Canada Post Mail Publications Agreement Number: 40609661 MagazineMagazine The official The official magazine of magazine of the Canadian the Canadian Association of Association of Diving ContractorsDiving Contractors CADCCADC Winter 2020-2021Winter 2020-2021 The Challenges of Operating in The Challenges of Operating in a COVID-19 Environmenta COVID-19 Environment PROBLEMS & SOLUTIONS:PROBLEMS & SOLUTIONS:The Canadian Association of Diving Contractors 5 ON THE COVER: Staying open through the pandemic without interruption when COVID-19 hit early last year forced many dive schools and operations to change standard training, daily protocols, and policies on the fly as they navigated several months of uncertainty. Go to page 16 to read more about how commercial dive companies and schools faced problems and came up with successful solutions for operating in a COVID-19 environment. PHOTO CREDIT: Vern Johnston, Commercial Diving Institute of Canada contents UP FRONT 7 A Message from the President of the CADC 9 Notes from the Executive Director of the CADC 11 Why You Should Be a Part of the CADC 13 Become a Member ON THE COVER 16 Problems & Solutions: The Challenges of Operating in a COVID-19 Environment FEATURE STORIES 23 Dealing with Dive School Closures During Quarantine 27 The Impact of COVID-19: Changes in Process & Allowances for Certification, Training & Logbooks CADC MEMBER SPOTLIGHT 29 Canada Pump & Power: Superb Planning, Technical Knowledge & Quality Solutions IMAGES OF INNOVATION 31 Our Members at Work NEWS 32 CADC Membership Listings 34 Index to Advertisers CADC Magazine Published for: The Canadian Association of Diving Contractors 33 – 5490 Glen Erin Drive Mississauga, Ontario L5M 5R4 Doug Elsey, P.Eng., Executive Director Phone: (905) 542-7410 delsey@cadc.ca www.cadc.ca Printed by: Matrix Group Publishing Inc. 309 Youville Street, Winnipeg, MB R2H 2S9 Toll-free: (866) 999-1299 Toll-free fax: (866) 244-2544 sales@matrixgroupinc.net www.matrixgroupinc.net Canada Post Mail Publications Agreement Number: 40609661 President & CEO Jack Andress Operations Manager Shoshana Weinberg sweinberg@matrixgroupinc.net Publishers Jessica Potter, Julie Welsh Editor-in-Chief Shannon Savory ssavory@matrixgroupinc.net Senior Editor Alexandra Kozub akozub@matrixgroupinc.net Editor Jenna Collignon Finance/Administration Lloyd Weinberg, Nathan Redekop accounting@matrixgroupinc.net Director of Circulation & Distribution Lloyd Weinberg distribution@matrixgroupinc.net Sales Manager – Winnipeg Neil Gottfred Sales Manager – Hamilton Jeff Cash Sales Team Leader Colleen Bell Matrix Group Publishing Inc. Account Executives Andrew Lee, Bonnie Petrovsky (in memoriam), Brian MacIntyre, Cheryl Klassen, Frank Kenyeres, Jim Hamilton, Rob Gibson, Sandra Kirby, Tanina Di Piazza, Tenisha Myke Advertising Design James Robinson Layout & Design Kayti Taylor ©2020-2021 Matrix Group Publishing Inc. All rights reserved. Contents may not be reproduced by any means, in whole or in part, without the prior written permission of the publisher. The opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of Matrix Group Publishing Inc. Printed in Canada.The Canadian Association of Diving Contractors 7 up front A Message from the President of the CADC Dave Geddes, CADC President In the closing days of 2020, we are finally getting a glimpse of the bright light that represents the beginning of the end of the global upheaval caused by the COVID-19 coronavirus. This nasty virus has held the world hostage for nearly a year, causing untold economic and human loss. However, as I write this message and the sun sets on 2020, we are finally beginning to see the long-awaited approval of at least four different brands of vaccines. The preparations required to deliver these vaccines to the millions of citizens nationally and, indeed, around the world, have been developed and dry runs have been completed. At the time of this writing, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, and many other provinces are experiencing record numbers of new infections, with some approaching 2,000 new cases per day. Prince Edward Island has initiated new restrictions to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Quebec continues to battle with the catastrophic virus that has resulted in so much heartache and loss. Initial vaccinations are expected to start as early as mid-December and will continue into the new year. With a population of more than 39 million people, it’s expected to take the majority of 2021 to complete the vaccination program. The diving community met the challenges of COVID-19 head-on. In March, when we first began to realize the incredible impact the virus was going to have, many companies developed procedures to protect their workers from contracting this stubbornly resilient virus. This included providing masks and face shields to tenders, wearing protective gloves, and providing adequate washing facilities for the dive crew. In addition, procedures were developed to clean and prepare diving equipment. Manufacturers and trade organizations such as the Association of Diving Contractors Inc., the Canadian Association of Diving Contractors, and the International Marine Contractors Association assisted the diving community in developing acceptable procedures to be used on the dive site to assist the contactor in protecting workers in the close