Shifting the U.S. economy to one based on clean energy will improve economic growth, energy independence, and the country’s health and well-being. By focusing on the Biden Administration’s priorities to cut emissions, create jobs, and promote energy justice, EERE serves the federal government’s mandate to reduce costs for renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies, including solar and wind. EERE also provides insight into working alongside industry partners in geothermal, offshore wind, hydrogen, and more.

As one of the Applied Energy offices within the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) along with the Office of Electricity, the Office of Nuclear Energy, and the Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management, EERE invests in the vast majority of the technologies driving the clean energy transition.

“We work in three primary sectors: renewable energy generation production, sustainable transportation, and buildings and industry,” says Alejandro Moreno, Acting Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. “Our mission is to ensure American leadership in clean energy technologies and throughout the clean energy transition.”

DOE has 17 national laboratories with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colorado stewarded by EERE. Together, they cover a wide range of clean energy technologies—including wind, solar, geothermal, water power, electric vehicles and batteries, building technologies, advanced materials and manufacturing, bioenergy, hydrogen and fuel cells, and industrial efficiency—with successes driven in large part by EERE research, but also by technologies on the cusp of transforming the energy sector. For example, we currently use hydrogen as an industrial fuel for heavy-duty or long-range transport, or sustainable aviation fuels.

“Many of the commitments coming out of the airline industry right now are pledging to transform the fuels they use and transform their fleet to be low carbon,” says Moreno. “That’s primarily through fuels derived from bioenergy. EERE’s bioenergy program is working on the research to support this.”

EERE also does a tremendous amount of work to help reduce the carbon footprint of industrial processes, ranging from chemical production to cement and steel, which are some of the hardest areas to decarbonize in today’s economy as they require extremely heat-intensive processes.

“Not everything can be electrified the way vehicles can,” Moreno says. “Not all those processes can use electricity, as it doesn’t always generate enough heat. We need to either find new processes that accomplish the same thing with less heat or find new fuels that produce that level of heat without the same level of greenhouse gas emissions.”

During its decades of tenure, EERE has had impressive successes, including The SunShot Initiative, reducing the cost of solar photovoltaics by 75 percent to six cents per kilowatt hour, a goal accomplished three years ahead of schedule.

Similarly, EERE’s aim of having wind supply five percent of U.S. electricity by 2020 saw it reach seven to eight percent of the country’s electricity by that year. And in the last decade alone, the cost of lithium-ion battery storage has fallen about 90 percent, in large part driven by research from EERE’s Vehicle Technologies Office.

“That’s one of the key reasons you see the proliferation of electric vehicles on the roads today,” Moreno says. “Manufacturers can make commitments to have a certain percentage of their fleet be electric by 2030 or 2035 because we know we can do so in a way that’s affordable and meets consumer needs.”

There’s no time to waste when it comes to meeting these goals across numerous industrial sectors. The current administration has made it clear that their goal is to fully decarbonize the electricity sector by 2035, and to have a fully Net Zero economy, meaning all energy on balance produces zero emissions, by 2050.

Much of the reduction in emissions from transportation and from industry and buildings depends on the reduction of emissions in the power sector, adds Moreno. If you drive an electric vehicle but charge that vehicle with electricity that’s heavily fossil-fuel dominated, you’re not necessarily reducing emissions as much as if that electricity were fully clean.

“In the power sector, there’s an urgency to move very quickly,” says Moreno. “You’re seeing that not just in the United States. The International Energy Agency, which historically has been very focused on fossil fuels and oil, came out with a global target of getting to Net Zero by 2050 globally, which also requires a fully clean power sector.”

Evidence shows the speed at which greenhouse gases are beginning to concentrate and build up in the atmosphere, meaning there is limited time to act, he adds. Industries need to start dramatically reducing the amount of greenhouse gas emissions going into the atmosphere now to first slow down the increases and then stabilize the overall amount of gases such that any increase in atmospheric temperature will not be greater than is manageable.

Under the Biden Administration, the recent Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, or the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, allowed the DOE to implement $62 billion for large programs that demonstrate major new technologies at scale and focus on creating jobs for all Americans and revenue for communities across the country.

Additionally, the administration’s Inflation Reduction Act had many provisions that codified incentives for a wide range of clean energy technologies—not just for the development of the technologies themselves, but for development in a way that ensures the benefits of the Clean Energy Transition are durable and meet the needs of ordinary Americans.

“This includes increased incentives for using domestic content, for providing good-paying jobs, and for providing and locating projects in communities that are either low-income or that have historically played a huge role in driving the abundance of low-cost energy in the United States and have been critical to the economic success of this country as a whole,” Moreno says.

“It recognizes those communities still have a huge role to play in the clean energy transition, even as the technologies themselves change. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act are squarely focused on ensuring that happens, and that those communities continue to play an important role.”

Across the board, most companies are aware of the real role they play in the transition, but executing that will be easier for some than others. For those companies, communities, and individuals for whom that adaptation is especially challenging, EERE provides support.

There are huge opportunities, for instance, to use the equipment, expertise, and skills that underpin conventional energy in cleaner sectors, such as geothermal. “Geothermal drilling and production have a lot in common with oil and gas, particularly with offshore oil and gas drilling,” says Moreno. “It’s not exactly the same, but a lot of the equipment and skills are directly relevant and transferable.”

The DOE has created GEODE—Geothermal Energy from Oil and gas Demonstrated Engineering —to award up to $165 million over five years to expand geothermal energy deployment specifically by leveraging expertise and equipment previously used in the offshore oil and gas sector.

Opportunities also abound to use existing infrastructure such as connections to the grid from existing fossil fuel facilities, connections that are extremely valuable for the utility expertise and broader power sector expertise held by those who work in those facilities.

There are also tremendous opportunities across the board for clean energy to provide jobs and revenue to communities. One of the distinguishing factors of renewables is that many of the best resources are in rural communities, which not only have an opportunity to reap some of the revenue but also have real ownership over the infrastructure.

“This,” says Moreno, “has always been a key element of the fossil fuel and energy industry in the U.S.—the pride that communities have in providing resources that make the country run and are critical to the success of the country. Those communities still have the same opportunity to do that.”

When it comes to examples of how homeowners themselves can help, retrofitting homes to reduce overall energy consumption is one of the best and easiest ways to save money, as well as being vital for the climate, says Moreno. “The less energy we use overall, the less new energy generation we need to create, and the less new infrastructure we need to build.”

DOE has also created several programs that help businesses understand how to reduce emissions and save money. Energy Savings Hub, an online portal that provides direct access to the tools to dramatically cut energy costs.

In terms of milestones, EERE has several it is aiming to reach. “Our primary mission is research and technology development, and there are still a number of technologies we know will be vital in reaching our 2050 decarbonization and clean energy goals in the most reliable and most affordable way possible,” Moreno says.

One of these focuses on reducing the cost of hydrogen to $1 per kilowatt hour, which would be 80 percent below current rates. The second is related to long-duration storage. As more wind and solar power come onto the grid, being able to store that energy as it’s generated and release it when demand is highest will become more important, particularly over longer periods.

Geothermal is another focus. Even though in many locations it is commercially competitive with gas for heating, it currently satisfies a small percentage of the country’s overall consumption of electricity. With advances in both drilling technology and technologies that enable management of underground reservoirs in conditions of higher temperatures and higher pressures, the potential for geothermal is roughly equivalent to the output of today’s nuclear fleet, a substantial resource.

“And geothermal is spread across wide swaths of the country,” says Moreno. “It also has vast potential for direct heating for small communities looking to reduce their dependence on natural gas.”

While land-based wind is one of the cheapest sources of electricity in many parts of the country, there is immense potential for offshore wind energy. However, in half of the potential sites where floating turbines would be most effectively deployed, the water is too deep to attach them directly to the seabed. Most of the East Coast has shallow water, but on the Pacific coasts and in parts of the Gulf of Maine, the water gets deep very fast and close to shore, requiring turbines that flood—a technology still under development.

“We are committed to driving down the costs of floating offshore wind to $45 a megawatt hour by 2035, which would make it broadly competitive with commercial electricity today,” says Moreno. “This supports the current administration’s ambitious goals and would also allow us to take leadership in the U.S. of the manufacturing and supply chain of an entirely new clean energy industry, one where the manufacturing could take place anywhere in the country but relies heavily on port facilities, which will need to expand and can create numerous logistics jobs as well as operational maintenance jobs for ports and the communities based by them and out of them.”

Whether it is transitioning to wind, solar, or geothermal power, reducing the country’s carbon footprint allows us to generate the energy needed without the greenhouse gas emissions and negative environmental effects that come with fossil fuels, in turn helping to reduce climate change and making the world a better place for all.

The post Going Green and Clean with Earth-Friendly Energy<p class="company">Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

This synergy, fueled by unwavering commitment to excellence, offers clients a single source for all their contracting needs, whether it’s remediation, repair or new industrial development solutions. The Patrick Group of Companies stands as a testament to the transformative potential of collective expertise and shared dedication, setting a new standard for industry collaboration.

