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Magnum York recently hosted a Zoom webinar with Dave Clarke and Jordon Helmer from Reggin Technical Services to discuss enhancing efficiency standards for reserve planning, flood mitigation, alarm systems and hot water conditioning.
Since 1931, Reggin has served the City of Calgary and surrounding areas as one of the largest multi-trade contractors. They provide excellent service, preventative maintenance, and project installation to multi-unit residential, commercial and industrial properties.
David Clarke joined the plumbing industry in 1992, departing to attend University studies and returning to the industry in late 1996. He came to Reggin with an impressive work record including his accomplishment of starting and running his own successful business.
David has extensive knowledge of building systems including Hydronics, System Design, Distribution Systems, Plumbing and Gas. David obtained journeyman certification in both Plumbing and Gas fitting in 2000. He prefers assessing issues from an overall systems perspective rather than only analyzing the individual components. His ability to look at a situation from both a macro and a micro perspective enhances his unique ability to provide effective solutions for our Reggin customers.
Jordon moved from hospitality to plumbing in 2014. He started in new build construction, moving to large retrofit conversations, and finally made his way to Reggin in 2018 to understand the service and maintenance aspect of the trade.
While in varied companies, the focus has always been multi-unit residential. Jordon overviews the chemical media department and is an estimator and project manager.
“We believe in building long term relationships with our clients, providing not just good customer service, but exceptional customer care, always providing a level of expertise that is up to date and second to none.”
Reggin Technical Services
Table of Contents
Water Loss Mitigation
When a water loss incident occurs, it can become a costly emergency for the corporation. The impact of recent inflation and the dynamic nature of the economic landscape in recent years has led to an increase in expenses related to water losses, which may encompass:
Net Insurance & Rebuild Increases
- Higher Insurance Premiums – 2021 and 2022 saw premiums increase in Alberta from 15% to 30% per annum.
- Underwriting has been challenged as carriers have over 100% loss ratio on condos due to weather (hail, flooding, fires), complex structures (multi-story losses, BBQ usage fires), low-interest rate environment before 2022/2023, as well as issues arising from homeowners completing their own home repairs.
- Rebuild costs and material increases – with larger purchases and tighter supply chains, the cost of materials increased drastically. The cost of materials still sits approximately 20% – 40% higher than the cost in 2020. Demand for materials in Calgary and Alberta has also increased with inter-provincial and international migration.
- Labour Cost Increases – fewer tradesmen are in the industry as well, there is a higher wage expectancy. Average wages have increased by 22% in the same period.
Technology Solutions – AKWA
We now have technology that can detect water losses that can:
- Identify leaks immediately.
- Notify when a leak is occurring.
- Immediately shut off the water source.
- Send an alarm as necessary.
Utilizing powered solenoids, Wifi (or LORA) and battery technology. Many are on the market but AKWA Technologies is a leader in the space, having prevented 25,303 water leak events, and saving over $320,000,000 in resultant damages.
AKWA is recognized by many leading insurance companies, with an opportunity to lower premium rates. Reggin has partnered with AKWA and has been part of the growing industry of water protection.
How does AKWA work?
Water Conditioning Vs. Water Softeners
Both systems are highly effective at reducing the impacts of hard water, yet each system has a unique operation that should be kept in mind.
Water Softeners
- Remove hard minerals from the water.
- Softened water has a small amount of sodium.
- The unit requires electricity and a drainage line.
- Salt must be periodically added to the system.
Water Conditioning
- Removes chlorine, chloramines, volatile organic compounds and other undesired contaminants altering the smell and taste of your water.
- Energy-efficient and doesn’t require a drain line.
- No brine or salt is required.
- Some water conditioners alter hard minerals so they don’t attach to surfaces and cause scaling.
What are the benefits and purpose of a water conditioner?
Technology Solutions – HydroFLOW
One water conditioning system is HydroFLOW which are industry leaders in sustainable water treatment solutions. The system induces a robust yet harmless signal of 150kHz throughout plumbing systems, causing the ions to bind and cluster to each other, rather than to the system piping.
An appropriately designed and installed water conditioning system will:
- Reduce maintenance costs.
- Reduce piping deterioration.
- Reduce service costs.
- Prolong component life.
- Greatly reduces bacterial growth.
- Reduce corrosion.
High Efficiency Standards
High-efficiency standards are changing such that government agencies and manufacturers are changing internal processes and production facilities. Efficiency, or Steady State Efficiency is the term used to measure how much fuel you burn to heat a building. Modern equipment should range from 85% to 95% efficiency. Older equipment may only provide 60% to 70% efficiency. High-efficiency systems reduce our carbon footprint by over 30% in carbon dioxide through a clean and controlled combustion process.
Beginning January 1, 2025, government-mandated changes will come into effect. Commercial gas boilers must have a minimum energy performance standard (MEPS) of 90% thermal efficiency. This is a significant increase from the previous minimum thermal efficiency of 83%. This means any new boiler manufactured after 2025, must be a condensing type for all installations, including retrofit.
Considering the above, substantial considerations must be made and planned for when it comes to reserve fund planning and budgeting for these expenditures. High-efficiency retrofits are superior in the capital and operational lifespan costs, but the capital expenses are higher upfront. As the government mandates these energy mandates, many manufacturers will no longer support manufacturing and replacement costs for these low-efficiency appliances.
Thank you!
Thank you to all those who attended this live webinar and to Dave and Jordon at Regging Technical Services! Be sure to keep an eye on future webinars by visiting https://magnumyork.com/webinar/. This concludes our webinar series for 2023 and we look forward to seeing you all in 2024.
Further Resources:
- Reggin Technical Services – https://reggin.ca/
- AKWA Technologies
- HydroFLOW
- Webinar Recap: Making the Most of Your Money – a Step-by-Step Guide to Condo Budgeting for Condo Boards
- Register for future webinars starting again in 2024- https://magnumyork.com/webinar/
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