BOMA e-Energy Training: Customized Module Selection Now Available
The BOMA e-Energy Online Training program has a new look this fall. With refreshed content, a customized module selection and the ability to access the course from your tablet or smartphone, BOMA e-Energy is now easier to use and more cost effective.
Prism developed the BOMA e-Energy Training program in partnership with Building Owners and Managers Association BC (BOMA BC) to help building operators, building engineers and facility managers save energy. The program enables you to develop skills and knowledge to identify energy reduction opportunities, formulate strategies and influence stakeholders to adopt energy savings behaviours.
With the modules delivered online in a self-learning format, you can learn at your own pace anywhere there’s an Internet connection.
New this year is the ability for the program to be purchased in 11 separate modules. From Energy Basics to Building Controls or to Selling the Project, you can select topics that are a priority for your facility or personal learning plan and enroll in one module at a time.
Each module includes interactive exercises and quizzes to help you understand key concepts.
All 11 buncldes can also be purchased for a single bundle price.
“I’ve been a building engineer for a long while, but I still learned a lot from the course – like new ways to communicate with tenants about saving energy, tips on properly insulating boilers and steam valves, and new options in lighting. The course gave me a better understanding of the big picture when it comes to energy management. It also had some great case studies and calculators to show the results of, for example, raising or lowering building temperature by half a degree.”
Read testimonials from other course graduates and learn more about BOMA’s e-Energy Training here.
Prism Celebrates 30 Years
It felt out-of-place to celebrate Prism’s 30th birthday this past May amidst a global pandemic. While COVID-19 continues to impact how we live, we are grateful to be in a position where we can continue to do our work. We want to take this opportunity to say thank you to everyone that we work and collaborate with for your incredible support and contributions over the past thirty years.
In the words of our President, Robert Greenwald, “Prism has grown because our clients feel we can add value and make a difference. The collective impact on climate change is a key goal and a definition of success for us.”
“I really wanted Prism to be a player in helping the industry move forward,” shares Brian O’Donnell, our Founder. What started as a small business venture in 1990 has now grown to be a team of over 45 talented and passionate professionals working for the cause of sustainability and energy management.
We would not be where we are today without you. Thank you for being part of our journey.
Reminisce with us
Scroll through our slideshow below:
Reflections and thoughts from the Prism and PUMA teams
We surveyed team members and asked them to share their thoughts.
Looking back over Prism’s 30-year history, what are you most proud of?
“I am proud of the respect that Prism employees have built over the years. Whether meeting past or current clients, attending industry events, or working with suppliers and agents, there is hardly ever a time that someone doesn’t have something good to say about their experience with Prism’s staff and Prism’s contributions to the development of forward-thinking, energy savings focused consulting engineering in Vancouver and BC.”
-Alison Bodine, Electrical Designer
“The strong bond with clients and our designers is something I have always loved. The friendships that have been built over the past 30 years are strong, honest and unconditional.”
-Maia Lutze-Penco, Mechanical Designer
“I am most proud of how Prism has, over the years, cultivated its culture of care- for its employees, for its clients, and for the environment. 2020 has been a challenging year so far, especially with the global pandemic, and the way the company and its leadership has responded speaks a lot about how this culture is lived and how it serves as a compass that guides its decisions and actions.”
-Lyn Papio, Employee Experience Specialist
“We have been listening to our clients’ needs and responding to the industry as it shifts. It has been about thinking forward in terms of what we need to do to serve our purpose.”
-Sarah Smith, Principal and Sustainability Team Leader
“I am proud of the way our work at Prism has become increasing valuable to our clients. In my 31 years on earth, I have seen the increasing recognition of the importance of climate change and energy conservation. Prism saw the value early on and played a major role in developing and shaping the industry in BC.”
-Ari Spiegel, Energy Engineer
“Focus on reducing GHGs. What we have achieved in terms of GHG reductions directly, and by increasing awareness through our day-to-day work, as well as training.”
-Duncan Wilcock, Client Services Lead for PUMA Utility Monitoring
What do you hope Prism will accomplish in the next 30 years?
