Canadian News Local 793
Canadian News Local 793 Upgrades Training Facilities and Equipment developed and construction work on the banquet hall will begin in early 2018, followed by the student residence. LOCAL 793 HAS successfully completed an -million building and renovation project at the Operating Engineers Training Institute of Ontario (OETIO) campus in Morrisburg, Ontario. The local has also added to its fleet of equipment and virtual reality simulators and is now looking at enlarging its banquet hall at head office in Oakville and adding a student residence at the training centre there. The revamp of the training building included the demolition and rebuild of a dormitory, renovations to an office and administrative area as well as electrical, IT and fire code upgrades. “The training campus in Morrisburg is now a modern, state-of-the-art facility that our members can truly be proud of,” said Local 793 business manager and IUOE VP Mike Gallagher. “It’s a place where our apprentices and members can stay and train in a comfortable setting.” The union’s executive board began planning for the renovation because the building was in dire need of improvements. Gallagher had toured the building and, afterwards, recommended an upgrade. The board agreed and approved the renovation and expansion. “Apprentices and our members deserve a world-class training facility and accommodations,” said Gallagher. “By investing in the OETIO, we can continue training heavy equipment apprentices who will contribute to the future growth and prosperity of Ontario.” The project began in spring 2015. The office area and main building of the campus were first to be renovated. The [above] The new dormitory at the Operating Engineers Training Institute of Ontario campus in Morrisburg has 70 single-occupancy rooms. Many have views of the St. Lawrence Seaway. dormitory wing of the campus was then demolished and rebuilt. The new dormitory now has 70 single-occupancy rooms with large windows. Many have views of the St. Lawrence Seaway. A full fitness area also complements a gym that’s on site. Meanwhile, at the OETIO campus next to Local 793’s head office in Oakville, a new Liebherr 85 EC-B5 tower crane has been erected. The crane will enable students to be trained in top- and bottom-climbing procedures. The OETIO is the only training centre in the world that offers such training on tower cranes. The concrete pad for the tower crane was poured Dec. 2 by Local 793 member Craig Agar of Pumpcrete Corp. Craig is a steward at Pumpcrete. A structure will be built around the crane to support climbing exercises. The crane has an extra large cab for training students. The OETIO has also expanded its fleet of crane and heavy equipment virtual reality simulators. There are now four new VxAdvantage simulators in Morrisburg with roughterrain, tower and crawler crane scenarios and setups for boom trucks, excavators, backhoes and wheel loaders. The Oakville campus has two new VxAdvantage simulators with crane, boom truck and concrete pump scenarios. Two existing simulators in Oakville have also been retrofitted and the OETIO has purchased two smaller VxTrainer simulators that can be taken to events. As for the future, Local 793 is looking at expanding the banquet hall at its head office and adding a student residence at the training campus in Oakville. Architectural plans are being The executive board of the local has set a budget of million for both projects Both projects will be completed by summer 2019 – in time for the local’s 100th anniversary celebrations. “I had promised during the last union election that we would be prudent in expanding the banquet hall and building the new student residence and that the local would not be at any risk,” said Local 793 business manager Gallagher. “I plan to deliver on that promise. “We will enhance our property so that it is more valuable and we will do it without incurring any debt whatsoever.” The banquet hall will be more than doubled in size. Upon completion, it will have capacity for about 750 people. The student residence will have 43 rooms, additional classroom space, a gym and lounge area. It will be built to the north of the existing training centre and incorporate elements of the former Elliott Hotel in Toronto, where the founding fathers of Local 793 met in 1919 to draft a letter requesting a charter for the union. [above] A new Liebherr 85 EC-B5 tower crane was erected at the OETIO campus in Oakville. [left] The concrete pad for the tower crane in Oakville was poured in December by Local 793 member Craig Agar of Pumpcrete Corp. [article & photos] Grant Cameron, IUOE Local 793 16 INTERNATIONAL OPERATING ENGINEER SPRING 2017 17
