The Local 793-sponsored Garth Webb Secondary School robotic team is on its way to the world championships after completing another successful regional qualifying campaign. The Chargers booked their spot at the World FIRST Robotics Championship, to be held in Houston, Texas, from April 19-22, after finishing as runners up at the FIRST Ontario Provincial Championship […]
The Local 793-sponsored Garth Webb Secondary School robotic team is on its way to the world championships after completing another successful regional qualifying campaign.
The Chargers booked their spot at the World FIRST Robotics Championship, to be held in Houston, Texas, from April 19-22, after finishing as runners up at the FIRST Ontario Provincial Championship held at the International Centre in Mississauga from April 3-6. They had previously competed in regional qualifiers in North Bay and at McMaster University. Jeff Hewitt, OETIO Director of Training and Apprenticeship and Executive Board member, lent his support during the Provincial Championship.
Although beaten in the final, the Garth Webb robot, named after the Second World War era Canadian warship Stormont, collected enough points to reach their ultimate goal of a chance to compete against the world’s best robotics programs.
Established in 2001, FIRST Robotics inspires young people to be leaders and innovators in science and technology by engaging them in exciting mentor-based programs that build science, engineering and technology skills to inspire innovation and foster self-confidence, communication and leadership.
The high costs of competing mean that attracting sponsors is the only way to raise the funds necessary to cover the design and manufacture of the robot and the cost of travelling to events.
Thomas Douglas, Garth Webb’s lead mentor, will now get his team back to work on Stormont after a gruelling few weeks of competition to ensure it is in peak condition once they reach Texas. The Grade 9-12 students will have lots of time to talk tactics beforehand as they will be on the coach for 24 hours for the 2,500 km trip south.
Everyone at Local 793 wishes the Garth Webb team the very best of luck at the world championships!
OETIO Director of Training and Apprenticeship and Executive Board member, Jeff Hewitt (centre), lends his support to the Garth Webb Chargers during the Provincial Championship in Mississauga.The Garth Webb robot was named after the Canadian warship Stormont, which took part in the D-Day landings in 1944.The Garth Webb pit crew spring into action during a break in competition at the International Centre.Stormont’s operators (centre right) manoeuvre the robot (5409) into a scoring position at the provincial championship.
Local 793 members Brandon Petry and Mackenzie Kouyoumjion are working at the Darlington New Nuclear Project (DNNP) Small Modular Reactor (SMR) site for Aquatech Dewatering Company. Main site preparation is now underway at the nuclear generating station near Bowmanville, following the completion of early works in February. Work to be completed this year includes constructing the […]
Local 793 members Brandon Petry and Mackenzie Kouyoumjion are working at the Darlington New Nuclear Project (DNNP) Small Modular Reactor (SMR) site for Aquatech Dewatering Company.
Main site preparation is now underway at the nuclear generating station near Bowmanville, following the completion of early works in February. Work to be completed this year includes constructing the shoring wall ahead of excavating the reactor building, excavating the Unit 1 power block and clearing and grubbing for the three remaining Units. Nuclear construction work is scheduled to begin in 2025.
Once connected to the grid, the four SMRs will generate enough electricity to power 1.2 million homes.
(From left) Local 793 EPSCA Business Representative Paul Marshall joins members Brandon Petry and Mackenzie Kouyoumjion operating a TSi 150CC sonic drill rig for Aquatech Dewatering Company on the SMR project at Darlington Nuclear Generating Station.
More than 900 Local 793 officials, members, staff and their families gathered in Toronto to proudly represent the Union in the city’s annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Members of all cultural backgrounds became Irish for the day, waving the green, white and orange flag of Ireland and sporting specially-created Local 793 hoodies as they marched […]
More than 900 Local 793 officials, members, staff and their families gathered in Toronto to proudly represent the Union in the city’s annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Members of all cultural backgrounds became Irish for the day, waving the green, white and orange flag of Ireland and sporting specially-created Local 793 hoodies as they marched along the packed parade route from St. George to Dundas Square.
Local 793 Indigenous Relations Coordinator, Jim Jacobs, continues to assist in the Union’s mission to make more Indigenous youth aware of the life-changing opportunities open to them as an Operating Engineer. Brother Jacobs, a member of the Mohawk/Bear Clan of the Six Nations of the Grand River, took part in the Annual Aboriginal Youth Career […]
Local 793 Indigenous Relations Coordinator, Jim Jacobs, continues to assist in the Union’s mission to make more Indigenous youth aware of the life-changing opportunities open to them as an Operating Engineer.
