Elaine ChanGroup 2234254110

Dec. 4, 2015

APSC 450: Take Home QuestionThe Engineering Violations that Caused the Tragedy

of Algo Centre Mall

Elaine ChanGroup 2234254110

Dec. 4, 2015

Elaine ChanGroup 2234254110

Dec. 4, 2015

`The Algo Centre Mall Collapse was an appalling and seemingly unexpected event that devastated the entire community. The tragedy prompted a thorough inquiry on the circumstances surrounding the location, which reveals a countless number of major issues. While there were problems with the municipal authorities, the owners, and other parties involved, the engineers that took part in the project had a very prominent role in the mall’s demise, including actions and decisions that violate a number of standards in APEGBC’s Code of Ethics and Organizational Quality Control Management Guidelines

From the very beginning, the Mall had major issues that indicated the negligence of the responsible engineers; the design of building itself was faulty, yet the engineer and architect overseeing the project both signed and sealed an official document essentially declaring project completion, despite all the problems. Not only did these professionals fail to uphold the safety and welfare of the public (as dictated in the code of ethics) by not addressing the critical issues in the design, but also they further emphasized this offence by misusing APEGBC seal (which dictates the confirmation that the applicable requirements under the Act and Bylaws have been met).

In addition to the initial stages of construction and erection of the building, the ensuing circumstances revealed many more violations. The Quality Control Management Guidelines addresses several tasks that must be undertaken by engineers with regards to documentation. Among these tasks, it is heavily emphasized that professionals submit detailed, unbiased reports that clearly outline the various work involved. A variety of engineers were hired during the lifetime of the building, with the vast majority not only submitting very poor quality reports that lacked failed to address the questions of the client, but also failed to clearly emphasize the gravity of the situation. Both of these actions, in addition to failing to report to APEGBC about the unethical decisions made by the mall owners, are direct encroachments of the Code of Ethics. Furthermore, there were some engineers that unethically and intentionally modified their reports to present a more appealing account of the situation to the public. The document retention section of the Quality Control Guidelines clearly states the significance of developing and retaining trustworthy documents; a point that was completely dismissed by many of the engineers involved in the project. The Code of Ethics also cites that practicing engineers should keep themselves informed and competent, most of the engineers involved chose not to familiarize themselves with previously written reports and neglected to listen to repeating complaints concerns about the leaking building.

One of the most significantly alarming contributions to the tragedy was the employment of Mr. Wood, a registered engineer who not only had a suspended license, but also took on the project despite strong requests from his firm not to do so. Mr. Wood’s inspection was, as quoted, “seriously deficient”, as he failed to conduct several critical investigations, including assessing the waterproofing system, and an entire

Elaine ChanGroup 2234254110

Dec. 4, 2015

inspection of the mall. His behavior showed lack of competence and poor conduct towards clients; both of which are key themes of the Code of Ethics.

While Mr. Wood appeared to have the most obviously poor behavior, the summary of events shows that all engineers disappointed their duty. It is clear that the consequences of not following the guidelines set by the Code of Ethics and the Quality Control Management Guidelines easily culminates, which resulted in the tragedy that afflicted Elliot Lake.