JANUARY 2009 issue
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Professional Practice & Ethics Corner
APEGGA members with professional practice or ethics questions are welcome to mail them to Ray Chopiuk, P.Eng., Director, Professional Practice, APEGGA, 1500 Scotia One, 10060 Jasper AVE NW, Edmonton, AB T5J 4A2; fax them to 780-426-1877; or e-mail them to rchopiuk@apega.ca. |
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Q What is APEGGA’s position with respect to authenticating documents for designs completed outside of Alberta? I’ve always held the belief that drawings for a project to be constructed in Alberta need to be authenticated by an APEGGA member, even if the engineering was completed outside of the province. I’ve been challenged on that, and I can’t seem to find anything that clarifies this issue.
A similar question is what authentication is required for a system that has been designed and fabricated outside of Alberta and delivered as a skid for an Alberta project? An example of this is equipment skids which have been designed in the U.S. I don’t know if the supplier plans to have them fabricated locally, or if it plans to fabricate them outside of Alberta and ship them as skids. Will this make a difference to the authentication of the drawings provided to the local client?
A You won’t find anything that explicitly speaks to the issue. The answer to your question comes from the legislation established by the Province of Alberta. APEGGA administers the Engineering, Geological and Geophysical Professions Act and the General Regulation under the act, both of which govern the practice of engineering in Alberta.
The act and regulation pertain to engineering and geoscience practiced in Alberta. However, they have no jurisdiction over engineering and geoscience practiced outside the province. Neither do they have any jurisdiction over the construction of anything. As far as this legislation is concerned, engineering design drawings that are completed outside the province do not need to be authenticated by an engineer licensed with APEGGA, even if the item will be constructed in Alberta.
That is part of the answer, but not all of it. To fully answer the question, you would then need to determine if there is any other legislation in Alberta that requires the involvement of an Alberta-licensed engineer (for example, to stamp the design drawings). That requires knowing what the design drawings are for.
Under the Alberta Building Code, for example, engineering drawings must be stamped by an individual licensed by APEGGA to practice engineering in Alberta. Even if the drawings were completed by an engineer licensed outside the province, they must still be stamped by an APEGGA member to be in compliance with the requirements of the Alberta Building Code.
As for the skids you mentioned, you would need to determine if there is any legislation (act, regulation, code, standard, etc.) that pertains specifically to such equipment designs needing to be stamped by an APEGGA member. If there is no legislation, then the design drawings would not need to be authenticated.
That probably raises a question about safety. Keep in mind that, under the Alberta’s Occupational Health and Safety Code, the employer (the company that will be using the equipment in its operations) is responsible for ensuring that the “equipment is of sufficient size, strength, design and made of suitable materials to withstand stresses imposed on it during its operation.” The employer must ensure that the manufacturer’s specifications regarding the capacity rating or other limitations on the operation of the equipment are not exceeded.
In the absence of a manufacturer’s specifications, “an employer must develop and comply with procedures that are certified by a professional engineer as designed to ensure the thing is done is a safe manner or have the equipment certified as safe to operate by a professional engineer at least every 12 calendar months.” The certification “must be in writing and be stamped and signed by the professional engineer.” The OHS Code requires the engineer to be licensed under the Engineering, Geological and Geophysical Professions Act.
Although the OHS Code does not stipulate that design drawings be stamped, stamping a certification places as much responsibility on the engineer as stamping a drawing.
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