“Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it” –  William Arthur Ward, inspirational author

Field trips and guest speakers have always made students young and old excited about a class. That’s no different in college. We have had many people from industry partner with the Civil Engineering Technology department in varied ways. We have had many past graduates speak to our first year students to help guide them through the maze of programs to choose from. We have had industry experts come to classes and lunch ‘n learns to share new ideas or to confirm the lessons in the classroom about construction, environment, and management. And we have had others provide jobsite tours to classes. All of these have had significant impacts on the students. The students return to class with renewed energy as to why they are in their program and they have a better idea of whether they should be in the office or the jobsite.

Here are some of the comments made by the students.

“I have quite a bit of background in construction but it was a very informative tour and I learned a lot. I think it is a great course in the A/E program to allow students to visit various job sites and learn what is going on. Our tour guide was very helpful and was good at answering our questions. I look forward to visiting many other job sites.”

“This is my first site visit in the construction field. I have five years’ experience doing drafting job. But I never get any chance to go to job site. This job site visit make me little confident regarding the construction. Now I can relate theoretical drafting and practical construction.”

“I don’t have any construction background prior to coming to Red River so getting to see a project start and finish is quiet interesting to me.”

“I enjoyed this site visit simply because it was my first time being in a real construction job site. It was interesting to see how interior wall assembly’s support systems are made. It was also interesting to hear what the site supervisor had to say about the project and how concerned he was about creating a safe environment.”

“I have been on site trips during my previous course in BC but they were mostly residential single family dwellings and no one from the company doing the construction gave us a tour. Having someone from the company that is in charge of the project gives you a better understanding of what is actually occurring on site at that stage of construction and the reasons behind certain aspects of the structure.”

“Being on an ongoing jobsite was very interesting. I learned a lot of things compared to sitting in class and listening rather than being on a real construction project and being observant. This experience helped me pursue my current program even more.”

There are so many to acknowledge and we will focus on the tour guides this time.  Over the years, we have visited sites of most of the builders. If I should miss a few, I truly apologize. It takes a lot to provide the tours and the time and energy involved does not go unnoticed. The ability to take the hour or two for the tours can be challenge. And over the years with the safety protocols increasing, it has not waivered the enthusiasm to have the students come on site. We thank you all very much.

Past Tour Providers (click on the name to link to their website)

• Thomas Design Builders Ltd
• Manshield Construction
• PCL Construction
• Ernst Hansch Construction Ltd
• Parkwest Projects Ltd
• Bird Construction
• FWS Group
• Milestone Project Management
• LaFarge

2014 Tour Providers (click on the name to link to their website)

• Concord Projects
• Stuart Olson
• Bockstael
• All-Fab Building Components

Thank you to all of you.

“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” – Benjamin Franklin, statesman, inventor, writer

This can be confusing for many graduates. For the graduates of the Civil Engineering Technology department, there many reasons for it. The Construction Management degree students actually did not have an official set of letters specified for their degree. The Civil Engineering Technology diploma students have a department acronym the same as their main credentialing association’s credential, CET.

Construction Management Graduates

It became official this week that your credential upon graduation is BTech (Const Mgmt). You are able to add that to your resume, business cards, email signoff, and fancy official letterhead once you have your parchment. For those unaware, the Construction Management degree program is a Bachelor of technology program with a major focus on construction management, hence, the credential, BTech.

Civil Engineering Technology Graduates (3 year diploma programs)

Many have mistaken CET to represent graduation from the Civil Eng Tech department but, in fact, that is not correct. CET represents recognition and membership to the Certified Technologist and Technicians Association of Manitoba (CTTAM). Graduates are granted the credential of CET after meeting the criteria set by CTTAM. The criteria includes CTTAM membership, graduation from an accredited post-secondary program, successfully completing an ethics exam, and having a minimum of two years of work experience in your field of study and at a technologist level. For more information on the CTTAM certification criteria, you can visit the CTTAM site, http://www.cttam.com/site/certification?nav=02 .

It’s already Day 3 for the first year students of the Civil Engineering Technology, Construction Management, and the GIS students. Many of you can remember the anxiety of finding your way around the college, getting to know your classmates and instructors, and wondering if you were in the right program. Do you remember that first week of classes? The orientation day in the South Gym was yesterday, today is the first full day of classes and tomorrow is the GST and Math Diagnostic.

Every Fall students will have the grandest of intensions – diligent study practices, monk-like social habits, and excellent grades but it soon fades. As much as they know what they should do and what their instructors suggest, not much is taken to heart. BUT maybe if the students heard it from those that have lived it, maybe then they would be more inclined to hang on to those suggestions.

I invite the graduates of our programs to share their experiences and advice. What do you wish you did differently? What advice did you hear and wish you had followed? Please share all of this along with when and what program that you graduated from. If you would like, tell us your career path so that students may see some of the diverse options that are out there.