“(Prism) will continue to be thought of as leaders and experts in improving and modernizing existing buildings throughout Western Canada who can be relied upon for innovative, practical, and sustainable engineering solutions.”
-Adam Franklin, Electrical Engineer
“Maintain our focus on continuous improvement both on a personal level as well as work efficiency. I hope we will continue to grow and possibly expand across BC and potentially across Canada to save more energy and contribute to our environment, which is our legacy for our future generations.”
-Bartjan Kiers, Senior Mechanical Designer
“I hope that the spirit of Prism stays with anyone who has the opportunity to be part of the team, whether it be as a client or employee. I want to say in 30 years that I was part of the Prism legacy.”
-Maia Lutze-Penco, Mechanical Designer
“To be able to continue to diversify and grow but still maintain the same close office community.”
-Dave Roberts, Mechanical Engineer
“To continue the same work and reach many more organizations and turn these great ideas into more construction projects.”
-Hamid Samani, Senior Mechanical Engineer
“Continue to be seen as partners and collaborators, working with our clients to face the big challenges ahead.”
-Sarah Smith, Principal and Sustainability Team Leader
Paying it forward
It is clearer today than ever before that we each play a key role building a greener, more sustainable future. In honour of our 30th anniversary, we wanted to make an impact by investing in our communities and contributing to a green recovery in whatever way we can. Therefore, Prism staff have collectively selected the following programs to support and provide funding for:
- The Clean Energy program at Ecotrust Canada advocates for ending energy poverty in rural, remote and indigenous communities and helping them build an economy that provides for a healthy and resilient natural environment. Specifically, within BC, the funds will go to replacing diesel furnaces in on-reserve homes with air-source heat pumps powered by clean energy. Their vision and approach align with Prism’s core value of creating a greener, more efficient world.
- The Union Gospel Mission’s Meal Program serves approximately 800 meals a day, 364 days a year to men, women and children. Meals are available to anyone who needs one and no one is turned away. UGM’s Red Seal certified chefs ensures guests receive highly nutritious and delicious meals that are balanced and always served hot. The Prism family recognizes and values how connected we all are. Providing meals to one of the most vulnerable segments of our population is one way we’d like to give back to our community.
- The Langara 49 Women in Science program provides philanthropic support, resources, and mentorship to prepare female students for a successful STEM career. As a cause close to our hearts, Prism will fund a scholarship to help women in engineering access this program.
These programs were chosen based on how well they align with Prism’s core values and resonate with the Prism family. We hope our contributions will support local BC communities and contribute to sustainable and positive change.
Sign our guestbook
We want to invite you to continue being a part of our story.
Please share your thoughts and ideas on what you hope Prism will achieve in the next 30 years via this Kudoboard.
Any anecdotes, photos or comments are also welcome, of course!
Advocating for a Green Recovery
Last month, Premier John Horgan launched a six-week consultation with British Columbians to help shape the province’s economic recovery plan. Prism shared our thoughts as a member of the Catalyst business coalition.
On behalf of Prism, our President, Robert Greenwald, suggested that municipalities are a critical component on the path to a more resilient, lower-carbon economy. Within these municipalities, a program to fund low carbon, deep retrofits to arenas would be a significant opportunity for impact, as they account for approximately 40% of a municipality’s operational greenhouse gas emissions.
More broadly, the incentives for schools, municipalities, government and even advanced education are not nearly enough to offset the costs of the low carbon electrification (LCE) work needed to make significant GHG reductions. Hospitals have more viable projects due to their extended operating hours (incentives are based on GHG reductions, which depend on operating hours). However, CleanBC funding is limited for sites with shorter operating hours.
Furthermore, incentives need to increase to make a difference in the commercial sector. Although programs already exist, the dollar amount per tonne needs to increase to make it viable for participants.
Resources to learn more
Globally, there is an abundance of resources available regarding opportunities for a green recovery. As it relates to the energy efficiency sector, the following five stand out:
Five green infrastructure projects engineers recommend to boost COVID-19 economic recovery (electrical vehicle charging and energy efficiency homes)
Financing renewable energy projects
DSM programs must react to new realities and build for new conditions
Design for Better Outcomes
There is no question that public health experts and essential service workers are leading the charge in overcoming the greatest pandemic in our generation. It is humbling to examine and reflect on how the engineering profession can provide solutions that lead to better health outcomes for our communities.