Comprising PSL Patrick Sprack Ltd., Patrick Mechanical Ltd. (PML), Greater City Concrete Works (GCCW), Bisschops Industries, Legend Mining Contracting, BadRiverBoats, One Source Home Services, and S2 Metal Fabricators, the group’s success lies in its commitment to quality service, workmanship, and dedication to employee engagement.

“Our strength lies in our diversity, and we celebrate the uniqueness of each member company, upholding their individual identities and areas of specialization,” says Emilia Pauze, Manager of Continuous Improvement.

From mechanical, oil and gas, concrete, buildings, and rehabilitation of dams and critical infrastructure, to fabrication, HVAC-R, metal works, mill expansion, new mine development, and more, the group’s services cover the industrial, institutional, and commercial markets. “We deliver a seamless, single-source approach to projects of any scale, tailored to your exact needs,” Pauze says. “Our arsenal of distinctive skills, strategic partnerships, vast experience, and unwavering dedication places us miles ahead of the competition.”

Patrick Mechanical Limited (PML)
Patrick Mechanical Limited (PML), established in 1989, is a pioneer in addressing the industrial, commercial, and institutional contracting requirements of diverse authorities, businesses, and sectors across the province of Ontario.

Based in Sudbury, Ontario, PML is staffed with more than 125 highly skilled workers, including engineers, craftspeople, and professionals working together to guarantee that every project is tackled and completed utilizing the highest calibre of knowledge and craftsmanship.

“For more than 30 years, Patrick Mechanical has been the leading company in Northern Ontario for large-scale construction, contracting, mining, and industrial projects,” says President Doug Patrick. “PML is a leader in meeting the industrial, commercial, and institutional contracting needs of governments, corporations, and mining industries across the province.”

In specialist disciplines and trades such as mechanical contracting, bespoke steel fabrication, plumbing, heating, and process piping, as well as millwrighting and allied services (with a completely equipped fabrication shop and fully qualified employees committed to offering the highest quality of workmanship available), PML is acknowledged as a leader.

Utilizing more than three decades of experience, the company has worked with clients from all over the province and nation to develop and effectively complete large-scale, exceedingly complex projects. In completing construction designs and strategies for its government, corporate, and industry partners, Patrick Mechanical is renowned for its in-house ability to grasp the complexity of a project, regardless of size or scale, and overcome any challenges, issues, or technical barriers.

PSL Patrick Sprack Ltd.
PSL Patrick Sprack Ltd. is one of the fastest-growing mechanical service providers in Northern Ontario, providing exemplary work and a superb reputation coupled with extensive experience in the mining, commercial, industrial, and institutional markets. Established in 2006, PSL has grown into one of the most highly regarded contractors in Ontario, offering its services both regional and globally.

“We are an ever-expanding and diversifying HVAC company with a record and reputation for steady customer growth and satisfaction,” says Scott Sprack, Owner and General Manager. “We focus on the use of the latest technologies and mechanical diversity,” providing innovative industrial energy solutions in mine ventilation, oil and gas, overhead garage doors, electrical, petroleum, indoor air quality, rental equipment, and its new division, generators.

PSL’s HVAC-R division has been exceeding the needs of Northern Ontario customers with a variety of heating, ventilation, air conditioning, refrigeration, and rental HVAC equipment on a 24/7 schedule, offering services that range from planned maintenance—both preventative and full-coverageؙ—to inspections, diagnostic services, repairs, retrofits, and new installations for commercial and industrial mechanical systems.

Greater City Concrete Works (GCCW)
GCCW was founded in 2007 in Lively, Ontario, to deliver concrete forming and placing services to the local industrial, commercial, and institutional construction markets.

“Under a gradual growth plan, the group has expanded its capabilities into small scale earthworks and the company also offers general contracting and design-build services while retaining a focus and expertise in complex concrete sections’ forming and placement,” explains General Manager, Andre Auge.

“As we expand our service offer, we are better able to safely manage deliverables, control costs and consistency, and manage risks that are discovered through the life of projects for our clients. This is a critically important value proposition especially with supply chain and resource constraints on complex remote projects. As an example, dam rehabilitation projects we’re undertaking in remote areas in Northern Ontario require: fine-tuned plans; timely collaboration with our vendor partners, engineering consultants, and client representatives; and the assignment of a well-equipped, versatile, and creative workforce that can propose and safely execute solutions often resulting from the discovery of unexpected circumstances,” Auge explains.

Bisschops Industries
Bisschops Industries—founded in 2007 in Sudbury, Ontario as a sheet metal and HVAC contractor—has shown steady growth ever since and now provides refrigeration and air conditioning as well as electrical service and maintenance.

“Bisschops continually works to improve and upgrade existing mine ventilation systems,” says Jason Bisschops, Operations Manager. “We provide construction and maintenance service to all sectors of the mining industry, including surface buildings, process areas, and underground environments.”

Currently, “being a part of the single largest mine development site in Northern Ontario has allowed us to prove that we are capable of handling such projects of this capacity,” he says. “We’ve achieved a unique status in Northern Ontario serving the commercial, institutional, and industrial sectors and we proudly remain committed to our customers locally and across the North.”

S2 Metal Fabricators
Focusing on the industrial, institutional, and commercial structural steel segment has allowed the S2 Metal Fabricators staff to achieve expert status in those fields. With a total capacity per shift of 200,000 tons per year, this company participates in steel fabrication for mining, mineral refining, petrochemical, hydroelectric, private, and governmental environments.

“S2 Metal Fabricators can accommodate customized, heavy load structural steel for any application,” says General Manager Jeff Crump. “When it comes to industrial painting, we don’t just deliver paint; we deliver perfection,” he says. “With our specialized expertise in prepping industrial coatings, we’re not simply a service provider—we’re your strategic partner in achieving impeccable quality steel fabrication and finishes.”

BadRiverBoats
Founded in 2020 by the Patrick Group of Companies, BadRiverBoats was formed in response to a need for its workers to access remote worksites in Northern Ontario, Canada.

“We build custom, high-quality aluminum workboats for construction, Ministry, and commercial applications,” explains Guy Gallipeau, General Manager. “We specialize in aluminum boats, but we can take any customized orders, like carbon steel and more,” he explains.

“Our handcrafted aluminum boats embody the perfect blend of form and function, resulting in a stunning visual appeal that’s matched only by their practicality. Crafted for performance, their superior handling capabilities make them the ultimate solution, setting a new standard in versatility and reliability that no other option can rival.”

Eye on The Patrick Group
Of course, this dynamic and ever-evolving group of companies also focuses on promoting the many opportunities it offers, via recruiting efforts to maintain its growth, which includes hiring more welders.

“Our search for exceptional talent never stops,” says Pauze. “Whether it’s an experienced professional or a fresh face in the industry, we go beyond the ordinary to match a profile with the right role… we accommodate and support them based on their strengths.”

“Our focus is to seek out experienced individuals from different backgrounds and ethnicities who want to learn the trades while we provide opportunity, education, and training through government apprenticeships and programs,” agrees Bisschops.

The group of companies proudly embraces diversity, which is reflected in its multicultural workforce comprising individuals from Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, and beyond, bringing a rich tapestry of perspectives and experiences, adds Pauze. “Our recruitment philosophy is about the long term,” she says. “We’re not just filling positions; we’re inviting them on a journey of growth within our group of companies.”

To that end, the group actively participates in a variety of events, not sitting and waiting for talent to come to them but seeking them out via job fairs and networking events, providing a platform for prospective candidates to engage with the team directly.

The hardest place to mine
“Our journey continues to be one of growth, innovation, and collaboration,” Pauze adds. “We are tremendously lucky as a group to cut our teeth in the eminent mining centre of the world. Since we have growth as a big team, we can go out of the Sudbury basin and bring value to mines. It’s a world-class mining centre, not only the best in the world but the hardest place to do mining.”

By taking on and succeeding in these challenges, the group of companies has forged a solid reputation in the industry, with an unyielding commitment to quality at the core of its operations.

“By aligning with the client’s standards, we earn the privilege of collaborating with anyone, regardless of the complexity of the task,” Pauze says. “Our reach extends to building a robust supply chain, capable of custom manufacturing that fuels innovation.”

Pushing the envelope
The client base the company services features major market shareholders including companies from Brazil, Switzerland, Africa, and the U.S. “As they continually push the envelope in health, safety, and quality, we’re entrusted with the task of meeting and exceeding their expectations,” says Patrick. “Working alongside industry trailblazers, we’re not just service providers; we’re collaborators in their pursuit of being the best in class.”

As with all companies in all industries over the past few years, this group experienced challenges during the pandemic but emerged successfully by joining forces, aligning its efforts, and growing its workforce.

“Over the years we’ve been part of many exciting and reputable projects in the industrial, commercial, and institutional sectors,” says Pauze, “including a single largest mine development site in Northern Ontario that’s proof that we’re capable of handling large-scale projects.”

Other challenges include, as always, securing talent, particularly among the young workforce, and the industrial capacity of real property, going outside the regional marketplace. Moving forward, the companies look to continue to add employees, maintaining stability while growing sustainably, says Patrick.

Inspiring people
“We’ve shifted from an owner-operated to an employee-operated company,” he adds. “We have KPIs to support that movement, self-monitoring for the stakeholders, the most important ones being the employees.”

