In Markham District Energy (MDE), power engineering students serve as a secondary line of defence in maintaining safety.  

For 15 years, Craig Graham, MDE’s Chief Operating Engineer has been hiring students for four-month work terms. Currently, MDE employs five students per term - 15 students per year. Over the years, Graham has signed off on the Qualifying Experience Time for more than 100 students. This practical operating experience, gained while working in a registered plant, is a prerequisite for applying for higher-level Operating Engineer certifications. 

Each student is paired with various operating engineers as they navigate the entire plant, learning from the operating controls, maintenance, and distribution teams. Each student is given three unique questions each week. They discuss their findings with operating engineers who share safety insights on troubleshooting and resolving issues in the plant.  

Industry partners are often reluctant to hire Co-op students in their plants, as operating engineers work with high-energy equipment and complex critical systems where errors can have significant consequences. 

But MDE takes a different approach by enlisting power engineering students as safety allies. The company attributes its safety track record of one lost-time injury in 25 years, and an operational record of less than three hours of service interruptions in 25 years to collaborating with power engineering students.  

“Students don’t just take steam time; they give back by asking staff a lot of questions about processes and procedures, providing good review,” explains Jim Kee, Vice President of Operations. Having experienced engineers share the rationale behind safety protocols keeps their safety knowledge sharp and prevents complacency. 

This supportive strategy has enabled MDE with the following advantages:  

• Additional assistance with ongoing preventive maintenance, operations, and projects
• Experienced staff provide detailed, plant-specific training, constantly refreshing their knowledge as they mentor students who ask questions
• Operating engineers develop leadership skills through mentoring students
• A ready pool of trained candidates to fill Operating Engineer positions 

A new search tool, launching in early September on TSSA’s Client Portal, will make it easier for consultants and engineering firms to find their clients’ account numbers when submitting boiler and pressure vessel (BPV) design registrations.

To obtain a Canadian Registration Number for boilers, pressure vessels or piping, third-party submitters (such as consultants or engineering firms) must correctly link each design registration to the appropriate client or owner. This requires knowing the client’s account number ─ a detail that has sometimes been difficult to locate, leading to mis-linked applications, processing delays and extra administrative work.

To avoid linking design registrations to the incorrect client, the new search tool is designed to facilitate third-party submitters to look up a client’s account number using:

-  The client’s name
-  The client’s address, or
- The client’s previous Canadian Registration Number (or Piping Registration number, if applicable)

By making it easier to find the correct account number, this tool helps ensure that design registrations and engineering applications are properly linked to the right client from the start, reducing errors and avoiding unnecessary delays.
 
This news item was sent to BPV design registration submitters and BPV web subscribers.

Orin Landscaping Inc. Pleads Guilty for Striking Gas Pipeline in Toronto

Second Guilty Plea This Year for Pipeline Strikes in Ontario 

Toronto, ON, August 20, 2025 — Vaughan-based Orin Landscaping Inc. (Orin Landscaping) has pleaded guilty to striking and damaging a natural gas pipeline in Toronto and has been fined $30,000 and a 25% victim surcharge by the Ontario Court of Justice. The company was found guilty of an offence under Ontario Regulation 210/01 of the Technical Standards and Safety Act, 2000.

In December 2024, Orin Landscaping was using a mechanical excavator for a drainage installation project at Bathurst Street in downtown Toronto when it struck and damaged a 4-inch plastic gas main pipeline that was part of the Enbridge gas supply system. No injuries were reported in this incident. 

By law, contractors must obtain locates before digging to avoid damaging pipelines and other underground infrastructure. Even with the legally required locates, Orin Landscape violated safety code requirements by using a mechanical excavator within one metre of the gas line. Only vacuum excavation equipment or hand tools is permitted within this distance, as specified by the safety code provision. 