As an engineering consulting firm, our clients rely on us to provide designs and specifications that will lead to a safer, more efficient and reliable environment. Intricately tied to this is how we can manage system upgrades with the least amount of disruption to building occupants and operations.
Prism recently completed a lighting project for the Westminster Wing of the Richmond Hospital in our home province of BC. Prior to the upgrade, lighting for most circulation areas and practicum wards of the Wing was provided by wall mounted or suspended linear indirect fluorescent systems. The luminaires were used to illuminate the volume of the space utilizing the walls and ceilings and provided no direct light on the floor or task surfaces.
In the day ward and physiotherapy, luminaires were positioned away from the patient beds. The lack of lighting directly over these beds made it difficult for staff to perform their tasks. Furthermore, the location of the indirect lighting systems caused shadowing for the nurses when attending to patients at their bedside.
Another challenge with the previous lighting system was the number of hours required by maintenance staff to keep the lights free of debris. As the luminaires were a linear system with perforated diffusers, they became dusty very easily. Maintenance staff were required to vacuum the indirect luminaires on a monthly basis to remove dust.
To address these issues, Prism recommended and implemented a LED lighting system upgrade where new luminaires were installed in all circulation areas. The revised lighting spacing now provides optimal and uniform lighting throughout these spaces. In patient care areas, additional lighting systems were installed and centred above the practicum spaces to provide better visibility. Dimming controls now allow staff to adjust illumination to suit their preferences, their tasks and for patient comfort.
This lighting upgrade resulted in:
- Safer work environments with more effective lighting to help essential service workers do their jobs.
- Reduced risk for infection as dust was less likely to accumulate on systems.
- A significant reduction in costs by allowing maintenance staff to work on other more critical tasks rather than cleaning existing luminaires.
- An estimated 162,000 KWh of annual energy savings, or nearly 75% savings compared to the previous lighting system.
Building our Resilience
Navigating new realities
At Prism, there is no “”business as usual”” as we adapt to COVID-19. From our Energy Team exploring ways to leverage virtual technology to conduct energy audits, to our Electrical Team getting our remote access humming so that our designers can continue to work on CAD drawings from home, we are all experimenting with ways to adapt. Not only have our meetings gone online, but facilitation by our Sustainability Team and our training courses have moved to online delivery as well.
As we navigate these new realities, we continue to look for ways to ground ourselves and focus on what we do know. Building our resilience means cultivating our capacity to navigate change and uncertainty – as individuals, as a company, and as a community. With our focus on efficiency and sustainability, we can respond proactively to the vulnerabilities that this pandemic has surfaced, including how we design and monitor our building systems to be more resilient.
Desigining adaptive systems
Hamid Samani, Prism Senior Mechanical Engineer, shares some reflections on how COVID-19 is teaching us that we need to be more innovative in our design so that our systems are more adaptive to change in the surrounding environment. “Being a mechanical engineer and designing buildings’ mechanical services including HVAC, air and plumbing systems, our design can affect the occupant from the air that they breathe to the water they drink or consume for sanitary use.”
Samani says redundancy and adaptivity will be vital as equipment failure can happen at any time. Ensuring there is adequate redundancy in equipment in place to come online when operating equipment fails will be one key consideration going forward. To increase adaptivity, designs may include installing monitoring systems for air quality and filtration, and controls systems for more consistent and reliable response to changing conditions.
Acting now for the future
Many people are also drawing parallels from how we respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and how we respond to other challenges like climate change. Climate change adaptation measures for buildings improve our overall comfort, safety and business continuity. They may include installing monitoring systems for air quality and filtration, and controls systems for more consistent and reliable response to changing conditions. As we carry out vulnerability risk assessments to identify critical equipment and processes to address, we are reminded to think broadly about the impact of these changes and how connected we are. The more resilient our buildings become, the more resilient our communities can be.