The companies are also focusing on improving and building efficiency within the organization to help them better market their strategic partnership while also growing their team and continuing to be the best companies to work for, says Pauze. “We want to inspire our people, and we’re always looking to secure more talent.”

“In the mining industry, success is a result of seamless coordination and strategic partnerships,” adds Crump. “We can coordinate and integrate strategic design and engineering partners.”

Patrick agrees: “A group movement is better than an individual movement.”

Maintaining its solid reputation in the industry is also vital, and will continue to help set the group apart from its competitors. “We have synergy within our internal strategic partners and the ability to work together to execute any project scale,” Patrick says. “Our reputation with our client base is one of delivering our promises, honouring and managing our own risk, bringing a problem-solving approach, and learning from our challenges.”

It is the result of that internal synergy, commitment to precision, an unshakable reputation, and a penchant for problem-solving that will keep the group of companies successful moving forward.

“We have a thirst for knowledge,” Patrick says. “We’re not just setting the standard; we’re raising it, and creating a legacy of excellence that’s truly unparalleled.”

The post Celebrating the Uniqueness of Each Member Company<p class="company">Patrick Mechanical Limited</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

A pioneer in the precast concrete sector, Coreslab Structures (OKLA) Inc. is renowned for its structural and architectural know-how, building innovation, and dedication to environmentally friendly business practices. With 17 sites across North America, Coreslab’s team of engineers, precast specialists, quality assurance specialists, and project managers guide the precast concrete design, construction, and installation process, ensuring exemplary service through broad expertise and experience.

The company’s projects include hotels, tornado shelters and safe rooms, parking garages, bridges, commercial buildings, education facilities, and more. In the past decade, Coreslab Structures (OKLA) Inc. has also completed 13 water treatment or wastewater treatment projects, primarily in the state of Oklahoma, which are the kind of projects eminently suited to the dependability, reliability, functionality, and economical solutions that precast concrete provides.

Certainly, precast concrete is a very adaptable product, quickly constructed, and yet strong enough to withstand tornadoes. But precast concrete sandwich panels with insulation can also provide a high R-value (the measure of a material’s insulating ability). This high R-value means that precast walls can be utilized without necessitating additional costly fireproofing or insulation.

Project Consultant Coleman Harrison outlines an additional benefit of precast: “In 2012 we manufactured and erected a total Precast Concrete water treatment facility in Broken Arrow, by Tulsa, and what sold them on precast concrete for that project was that they had a really long span inside the water treatment plant and we were able to provide Precast Prestressed Concrete Double Tees that spanned 127 feet,” he explains.

“That turned out to clear-span the entire center bay of the Membrane Building so they didn’t have additional columns and beamlines interrupting the workings of the mechanics inside the water treatment plant. That was a big selling point.”

Due to the critical infrastructure provided by plants for water or wastewater treatment, Coreslab Structures (OKLA) Inc. encourages clients to build them to FEMA or ICC 500 standards that can withstand direct hits from an EF5 tornado. While this is still a work in progress, along the way Coreslab has been able to incorporate some additional reinforcing and connections to beef up the structures, making them stronger than what is typically required by code.

“At the front end of these projects, some municipalities have done things in a certain way for many years,” says Harrison. “We’ve been slowly chipping away. Most of the water treatment plants had massive amounts of CMU (Concrete Masonry Units) and steel in them, and now we’ve finally worked our way to where most of the projects are coming in as total precast above grade on the larger structures, because municipalities know how quickly they go up.”

By way of design conversations and discussions held over the years with Coreslab, municipalities are gradually coming around to eliminating many of their old practices and becoming much more receptive to doing total precast structures above grade.

“What helped turn them around is the added value they get from the precast, prestressed members,” says Sean Morris, Engineering Manager. “We’re having to design the members to strip out of the forms without breaking or cracking; having to store them without cracking them; having to load them in trailers and ship them without cracking them,” he explains. “And then we need to hook them up to a crane at the job site and roll them over in the air or trip them in the air during erection. There are actually greater forces acting on the members during all those phases than they’re designed for in place.”

This means Coreslab’s design must ensure that the member doesn’t crack or fail during any of those other phases.

“The owner is actually getting added value out of the structural members that we make the building out of because we automatically exceed the standards they require of us,” says Morris. The structure is thus even more stormproof than it has to be by default.

“That’s important to these clients, as well as the fact that precast construction makes the smallest footprint at the job site. And with precast, we also have the shortest construction schedule of any construction type that I know of.”

Those factors all signal the welcome news of money saved for the owners, particularly with water treatment plants, as the cost of the building is but a fraction of the cost of the pieces of equipment inside.

“They are amazing, intricate machines and their owners want to protect them,” Morris says. “One of the treatment centres we worked on serviced 50 percent of the water needs of the entire city of Oklahoma City, so you really want to make sure that it’s going to function when a tornado or a major storm hits, that you’re not out of commission because the building fell down on top of the equipment.”

Along with the strength and stability, another major selling point for precast is the speed with which it’s erected, says Harrison. With components manufactured at the plant—instead of everything constructed out in the field, under field conditions—Coreslab Structures (OKLA) Inc. produces most of its products under one roof in a 150,000-square-foot facility, making conditions easier to control. Once the foundations or retaining walls are done, Coreslab moves in and starts erecting.

“The other major advantage that the precast, prestressed concrete members provide is the use of significantly less concrete for the span lengths we have to achieve compared to cast-in-place concrete or even post-tensioned concrete,” says Morris. “Because of their extremely thin shell concrete shapes, and because of the prestress forces we are able to apply to them, the Prestressed Precast Concrete Double Tee is a very efficient structural shape for the concrete to be cast into.”

This remarkable efficiency translates into many fewer cubic yards of concrete for each project, and the prestressing also allows a large reduction in the amount of mild reinforcing or rebar required.

“For each job, our carbon footprint is significantly less than it would be if it was cast in place,” Morris adds. “Also, the steel production that creates the rebar is inherently not good for the environment. The less rebar you use, the less of a carbon footprint. Both of these are wins for precast, prestress members.”

Coreslab aims to prestress many of its products for that very reason, he says, adding that there is actually a financial incentive for pre-casters to use prestress strands instead of conventionally reinforcing precast members with rebar.

“We can do it either way, but there’s an incentive to use prestress strands because the material costs of the actual strand are less than the cost of rebar per linear foot. Utilizing the prestress strand to prestress the concrete means it doesn’t require any of the additional reinforcing that would be needed without the prestressing. So there are a lot of advantages.”

Modifications or damage to a cast-in-place post-tensioned concrete member can actually cause a significant and sudden failure of the member. If a post-tensioned tendon is cut, the tendon can rip out of the concrete and buggy whip, causing severe damage and potentially, serious injury. On the other hand, if using plant precast, prestressed concrete members, from a plant-controlled environment, continuously bonded prestressed stands are utilized.

“If someone were to cut through one of those strands in the middle, or at the end, or anywhere along the length of the member, the structural capacity would be smaller for the member,” Morris explains, “but there’d be no catastrophic or sudden failure. In some cases, there is enough redundancy that if somebody were to cut through one or even two strands in certain locations of the member, it may still be structurally adequate to do the job as is.”

While the COVID pandemic and the inflation of material costs have caused numerous challenges for the company, and the industry as a whole, over the past few years, Coreslab has managed to weather the storm.

“Our business is such that we sell a job and then it’s actually erected maybe a year or two later,” says Morris. “When you have significant increases in material and labour costs over a very short period, it tends to make you underestimate some projects for at least a year or two. Luckily, we weren’t upside down on projects.”

Coreslab not only stayed busy but stayed in the black the whole time—a “major accomplishment,” adds Morris—all the while maintaining strong relationships with its customers. And it’s those clients that the company will continue to focus on.

“We’ve carved out a specialized niche for ourselves in the industry that not a lot of other pre-casters are familiar with, particularly when it comes to tornado shelters,” Morris shares. The company erects numerous tornado shelters and is thoroughly familiar with ICC 500 compliance for structures that may or may not be designated as actual storm shelter 500s, as well as being expert in all the complexities of creating a full-blown FEMA shelter.

“We’re capitalizing on that by offering clients structures that will be resilient in all the unpredictable weather patterns that the future holds for them,” says Morris.

Many of the company’s clients are looking at data centres in the south-central United States where land is available and inexpensive, but they still have to face concerns about the chance of tornado strikes that could put servers out of commission. Having hardened data centres (and hardened structures in general) is ideal, and Coreslab is also looking into incorporating tornado-proof residential construction, allowing everyday people to have their entire house made tornado-proof with the use of precast.

This attention to customer care runs throughout the company’s mandate, starting with front-end assistance given to sales, estimating, drafting, and engineering staff to glean a better idea of what customers are looking for, even when they’re in the schematic or design development stage. “We know that it’s public money, and we have to go out to bid,” says Harrison. “We’re not assured of the project, but we want to assure that it stays precast,” he emphasizes.

“So it’s in our favour, and it’s in our customers’ favour, for them to get that front-end assistance. We can help them out on sizes and maybe help them tweak dimensions to make it a little more friendly in production and also cheaper for the customer.”

Certainly, Coreslab Structures (OKLA) Inc. understands its field well. By going above and beyond, the company is helping its customers to future-proof their buildings for whatever may lie ahead.