Brother Jacobs, a member of the Mohawk/Bear Clan of the Six Nations of the Grand River, took part in the Annual Aboriginal Youth Career Awareness Fair at the Aamjiwnaang First Nation (pronounced am-JIN-nun) in Sarnia on March 7. He chatted with students from seven southwestern Ontario First Nations communities about his own career path and made them aware of the fee-free pre-apprenticeship training available to Indigenous youth through the Operating Engineers Training Institute of Ontario (OETIO).
Brother Jacobs will also be manning the OETIO information booth when Aecon-Six Nations (A6N) stages an open house to celebrate its new location east of the Oneida Business Park in Caledonia on March 22, before attending the Georgina Island First Nations Trades Fair at Chippewas of Georgina Island Community Hall on March 27.
Local 793 provides an Indigenous pre-apprenticeship program through the Operating Engineers Training Institute of Ontario (OETIO). Visit oetio.com for more information.
Local 793 Indigenous Relations Coordinator Jim Jacobs (left) is greeted by Aamjiwnaang First Nation Chief Chris Plain at the recent careers fair in Sarnia.Brother Jacobs discusses the OETIO pre-apprenticeship application process with First Nations students in Sarnia.
Students at Garth Webb Secondary School in Oakville are hard at work putting the finishing touches to their latest engineering marvel ahead of the provincial rounds of the 2024 FIRST Robotics Competition. Local 793 has been a long-time sponsor of the school’s robotics program, which is helping to inspire a new generation of Canadian science […]
Students at Garth Webb Secondary School in Oakville are hard at work putting the finishing touches to their latest engineering marvel ahead of the provincial rounds of the 2024 FIRST Robotics Competition.
Local 793 has been a long-time sponsor of the school’s robotics program, which is helping to inspire a new generation of Canadian science and technology leaders and innovators. On February 22, OETIO Director of Training and Apprenticeship and Executive Board member Jeff Hewitt visited the school to meet the students involved in this year’s event.
Teams design, program and build a robot, starting with a standard kit of parts and a common set of rules to play in a themed head-to-head challenge. Students also build a brand, develop community partnerships for support, and work to promote STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) in their local community.
High schools from around the world are competing in regional competitions for a chance to earn a coveted spot at the 2024 Championship event in Houston, Texas, from April 17-20.
The Garth Webb team is made up of 50-plus students who work in one of seven disciplines – manufacturing, design, media, business, electrical, drive and programming – under the guidance of Robotics Night School lead teacher, Thomas Douglas.
They have been putting in up to 20 hours a week after school and on Saturdays to ensure their robot is ready to impress when they take part in two regional competitions in March before visiting the International Centre in Mississauga from April 3 to 6 for the provincial qualifier.
With such high costs involved in building the robot, Douglas said attracting sponsors such as Local 793 is crucial to keeping the school’s program running. “We could not do what we do without you, and that’s the bottom line. You have been a pillar of support for us, and we are so grateful to have you as a partner in education,” he said.
Local 793 wishes the Garth Webb robotics team the very best of luck as they attempt to book their place at the championship event in Houston.
OETIO Director of Training and Apprenticeship and Executive Board member Jeff Hewitt (centre) joins some of the students and mentors of Garth Webb Secondary School’s robotics team during a recent visit to the Oakville school, including Robotics Night School lead teacher, Thomas Douglas (right).Students in the manufacturing group hard at work on their robot ahead of the beginning of competition in March.A Garth Webb staff member explains the robot’s operation to OETIO Director of Training and Apprenticeship and Executive Board member Jeff Hewitt (right) on his recent visit to the Oakville school.Students and mentors fine-tune their robot’s design as feedback is received from other departments. The competition helps foster key skills, including teamwork and communication.Garth Webb Secondary School has an array of impressive equipment and tools for students to use, including CNC machines, welding bays and 3D printers.
New Local 793 signatory company, Pine Valley Property Development, is hard at work as a subcontractor for Valard on Hydro One’s 115kv transmission line refurbishment near Sault Ste. Marie. Pine Valley operators Nick Kudlac (centre) and Brock Hilderley are pictured onsite with Local 793 Energy Sector Rep Charlie Peters (left) alongside a Link-Belt 210 excavator. […]
New Local 793 signatory company, Pine Valley Property Development, is hard at work as a subcontractor for Valard on Hydro One’s 115kv transmission line refurbishment near Sault Ste. Marie.