Now more than ever, we have an opportunity to re-evaluate our building systems and create more robust infrastructure capable of responding to new challenges. Whether in the context of public health or climate change, prevention is better than cure4. It is more economical and safer to reduce our environmental footprint today rather than to figure out how to deal with the consequences of our inaction. We each have a role to play. We are grateful to be part of an industry with a long history of innovation and problem-solving, through collaboration and harnessing our collective wisdom and insight.
Learning together
Have you experienced a renewed interest in increasing the adaptability and bolstering the resiliency of your systems?
We invite you to add your insights here and grow this conversation so that we can learn together.
Prism Embraces Quality Management Standards
Stephen Kooiman, Mechanical Team Leader at Prism Engineering, shares his thoughts on how company-wide quality management helps ensure quality is consistently applied across all Prism projects in the 2020 March/April issue of the INNOVATION magazine produced by Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia.
Excerpt:
FIRMS EMBRACE QUALITY MANAGEMENT STANDARDS
Alison MacLeod, P.Eng., of MacLeod Nine Consultants, Ltd.—a structural engineering consulting firm in the heart of picturesque Rossland, BC—says the quality management systems that her firm committed to through Engineers and Geoscientists BC’s Organization Quality Management (OQM) program is a way for her to raise the quality bar and help ensure she’s always delivering the best quality engineering for her clients.
“Engineering is all about planning, diligence, and documentation. [Quality standards] improves efficiency, and it’s good for projects. But it’s also good for my own confidence as an owner of a small company, that my firm meets or exceeds professional obligations,” she said.
The OQM Program is a voluntary certification program created by Engineers and Geoscientists BC that enables companies to demonstrate that they meet the quality management standards expected for professional engineers and geoscientists. Engineers and Geoscientists BC recently certified its 400th firm. To MacLeod, certification is assurance that she’s following top quality management practices, “I just I want to deliver the best quality product to my clients,” she says.
The voluntary OQM program for firms is serving as excellent groundwork for the quality management pillar of the forthcoming mandatory regulation of firms, as outlined in the new Professional Governance Act. Engineers and Geoscientists BC formed a task force on the regulation of firms, which proposed a model that includes three pillars: quality management, ethics, and professional development. The current OQM requirements will form the quality management pillar.
The current target date for implementation of this portion of the new Act is the summer of 2021.
To Stephen Kooiman, P.Eng., Principal and Mechanical Team Leader at Prism Engineering—a Burnaby-based firm that specializes in energy management, electrical and mechanical engineering, utility monitoring and sustainability consulting—OQM-style quality management is about instilling confidence in the quality of Prism’s work. “It’s like a commitment to owners that we’re serious about doing a good job,” he said. “We’re abiding by Engineers and Geoscientists BC standards, and not doing shortcuts based on price or speed.”
Kooiman says that company-wide quality management helps ensure quality is consistently applied across Prism projects. “Before, it was up to individual engineers,” he said, adding that consistency in this area means that staff can quickly onboard to almost any project at any time. “It definitely standardized [quality] across the company. Formalizing this was the biggest benefit, so everyone has a clear understanding, how we interpret the standards and what the expectation is.”
For more information on the upcoming requirements for the regulation of firms, visit egbc.ca/regulation-of-firms.
COVID-19: Moving Forward
*Photo credit: Dylan Passmore/Flickr – Stanley Park, Vancouver, April 12, 2020
Living through an unprecedented pandemic means rising to the challenge, adapting to the unexpected, and hoping for the best for many of our team members. We asked a few Prism colleagues to share their thoughts on what they think will be different going forward.
“”I think everyone’s communication game will step up! In order to work effectively, we need to be clearer and more concise. I find myself being more intentional with my interactions these days. The implications of better communication and proven effectiveness while working remotely will hopefully lead to more flexible work options in the long-term. The flexibility can greatly reduce stress and improve productivity.””
–Lizz Hodgson, Energy Management Engineer (EIT)
“Organizations might be more likely to encourage working remotely as we all adapt and grow accustomed to meetings that can be held virtually. I am really hoping this doesn’t affect the personal relationships we cherish with our friends, families and colleagues. I look forward to enjoying gatherings and celebrations once again after the worst is behind us.”
