Awards gala shines a light on impressive steel projects across the province
The Canadian Institute of Steel Construction (CISC-ICCA) Quebec Region celebrated the 22nd anniversary of its Steel Construction Awards of Excellence at the Palace Convention Centre on Oct. 27.
For the first time since the onset of the Covid pandemic three years ago, a full house of enthusiastic CISC-ICCA members and guests were able to enjoy an opening cocktail while renewing old friendships, followed by a gourmet buffet dinner and the awards presentations.
An exchange of ideas
“Once a year, our industry needs to celebrate,” Dr. Hellen Christodoulou, the CISC-ICCA’s Director of Steel Industry and Market Development, a long-time Laval resident, told the Laval News.
Since the last awards presentations took place in 2019, she said the membership, which includes a range of steel industry professionals (including architects, planners, engineers and fabricators), were extremely happy to be able to gather as a group once again to exchange ideas.
Forward into a new year
“All the engineering and architectural firms are here to meet the leaders of the steel industry,” said Christodoulou. “This is an event we all look forward to every year. It inspires us and provides us with some direction for the future.”
As part of the CISC Awards for Excellence in Steel Construction, teams are rewarded for delivering exceptional steel projects, while showcasing complexity, innovation, beauty, uniqueness and originality, among many other attributes.
The evening was hosted by stand-up comedian Stéphane Bélanger, whose blend of homespun humour had many of the CISC-ICCA members in stitches.
A spotlight on steel
The theme this year was “The CISC is the link that unites the steel industry,” illustrating the leadership and contribution of the steel industry to the Quebec and Canadian economies, as well as their North American footprint.
The event shone a spotlight on a range of impressive steel projects that demonstrated the beauty, resilience, and durability of steel. Each year, professionals, and leaders in the field of steel construction submit their projects.
This year among the candidates, 48 finalists from Quebec were chosen. Teams were rewarded for their exceptional achievements in steel, presenting complex and innovative steel construction projects through their beauty, uniqueness, and originality.
Outlook is positive
Ed Whalen, national president of the CISC-ICCA, David Drouin, vice-president of the Camnor Group and chairman of the regional committee, Luc St- Pierre, regional sales manager of the Canam Group (the steel sponsor of the event), and Dr. Christodoulou, addressed the participants.
The steel industry in Canada and Quebec had some interesting times during the Covid pandemic, Whelan told the gathering. “When it first started, I thought we were going to be in big, big trouble,” he said, noting that the vast majority of steel industry players managed to prevail in spite of the challenges.
Encouraging prosperity
In her comments, Dr. Christodoulou suggested that the Canadian and Quebec steel industries should encourage sourcing of materials and labour to “favour prosperity in Quebec and Canada.” Secondly, she added, these investments improve the social, economic and environmental quality of life, while encouraging economic growth for decades to come.
Videos of the nine categories were played during the evening, announcing each of the winners at the end of each presentation. Plaques were presented to the winning teams as congratulations and recognition from the industry.
Expert members of jury The jury selected winners in nine categories. The jury members were: Anik Girard, MBA, director-general at Groupe Constructo (Division de TC); Kevin Kwateng, ing, operations director for materials handling at Bellemare Manutention; Sébastien Tremblay, director of supplies at Proco; Adam Korzekwa, ing., director of engineering at StructureA; Jean-François Philippe, business administrator at CWB; Lucia Tirca and Gina Cody, engineering faculty at Concordia University; Danny Lefebvre, director-general and projects director at Norgate; Francois Desmarais, director-general at Drytec; and Marc Burrows, vice-president of Corbec.
