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Steel and aluminum details at the Gordon Ramsey Burger Vancouver, Coquitlam, B.C. M A R C H 2 0 2 4 | 45 Structural Steel P H OTO G R A P H Y CO U RT E S Y B EN S O N S T EEL ; J P M E TA L M A S T ER S Structural steel continues to wow with its ability to reach great heights by ROBIN BRUNET I t's an increasingly familiar story in 2024: inflation and high interest rates have caused their fair share of pain for Canada's structural steel sector, yet demand is so strong that fabricators and suppliers are busy with a variety of projects. Supermétal-CANAM is a prime case in point, thanks partly to the company's capabili- ties. Supermétal's pre-construction, engineering, and construction services are supported by parent Canam Group's ownership of Canada's largest steel fabrication company. This backing provides clients with a complete steel solution ranging from struc- tural steel, open-web steel joist, and metal deck. In Western Canada, Supermétal's most promi- nent project continues to be the massive Oakridge redevelopment in Vancouver, Canada's larg- est mixed-use project at 4.3-million square feet and with 12 tower cranes currently in operation. Supermétal Construction is erecting two sweep- ing canopies that require large HSS pieces formed in a 3D axis. The installation needs to be precise, requires multiple lifts, and detailed sequencing between the shops and the site team. In the east, Supermétal recently applied its skills to CIBC Square II in Toronto. With mega nodes cast in place, the installation team installed massive diagonal columns and tie-back beams to the core of the tower, which was followed by the more familiar process of repetitious floor installation up to level 54. Supermétal's prominence in the structural steel sector has not gone unnoticed, having won the most recent Architectural and Engineering award from the Canadian Institute of Steel Construction Awards of Excellence for British Columbia. This was for Vancouver's Deloitte Summit tower, a 24-sto- rey stacked cube office building for which Canam Structures delivered and erected over 5,000 metric tons of steel. The tower features continuous mega- columns, beams with mechanical openings, and exterior trusses tying back to the core with heavy cast steel nodes. Jean-Paul Philippon Jr., president of JP Metal Masters, agrees that demand is as strong as ever despite inflation squeezing the construction sec- tor. "Projects have been cancelled or put on hold due to high costs over the past year, and yet we're bus- ier than ever," he says. "The reason why is because RISE ON UP our niche is high-rise development: we know how to build and service our clients and their towers. We have a housing crisis in Canada; that being known to all, construction is going full steam – and one of these requirements is high-rise residential development." JP Metal Masters brings considerable value to any project, having evolved into one of B.C.'s top structural and miscellaneous steel fabricators and erectors. Augmented by the fact that in 1997 JP cre- ated JP Drafting to provide itself as well as outside clients with complete steel detailing services for their fabrication. One of JP Metal Masters' ongoing projects is the Oakridge redevelopment. "We're working on Tower 2 primarily at the moment, which required us to fabricate and install over 100 tons of structural steel on the roof, to enclose mechanical units, and the power supply for all six new Oakridge towers," Philippon says. A recent project on the architectural side show- cases a new direction for JP Metal Masters: Gordon Ramsey Burger Vancouver at the Hard Rock Casino in Coquitlam. "The exterior consists of an all-alu- minum outside patio enclosure, which was our responsibility," Philippon says. "It's our first job using almost 100 percent aluminum, and we have just been Aluminum CWB Certified, with the inten- tion of expanding more into this busy market." Based in Burnaby, KWH Constructors is a structural erection firm augmented by Somerset Engineering, a construction engineering divi- sion. With this expertise in-house, KWH provides value-added services such as lifting equipment operation, field erection, seismic retrofits of bridges and buildings, port facilities maintenance, and the installation of precast/prestressed concrete. While it is well known for the structural steel and mechanical machinery erection of the Johnson Street Bridge project some years ago, KWH of late

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