ACEC-SK Transportation Executive Committee Meets MHIs Deputy Minister

In the morning of August 26, 2016 Terry Schmidt, Chair of ACEC-SK’s Transportation Executive Committee (TEC), and Paul Pinder, Past Chair of TEC, met with members of the MHI Executive to discuss recent concerns and issues that have been brought forward to the TEC by the Transportation Committee (ACEC-SK Transportation Member Firms).  Present at the meeting from MHI were the following:

  1.        Nithi Govindasamy – Deputy Minister
  2.        Miranda Carlberg – Assistant Deputy Minister, Design and Innovation
  3.        Wayne Gienow – Executive Director, Corporate Services Division
  4.        Bill Pacholka – Executive Director, Technical Standards Branch

MHI committed to respond in a timely manner to ACEC-SK’s questions/offers/requests.  ACEC-SK will share MHI’s responses with ACEC-SK Member Firms when received.

In the afternoon of the same day, Terry and Paul also meet with Jason Wall, Chief of Staff to newly appointed Minister Marit, and David Cooper, Ministerial Assistant.  They reviewed the morning’s discussion with the MHI Executive, and then focused more on the political implications of MHI completing large major projects in 2016 with in-house staff, concerns with the recent Expressions of Interest requesting services from the private sector for a “mixed services” model, and questions and concerns with the plan for the new 15 FTEs announced in the 2016-17 budget for “re-balancing of [MHI’s] engineering services”.  The Minister’s Office wanted to emphasize that this Government is business friendly, and follow up will take place with the Ministry regarding plans going forward for delivery of large major projects by in-house resources and the plans for the new 15 FTEs to ensure alignment with Government policy and direction. A good discussion took place and it was agreed that within the next two weeks a meeting will be scheduled with Minister Marit and members of the TEC to introduce ACEC-SK to the new Minister and continue dialogue. ACEC-SK will advise members when the meeting has been scheduled.

 


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