Pine Valley operators Nick Kudlac (centre) and Brock Hilderley are pictured onsite with Local 793 Energy Sector Rep Charlie Peters (left) alongside a Link-Belt 210 excavator.
The project is part of a major upgrade of transmission lines in the area as industry continues to switch from fossil fuels to electricity to meet emissions targets, including Algoma Steel’s ongoing $703 million project to replace its coke-fired blast furnaces with two state-of-the-art electric arc furnaces.
Local 793 Energy Sector Rep Charlie Peters (left) with Pine Valley Property Development operators Nick Kudlac (centre) and Brock Hilderley.
Local 793 Business Manager Mike Gallagher welcomed David Piccini, Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development, for a tour of the Union’s world-class training centre in Oakville. It was the MPP’s first visit to the Operating Engineers Training Institute of Ontario (OETIO) since taking over the ministerial portfolio from Monte McNaughton in September. Business […]
Local 793 Business Manager Mike Gallagher welcomed David Piccini, Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development, for a tour of the Union’s world-class training centre in Oakville. It was the MPP’s first visit to the Operating Engineers Training Institute of Ontario (OETIO) since taking over the ministerial portfolio from Monte McNaughton in September.
Business Manager Gallagher, alongside President Dave Turple, OETIO Executive Director Rick Kerr and Director of Training and Apprenticeship, OETIO Oakville, Jeff Hewitt, was on hand to greet the minister. Other invited guests included Oakville MPP Stephen Crawford, Oakville North-Burlington MPP Effie Triantafilopoulos, Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario Business Manager Marc Arsenault and a host of representatives from every area of the construction industry.
Business Manager Gallagher took the opportunity to stress the importance of rigorous training in making jobsites safer across Ontario, while also expressing his gratitude for the provincial government’s ongoing support for the trades.
“Ontario is one of the safest places in the world to operate a crane and that’s because of training and investment in the trades. Our members have put their hands in their own pockets to support training,” Gallagher said.
“Now we are investing another $25 million to build a training centre to increase capacity. We want to make sure that a lack of investment doesn’t slow the economy by not having the Operating Engineers available to do that work in the future.”
Minister Piccini visited the state-of-the-art simulation room, where OETIO lead instructor Alden Paradise guided him on the mobile crane simulator. The minister then spent time chatting with apprentices in the training yard, where he also tried his hand at operating OETIO’s state-of-the-art concrete pump. The concrete pump was purchased in part with funds made available through the provincial government’s Skills Development Fund.
After being shown the railroad crane brought in by Van-Elle Canada for a new training program launching at OETIO Oakville in the spring, the minister addressed the audience at a reception held in the OE Banquet and Conference Centre.
“Mike and the team here are such strong advocates for you all, so thank you for your leadership and that only makes us better public servants,” Minister Piccini said. “Under this premier and this government, we’re building, and we recognize the important role organized labour plays in building a better Ontario.
“I know that we don’t have an infinite money tree, but I do know that every dollar we spend with you in partnership is taxpayer money well spent.
“Supporting you means we can get the Gordie Howe Bridge built and it means we can build our transit up, which communities like mine need so badly. So, I just want to say thank you because we do need you and we need you to keep challenging us as you have been.”
Before departing, the minister was presented with a model Putzmeister concrete pump to mark his first visit to Local 793 and OETIO.
For more information on OETIO and becoming an apprentice, visit oetio.com
Local 793 Business Manager and Stephen Crawford, MPP-Oakville, watch as OETIO Lead Instructor Alden Paradise puts Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development David Piccini through his paces on the mobile crane simulator.Minister of Labour David Piccini (right) took the chance to meet Local 793 apprentices on his visit to OETIO in Oakville.Hon. David Piccini tries his hand at operating the concrete pump under the watchful eye of OETIO Instructor Jim Gleadall (right).Local 793 Business Manager Mike Gallagher (right) presents Minister of Labour David Piccini with a model concrete pump to mark his visit.Local 793 officers and staff join OETIO apprentices and staff to pose with invited guests in front of the Putzmeister concrete pump.Hon. David Piccini talked to the team from Van Elle about the railroad tracked crane that recently arrived at OETIO.Local 793 President Dave Turple and Business Manager Mike Gallagher present Minister David Paccini with a model Putzmeister concrete pump alongside special guests Effie Triantafilopoulos, MPP-Oakville North-Burlington, and Stephen Crawford, MPP-Oakville, at the OE Banquet and Conference Centre in Oakville.