The post Concrete Decision for Safer, Sturdier Structures<p class="company">Coreslab Structures (OKLA) Inc.</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

Energy storage, while still a relatively expensive endeavour, is crucial as production of renewable energy is intermittent—when the wind blows or the sun shines.

The cost of producing electricity from solar and wind energy has significantly decreased in recent decades, and because of this, according to U.S. Department of Energy projections, energy sourced from renewables will continue to show the highest rate of growth through 2050.

Researchers at NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) calculate that there is the potential to triple the nation’s current capacity for storing renewable energy by 2050, with several emerging technologies that could help make this happen—the first being batteries.

We all take batteries for granted, but there are many opportunities for improvement. High-capacity batteries with up to 10-hour discharge durations may be useful for extending the range of electric vehicles or storing solar energy throughout the day. New estimates indicate that by 2050, up to 100 gigawatts’ worth of these batteries will likely be built, resulting in the viability of renewable energy improving significantly.

Limited resources of lithium and cobalt—currently necessary for producing light, potent batteries—are one of the main challenges. By 2050, almost all of the world’s cobalt reserves and about 10 percent of the lithium reserves are predicted to be exhausted, while the Congo, where around 70 percent of the world’s cobalt is mined, has problematic labour practices.

To address these concerns, in addition to designing batteries using different materials, scientists are striving to create methods for recycling these lithium and cobalt batteries. Tesla intends to introduce cobalt-free batteries in the coming years, while other companies want to replace lithium with sodium, which has many of the same properties as lithium but is far more plentiful and could benefit technologies for storing renewable energy.

Increasing battery safety is another priority. Electrolytes, the liquid or gel substances that enable an electric charge to flow from the battery’s anode (negative terminal) to the cathode (positive terminal) are one area that could use improvement as they can be highly volatile and flammable, causing fires and explosions should they leak.

Batteries can also be more expensive than other renewable energy storage options.

Concentrated solar power plants employ mirrors to focus sunlight, which heats hundreds of tons of salt to the point of melting. In a similar way to how coal or nuclear power is utilized in conventional plants to heat steam and drive a generator, this molten salt is used to power an electric generator. Additionally, these heated materials can be stored and used to generate electricity on sunless days, which enables continuous use of concentrated solar electricity.

This concept can also apply to other forms of power generation: for instance, heating salt with electricity generated from wind energy for use on windless days.

Solar power concentration still has a high cost, however, needing to improve its efficiency to compete with other energy generation and storage technologies. Increasing the temperature at which salt is heated is one way to do this, allowing for more effective energy generation.

While concentrated solar power plants and batteries can be used to produce and store renewable energy for a limited time, utility companies need to store significant amounts of energy for long periods, which is where hydrogen and ammonia, two renewable fuels, come into play. When wind turbines and solar panels are producing more electricity than the utilities’ customers require, utilities could produce these fuels with excess energy and store them there.

When it comes to hydrogen, thermal, and distributed energy storage, all pose their own advantages and challenges.

Hydrogen energy storage requires the mass production of hydrogen. This can be achieved with electrolytic hydrogen production, where water is split into oxygen and hydrogen through electrolysis. However, the most common method is a high-temperature method known as steam reforming using a hydrocarbon fuel such as diesel or natural gas, and steam to release the available hydrogen.

Many industrial processes use hydrogen, including the production of glass, fertilizer, steel, and chemicals. Due to environmental laws and consumer preferences, however, all of these companies urgently need to cut their carbon footprints.

Hydrogen can be used to generate electricity, heat, or fuel an automobile by using renewable energy inputs, and electricity can be produced when necessary by using the hydrogen that’s been stored. It can also be applied to other energy-demanding fields including the gas grid, fuel for vehicles, and industrial processes.

However, hydrogen energy storage currently costs more than fossil fuels, and most of these hydrogen-storage methods are still in the early phases of research. Extremely little energy can be produced by fuel cells from hydrogen for powering business or residential buildings.

The market for hydrogen energy stored in liquid form is constrained because this process involves considerable capital expenditures through the high insulation costs necessary to prevent evaporation and ensure safety around this explosive substance. As a result, the time and money required to charge and discharge hydrogen in these systems as well as the associated process costs are substantial.

Thermal energy storage (TES) involves a storage medium heated or chilled to store thermal energy, which can then be used for power generation as well as heating and cooling. TES equipment is very helpful in industrial and construction activities, employing a variety of techniques to store usable thermal energy in insulated repositories. A TES system typically includes a tank storage medium, a built-in refrigerated system or compact cooler, as well as pipes, pumps, and controls.

Again, the cost is an issue. While the TES system can securely store enormous amounts of energy, and its normal self-loss is negligible (0.05 to 1 percent), the price of a solar energy storage system varies depending on its use, size, and heat insulation method.

Phase transition materials and thermochemical storage-based thermal storage methods are often more expensive than the storage capacity they provide.

A pre-packaged option for storing energy for later consumption is a distributed energy storage (DES) system. The DC-charged batteries and the bi-directional inverter are the two crucial components of the system with equipment contained within a sturdy chassis that’s suitable for shipping. Lithium-ion batteries and cutting-edge technology are used in distributed energy storage systems to quickly collect and release extra power, resulting in a variety of advantages for users.

The market for distributed energy storage was estimated at $11.70 billion globally in 2021, and by 2027, it’s anticipated to grow to $19.20 billion. By providing smart grids and related services, distributed energy storage is a crucial part of updating the entire energy system, and if used to boost reliance on renewable energy sources, there will be considerable climatic benefits.

However, electric cars powered by distributed energy storage have a significant environmental impact. Additionally, distributed energy storage systems have a high initial investment cost and significantly greater ongoing maintenance costs. The increasing cost of the essential minerals required to make the batteries, the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict which has disrupted the supply chain, and COVID-19 lockdowns in some parts of China have all prevented the market from growing.

Ultracapacitors too offer a compelling argument as a vital technology for both environmental and financial reasons, especially in light of the growing focus on climate change and sustainability.

In recent years, the use of ultracapacitors, also known as supercapacitors, double-layer capacitors, or electrochemical capacitors, has grown significantly. Although they can be compared to a hybrid of a battery and a typical capacitor, they’re not the same thing.

The name “ultracapacitor” refers to a type of capacitor with a very high capacitance—the ability of a component or circuit to collect and store energy in the form of an electrical charge—in comparison to other types. Ultracapacitor cells feature a positive and negative electrode separated by an electrolyte, just like a battery, however, they don’t store energy chemically as batteries do; instead, they do so electrostatically.

While ultracapacitors don’t store as much energy as a battery of comparable size, they have one important advantage. They don’t need a chemical reaction to discharge their energy and no physical or chemical changes take place, so they can do so far more quickly. This also allows them to be recharged countless times with little to no deterioration—in excess of one million charge / discharge cycles—another fantastic advantage.

Supercapacitors are frequently utilized in applications that call for numerous quick charge / discharge cycles as opposed to long-term compact energy storage, like automotive booster packs and power banks.

Today, most of these forms of energy are produced through incredibly inefficient processes from natural gas or other non-renewable fossil fuels, so finding ways to make the procedure effective and affordable is the key to producing infinite, entirely renewable energy as a huge potential benefit.

While the energy sector is under increasing pressure to lower the cost of renewable energy sources while also boosting adoption rates, start-ups and scale-ups are creating a variety of solutions for both consumers and energy producers with technologies that lower the cost of solar and wind power, boost energy storage capacity, and boost battery efficiency.

Storage is ultimately an enabling technology. When used wisely and with the environment in mind, consumers can save money; reliability and resilience can be increased, energy sources integrated, and environmental effects lessened, yielding long-term benefits for years to come.

The post The Search for Smart and Sustainable<p class="company">The New Generation of Energy Storage</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

Outgrowing its space, the company relocated to a 2,400-square-foot facility in 1997, followed by another move in 2002; an extension of 12,500 square feet in 2010; a 20,000-square-foot shop in 2013, with extra-wide shop doors, high ceilings, and overhead cranes; and finally, an additional 20,000 square feet added this year to boost assembly output of all the company’s product lines. At Schnell, the team takes promises seriously, and is able to handle any project that comes its way.

Opportunities to help
Big or small, every Schnell project is given the attention it deserves, with the company embracing the opportunity to help its clients get the quality and service they need.

“We’re a family type of business, so that’s the kind of service we provide,” says General Manager Brent Dueck. “We provide customer service based on relationships, so it’s about helping customers first and asking questions later. We have a lot of friendly, knowledgeable staff that come from many different backgrounds, whether hydraulics, electrical, structural, or design, so depending on the questions people bring forward, we have a lot of different resources to help our customers with,” he says.

While there is one dedicated customer service manager, any one of the company’s different departments brings the same level of assistance depending on what’s relevant.

“Obviously, without customer service we wouldn’t be here,” says Dueck. “We built our business up from good customer service. It started with my dad back in ’94. He was all about helping the customer first and making sure the job was done well and everything was fair so everybody was happy. That’s our motto. It has to make everybody happy, otherwise it doesn’t make sense to do it.”

