“we really cut our teeth on that project,” Sam says. “We were producing what we call ‘easy sinks,’” he explains. “Those easy sinks essentially contain all the piping, electrical, and rough-in controls for all the different kinds of plumbing fixtures in the building. We would do hand sanitation sinks, janitors sinks, showers, toilets, eye-wash stations – all of those typical rough-in kits that it normally takes a lot of time to coordinate on site.” Instead of taking that time, however, Pitt Meadows “coordinatedanddesigned themall off site, produced a light-gauge steel frame, then completed all of that fabrication in the shop, then positioned them on site ahead of the steel studs being installed.” Between the easy sinks and the multi-trade racks, Sam believes that Pitt Meadows “really demonstrated our innovation on the pre-fabrication side.” On the install side, meanwhile, Pitt Meadows not only installed those sinks and racks on the three patient floors, but they also worked on all the other floors and spaces that were too complex to reproduce off site. On top of that, they also got to work on a helipad, as well as two large mechanical rooms. One of those mechanical rooms comprised over 30,000 square feet. In collaboration with the electrical contractor and controls contractor, Pitt Meadows produced well over 100 prefabricated pre-piped skids for that room – and they were able to do it all within their shop in Maple Ridge. “Because we were able to do it in-house, that meant we were able to really leverage the Lower Mainland workforce that’s available to us here,” Sam says. “We didn’t have to overtax the workforce there in Penticton in order to get that project over the line.” Instead, Pitt Meadows was not only able to get the project ‘over the line,’ they were able to get it over the line on time, and to the satisfaction of all stakeholders. Shalana, for her part, says she is proud of the award recognition, but she’s more satisfied by that achievement. “We hit every target we were supposed to hit,” she says. “It was completed on time and on-spec. There were no major deficiencies. The client was happy. I think all of our subtrades were happy. It was a good job.” Sam, meanwhile, is particularly proud of the innovation they displayed. He says that they were able “to take it to another level at Penticton,” and that they’ve even carried that momentum into their next projects. For example, from a prefabrication perspective, Pitt Meadows was able to apply a lot of their experience and their lessons learned to their work on the Abbotsford Law Courts project – which, as previously mentioned, won a VRCA award the next year in the same category. In that case, Pitt Meadows worked with PCL Construction, another longstanding client and partner. Sam estimates the two companies have been working together for more than 20 years, and he says that Abbotsford Law Courts was their fourth P3 project together. “So we came into it knowing the project team, and having a really good relationship to begin with,” he says. “They were a great partner. They were extremely collaborative.” The Abbotsford Law Courts comprised 14 rooms, including three Supreme Court courtrooms, eight Provincial Court courtrooms, and three judicial conference APRIL 2022
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