–Hamid Samani, Senior Mechanical Engineer
“There has been many challenges and much uncertainty over the last month for us, but it’s also been an opportunity for us to explore new, and hopefully, better ways of doing things. We’ve been streamlining internal office processes, experimenting with new ways of delivering services and thinking creatively about how we can help our clients navigate the current situation.
Thinking more broadly, I’m hoping that as a society we can use some of the lessons we are learning from this current global emergency and apply them to the next global challenge we need to face together: climate change. This could be a critical turning point for us to make the sometimes-uncomfortable-changes that are needed.”
–Sarah Smith, Sustainability Team Leader
BOMA e-Energy Training for Alberta Residents
BOMA’s eEnergy Training course offers opportunities for building operations staff to learn how to achieve savings in both building operations and capital projects. Users have reported feeling more confident in their ability to support an energy efficiency program and gave high ratings on the quality of technical support as well as ease in navigating the content.
More information about the BOMA eEnergy Training course is available here.
Until March 31st, 2020, Energy Efficiency Alberta is offering up to 30% on BOMA e-Energy Training course costs of $750.
How it works:
- Any Alberta resident is eligible for Energy Efficiency Alberta’s training incentive. More details can be found on their Training page.
- BOMA eEnergy Training will issue the $150 rebate upon completion of the course.
- Employees of an E Pro Network member company are eligible for an additional 10% (email epro@efficiencyalberta.ca to receive the E Pro Network discount code).
Energy Managers Talk “Culture Change for Conservation” with Whistler Blackcomb
Inside the Rendezvous Lodge atop Blackcomb Mountain, Energy Managers from the BC Hydro Commercial Energy Manager Training program gathered to talk about organizational culture change. From discussing the importance of conservation culture to each participant’s successes and challenges, it was a full-day workshop hosted by Whistler Blackcomb (WB), BC Hydro and Prism Engineering that took place last September.
About Whistler Blackcomb
WB has been long considered a leader in sustainability, with a goal of Zero Operating Footprint since 2008. It’s a vision that would not be possible without the leadership of Arthur De Jong (Senior Manager of Planning and Environment) and Allana Williams (Senior Manager of Energy Planning and Sustainability), an engaged employee base, and an organizational culture that believes in the importance of waste reduction and energy conservation.
In 2016, WB was acquired by Vail Resorts and adopted their Epic Promise; a pledge for zero net emissions, zero waste to landfill and zero net operating impact on forests and habitat. The vision is modelled on Whistler Blackcomb’s original objectives but with one significant distinction: a target for the year 2030.
Allana’s Journey
It all started with a ski holiday when Allana noticed that there wasn’t a recycling program at WB. She connected with Arthur and offered to perform waste audits in exchange for lift tickets. It was the perfect opportunity for Allana to combine her interest in business with her passion for sustainability and her love of the outdoors. After four years of sorting garbage, Allana saved enough on garbage fees to create her position as Environmental Coordinator.
Waste reduction became a way for Allana to get her foot in the door as it was highly visible and easy for everybody to get involved in. From there, her enthusiasm spread and WB reduced their waste to landfill by 72% from a 2000 baseline. These visible efforts led to the “invisible” opportunities and Allana soon discovered the potential savings of energy management after connecting with her colleagues.
Results
With organizational-level support, strategic energy management services were enlisted, and a plan was formulated to meet the resort’s energy management goals. Energy audits revealed opportunities for enhancements at the various lodges and operations. These included: heating systems redesigns, lighting upgrades and retrofits, variable flow pumping, and HVAC and lighting control optimization. The resort has saved more than 4.6 GWh of electricity per year as a result of these initiatives.
The resort continues to manage several programs to reduce its GHG emissions and energy use by including the introduction of an idling policy, lower-emission snowmobiles, electric vehicles and charging stations. WB is also testing hybrid snow grooming equipment, managing a popular White-Bike shared-use bicycle program and a longstanding carpool program with over 65 poolers using eight company vehicles.
Furthermore, the Epic Promise is now entrenched in decision-making processes at the executive level. Strategic partnership agreements do not get signed without reviewing this component on sustainability.