That’s also the company’s approach when it comes to dealing with three dedicated product lines. Although roughly 50 to 60 percent of what Schnell does is sub-contract work for multiple different manufacturers that need more capacity, the company thrives on its niche market of products including transloaders, Sweep-All, and planter hitches, which Dueck refers to as the company’s long-time bread-and-butter.

“The planter hitch is something that was designed here and we ended up patenting it,” he says. “It’s turned out to be a very good product.”

Planting is one of the most crucial tasks farmers and agricultural businesses do, and to ensure the work is done effectively and efficiently, having the best available tools is vital. Schnell’s conversion planter hitch does away with expensive modifications to tractors or planters, making existing equipment more adaptable and powerful.

“It’s a niche market,” Dueck says. “All the products that we build for our product lines are niche markets in a sense. Our planter hitch is only for farmers that grow crops like corn or soybeans. They’re the only ones who actually have the equipment that our hitches are used on.”

While it may be niche, it’s a market that exists because other big companies simply can’t offer what Schnell is providing with its unique hitch. “It’s been a great market, and it’s the easiest-selling product we build. Either the farmer needs it or doesn’t. If he needs it, he’s calling us. We’re the only manufacturer of that product because it’s patented and exclusive to us.”

While this means there’s essentially no competition, Dueck says the product is priced fairly and built well, and Schnell follows up to ensure any issues are taken care of.

Taking the load
The company’s transloader conveyors are essential pieces of machinery that enable quick, effective loading and unloading for items shipped via several modes of transportation, and also act as a safe transition from one container to another, preventing spills and waste. The biggest products Schnell builds, transloaders have held steady for the company since 2014.

“It’s a market that isn’t just for the oil and gas industries, as frack sand was, which is what the transloader was originally designed for,” says Dueck. “We sell these now anywhere that they load or unload granular product from rail cars or into rail cars.”

This versatile product does have competition, but Dueck says Schnell’s product is top of the class in this product line, with more attention to detail, better performance, and higher-quality components within the machine.

“It’s a nice sealed machine that doesn’t seem to have a lot of dust issues,” he says. “We’re just trying to make things more user-friendly with our product. It has very high capacity on some of the machines that our competition struggles to compete with, so that’s been one of our selling points.”

Sweeping the turf
Finally, the company’s Sweep-All line runs within Schnell Industries, but is a somewhat separate entity with its own website, sales team, and assembly department.

An opportunity that arose about six years ago led to Schnell buying a small, struggling company, turning it around and making it profitable, resulting in a very high-end turf sweeper product able to collect grass clippings, leaves, acorns, pine needles, apples, trash, gravel, twigs, and aeration plugs, to name a few, plus clean and sweep, dethatch, and core aerate.

While there are some similar products on the market, none has quite the wide work range of Sweep-All, says Dueck.

“As a whole, it’s another niche market,” he adds. “Not every homeowner is going to buy one. They’re pricey, but there are also high-quality components on there.”

Sweep-Alls are hand-built and assembled at the company’s Winkler facility, ensuring quality from start to finish, and are probably the company’s fastest-growing product line, Dueck says.

Training as opportunity
Along with quality products, Schnell also offers some unique training programs to young welders looking to gain experience in a real-life setting.

Although many companies have struggled with labour shortages, Schnell’s “significant” growth over the past few years has made sourcing experienced welders a challenge. Tackling the issue, the company decided to find young guys out of school and train them. Potential candidates entered into an open-ended, no-commitment deal for two sessions of two hours, experiencing real-life welding at the Schnell facility.

“Usually after the first test we could tell if they were worth bringing back a second time or not,” Dueck says. “Think of it like doing cuts on a team: you pick the best out of the young guys and say, ‘come back for another two-hour session.’”

A Schnell welding supervisor worked alongside them, giving points and tips and tricks before then leaving them alone for half an hour to do their own thing.

“That’s our biggest thing with welding—getting people to relax. People perform way better when they’re relaxed and we try to provide a relaxed atmosphere so they can just settle down and do their thing.”

These sessions have provided roughly 25 to 30 percent success rates of those who “made the cut” and are now full-time employees. But even those not chosen walk away with some free and useful experience gained in a real-life scenario.

“This is the real world, this is the big welding shop,” Dueck says. “We put them in a safe corner away from all the commotion in the building, but it gives them the real vibes. Some guys can’t handle it, but for some guys it’s just natural.”

Once hired, the welders still have to prove themselves, but the hands-on training jump-starts their confidence and readiness to grow. “It’s one of the more challenging positions we hire for,” Dueck says. “There’s a lot of raw talent a person needs. It’s not just tightening a nut and bolt. There’s more to it than that.”

And it’s an important factor in Schnell’s overall success. The company needs roughly 60 to 70 percent more welding staff than assembly staff to build any one of its specific products.

Going bigger
Currently sitting at 50 employees, Schnell just came through a big transition phase from being a good small company to being on the large side of small companies, says Dueck, with more growth coming in the next three months, including a dozen or so new staff for some big contracts coming up.

“We’ve got our eyes on some goals,” he says. These include a dedicated shop that processes all its steel instead of relying on other companies’ laser and water jet-cut parts, machining, torch, and plasma work, and powder coating, all of which is currently outsourced.

“We’re very good at the welding, we’re very good at the assembly, the diagnostics, the hydraulics, and the electrical,” says Dueck. “We’re very good at designing a machine and assembling and welding it, but some of the processes to get it there we’re still working on. That’s what we want to bring in-house over the next little while.”

These goals will mean a larger building and more employees, he says, in part to handle ongoing product-line growth, particularly for Sweep-All, which has experienced 40 percent growth each year for the last three years.

“We’re very diverse in that way,” he says. “We’re not bulletproof, nobody is, but we’re very stable. So hopefully that growth can continue to happen and we can expand as needed.”

Doubling up
The company has already doubled the size of its building in the last year, creating one of the biggest challenges—and most stressful experiences—of Dueck’s career, with supply chain issues, work disruptions, and tight deadlines, but the building was completed virtually on time.

“It was a month overdue, but I wasn’t going to complain,” he says. “I was terrified I was going to be six months overdue which would have really hurt us. Working with our contractor to find solutions and work through all of the funny issues was a challenge and an accomplishment that we managed to somehow pull out of the hat.”

Along with an ability to get things done, what else sets Schnell Industries apart from similar companies?

“I’m trying to think, are there similar companies out there?” says Dueck. “We do such a wide variety of products and builds. Yes, some companies do that, but we also actually still do a lot of custom work.”

That custom work could mean a literal walk-in order, he says, with a customer driving up and ordering a variety of lengths of steel. “We do that; we’re very diverse that way. There are two other companies in this town that do that, but I’ve got a lot of family throughout the U.S. and Canada and they say there just aren’t places that do big-time production and still take care of the small farmer. That’s us.”

Taking care of the small as well as the big needs is a point of pride for Schnell. “If you stop in tomorrow and say you need certain mesh or something for a little fire pit project in your backyard, we help you out with that.”

Saying yes
Providing that home family feeling is a big part of what makes Schnell the success it is, particularly when it comes to relationships.

“It’s just the ability to say, ‘sure, we can do that.’ We’ve tackled projects probably about three times bigger than our plant size here. We’ve done some stuff that’s been a little bit over-the-top, very big, crazy stressful,” he laughs. “Big-time equipment and at the same time, we’re building these little sweeps. People ask, ‘wow, how do you even make that work, make the big stuff and the little stuff?’ but it’s [thanks to] an attitude of, ‘don’t say no.’ If we feel we can do it, we’ll do it.”

That includes having an open mind, approaching everything with a different perspective and not sticking to just one product, he adds. “Variety is our thing.”

The post Agriculture Gets Unique Solutions: And Everyone Gets a Yes<p class="company">Schnell Industries, Inc.</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

As a leading supplier for emergency response and standby protection for upstream and midstream oil and gas operations in Western Canada and the territories, Trojan Safety Services proudly embraces its role in supporting a variety of industries in the energy sector. At all levels, Trojan Safety strives to ensure that organizations meet health and safety compliance regulations and that above all, workers are always protected on job sites.

Guided by values
Trojan Safety was founded in 1994 in Fort St. John, BC by Al Kirschner, and grew from a single Mobile Decontamination Shower Unit to providing a full suite of industrial safety services. Today, with the day-to-day operations being run by one of Al’s two sons, Jeff, as General Manager, the company remains in the family and remains true to those values that have guided its success.

These values, says the company, are “non-negotiable,” and include: ‘Show you care,’ with a team that takes pride in going the extra mile; ‘Keep learning,’ by remaining curious and seeking innovative solutions; ‘Always on time,’ which emphasizes an approach of respect for your workplace, clients, and co-workers; ‘Dependable,’ being part of a team that can be counted on; and ‘It’s all about relationships,’ which speaks to the heart of the company’s commitment to the safety of its employees and the communities in which it works.

“It’s our family business, but it’s more than just our direct family,” Jeff Kirschner shares. “It’s the people who have been part of it with us. They’re part of the family; they’ve been here forever,” he says.

“Most of the people within our Fort St. John office are people who started working at the company around the same time I did; we all just grew together. We’re incredibly fortunate that in an industry where turnover is typically high, we have people who have been with us for as long as I have, coming up on 18 years.”

