congressional Representative Mike Myers is expelled from the U.S. House for taking a bribe in the Abscam scandal, the first member to be expelled since 1861.
1990: Flight 8301 of China’s Xiamen Airlines is hijacked and crashed into Baiyun International Airport, hitting two other aircrafts and killing 128 people.
2001: NATO backs U.S. military strikes in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks.

This event will provide educators, Indigenous organizations and policymakers the opportunity to learn about programs supporting Indigenous student engagement & career advancement.