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Rossdale Power Plant, Edmonton, AB Application of Versaspeed 100 repair mortar. M A R C H 2 0 2 2 | 39 Restoration Products & Services P H OTO G R A P H Y CO U RT E S Y R J C EN G I N EER S; EU C L I D A D M I X T U R E C A N A DA Restoration products and services forge full steam ahead and the results are outstanding by ROBIN BRUNET I t's becoming a familiar but welcome state- ment in construction circles, this time voiced by Nick Trovato, managing principal, RJC Engineers as it pertains to restoration work. Trovato says, "Last year was very busy despite COVID, and the same is proving true for 2022. We're busy with a wide scope of projects that require a variety of services, not just one. We continue to work as prime consultants on building envelope restoration or replacement proj- ects. We're also doing more 'whole building' energy modelling to meet requirements for new construc- tion or for extensive restoration work. "Additionally, we're heavily involved in structural restoration: we have a large stock of aging build- ings that are exposed to harsh climatic conditions and require maintenance or repair to help them reach their expected life. And then of course there's the creative side of restoration: rehabilitating his- toric structures. In some instances all of our services are required for a single project, the best example of which is our recently completed work on the St. Andrew's-Wesley United Church in Vancouver. For that project RJC acted as the prime, structural, and building enclosure consultants." This year, RJC is involved as part of a design team in the revitalization and reuse of Edmonton's his- toric Rossdale Power Plant complex, which was built in 1902 and decommissioned in 2011. Three buildings have been preserved at the site, includ- ing a low-pressure plant and two pump houses, and the city has deemed the site as having potential for not only retail and residential development, but for indigenous historical and educational purposes. As civic leaders decide exactly what form the reuse will take, structural restoration and re-roofing work is underway to protect the underlying facility. "It's an exciting project and we are glad to be part of the team," Trovato says. "The task is to preserve the main architectural elements of the complex, while breathing new life into it." As is the case with other building trades, the res- toration sector continues to deal with supply chain issues. "Suppliers are doing their best to get every- thing they need in anticipation of a busy 2022 summer, but I think the shortages will remain," Trovato says. "The situation is going to take a long while to resolve." Shortages especially impact providers of resto- ration materials. Brian Salazar, national business development manager Euclid Canada, explains, "A lot of our products use raw materials that are petroleum based, and we deal extensively with U.S. suppliers – and as anyone in this business knows, even temporary phenomenon such as the big freeze in Texas in 2020 caused havoc in the supply chain. In that specific case it caused a shortage in epoxy, and we're still trying to catch up." Salazar goes on to note that, "While pent up demand is great from a business viewpoint, it's not helping the situation. Instead of 10 days to receive something it now takes two months, and freight costs have tripled in some cases. Still, we're confi- dent that the situation will eventually improve, and in the meantime we've been reformulating some products in our labs in Cleveland, Ohio, and St. Hubert, Quebec. The outcome of this is we've been successful in making the reformulations more dura- ble and user friendly, and this has contributed to us going gangbusters with activity since May of last year, with no slowdown in sight." One new product of note from Euclid Canada is Versaspeed 100, a versatile, single component, rapid strength gaining repair mortar for horizontal as well as form and pour repair projects. Requiring only the addition of water, Versaspeed 100 is a low shrinkage, high early strength material that is easy to use for fast turnaround projects. Salazar says, "Versaspeed 100 is being used in the ArcelorMittal steel foundry in Hamilton, where crews are repairing floors in the blast furnace areas and need a quick turnaround, as this is a 24-hour operation that can't be shut down. The product has great compressive strength, with up to 10,000 psi upon curing." A Wonderful FLAVOUR OF PRESERVE

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