Key services
Today, the company’s offerings today include industrial firefighting, first aid & paramedic services, H2S (Hydrogen sulphide) safety services, blowout & well control, portable & standalone gas monitoring, mobile air quality monitoring (AQM), infrared gas detection, decontamination shower units, and a training division located at the head office in Fort St. John offering industry standard courses to the public.

One of Trojan Safety’s core service lines is provided by the H2S Safety Supervisor, whose primary responsibility is the safety of all personnel on site. Crew safety is supported during the threat of H2S gas by utilizing state-of-the-art equipment such as air trailers containing compressed breathing air, electronic gas monitoring, and personal gas monitoring equipment. Pack training and Man-down Drills are conducted on a regular basis to ensure that all crew members know the proper procedures and the roles they will play in the event of an emergency.

In addition, Trojan Safety has also been growing further into performing plant turnarounds. “We’ve been slowly growing our plant turnaround business and growing our expertise in it,” Kirschner says. “We’ve been extremely successful in that [area] through exceptional management of our safety personnel on site.”

Turnarounds are scheduled events that involve an industrial plant’s whole process unit—such as a refinery, petrochemical plant, power plant, pulp and paper mill, et cetera—being taken offline for an extended length of time for renovation and/or renewal. These events could involve inspection and testing, debottlenecking projects, revamps, and catalyst regeneration projects, along with shutdowns and outages. Turnarounds are expensive both in lost production while the process unit is offline and in terms of direct costs for the labour, tools, heavy equipment, and materials used to execute the project. They typically represent a significant portion of a plant’s yearly maintenance budget and can affect a company’s bottom line if mismanaged.

As such, “working with clients during preplanning to ensure the proper amount of personnel and equipment is available for each phase of the progress is essential to ensuring a successful operation,” says Kirschner.

Challenging perceptions
Along with its many successes, the company has also faced its share of challenges over the years, but has always done what’s necessary to remain productive and successful. Now, the team is focused on getting back to growth.

“We’ve faced the same challenges as the rest of the people in the industry for the last eight years,” Kirschner says. “It’s really just now that the industry is coming back online, but we continue to face challenges with governments that seem to be anti-oil and gas.

“Now let me be clear,” he says, “I believe that regardless of anything, as a species capable of doing so, we should be striving toward zero impact. That’s across all areas, whether air, water, or land. I believe we’ll get there, but we have to accept that just like trying to get a plant to grow, you can only water it so much, and after that, time does the rest.” To this end, while Kirschner is a supporter of Oil & Gas, he is also in support of all realistic energy projects including renewables.

Building a labour force for the future
Certainly, growth can be a challenge in an industry that is facing a growing spotlight on its practices, practices that are subject to a slew of misconceptions, says Kirschner.

“There seems to be a lot of misinformation about the oil and gas industry, which is really unfortunate, especially considering Canada has the very best practices in the world when it comes to Oil & Gas development. Everything from the way we extract to our human rights and environmental protection is the best of the best, and yet you see our own government creating policies that restrict our ability to extract these resources, and somehow support getting them from other nations. When you understand that Oil & Gas is necessary not just for Canada to survive and thrive, but for every nation in the world to do the same, you must realize that it’s not going anywhere any time soon,” he says.

The ongoing stigma surrounding oil and gas has also led to struggles finding labourers within the industry, he says, coupled with how schools haven’t made students aware of the potential for growth and employment in the industry, particularly for those living in large, urban areas.

“I think about these people living outside of oil and gas cities who probably have no idea about the industry,” Kirschner says. “They have this misconception of it. They don’t realize they could come out to an industry that’s not what they think, and change their lives for the better… They could come to a resource town and purchase a [home] for probably less than $300,000, while making over $100,000 per year in a career they can enjoy for the long term. How many young people in the city can claim a six-figure salary?”

He does recognize that it is a labour-intensive industry. “There’s certainly a sacrifice that people will make to be here, but it’s a sacrifice in order to better your life and get ahead and have an opportunity to do more.”

Reaching people with this message is his goal, he adds, in an effort to help them understand the potential possibilities and opportunities available in different areas of the country, particularly those looking for a change and younger people looking to enter a career they may never have considered before.

“You can come to the oil patch, make great money, and live a good life and get started from there,” as part of the Trojan Safety family,” says Kirschner. “If you do a good job and want to be out there and want to be part of the team, you create unlimited opportunities for yourself. Trojan is a company that provides opportunities for people, and people create their own destiny.”

The post Safety on Site<p class="company">Trojan Safety Services</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

Brooklyn-born and a “New Yorker at heart,” Chiaia grew up in the sanitation business, immersed in the environment since childhood and arriving at her destination via her father.

“He started it over 54 years ago,” she says. “We’ve been in the industry in New York for all these years. I was literally seven years old sitting in the truck.”

After graduating from Columbia University, Chiaia started working for her dad before taking over with her sister more than 35 years ago. A member of SWANA (Solid Waste Association of North America), the company has a strong focus on equity and inclusion, and now proudly counts Chiaia’s daughter as a team member as well.

“My daughter graduated with her MBA and worked in New York City in fashion,” Chiaia says. “I was able to turn her from fashion to waste management.”

In a historically male-led industry, Chiaia is proud to employ women in the industry, with the older generation teaching the younger one valuable skills and insights gained from years of experience. “I think the consistency and stability of having the continuity is good. I’m happy I am able to teach her and be a good role model for her, and that she’s in the business as well,” Chiaia says. “And my daughter also brings fresh ideas and perspectives.”

Even though the company has earned credibility without certification and has been women-owned for over 35 years, Classic Recycling recently went through the process of becoming a certified WBE (Women Business Enterprise). “Certification validates the customers’ and vendors’ decisions to work with the company, giving credibility in a country focused on equity and inclusion. Many of our customers and vendors appreciate that not only can they rely on our service and professionalism, they can also show that they are helping to advance their own commitment to inclusion,” Chiaia says.

“I think becoming certified highlights the importance of promoting women entrepreneurship, especially in an industry where the trucking, hauling and carting sectors tend to be male-dominated. It’s also nice that the NYC Department of Sanitation has had three women as commissioners, including the current commissioner, which is great.”

And although Chiaia has years of experience in the industry, at times she’s found it frustrating to have to prove her knowledge. As an example, when recently purchasing lower-emission vehicles, one truck company she spoke with didn’t think she’d understand or be so knowledgeable about the industry and field.

“I found that a little annoying as well as amusing,” she says. “They couldn’t believe I knew about emissions and truck standards, so that was funny. I was speaking about greenhouse gas emissions and electric trucks and what we want in our equipment and safety criteria I needed and he was quite impressed.”

To that end, Chiaia also hopes she can lead by example and bring more women into the industry, inspiring them to become sanitation drivers or helpers and members of Local Union 813.

Her decades in the industry also help with the challenges of running a recycling business in New York City, which can be numerous and daunting. “New York City is intense, unique and one of the most intricate in the world, so it’s quite an experience to run trucking here,” she says. “There are a lot of moving parts to it, it takes a lot of experience, and the one thing we have is experience.”

It’s also very congested and crowded with residents, commuters, and lots of cars. “There’s a lot of competition for the streets with traffic and deliveries, and now with outdoor dining because of COVID—which is wonderful because it’s keeping New York open and alive and helping the economy—there’s also another set of challenges.” Restaurants having tables outside means streets are getting narrower which presents a competition for space and a challenge for where to put rubbish and navigate the maze.

It takes a lot of thoughtfulness to operate in this environment, but it is a challenge that Chiaia is more than qualified to handle.

“We’ve always had to be aware of and in tune with the city’s narrow streets and tourists,” she says. “It’s true that it’s the city that never sleeps. Trucks run at night. You have different bars closing at 2am, 3 am, 4am. You have to be able to logistically and carefully service customers with a strong focus on service and safety.”

Classic Recycling’s expertise focuses on Manhattan. “Urban areas by definition are congested; now layer on the Christmas Tree lighting at Rockefeller Center, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, and all the other major parades that draw people from around the world, and the world leaders and their motorcades that come for the United Nations. Waste removal in other places doesn’t have to plan for things like this.”

Chiaia’s experience in servicing the city means a good chance to transition to the competitive DSNY CWZ (Commercial Waste Zones) program, created to provide efficient and safe waste collection while advancing the Green New Deal and zero waste goals.

“It’s a great program trying to lower greenhouse gas emissions to help the environment by reducing the amount of trucks on the road through consolidating,” Chiaia says. “The opportunity the city is offering with the Commercial Waste Zone is exciting and with our experience, we’re hoping to become part of that. We have relationships with our customers and already service customers within the key zones, so we’re very familiar with how to safely service and operate a business in these unique districts.”

It helps that Chiaia’s commitment to sustainability and the environment is already a huge part of Classic Recycling’s mandate and one they’ve been utilizing from the start. The company has purchased very low-emission trucks, and has looked into purchasing electric trucks, but there are some logistical hurdles, she says, including slower charging and supply chain issues.

Along with greener equipment, Classic Recycling works with customers to get bags off the streets with toters for cleanliness and toter straps to avoid vermin; takes less waste to landfills to lower the amount of greenhouse gas emissions; and employs other waste diversions such as mattress recycling, dealing with organizations for furniture donations, and the reuse programs.

