Thursday, February 12th 2009

By Lily Panamsky

A heavy construction Chair position is expected to be established at McMaster in the next few years. The endowed Chair will be part of the Department of Civil Engineering, and collaborate with the McMaster-Mohawk Bachelor of Technology (BTech) program.

The Heavy construction refers to the building of roads, bridges, sewer systems and other such aspects of manufacture, as opposed to the “lighter” residential or commercial construction.

The idea of the heavy construction Chair was originally pitched by McMaster President Peter George to the Hamilton and District Heavy Construction Association, who spearheaded the initiative. However, the Chair has yet to actually be established due to lack of adequate funding. The university needs one million dollars from private companies; once this amount is reached, it will be matched by the university to come to meet the required total of two million dollars.

To date, McMaster has received 842,500 dollars in pledges. Companies that pledged 125,000  dollars include the Hamilton and District Heavy Construction Association, the Ontario Road Builders’ Association, the Ontario Sewer and Watermain Construction Association, the John Deere Foundation, the Ministry of Transportation Ontario (MTO), and L.I.U.N.A Local 837. The Ontario Concrete Pipe Association and Battlefield Equipment pledged, respectively, 62,500 dollars and 30,000 dollars. Terry Milson, Advancement Officer for the Faculty of Engineering, explained the reasons for the support from different companies. “This Chair will be funded by a consortium of associations and companies that all have an interest in promoting heavy construction, attracting young engineers to find careers in an industry that is an important contributor in building, rehabilitating and retrofitting of Ontario’s infrastructure.”

Ghani Razaqpur, professor and Chair of Civil Engineering, stated, “We don’t currently [have] any expertise in this area here at McMaster, so in a way it’s a good thing for us to sort of expand our program in this area, and it’s a very important area.”

The project is expected to have a large impact on McMaster’s Engineering program and students. Razaqpur explained, “I think [the Chair] means a lot [for McMaster students], because we have a lot of very strong programs that are more geared toward design—how to design things… like software engineering offices—but we don’t have, either in the undergraduate program or at the graduate level, an emphasis on construction… there are constructing managing programs in other schools in Ontario and of course in Canada, but I know of no particular program that focuses on heavy construction…Therefore our students will get a more unique perspective on how heavy construction in some ways differs from… light construction.”

Razakpur stated that a new program focused in this field will not be implemented initially, and plans for its implementation in the future depends on support from companies and students. Instead, he clarified that, “The initial focus is to actually bring this person so that this person can actually take a lead and take advantage of all the opportunities that present themselves.” The professor appointed to the Chair will also have the responsibility—and privilege—of offering various courses within the Faculty of Engineering and the BTech program that relate directly to heavy construction.

Students that are involved with the Chair will be able to receive training in both the technological and managerial aspects of the area of study. They will be learning, among other elements, about governments, funding, municipalities, equipment, and labour relations. Opportunities for new co-op placements may arise, and courses and workshops will offer students theoretical knowledge as well as hands-on experience. Since many engineering graduates find themselves in jobs dealing with heavy construction, the introduction of new courses will better prepare them for the future.

The Chair also offers opportunities for further civil engineering research to be conducted at McMaster. With additional support from other companies, the Chair is expected to be established within a few years.

Tags: Department of Civil Engineering, Heavy Construction Chair, McMaster Mohawk Bachelor of Technology