Canstruction® Vancouver Launched - Engineers versus Architects: A Professional Food Fight?
January 9 marked the official launch of Canstruction® Vancouver with a reception at the Architectural Institute of BC’s downtown Vancouver office. Previous Canstruction® teams, corporate sponsors, the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society and prospective players were in attendance. Representing APEGBC on behalf of the Engineers were Ross Rettie, P.Eng., Director of Professional Practice, and past Councillor Andy Mill, P.Eng., Struct. Eng. Formal remarks included some friendly banter between Past President of the Architectural Institute Stuart Howard MAIBC and Andy Mill.
Canstruction® is an international design/build competition of sculptures made entirely out of non-perishable food. In its fifth year, Canstruction® Vancouver features the colourful, whimsical structures created by local engineers, architects, designers and students artfully using the labels and packaging of food in structures with up to 3,000 cans.
The Engineers versus Architects challenge is the first-ever friendly duel between the professions to determine which profession can turn out the most teams and win the most prizes.
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| APEGBC's Andy Mill, P.Eng. Struct. Eng. (left) trades friendly barbs with AIBC's Stuart Howard MAIBC at the launch of Canstruction® Vancouver. |
“While we expect a strong finish from the Engineers and a very likely victory in the challenge, the real winner is the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society,” said Mill. To date, Canstruction® Vancouver has raised almost a half-million cans of food for the local food bank.
This year’s competition build is set for March 3, 2007, with a free, public exhibition March 4 - 11 from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm, at the Cruise Ship Terminal at Canada Place in Vancouver. The competition takes place during a relatively slow month for the food bank, and once the “Canstructions” are deconstructed, the cans then go on to line the shelves of the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society.
As a parting shot to the Architects, Mill joked, “As usual, the engineers will take care of the important things like the mechanical systems and the structure and then we hand it over to you [the architects] to do the envelope.”
Corporate teams are being actively recruited to participate in this worthwhile competition. Even though BC economy is keeping most APEGBC members extremely busy, the team-building, camaraderie and organizational spirit gleaned from this event far outweigh the time commitment, said Margo Paris, Chair of Canstruction® Vancouver 2007. There are more ways to participate in the challenge: sponsorship and volunteer opportunities are available. Branches outside of the lower mainland that would like to participate in the competition in their local area are asked to call Andria Ink for further information at 604-412-4861.
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| From left: Joe Hoy and Conrad Tench, EIT of Levelton Consultants present their Canstruction® team entry fee to Doug Aason, Director of Community Investment, Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society. |
The Engineers are still in the lead in terms of number of teams entered. The following corporate teams are congratulated on their early entry into the competition:
AMEC, Fluor Corporation, Kerr Wood Leidal Associates, Levelton Consultants and Stantec.
APEGBC President Tim Smith, P.Geo., Eng.L. will be on this year’s judging panel for Canstruction® Vancouver. Jurors will be awarding 6 national and 6 local awards to Vancouver competition teams, in categories such as “Jurors’ Favourite,” “Structural Ingenuity,” “Best Meal,” and “Best Use of Labels.” Photos of the national winners are forwarded to the international competition where judges choose an overall winner in each category from among the 70 Canstruction ® cities across North America. See www.canstruction.com for a list of participating cities.
Please note these key dates:
| February 8, 2007 | Captains’ School , a fun-filled information night for team leaders providing tips, techniques and building methodology. Hosted at the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society Max 2 members per team 5:30 to 8:00 pm. |
| February 16, 2007 | Final Team Entry deadline |
| March 2, 2007 |
Competition Build at the Cruise Ship Terminal at Canada Place 2 pm to midnight. |
| March 3, 2007 | Competition Build continues 6 am to 12:00 noon. Judging of entries and award presentations at 2:00 pm |
| March 4-11, 2007 | Exhibit Open to the Public – free admission event |
| March 11, 2007 | Closing Ceremonies & De-Canstruction at 5:00 pm |