Standards · Design principles · Professional development · Practical applications · 7 Things Every BC Engineer Must Know About the EGBC Retaining Wall Guidelines

When a new set of professional practice guidelines drops, our first thought isn’t always, “Great, more reading!” But when it comes to retaining walls in British Columbia, ignoring the rulebook isn’t an option. These aren’t just gentle suggestions; they are the standard of practice we, as Registrants of Engineers and Geoscientists BC, are required to have regard for.

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Standards · Design principles · Practical applications · Professional development · Decoding the NBCC Wind Commentary

Let’s be honest, NBCC Part 4 can be dense. When you get to wind loads in Section 4.1.7, it’s a flurry of equations, factors, and tables. You know the rules are in there, but what about the ‘why’? Why is the gust factor 2.0 for the main system but 2.5 for cladding? When do you really need to jump from the Static to the Dynamic Procedure?

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Standards · Design principles · Practical applications · Unpacking the Key Wind Design Changes in NBCC 2020

Another code cycle, another round of changes to get our heads around. Just when you think you’ve got your spreadsheets perfected, the new National Building Code of Canada (NBCC) lands on your desk. While the 2020 edition brought updates across the board, the wind load provisions in Subsection 4.1.7. have some particularly noteworthy changes that are already impacting our designs.

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Standards · Design principles · Practical applications · A Structural Engineer’s Guide to the Journey of Snow

Here we go again. The first heavy, wet snow of the season is plastering everything in sight, and you get that familiar call from an architect. “We’re looking at a large, flat roof on this new project. What kind of snow load do we need?”

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Standards · Design principles · Practical applications · Industry insights · A Practical Guide to NBCC 2020 Snow Loads on Modern Roofs

Solar panels, architectural sunshades, and complex multi-level rooflines are no longer the exception; they’re the norm in modern Canadian building design. While they score points for energy efficiency and visual appeal, they also create a minefield of unexpected snow and ice loads for structural engineers.

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Standards · Design principles · Practical applications · 5 Live Load Nuances in the NBCC Commentary

We’ve all been there. It’s late, you’re deep into a design, and you’re staring at the National Building Code, wondering if you’ve caught every little detail. The NBCC is a dense document, and its companion, the Structural Commentaries, is packed with the “why” behind the rules. It’s in those commentaries that we find the nuances that can make or break a design, or at least save us a headache during a plan check.

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