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This fall members are being asked to ratify three bylaw amendments. They are:
Bylaw 9(b) – Accounts, financial statements and audit
Bylaw 10(c) – Non-Practising Member
Bylaw 14(b) – Quality Management
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Bylaw 9(b) – Accounts, financial statements and audit
The current Bylaw 9(b) requires the auditor’s report, financial statements and a report of the executive director as to the state of the affairs of the association to be sent to all members at least 15 days prior to the annual meeting. Currently the Association carries out the requirement of the bylaw by posting a copy of the annual report on the website and sending a link to the report by e-mail to all members who have provided the Association with an email address and by a sending a hard copy of the report to registered members who have not provided an email address. Any member may also request a hard copy of the report if they prefer to receive it in that format.
Currently over 2,500 reports are printed and mailed each year due to the obligation to “send” a copy to each registered member. With the technological advances that have occurred since this bylaw was first written, it is now possible for members to easily access the report without the need for a copy to be sent directly to them. Council is therefore seeking amendment of the bylaw to remove the obligation to send a copy to each member and instead to make the report available within the prescribed timeframe so that those who wish to access it can do so.
Should the bylaw be approved, members will still be advised via e-mail and through Innovation magazine of the availability of the electronic copy of the annual report, and print copies will continue to be made available to those members who request them. It is expected that this change in process will require far fewer annual reports to be printed and mailed; resulting in significant cost savings for the Association.
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| 9(b) |
The financial year shall be July 1 to June 30. Financial statements shall be drawn up annually for the year ending June 30 and such financial statements, together with the books of the association, shall be audited annually by an accountant appointed by the members. A report duly signed by such auditor shall be presented to the members, and council shall cause such report, together with the financial statements of the association, to be sent made available to all registered members at least 15 days prior to the annual meeting. These reports shall be accompanied by a report of the executive director as to the state of the affairs of the association. |
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| 9(b) |
The financial year shall be July 1 to June 30. Financial statements shall be drawn up annually for the year ending June 30 and such financial statements, together with the books of the association, shall be audited annually by an accountant appointed by the members. A report duly signed by such auditor shall be presented to the members, and council shall cause such report, together with the financial statements of the association, to be made available to all registered members at least 15 days prior to the annual meeting. These reports shall be accompanied by a report of the executive director as to the state of the affairs of the association. |
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Bylaw10(c) – Non-Practising Member
Currently Bylaw 10(c) requires all members who earn income from employment or self-employment to retain their practising status regardless of whether they still practise professional engineering or professional geoscience. Council has approved changes to this bylaw to allow those who earn income from employment or self employment to move to non-practising status as long as they do not practise professional engineering or professional geoscience. Member ratification is being sought for these amendments.
The following benefits will be realized from allowing those who no longer practise professional engineering or professional geoscience to obtain non-practising status:
- Automatic exclusion from quality assurance programs such as practice review and continuing professional development rather than requiring those who are employed, but not practising engineering or geoscience to demonstrate why these programs should not apply.
The decision to move to non-practising status will reside with the member should he/she meet the criteria of the amended bylaw. The current bylaw requires non-practising members to note their non-practising status when using their designation. The bylaw amendment will permit non-practising members to use the titles PEng and PGeo without the requirement to note “non-practising,” though these members will be identified as non-practising in the online searchable member directory. Non-practising members will also retain the right to vote and to hold elected office.
Further information on the reasons for this proposed bylaw change can be found in the July/August issue of Innovation (page 11) or by clicking at www.apeg.bc.ca/about/council/non_practisinginfo.html.
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| 10(c) |
Council may grant non-practising membership to a member who is in good standing and who |
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1) |
is out of the workforce with no income from employment or self-employment; and |
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2) |
commits in writing to Council not to engage in the practice of professional engineering or professional geoscience until released from the commitment by Council in writing. |
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Members granted non-practising status shall retain voting privileges. They may also use the title P.Eng. (Non-Practising) or P.Geo. (Non-Practising). Non-practising members who apply for practice practising status shall be required to pay the applicable fees set by Council and to demonstrate compliance with the current requirements in the Act and bylaws for registration as a member. |
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| 10(c) |
Council may grant non-practising membership to a member who is in good standing and who commits in writing to Council not to engage in the practice of professional engineering or professional geoscience until released from the commitment by Council in writing.
Members granted non-practising status shall retain voting privileges. Non-practising members who apply for practising status shall be required to pay the applicable fees set by Council and to demonstrate compliance with the current requirements in the Act and bylaws for registration as a member. |
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Bylaw14(b) – Quality Management
In April 1991, the APEGBC Special Review Committee, as one of the 12 recommendations responding to the Closkey Commission Inquiry Report on the 1988 Station Square Roof Collapse, recommended “that members and engineering firms shall establish a quality assurance program for their engineering practice.” Elements of the quality assurance program included that professional engineers maintain a complete design file, obtain a thorough review of designs and, in particular, a review of structural designs by a professional engineer not involved in the design, and that members ensure that field reviews of their projects are carried out by a member or licensee. Bylaw 14(b), Quality Management, was subsequently prepared and approved by membership ballot in the summer of 1992 and came into force on November 16, 1992.