“We’re getting our customers to compost,” Chiaia adds. “Organic waste compliance has been a little bit of a challenge, but we’re getting there.”

The company is also offering customers solar compactors to put garbage out in a cleaner way, avoiding piled-up bags, which lends itself to a greener community with fewer odors.

“We’re about educating customers, offering a sustainability plan and greener equipment,” says Chiaia. “This means reuse, reduce, recycle and donate to help divert waste from landfills to lower greenhouse carbon emissions that contribute to climate change.”

While some of these challenges may seem overwhelming, Chiaia takes it all in stride, like any true New Yorker, particularly one who has built up years of business skills and practice.

“[What drives us is] the sense of servicing our customers as well as always maintaining the highest level of safety for pedestrians, the community, and our employees,” she says. “It’s more or less trying to always have experience navigating through the different changes and challenges, and I think that experience is the key.”

The fact that Classic Recycling is a family business offering excellent customer service is a point of pride for Chiaia: Any customer can call the company and one of us will answer the phone. “They have our cell phone numbers,” she says. “We’re committed.”

Although obstacles through the years have been numerous, including 9/11, crime, and the Great Recession, COVID, which Chiaia refers to as the “biggest dislocation,” has hit the city very hard economically.

“It had a big impact on our customer base and was tough for us to navigate as a company,” she says. “Customers who stayed open knew that they could rely on our professionalism, and through our strategic decision making we adapted and excelled and retained the same employees with lots of experience.”

Chiaia has a number of admirable goals she hopes to meet over the next few years including continuing to update and modernize her equipment with the lowest greenhouse gas emissions, converting to electric trucks, further incentivizing recycling, improving route optimization, concentrating on overall environmental health and, of course, being awarded Zones in the NYC Commercial Waste Zone Program

“We look to reduce truck traffic to lower air pollution and improve quality of life,” she adds. “By reducing the amount of garbage bags on the city streets we’ll help create a better and cleaner community. It’s all about having a zero-waste mindset.”

By joining together different generations, the family’s collective knowledge becomes a greater strength, she adds, leading to success through customer service, hard work, responsibility and high values. “This is what we do. Our family pride fosters reliable work ethics,” says Chiaia. “Our commitment to business consistency and stability formed our framework, and this experience is central to our company’s past and future success.”

The company’s multi-generational experience has created a dynasty of devotion and loyalty. “We’ve overcome the biggest dislocations in history, stayed in our business, serviced our customers, and worked every single day through the pandemic,” Chiaia says. “It was a big impact on everything, but with strategic decision making and experience we were able to do our jobs and keep our operation safe.”

The post Eat, (Don’t) Sleep, Recycle: Keeping NYC Clean and Green<p class="company">Classic Recycling New York Corp.</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

The company provides a wide range of services including pickup of scrap metal using its container service, off-site clean-up after demolition, brokerage, and derailment clean-up.

ABC’s long legacy began in 1912 when Joseph Yochlowitz started selling backyard scrap to make ends meet after arriving in Vancouver from Poland with his family. Sons Daniel and Charlie joined him and by the 1920s, the family firm, Service Auto Wrecking, had been founded on Main Street.

The founding
In 1949, Daniel started his own scrap metal business, ABC Salvage & Metal, which grew over the next two decades, before his sons acquired a share in the company. In the 1970s, ABC moved from its small Vancouver location to a new 10 acre Burnaby location and began the transition from salvage to recycling, as Daniel handed over control of the business to his son Harold.

Although industry competition intensified in the 1980s, ABC was able to weather the storm due to combined family efforts and the company’s solid relationships with clients, suppliers, and financial and legal counsel.

In 1988, Harold’s son David became the fourth generation of the Yochlowitz family serving full-time at ABC and continues to uphold the long-standing ideals inherited from the company’s founders, together with other family members who fill significant positions in the firm today, including Harold’s son Mike, COO, and Karen Alko, Manager of Community Relations.

“David’s been at the helm since 1990, and really pushed the business forward, as we’ve expanded dramatically in that time,” says Randy Kahlon, Vice President of Sales and Marketing.

The company recently opened its newest location in Bellingham, WA, an hour-and-a-half north of Seattle, and has also entered into a long-term strategic lease agreement to utilize its deep-sea water port, enabling ABC to move into the deep-sea bulk dry vessel market for ferrous scrap material.

“Another major accomplishment that was a milestone for the business was successfully shipping our first 23,000-metric-ton bulk vessel load in October,” says Kahlon. “That’s something we’ve been working on extensively for the past year-and-a-half.”

Setting up operations and investing $9 million into the facility, for equipment and people, and making the port suitable for shipping ferrous material has led to huge economic activity in Whatcom County, and brought new life and blood into the region, he adds. “It’s 45 minutes south of the Canadian border, so it’s strategically quite advantageous from a logistical standpoint to access. It’s been a huge advancement for us.”

Bulking up
After previously sending ocean containers to multiple destinations for ferrous scrap—Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, and Bangladesh—ABC decided to go to the next level and enter the bulk vessel marketplace.

“That’s all prelude for us to continue investing in the Washington marketplace with the shredding operation,” Kahlon says. “So we’re at the preliminary stages from a permitting perspective and part of getting our shredder operational for 2024.”

The company has purchased a large chunk of land in the Bellingham region, close to the port, viewing that as the next and final stage of getting into the top tier of metal recycling organizations within North America.

“Our CEO has a vision of being in the top 20 ferrous producing companies within North America by 2030,” says Kahlon. “So we have growth ambitions to triple our volume and our revenue within this current decade.”

It appears that ABC is on its way to meeting that goal at present, with 25,000 metric tons of steel and about 2,500 metric tons of non-ferrous commodities monthly, coupled with the successful completion of its first cargo load.

“It’s a totally different way of shipping with a lot of complexity behind it,” says Kahlon. “But we plan on doing one every two months now. So, we’re right in the heart of that, we’ve broken through that wall, and we’ve successfully shipped out our first ship without any major complications.”

ABC’s successes wouldn’t be possible, however, without a fundamental dedication to company culture, which is a “huge” part of the company’s mandate.

Family matters
“It’s a family-based business,” Kahlon says. “It’s a very flat organization, from the standpoint that anybody has a straight line, open-door ability to speak to the owner, any given day of the week. It’s that type of organization. It’s a very family-based, very wholesome, organic culture that we live within.”

And by treating employees “extremely well,” the company gets that back tenfold, Kahlon adds.

“They put people’s emotions, how they’re feeling and how they can be impacted and contribute to the business at the forefront of interactions with employees,” he says. “It’s tremendous to be part of an organization like that, that puts the people first.”

ABC also regularly engages in social events that bring continuity and synergy to staff, from bringing in food trucks, to allowing working from home and bringing kids to work if the need arises. Kahlon says that this sense of family extends to clients as well, who are regularly treated to hockey games and golf tournaments and are welcome to join any company activities.

ABC also makes community involvement a top priority, giving employees two paid days a year for volunteerism directed toward any sort of community initiative that has significant personal value to them, be it helping at a soup kitchen or winter jacket drive.

“It doesn’t have to be directly a company initiative, just what means something to that person,” says Kahlon.

Over and above that, ABC also participates in several initiatives for food banks, particularly during the holiday season.

“For Christmas time food drives we challenge each other about who can bring in more food,” Kahlon says. “And at a corporate level, we’re part of the Social Purpose Institute, which is led by the United Way.”

Finding purpose
The company is one of the first 30 companies in Canada to be a part of the program which is driven toward discovering your purpose as an organization.

“We went through some of the key United Nations initiatives as a definition of social purpose. We identified four major actions within the United Nations plan such as sustainable cities and communities, responsible consumption, production, climate action, and Indigenous equity, and we zeroed in on that to define our purpose.”

ABC’s purpose statement included building thriving communities by accelerating metal recycling, which company leaders have taken to the next step, particularly in establishing a path toward reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples and respecting and acknowledging the inherent rights of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Peoples in Canada.

“We want to have our hands on supporting those Indigenous communities, through training, providing equipment—for example, Freon extraction equipment—and providing transportation and education and employment opportunities,” Kahlon says.

The company is committed to providing up to 1.5 percent yearly of its net income and directing that toward community initiatives, whether Indigenous communities or a charitable organization that may be more relevant to the communities where an ABC yard is located.

To that end, the company has routinely taken a strong and deliberate approach to getting involved with and supporting primary First Nations as far away as Slave Lake.

“Because it’s logistically incredibly difficult to service them, we’re trying to find ways of working with the local and provincial governments to find subsidy programs to help clean up those communities,” Kahlon says.

Even though ABC doesn’t have a yard in Northwest Territories, the company has invested time and energy in building relationships with the intent of creating programs to present to the governments to get subsidies to help those communities. ABC now has more than 10 joint-venture agreements with First Nations bands.

“We’ve taken a lot of time and energy focusing on that,” says Kahlon, adding that ABC has also hired a “fantastic” Indigenous consultant. Of the company’s 220 employees, about 90 percent have gone through full Indigenous awareness and sensitivity training.