James Cole, Local 793 Energy Sector Business Rep., checked in with new member Sacha David as he worked on the Hydro One 115kv transmission line refurbishment project in Sault Ste. Marie. Brother David, who works for Skagen and Son Forestry, was busy in his CAT 545C Grapple Skidder moving hydro poles on the right of […]
James Cole, Local 793 Energy Sector Business Rep., checked in with new member Sacha David as he worked on the Hydro One 115kv transmission line refurbishment project in Sault Ste. Marie.
Brother David, who works for Skagen and Son Forestry, was busy in his CAT 545C Grapple Skidder moving hydro poles on the right of way for main contractor, Valard.
The project is part of Hydro One’s push to increase capacity to cope with the expected rise in demand for electricity from industry and communities throughout the east and north-east of Ontario.
New member of Local 793 Sacha David (right) poses with Energy Sector Rep James Cole in front of the CAT Grapple Skidder with tire chains installed.
Irish eyes will be smiling in Toronto. Local 793 will once again march in the annual Toronto St. Patrick’s Day Parade on Sunday, March 17, 2024. Members and their families are invited to bring the Irish spirit and show support for your Union at the same time. Come out and celebrate one of the largest […]
Irish eyes will be smiling in Toronto.
Local 793 will once again march in the annual Toronto St. Patrick’s Day Parade on Sunday, March 17, 2024.
Members and their families are invited to bring the Irish spirit and show support for your Union at the same time. Come out and celebrate one of the largest community events in Toronto and the largest Irish event in Canada.
Deadline is Friday, March 1 by 4:00 p.m. to provide your size of apparel by email at stpatricksday@iuoelocal793.org. Only emails are accepted. Phone calls will not be accepted.
Members are encouraged to attend and participate in the parade to receive apparel.
Sizes are:
Youth: Small to X Large
Ladies & Men: Small to 5X Large
It is very important to bring your Union membership card so that we can ensure Local 793 members receive proper size of apparel.
Please arrive 1.5 hours prior to the parade start time at the designated meeting area where the Local 793 flags, boom trucks and members wearing Union apparel will gather to obtain your apparel.
PARADE INFORMATION:
Parade Start Time: 12:00 p.m. sharp
Start location: Bloor Street West at St. George Street
End location: Dundas Street
Total walking distance: 2.5 kilometres (approximately 1.5 hours)
With more than eight decades of experience between them, there isn’t much that can phase mobile crane operators Kevin Cadieux and Keith Mortimer. Cadieux and Mortimer, both 42-year members, are working for Amherst Crane Rentals on twin 280m three-span segmental concrete box girder bridges over the Sixteen Mile Creek valley in north Oakville using cast-in-place […]
With more than eight decades of experience between them, there isn’t much that can phase mobile crane operators Kevin Cadieux and Keith Mortimer.
Cadieux and Mortimer, both 42-year members, are working for Amherst Crane Rentals on twin 280m three-span segmental concrete box girder bridges over the Sixteen Mile Creek valley in north Oakville using cast-in-place segmental construction techniques with a moveable form traveller system.
To complete construction, leading international engineering consulting group COWI and general contractor BOT will use a uniquely adapted unbalanced cantilever construction method.
BOT’s $80 million build is part of the ongoing William Halton Parkway Extension project that will reduce traffic congestion in the fast-growing north Oakville area by creating a new east-west corridor from Bronte Road to Ninth Line.
Work on the section connecting Third Line to Neyagawa Boulevard, which includes the bridge construction, is due to be completed in late 2024.
The complex multi-stage project once again shows that there’s no such thing as a bridge too far for Local 793’s skilled Operating Engineers.
Kevin Cadieux is operating a Manitowoc 8000-1 lattice-boom crawler crane for Amherst Crane Rentals.
Keith Mortimer is operating a Manitowoc MLC80A-1 lattice-boom crawler crane for Amherst Crane Rentals.
General view of the jobsite from ground level at Sixteen Mile Creek valley in Oakville.
General view of the jobsite from above at Sixteen Mile Creek valley in Oakville.