Council is seeking member ratification of amendments to bylaw 14(b) to bring improved clarity to the use and application of the specific provisions. These amendments will:
- Detail the appropriate documentation that must be retained in a file relevant to a particular engineering or geoscience project;
- Specify regular, documented checks of all engineering and geoscience work, instead of being specific only to design;
- Confine the requirement to conduct field reviews to domestic projects; and
- Clarify the scope of the concept review of structural designs.
The following provides further detail on the above points:
Retention of Project Documentation – Under Bylaw 14(b)(1), members must retain complete design and review files for their projects for a minimum of 10 years. The concern is that the current bylaw is too specific to the retention of design and review files only; instead, it should recognize the importance of retaining in a file all the appropriate documentation that is relevant to a particular engineering or geoscience project.
In-house Checking – Bylaw 14(b)(2) specifies that members must include in-house checks of their designs as a standard procedure. The concern is that the bylaw should be broader in scope by reinforcing the importance of carrying out regular and documented checks of various products prepared or delivered by professional engineers and geoscientists in their professional capacity (e.g., reports, technical recommendations, professional opinions and assessments).
Concept Reviews of Structural Designs – Bylaw 14(b)(3) stipulates that concept reviews of structural designs must be performed by members or licensees not originally involved in the designs. The Structural Engineers Association of BC (SEABC) recommended that the current concept review bylaw be revised to clarify its intent, and that its general authority be made broader in scope so that a wide range of practice issues related to how independent structural reviews are completed can be more appropriately dealt with and clarified in a guideline document.
Field Reviews – Bylaw 14(b)(4) requires that field reviews of a project be performed by members or licensees. The main concern raised is that where BC engineers or geoscientists are involved in projects located outside Canada, in most instances there is no APEGBC member or licensee available to conduct the field reviews. This situation is not as much of an issue for engineering or geoscience projects located within Canada. As such, it is recommended that the bylaw wording specifically refer to field reviews of domestic projects.
Revisions to the existing quality management bylaws to address the issues identified above were drafted by a working group and reviewed by APEGBC practice committees: the Geoscience Committee, the Practice Review Committee, the Consulting Practice Committee, the Building Codes Committee, and the Building Envelope Committee.
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| 14(b) |
Members and licensees shall establish quality management processes for their practices which shall include, as a minimum; |
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1) |
retention of complete design and review files for their projects for a minimum period of 10 years; |
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2) |
in-house checks of their designs as a standard procedure; |
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3) |
concept reviews of their structural designs by members or licensees not originally involved in the designs; |
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4) |
field reviews, by members or licensees, of their projects during construction. |
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Concept reviews under (3) above shall be in addition to any checks which are undertaken under (2) above. These reviews shall evaluate the structural designs to determine if the structural concepts appear complete, consistent, and in general compliance with the appropriate codes. Representative samples of the individual elements shall be checked to evaluate the analysis, design and detailing procedures used by the design engineer. |
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| 14(b) |
Members and licensees shall establish and maintain documented quality management processes for their practices, which shall include, as a minimum: |
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1) |
retention of complete project documentation which may include, but is not limited to, correspondence, investigations, surveys, reports, data, background information, assessments, designs, specifications, field reviews, testing information, quality assurance documentation, and other engineering and geoscience documents for a minimum period of 10 years; |
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2) |
regular, documented checks of engineering and geoscience work using a written quality control process appropriate to the risk associated with the work; |
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3) |
documented field reviews by, or under the direct supervision of, members or licensees, of their domestic projects during implementation or construction; |
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4) |
documented independent review of structural designs prior to construction by members or licensees having appropriate experience in designing structures of a similar type and scale, and not involved in preparing the design. The reviewer shall examine representative samples of the structural assumptions, continuity of gravity and lateral load paths, stability and detailing. Where appropriate, the reviewer shall perform numerical calculations on a sample of gravity and lateral force resisting elements necessary to satisfy any reviewer concerns. The extent of the review shall be determined by the reviewer based on the progressive findings of the review. This review and any follow up action must be completed before the documents are issued for construction.
The independent review of structural designs shall evaluate the construction documents to determine if the structural systems appear complete, consistent, and in general compliance with applicable codes. The structural review may be part of, but is not intended to replace, the regular checks required in 14(b)(2).
Independent review of each instance of repetitive designs of individual structural components is not required, but documented initial independent review and independent review at intervals is required to confirm the maintenance of design quality. |
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Candidate statements and bylaw amendment information will not be available within the voting module. Please be sure to have your selections ready prior to entering the voting module. For security purposes, once you log-in to vote, you will have 30 minutes to make your selections before your log-in times out.
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