New MOL Guidelines

As the city (Toronto) evolves and grows; tall buildings will continue to challenge the professional window washers and the Ministry of Labour (MOL).  In Toronto, (and throughout Ontario), buildings are becoming more complex and even taller.
 
These buildings are being designed with complex architectural features such as:

·       gardens, green roofs, and landscaping

·       glass railing balconies,

·       multiple roof levels,

·       podiums,

·       pools,

·       narrow roofs,

·       overhangs,

·       sloped roofs, and

·       terraces

 

features that make window washing and other suspended maintenance work challenging and hazardous.  These complex features have particularly interested the MOL.

 

The MOL has prepared new Guidelines for industry use (in the meantime until the Regulation is amended).   These guidelines are indented to make it easier for the industry to understand the Regulation and thereby facilitate compliance.   

 

However, the industry was hoping for clearer rules on how the MOL would address specific challenges such as:

 

·       using conventional ground rigged equipment, or

·       wind effects (on tall buildings). 

 

The new guidelines also failed to address what will be accepted by a MOL Inspector (though an Inspector is not obligated to apply these guidelines).

 

Please see the new window washing guidelines published on April 3, 2013 by the MOL: http://www.labour.gov.on.ca/english/hs/pubs/gl_windowcleaning.php

The Inspections Department

The Inspection/Testing/Engineering division of the Pro-Bel Group is an integral part of our company. Fall arrest anchors and other building access equipment are required to be inspected annually in accordance with manufacturer’s recommendations and the Ministry of Labour Act and Regulations.

Our mission in this department is two-fold:

Ø  To develop first hand experience and maintain an expert team of inspectors in this highly specialized field; thereby ensuring smooth information exchange that may affect liability or safety on buildings.

Ø  Also, the division must report on safety issues that may affect safety of the professional high-rise worker and the public.

In order to meet this mission statement the division pro-actively  promotes annual inspection programs which include deficiency inspections, compliance inspections and rigging inspections; all supported by the Ministry of Labour's input through their site inspections and published guidelines. This collaborative involvement allows the agency (MOL) and all contractors using the equipment to work more harmoniously, in a safe manner. 

The Inspection/Testing/Engineering division consists of dozens of professionals including trained inspectors, compliance specialists, testing technicians and professional engineers. The division also upgrades existing systems if needed, working closely with system designers and the operational teams as needed.

The Inspection/Testing/Engineering division also calls on the expertise of almost 150 skilled members of various divisions which may include AutoCAD designers, manufacturing and installation as required on a job to job basis.

Besides the general staff listed above, the Inspection/Testing/Engineering division includes and relies on five other major components:

1) The Chief Executive Officer is responsible for formulating policy and providing the Inspection/Testing/Engineering division with first hand compliance information. This executive direction is derived from the CEO’s experience dealing with the MOL; personally guiding the removal of stop work orders on buildings issued by the Ministry of Labour.  In addition to direct supervision, the CEO provides overall executive direction and broad administrative supervision for this division.

2) The compliance specialist in the Inspection/Testing/Engineering division reviews, routes, and tracks hazardous or potentially hazardous safety and structural conditions. The compliance specialist’s staff is on call to respond to stop work orders or other safety and rigging issues or emergencies. The compliance specialist can flag system conditions normally sited by MOL inspectors or other sources, such as building inspectors or technical auditors. The compliance specialist evaluates all conditions; including review of site conditions, drawings, inspectors’ reports and photographs of the roof and conditions. Subsequently, a “flag report packet” may be created; describing the type of upgrade or repair that may be needed. (This may also include changes to the certified drawings or may need a response MOL report for removal, review and approval.)

3) The in-house maintenance technicians and skilled installation personnel of the Inspection/Testing division perform repairs to address flagged conditions. Flagged repairs may include structural or other safety issues such as the repair of roof anchors, davit arms, safety tethers or locks, or other components damaged by corrosion or accident impact.  The maintenance and installation staff will perform the required corrective repair that will help to rehabilitate worn or defective components whose failure could affect long term service (such as heat shrink, mastic, cap flashings or remedial rust repair work).

 

4) The Professional Engineering and Design group provides technical expertise related to normal engineering practices and principals; including reviewing the structure, preparing calculations and writing job specific test prescriptions. The team also supplies invaluable engineering declarations for unsafe conditions that may affect the system. The Professional Engineering group member will make recommendations for immediate remediation, thereby assisting the compliance specialist in facilitating a proper solution. The Professional Engineering group also provides technical expertise related to the procurement and development of system design and product development, supporting various areas of the division, including supervision of installation and inspection services.

5) The Administration Management and Invoicing group provides essential administrative and inspection process support, including tracking of each activity within the division. The Senior Administration and Finance group oversees and administers all administrative functions for the division, acting as liaison with the inspectors and technicians including, but not limited to:

Ø  reviewing reports for completeness to ensure compliance and functionality is clear

Ø  reviewing lists of equipment to ensure they match  drawings for quality control purposes

Ø  tracking documents and publishing control documents to our web-based customer portal

Ø  monitoring staff and supervising repairs flagged by inspectors or compliance specialists

Ø  scheduling work performed by Pro-Bel installers or other contractors and producing mandated modification and repair reports on all activities

Ø  managing the status of each warranty claim and ensuring products are tracked and replaced through our Pro-Bel case system

Ø  ensuring all on-site inspections are preformed on time and that the field conditions are recorded

The Inspection/Testing/Engineering division management takes a pro-active approach in the educating of building owners and property managers, as well as the training of workers and contractors in the use of equipment to work safely on roofs.

This professional Inspection/Testing/Engineering group will ensure a smooth yearly inspection process. Each highly-specialized area is designed to address the essential services that are necessary to provide the expert service that our clients and industry expect.

In order to provide critical safety measures and due diligence on your rooftop: contact Pro-Bel for annual inspections, testing, safety assessments, rigging inspections or site training.