confines of the dive work site. These actions, mostly developed by you, our members who are reading this magazine, are what kept our industry working throughout the duration of the pandemic, and we must continue these practices to ensure the safety of our workers. The bottom line, though, is that we’re not out of the woods yet! We must continue to protect our workers, and, although we are making progress in our fight against this virus, we cannot let our guard down. Practicing and respecting local guidelines, like physical distancing, frequent hand washing, and wearing the appropriate PPE as required, will go a long way in our continued struggle to stop the spread of COVID-19. As I said in my last article, “It’s not whether we’ll overcome this difficult time, but when .” Keep those words in mind over the coming months. While it may seem dire at times, the light on the other side is becoming brighter. It’s only a matter of time. The bottom line, though, is that we’re not out of the woods yet! We must continue to protect our workers… we cannot let our guard down. Practicing and respecting local guidelines…will go a long way in our continued struggle to stop the spread of COVID-19.The Canadian Association of Diving Contractors 9 up front Notes from the Executive Director of the CADC Doug Elsey, P.Eng. CADC Executive Director PHOTO CREDIT: DougElsey.com As this is being written, we have entered the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our industry—the provision of commercial underwater servicing—has been deemed an essential service in nearly all jurisdictions across North America. We are in the middle of it. We are on the front lines. From diver training and certification, to the working diver on the end of the hose, all sectors and phases in our industry have met their challenges— and they’ve innovated in several ways to survive and thrive through this pandemic. Diver training was immediately impacted, as all schools were ordered to shut down. The halt included dive schools, both private and publicly owned. Some of the private diving schools weren’t prepared for online leaning. It was new to them. And—unlike the publicly owned schools—they, in some cases, didn’t have the resources or infrastructure to teach online. Publicly owned schools were “shackled” by government mandates—and the bureaucracy that come with those mandates. However, both types of schools pivoted, adapting and innovating as the situation unfolded across the country. Read Dealing with Dive School Closures During Quarantine on page 23 to learn more about the challenges dive schools faced and to see what they did about it. Divers are resourceful. Diver certification organizations such as the Diver Certification Board of Canada had to dig deep to ensure schools were teaching to meet certification to CSA Diver Competency Standard Z275.4 . Flip to page 27 to read The Impact of COVID-19: Changes in Process & Allowances for Certification, Training & Logbooks , which looks at the challenges they faced regarding certification. On the actual operations front, dive service companies—deemed essential services—had to quickly adapt their operations to comply with COVID-19 health and safety protocol mandated by various provincial and federal jurisdictions. In some cases, jurisdictions imposed travel restrictions regionally and interprovincially in an attempt to curtail the spread of the disease. Travel between some provinces became restrictive. The “Atlantic Bubble,” consisting of the provinces of New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland & Labrador, formed quickly to limit outside access to their combined borders. Quebec set up roadblocks to limit ground access from Ontario. Read about the challenges faced by dive service providers, and how they addressed those challenges, in Problems & Solutions: The Challenges of Operating in a COVID-19 Environment on page 16. Our member spotlight in this issue shines on Canada Pump & Power, which offers its clients superb planning, technical knowledge and quality solutions to stringent international standards. Turn to page 29 to learn more about the company and why they value their CADC membership. On page 31, photos of our members at work show, among day to day operations, the interesting, new ways of working to comply with COVID-19 restrictions and safety protocols. Despite the sometimes almost-insurmountable challenges and economic impacts the coronavirus has had on our country and around the world, one thing is certain. Our industry is attuned to working in a hostile environment. It is what we do, and what we will continue to do. It’s what we’ve always done. Survey the situation. Make a plan. Suit up—and get after it. Failure is not something divers tolerate well—nor does the client. Get the job done, and get it done safely. Our challenge has always been to figure it out. There is no other option. And while we do our jobs, others are hard at it, too. Health professionals are hard at work and vaccines are on the way. Everyone has to job to do and everyone has an obligation to do their part to make it all work. Be safe. Stay safe. We’ve got this. From diver training and certification, to the working diver on the end of the hose, all sectors and phases in our industry have met their challenges—and they’ve innovated in several ways to survive and thrive through this pandemic.Next >