Update

Having received the latest version of the City’s recommended survey questions, we have now begun putting into play our contractor interaction plan.  We will direct our current list of questions toward demolition contractors specifically, and if time permits, we may also compose additional questionnaires for builders and haulers.

Getting in touch with demolition firms for an interview has been a bit challenging, but none of us expected this to be easy. We are careful to maintain our status as a group of UBC students investigating the feasibility of increasing salvage and reuse of building materials in the Vancouver area.  At this point, we have scheduled one phone interview this upcoming Tuesday.   Over the next two weeks, we will document all our communication with contractors across the Lower Mainland, and then assemble and analyze our findings.

By March 22nd, we will generate a comprehensive summary of our contractor interactions, as well as a recommended action plan for instilling a culture of deconstruction in Vancouver.  We imagine that this plan will include a scheme of incentives to supplement the City’s existing legislation in order to increase deconstruction and waste diversion prior to commissioning a full scale deconstruction hub.

By March 25th, we will have ready a poster and brand for display during the CBEL presentation and for use by the city and its affiliates at Home Shows and other Expositions to promote the deconstruction concept to homeowners, developers and contractors.

We do realize that the recommendations we can deliver will depend entirely on the kind of feedback we receive from the contractors.   But we are optimistic. Our group will meet regularly to report on our findings and ‘think big’ in terms of next-steps that will really trigger a culture shift in the C & D industry.

1 thought on “Update

  1. Hi Team,

    I agree that getting info from contractors will likely be very tricky. Face-2-face interviews (perhaps part of your CBEL budget could go toward buying coffee during the interview?) and over-the-phone is definitely best. Also, no more than 10 questions seems to make a difference.

    Stepping back from the details of your project a bit, I wonder how meeting with contractors and thinking about the deconstruction hub might be influencing the way you are thinking about your future career as an engineer…

    Good luck over the next few weeks.
    SN

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