INNOVATION May-June 2012

Member Input Sought on Revisions to Sustainability Guidelines

APEGBC Rolls Out Organizational Quality Management Program Across BC

On April 16, 2012, APEGBC hosted the Liberal caucus and NDP caucus for networking events held in Victoria, BC. The purpose of these events was to provide an informal forum where Council could interact with Ministers and MLAs to share the ways that APEGBC works on behalf of the people of BC, and to hear concerns and answer questions posed by members of the Legislative Assembly. President Jeff Holm PEng FEC addressed the groups, presenting the different ways APEGBC contributes to public safety and development in the province of BC. Greetings on behalf of the NDP were brought by Michelle Mungall, NDP Critic for Advanced Education and MLA for Nelson-Creston. At the afternoon reception, greetings were brought on behalf of the Liberals by the Honourable Naomi Yamamoto, Minister of Advanced Education. Minister Yamamoto thanked the Association for the work done on behalf of British Columbians. In total, 23 Ministers and MLAs were in attendance at the events. Representatives from APEGBC included members of Council—among them, President Holm, Vice President Dr Michael Isaacson PEng and Past President Frank Denton PEng FEC—as well as a number of senior staff members, and PNWER representative to APEGBC, Colin Smith PEng FEC. Both of these events were very successful, allowing APEGBC to raise awareness about our legislative requests and the ways in which the Association works together with government, and answer questions the MLAs had about the requests and other topics. APEGBC looks forward to The APEGBC Sustainability Committee is a working committee of the Association, responsible to Council. The purpose of the committee is to identify, promote and facilitate sustainability in the practice of professional engineering and geoscience. The committee is currently seeking feedback on proposed revisions to the current APEGBC Sustainability Guidelines. The committee has been working to revise and update these guidelines, which were originally published in 1995. The Sustainability Guidelines provide guidance on how a member can meet their responsibilities to incorporate sustainability in their professional practice. Failure to meet the intent of these guidelines could be evidence of unprofessional conduct and lead to disciplinary proceedings by APEGBC. Participation in this survey represents an opportunity to provide your feedback on these guidelines prior to implementation. To access the survey and the proposed revisions to the guidelines visit: www.apeg.bc.ca/ about/sustainability/. APEGBC Works to Strengthen Links with Government

New Council Member Appointed Vic Baker PEng FEC resigned from Council effective March 19, 2012. Council received his resignation and thanked Mr Baker for his service over the last year and half. At their May meeting, Council appointed Ross Rettie PEng FEC to take his place as per the Engineers and Geoscientists Act : 9 (8)  If a member of the council dies, resigns or is incapable of acting,  (a) the other members of the council Starting in April, APEGBC’s professional practice staff kicked off visits to branches around the province to provide members with more information on the Organizational Quality Management (OQM) Program that was approved by Council in January of this year. The OQM Program is a resource for organizations employing engineers and geoscientists. The program provides guidance to employers on how to implement or adapt in-house quality management policies and procedures that will support APEGBC professionals in meeting their quality management requirements under the Engineers and Geoscientists Act and Bylaws. Recognizing the significant influence that employers of engineers and geoscientists have on the practice of the professions, the OQM Program was created to improve quality management at an organizational level. Participating organizations would be recognized with OQM Certification, and their APEGBC-licensed professionals would exempted from the Practice Review Program. Professional practice staff are giving presentations on the OQM Program at branch meetings throughout the province and will be available to answer members’ or employers’ questions about the program. Since April, staff have presented in Surrey, Richmond, Kamloops and North Vancouver. Please see the calendar of events at www.apeg.bc.ca/ events/ for the latest dates and locations.

continuing to work collaboratively with government and the official opposition to better serve the people of BC.

(l-r) Ralph Sultan PEng, MLA North Vancouver; Geoff Thiele, Director, Legislation, Ethics and Compliance, and Hon Naomi Yamamoto, Minister of Advanced Education.

must appoint a member of the association to fill the vacancy if the councillor is an elected member.

Mr Rettie is a returning APEGBC Councillor, having previously served on Council from 2009-2011.

9

M ay/J u n e 2 012

i n n o va t i o n