“Enforcement is one of our key tools to protect public safety as Ontario’s safety regulator. This marks the second guilty plea for gas pipeline strikes so far this year,” said Owen Kennedy, TSSA’s Director of Fuels. “Contractors must take every necessary precaution when digging near pipelines. Striking underground infrastructure doesn’t just disrupt the affected neighbourhoods; it can cause gas leaks and many other serious consequences. Follow rules and dig safe, that’s the right thing to do for every business involved in excavation,” added Mr. Kennedy. 

In March 2025, another construction company was fined for damaging multiple gas lines in and around Ottawa, which caused gas outages for six homes and a retail mall. Pipeline strikes account for the vast majority of fuels incidents in Ontario, making up 70% of all reported fuels incidents in fiscal year 2024, according to TSSA’s latest Public Safety Report. Failing to follow safety requirements when digging can lead to serious risks, including gas leaks, fires, explosions, property damage, injuries, or fatalities. Additionally, repairs often require shutting off the gas supply, leaving nearby homes and businesses without heat, hot water, or cooking fuel. 

Contractors must follow the safety code when digging. The requirements are set out in Canadian Standards Association’s Damage Prevention for the Protection of Underground Infrastructure safety code, CSA Z247-15. 

Before any digging project, homeowners and contractors must contact Ontario One Call to locate underground infrastructure such as gas, hydro, cable, and phone lines. This is an important step to help reduce the risk of damaging pipelines and other buried services. 

If a gas line is damaged or a leak is suspected, it must be reported immediately to the Ministry of the Environment’s Spills Action Centre at 1-800-268-6060 or TSSA at 1-877-682-8772. 

About TSSA 

The Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) is one of Ontario’s public safety regulators mandated by the Government of Ontario to enforce provincial safety regulations and enhance public safety. Throughout Ontario, TSSA regulates the safety of amusement devices, boilers and pressure vessels, elevating devices, fuels, operating engineers, and ski lifts. Its range of safety services include public education and consumer information, certification, licensing and registration, engineering design review, inspections, investigations, safety management consultation, compliance support and enforcement and prosecution activities. The organization’s vision is to be a valued advocate and recognized authority in public safety. 

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For more information, please contact: 

Alexandra Campbell Vice President, Communications, Stakeholder Engagement and Customer Service 

Technical Standards and Safety Authority 

Telephone: 416-734-6227 

Email: media@tssa.org

The Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) is extending the deadline for accredited training providers (ATPs) of the Fuels Safety curriculum to submit variance applications and provide these supplementary information for non-compliant laboratories. The new deadline is September 30, 2025, which has been extended from July 1, 2025. 

The extension provides ATPs of the Fuels Safety curriculum more time to assess their laboratories for non-compliances with the Technical Standards and Safety Act, 2000, or its associated regulations and Codes, develop mitigation plans, and submit a variance application.

As a safety regulator administering technical safety regulations and providing safety oversight of training institutions that train and certify tradespeople, TSSA requires that non-compliant laboratories or laboratory equipment must receive a variance, even if they have passed their most recent inspection and audit.

To facilitate compliance, TSSA is waiving the fee for variance applications submitted by September 30, 2025. Variance applications must include a list of non-compliances identified in the laboratory or training area, the relevant Code for which the lab does not meet the compliance requirements, and the safety mitigations to achieve compliance with the Code. For instructions on how to submit a variance application, please refer to the December 16, 2024, communication.

Why Non-Compliant Labs Are Not Exempt from Variance Applications

Accredited training laboratories operate under different circumstances from commercial and industrial equipment installations. Due to these differences in risk profiles, TSSA has historically allowed ATPs of the Fuels Safety curriculum to operate non-compliant laboratories. 

Under the Technical Standards and Safety Act, 2000, and its associated regulations and Codes, laboratories are not exempt from compliance and are required to apply for a variance. In recognition of the historical practice, TSSA is extending the deadline for variance applications and waiving the fees for variance applications submitted by September 30, 2025.

ATPs are responsible for understanding the regulatory requirements outlined in the Regulation, Code and Code Adoption Document and must achieve regulatory compliance by the end of their next audit cycle.