“The company made major cost and time commitments to address, educate, and identify,” he says. “It’s a major part of our values, and it’s how we want to proceed as an organization in the marketplace.”

Growing through challenge
Although ABC is aware that it has already achieved much, challenges in the metal recycling industry are constant, says Kahlon, whether geopolitical—with the Russia-Ukraine war displacing commodities and disrupting supply chains all over the world—or COVID’s knock-on economic effects.

“We’re facing that all the time, major supply disruptions, commodity prices, prices, spikes, and supply-demand changes,” he says. “And now we’re facing declining economic conditions, lowering of demand for the overall production of finished goods, rising energy costs, rising interest rates, and increasing cost of overall business while revenues are diminishing. So we’re entering a very volatile period with economic turmoil in very difficult operating conditions.”

Despite the ongoing hardships, Kahlon adds, ABC is looking to grow and continually add to its network of acquisitions in the near future. Economic conditions permitting, maybe 12 yards in two years, 15 yards in five or six years, while continuing to grow organically through investment in the shredder.

And despite other challenges—including certain countries putting strict restrictions on materials such as insulated wiring to control quality—resulting in a shifting marketplace, ABC is determined to meet every challenge.

“There’s always another market and always another option. You have to figure it out or look at the arbitrage to see if that’s better for you,” Kahlon says. “What does the future hold for regulatory concerns? That’s a constant challenge for us, and we have to navigate that by being flexible and nimble which allows us to change rapidly.”

The post Determined to be #1 – In Scrap Recycling and Supporting Communities<p class="company">ABC Recycling</p> appeared first on Resource In Focus.

As the world moves toward decarbonization and countries shift toward the energy transition, traditional carbon-emitting energy sources will soon be electrified, and low-carbon fuels are expected to supply up to 60 percent of global energy demand.

As a low-carbon fuel, hydrogen is essential to decarbonize the top third of Canada’s most energy-intensive and hardest-to-reduce end uses. But Canada isn’t the only country that sees hydrogen as an important part of the solution to combat climate change and improve air quality: countries around the world are developing strategies to inform the optimal supply routes and end uses for hydrogen and to define export strategies.

Canada finds its mission
As part of the Paris Agreement, Canada committed to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent by 2030, and, along with 72 other countries, to reaching net zero emissions by 2050. In a net-zero future, Canada’s economy is fuelled by electricity and low-carbon fuels, which are projected to supply up to 60 percent or more of our energy needs.

To showcase Canada’s leadership in hydrogen, the Canadian Hydrogen Convention was launched in Edmonton, Alberta in April 2022, and will hold its second event in April 2023, bringing together the entire Canadian supply chain to discuss low-carbon hydrogen production, energy infrastructure, storage, and innovations and solutions to help Canada work toward net zero by 2050.

The world’s energy system is undergoing fundamental changes, driven by the need to mitigate climate change.

Consequently, developing a large, clean hydrogen economy is a strategic priority for Canada, to diversify the future national energy mix and achieve economic benefits and net zero emissions.

Beginning with innovation in hydrogen production technology more than a century ago and pioneering fuel-cell technology 40 years ago, Canada has played a key role in developing the world’s growing hydrogen economy and continues to be a leader in industry R&D and technology.

While the pandemic wreaked havoc on in-person gatherings, dmg events, the largest organizer of energy events around the world, found a “silver lining” during the shutdowns.

“Because our business was disrupted like so many others, we started paying attention to some of the other exciting things that were happening here in Canada, and one of those was hydrogen,” says Nick Samain, Vice President of Energy, dmg events.

Canada’s hydrogen supply chain
The resulting three-day convention at the Edmonton Convention Centre featured almost 100 companies involved with the Canadian hydrogen supply chain—and those who hoped to be commercially involved subsequently—and attracted approximately 4,000 attendees.

Along with the technical conference and the business conference during the first two days, the Canadian hydrogen awards offered some “innovative and exciting” awards as well. The third day included a full site tour in Alberta’s Industrial Heartland among other sites.

Twelve international delegations attended from countries including Japan, the U.S., United Emirates, and others, to consider investment, collaboration, technology, and sharing. A tremendous amount of work went into the first convention, for which Samain has much praise.

“We were fortunate to have the volunteers, the Governing Body, and community that came together,” he says. “We couldn’t have had stronger support from our host where the event takes place, the City of Edmonton, Edmonton Global, TC Energy, and great support from stakeholders, the Industrial Heartland, Emissions Reduction Alberta, and the Edmonton International Airport.”

Samain also praises the partners who have pulled together to tackle the challenging and exciting work taking place.

“I’m passionate about this,” he says, adding that it’s a bit of a shock to learn that the first hydrogen engine was invented in 1807, and the first licensable hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle on the road was created in 1966 by General Motors.

“It’s something that’s been around and here in Canada for more than 100 years,” he says.

Many sources, many uses
A clean fuel, that produces only water when consumed in a fuel cell, and that can be produced from a variety of unique sources such as natural gas, nuclear power, biomass, and renewable energies such as solar and wind, hydrogen’s properties make it an attractive fuel option for transportation and power generation applications. It can be used in automotive, home, portable power, and many other applications.

The challenge came with “galvanizing” the hydrogen sector, which Samain says had felt fragmented.

“We wanted one meeting place where we could have a pan-Canadian convention and get it all under one roof: get all those minds and all that innovation, collaboration, and technology, and of course, the political side and the policy side; get the experts on the stage and discuss what’s important and what people think needs to be done,” Samain says.

“Of course, there’s lots of debate, that’s what makes it a conference and a good convention. And then really shine that spotlight on Canada. Let’s attract global attention and investments, let’s put Canada on the map.”

This, he says, helps energy powers and superpowers look to Canada and realize something important with technology is happening there, and drives the industry forward. He adds that those innovations and solutions for low-carbon hydrogen production are the reasons for putting on the show.

“There’s a real sense out there that there’s no single source of energy, at least right now, that can power the world’s demands,” Samain says.

Understanding hydrogen’s capability is vital as the industry looks ahead to the big challenges, from climate change to transportation—particularly with the current high price of gasoline—and how electric and hybrid cars are gaining popularity.

There are also the day-to-day concerns of energy bills at home, and what hydrogen means for exciting innovations there. Can it be blended with natural gas, can we convert, or develop appliances that will run on hydrogen, and can hydrogen really become a low-carbon solution for everyday people?

Knowledge for all
“What gets me up in the morning, concerning the show, is that the Canadian Hydrogen Convention has as much responsibility as anyone to showcase that to the everyday person on the street,” Samain says. “There just isn’t enough publicity out there on what hydrogen is.”

The convention’s mission is to find a way to impart straightforward knowledge and put costs toward the investment that’s needed in infrastructure.

“There are a number of tools in the toolbox that can contribute toward that goal,” he says. “Is it the right goal? Is it the right year? All of those are bigger questions. As far as the convention goes, if you’re coming in April 2023, that’s what you’ll hear talked about by experts.”

Hydrogen also needs to be used much more widely, he says, another goal of both the Hydrogen Hub and the convention.

“We need to build out that infrastructure. We’re able to produce it here in Canada, where we have a huge opportunity to be a hydrogen exporter, but not until we can grow the consumer end. It must grow dramatically because that’s what’s going to spur the growth of the sector,” he says. “That’s when we would see it being used much more widely.”

The 2023 convention will feature experts addressing possible uses, whether in CN locomotives, coach buses, or even planes powered by hydrogen.

Samain notes that the great thing about hydrogen is its versatility. It can be made with nuclear power, natural gas, coal, and oil, and there are many options for its transportation, including pipelines, trucks, ships, and planes. So why is there a reluctance to use it more widely? Possibly competition with other fuel sources, Samain says, or it could be based on the unknowns of cost.

“Is there big infrastructure needed; does it work? Is it public perception? How clean is it to produce? All of those things go back to the reason that the hydrogen convention itself exists, to put that information out there.”

Providing an experience
As for the convention, Samain stresses its accessibility and inclusiveness and speaks proudly about how exciting the entire event is.

“The worst kind of conference is a boring one where a bunch of people talk over and over about the same thing, no questions, and everybody sits at the back and checks their phones,” he says. “That’s not what you see at the Canadian Hydrogen Convention. That’s not the sort of event we run. We think that each day is like a season of your favourite show on Netflix.”

This means plenty of engagement and networking time and three days of dynamic activities.

“We’re a post-COVID world of events,” he says. “If you get people to come for this, they have to get on a plane, get to Edmonton, find a hotel, all of that—and when they finally arrive, their time is valuable.” The value includes meeting people in the industry face to face and talking and learning about the exciting future of energy in Canada, something that can’t be replicated in a Zoom call.

“This is the energy sector going forward. With hydrogen, this is new, this is high-tech, and it’s about the future and the next generation,” he says. “It’s up to that generation to come in and get a hold on something that’s going to change us fundamentally and that’s going to last hundreds of years as we work through an energy transition.”

That change won’t be negative, he adds. It’s exciting and positive and that’s exactly what attendees feel coming to the Hydrogen Convention.

“It’s a pivotal moment right now for hydrogen globally. And it certainly is in Canada as well, and there’s nothing like a convention to bring people together.”

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