Training on New Canadian Construction Codes begins in December

The National Research Council of Canada is holding seminars in 16 cities across Canada beginning in December for engineers and others who need to know about the new Canadian construction codes. Engineers and other building designers in Canada face a wholly new set of National Building Codes that will affect all their building designs.
The new generation of construction codes was released this fall. They are radically different in format from previous codes, and contain 1,300 technical changes.
Produced by the Canadian Commission of Building and Fire Codes and published by the National Research Council of Canada, they include the National Building Code of Canada 2005, the National Fire Code of Canada 2005 and the National Plumbing Code of Canada 2005.
The first seminars on these fundamental changes will take place in Ottawa on December 5 and 6, followed by seminars in the Maritimes during January. For further dates, see Events, on Canadian Consulting Engineer’s website. The seminars will be delivered by technical advisors from the National Research Council of Canada’s Institute for Research in Construction.
The new codes include “performance based” options for the first time in Canada. This change required a fundamental reorganization and format. Each code is split into three divisions. Division A outlines the compliance options, objectives and functions that a building must meet. Technical requirements are linked to at least one of these objectives or functions.
In Division B is formatted in the more familiar manner, updated with technical changes.
Division C contains the administrative provisions.
The 1,200 technical changes include significant differences in the areas of structural design, HVAC, plumbing, and fire protection.
For example, in the 2005 National Fire Code, Part 2, Plenum Cables, a new requirement limits the amount of cable permitted in ceiling spaces to avoid the build up of redundant cables and limit combustible materials. Another significant change is in Section 4.12 affecting storage tanks and piping systems for flammable and combustible liquids. For example, double-walled underground tanks will now require continuous interstitial space monitoring.
In the National Plumbing Code, venting requirements have been harmonized across the various provinces in the new codes.
In the National Building Code, changes include the requirement for carbon monoxide alarms in all buildings that contain a residential occupancy as well as a garage or fuel burning appliance.
In Part 4, Structural Design, changes will affect the calculation of live loads, earthquake design, and working stress design. Dynamic analysis has been established as the default method for analyzing earthquake design for example, although provisions make allowance for the use of static analysis in many buildings.
The above are just a very few of the changes. For more details, see http://irc.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/ci.