This is precisely what happens within The National Building Envelope Council of Canada (NBEC). The nonprofit organization, founded in 1987 in Edmonton, Alberta, set out with some of the following objectives: to encourage the pursuit of excellence in the design, construction, and performance of building envelopes/enclosures and to advance educational and technical standards within the building envelope industry. The Council serves as the national organization of many Regional Building Envelope or Building Enclosure Councils (BEC’s) throughout the country.
One of their other mandates is to sponsor the Canadian Building Science and Technology Conferences including the upcoming 13th Conference this fall. Every three years, NBEC presents the Canadian Conference on Building Science and Technology (CCBST).
This year, The BC Building Envelope Council is taking he helm, holding the event at the Hyatt Regency in Vancouver, from November 6 to 8.
“The event brings together the building science and building envelope communities from right across Canada, and around the world,” says Jason Teetaert, with SMT Research Ltd. and a member of the CCBST organizing committee.
“I’ve met delegates from Europe and New Zealand who come to these events and enjoy working with Canadians and then we continue to work together on projects, internationally,” says Teetaert. “Often, they come to our events and tell us we’re light years ahead in the things that we’re doing, and then they bring those things back to their own countries.”
While the goal of the event is to provide a forum for peers to share industry knowledge, the social and networking side of things is a big part of the draw. “The camaraderie is why many people go to these conferences,” says Teetaert. “It’s about building relationships with others in the community, whether you’re meeting up with people you already know or engaging someone new from another country or welcoming students into the community.”
The event will also feature some presentations from practitioners, featuring videos, photos and stories of lessons learned in the field. “One example is a presentation on passive house [rigorous, voluntary standard for energy efficiency in a building, reducing its ecological footprint]” , says Teetaert.
Although each regional building code may vary, the idea of sharing resources and highlighting issues that affect the entire industry as a whole are part of what will encourage those in the building envelope to continue to pursue design, construction and performance excellence.
For more information on NBEC and their regionl BEC’s visit,
www.nbec.net .
