If you couldn’t make the November session here is what you missed …
The session started with Kelly Dayman from the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of BC (APEGBC) providing insight on the APEGBC Organization Quality Management (OQM) Program and the benefits of being OQM certified. In doing so, Kelly outlined the key elements of a good OQM program for APEGBC members. Some of those key points included:
- Application of relevant APEGBC Practice Guidelines
- Retention of complete project documentation
- Documented checking using a written quality control process
- Documented independent review of structural design
- Use of APEGBC seal
- Application of direct supervision
- Documented field reviews of projects during implementation or construction
Kelly discussed the quality management resources and guidance documents available through APEGBC, as well as the Launch Assist program that accompanies the OQM Program enrollment. Attendees of the event found the content very interesting. Even those without APEGBC members on staff were eager to review the online resources to potentially incorporate them into their own quality management systems. Download Kelly’s presentation. To obtain more information, review the APEGBC resources, or potentially enroll in a one day OQM Certification Training Session visit the <APEGBC website>.
The second speaker, Tim Edgell of Stantec, completed a very interesting presentation covering a variety of broad data collection and interpretation topics. Using something as simple as weekly timesheets Tim was able to illustrate the increased rate of data collection and the general size of datasets that are routinely manipulated and interpreted. As an Ecologist by training, Tim described data management skills and approaches used to find relationships between organisms and how to focus on the key relationships using some very interesting graphical and visual practices. During the presentation Tim routinely demonstrated how data interpretation methods span all disciplines by analyzing synergies within a corporate organization using similar approaches.
As much as Tim is proficient at working with large data sets, he was also discouraging the needless collection of “big data”, and the importance of collecting useful data. To focus your data collection, Tim stressed that every project must start with a clear concise question and collection of only the data needed to answer that question. Download Tim’s presentation.
Our final speaker, Carlos da Ponte of Sustainable Elements, answered the question that we have all been pondering at some point or another, “What is the Cloud?”. Not only did Carlos answer that question but he also demonstrated how effective a tool the Cloud and Cloud-based storage can be. He also pointed out how accessible Cloud based data storage is while putting security concerns at ease. With many of us, either in a service industry or hiring and obtaining consultants for various services, Carlos asked the question, “Why wouldn’t we be comfortable with a similar service for data storage and security?”.
With data storage addressed, Carlos then switched topics to intelligent systems as a replacement for databases and Excel sheets. He pointed out how much free information and on-line databases are available and how an intelligent system can routinely collect available information from these databases, combine it with site-specific data, and even generate draft deliverables, and useable summaries.
Carlos then concluded with emerging technologies and the potential such products may have when used in conjunction with Cloud-based intelligent systems. Imagine some time in the future we were able to walk through a facility or site and visually see equipment details and maintenance schedules or groundwater well IDs and historical information. We are not quite there yet but we are close!! Download Carlos’ presentation.