“There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.” – Colin Powell

Congratulations to Our Civil Engineering Technology Grads!!

Convocation on June 3, 2014 was a great evening. We saw over 150 students from the various Civil Engineering Technology programs cross the stage receiving their well-deserved diplomas and degrees. The evening was filled with pride from parents, faculty, and most of all, the students, themselves. They recognized that the hardships that they endured during their schooling were behind them. The hard work and success had brought them to this point and that this graduation will take them to their chosen careers. The majority of the students were employed already and excited to use what they have learned in their corner of the industry of design, construction, and maintenance of the built environment.

The Civil Engineering Technology diploma students may not have remembered that only two or three years earlier they were contemplating which program to select as they progressed into their second year of studies. Many at the time were divided between two or three options. To help with this, the department put on the annual Program Information Day where we have graduates and employees join instructors to provide insight on what students will experience in their future studies and to describe the employment experiences and progress opportunities in the specific programs.

This year, we recorded these presentations to allow students to revisit them and to provide potential students and others the opportunity for better understanding of our Civil Engineering Technology programs.

Perhaps in years to come, we will have the pleasure of congratulating you at convocation. …

Please follow the links for more information on the programs that interest you.

Architectural/Engineering Technology video

Building Design Technology video

Environmental Technology video
(Please note that the video does continue after our Dean, Nancy Wheatley’s address)

Geomatics Technology video

Municipal Engineering Technology video

Structural Engineering Technology video

This 32 month program focuses on the design and construction process of municipal infrastructure. Graduates from Municipal Engineering Technology have the opportunity to continue their education into Year 3 of the Bachelor of Technology, Construction Management program here at Red River College or pursue their Civil Engineering degree at Lakehead University (additional conditions apply).

Municipal Engineering Technology video

Municipal Engineering Technology program information

This 32 month program focuses on technologies used for geospatial data collection, analysis, and reproduction for mapping sciences, land development, environmental management, and construction. Graduates have the opportunity to pursue a career in land surveying or working with engineering consultants.

Geomatics Technology video

Geomatics Technology program information

This 32 month program focuses on the environmental effects and their management systems of our built environment and activities from water quality and treatment to waste management to environmental analysis and management. Graduates from Environmental Technology can continue their education into the joint diploma/degree program with the U of W’s Environmental Sciences faculty.

Environmental Technology video
(Please note that the video does continue after our Dean, Nancy Wheatley’s address)

Environmental Technology program information

This 20 month program focuses on the production of construction documents and the project administration. Graduates from Building Design Technology can continue their education into Year 2 the Bachelor of Technology, Construction Management program here at Red River College (additional conditions apply).

Building Design Technology video

Building Design Technology program information

This 32 month program focuses on the various building systems and the administration of building projects. Graduates from Architectural / Engineering Technology have the opportunity to continue their education into Year 3 of the Bachelor of Technology, Construction Management program here at Red River College (additional conditions apply).

Architectural/Engineering Technology video

Architectural/Engineering Technology program information

As we complete our academic year for 2013/2014, the Civil staff are realizing all that has been accomplished over the past year. Plenty of hard work, devotion to student success, and drive to provide opportunities for the students’ careers has always been the norm for the Civil staff. This year, however, we see many more rewards for our efforts.

• With the support of many students, the instructors and administration worked to change the name of two of the Civil programs to better describe the education and skill set they provided.
  • The Environmental Protection Technology program has now been renamed Environmental Technology.
  • The Building Design CAD Technology program has now been renamed Building Design Technology.
• June, 2013 saw the first graduating class of the Bachelor of Technology, Construction Management (CMD). These students were Civil diploma graduates who entered in Year 3 of the program.
• June, 2014 will see the inaugural class of students graduate in the Bachelor of Technology, Construction Management (CMD). These students entered Year 1 four years ago when the program first began.
•  A team of third year CMD students tied for first place in the Construction Institute of Canada’s 2014 Student Bid Competition in the “Most Professional” category.
• The Civil First Year class known as January Intake will be no longer. This seventh class (C7) will now join the other six classes of Civil First Years beginning this fall.
• Two Environmental Technology students completed an applied research project which evaluated two innovative wastewater treatment technologies on a Manitoba First Nation community. This was part of a feasibility study for establishing a Water Education and Technology Center at RRC.
• Water and Wastewater school:  2014 marked the transfer of responsibility for running the annual school from the Continuing Education Department to the Civil Engineering Technology Department.

This is only a glimpse of the activities, accomplishments, and changes that are happening in the Civil Engineering Department. Over time we will be sharing even more through future posts. We would  like to invite graduates and industry to offer articles and items to share.