Key Learnings
These were some of the key learnings Allana revealed during the day-long workshop*:
- Make communication a key priority. This is twofold: 1) communicate effectively to employees about specific actions to take and also 2) gather feedback from stakeholders in a way that will encourage them to provide meaningful insights
- WB did this through focus groups and realized there was little awareness of their sustainability initiatives; this was their cue to tweak their communication strategy.
- When stakeholders felt their voices were heard, it was very helpful for getting buy-in; they want to know what they can do and how they can take it to their departments.
- Track progress through specific measurements before, during and after an initiative.
- For every behavior that is encouraged, make sure to document the process so that the change is very visible and measurable. People will be motivated by the change they see.
- Form your team strategically
- Identify which functional areas within the organization can benefit from energy efficiency and collaborate with them. “We realized we wanted the same thing as the electricians and maintenance staff: less energy use and more efficient equipment and systems that require less maintenance.”
- Identity who your key influencers will be (often, this is not management) and get them on your team.
- Engage Management
- This will allow the entire organization to commit to goals, from target setting to capital and human resource distribution.
- Through the BC Hydro Energy Manager program, Allana was able to leverage a formal quarterly reporting structure which gave her visibility in front of the senior leadership team to gain traction and engagement at the executive level. “Once leadership caught on, it became contagious and everyone wanted to be a part of it.”
- Ensure the communication to leadership “speaks their language”; proposals should align to priorities and core values.
- Introduce people to the culture early
- WB incorporated sustainability into orientations for new and returning employees at the start of the season. The team made sure to tell the story of why we do the things we do.
- Sustainability ambassadors did a roadshow of customized presentations to all the departments to give each area an understanding of how they can make an impact.
- Weave sustainability into performance metrics for employees
- This ensures that everyone has a sustainability goal and success factors that they are being measured against.
“Over the past 20 years, we have collaborated with Prism on numerous projects including the development of a strategic energy management plan to technical upgrades of our mechanical and electrical systems to increase our energy efficiency. We have really benefited from Prism’s energy management and engagement expertise. Their partnership has kept us accountable and helped us develop a realistic, holistic plan on the path to fulfilling our Epic Promise.”
– Allana Williams
Click here to learn more about creating a culture of conservation.
*Contact us for a full transcript of our interview with Allana.
Kitsilano Community Centre Cuts Greenhouse Gas Emissions by Over 80% Using Ice Rink Heat Recovery
In 2015, the City of Vancouver enlisted Prism Engineering to conduct recommissioning investigation studies for six of their community centres, City of Vancouver’s top greenhouse gas emitters.
Kitsilano Community Centre is a popular neighbourhood recreational facility located in Vancouver. The multiplex facility incorporates a hockey rink, a gymnasium, a fitness centre, multipurpose community rooms, a whirlpool and offices. The recommissioning investigation and detailed energy study revealed measures to enhance HVAC efficiency, optimize operation, and also identified capital upgrades that had potential to reduce over 80% of the site’s emissions, which aligned with the City’s aggressive emission reduction targets.
In 2017, the City of Vancouver hired Prism to carry out a detailed design and specification to integrate heat recovery chillers (ammonia plant heat recovery) to transfer heat from the ice plant to the building’s HVAC and domestic hot water systems. The new recovery system was designed to be the primary heating system, with existing boilers reconfigured to feed supplementary heating into the source side only, in the event heating load exceeds ice plant heat rejection.
Optimizing Controls
The greatest challenge in projects with a similar configuration is in the control integration between the equipment’s manufacturer internal control and the central building automated system. Detailed specifications and coordination of the control systems integration, including specific settings integrated controllers, was the key to properly commissioning the system and achieving the expected performance.
Results
Commissioned in 2018, these measures have cut GHG emissions by over 80% and nearly eliminated the need for natural gas to heat the facility.
The above diagram represents savings to date (data was updated April 2020 to include all of 2019 savings). Higher greenhouse gas savings are anticipated once heat pump in the community centre gymnasium is in operation.
This project was recently featured in the Engineers and Geoscientists of BC’s spring issue of Innovation Magazine.