| Lynne Anderson Lynne Anderson has been the Vice President of Applications at The Ontario Energy Board for the past five years. She has over 25 years of experience in the Ontario energy sector. Prior to joining The OEB, she was at Ontario Hydro as an Account Manager responsible for municipal utility and direct industry accounts, at Nepean Hydro as Manager, Customer & Energy Services, and, for ten years at Hydro Ottawa where she progressed through a number of management positions to the role of Chief Regulatory Affairs and Government Relations Officer. Lynne also worked at General Motors as a project engineer at the Oshawa Truck Assembly Plant and taught in the Electrical Engineering Technology program at St. Lawrence College. Lynne obtained both a degree in electrical engineering and an MBA from Queen’s University. | |
| Kevin Bowers Kevin Bowers is currently the manager of Plant Damage Prevention where he is accountable for developing and implementing damage prevention strategies, managing the accurate and timely delivery of locate services and ensuring the effectiveness of Union Gas’ Utility Cross Bore program. Kevin has been with Union Gas for 24 years and has held various roles within our construction, engineering, and field operations groups. He has spent the last 7 years on Distribution Operations Support team focusing on new technology opportunities, process and procedure enhancements and contractor management. Kevin currently serves as the chair for the Ontario Regional Common Ground Alliance board of directors and is actively involved on Ontario One Call and Locate Alliance Consortium committees. | |
| Frédérick Daoust Frédérick Daoust has been Director of Gaz Métro’s Montérégie Business Office since February 2013 . In this position, he coordinates the activities of its Managers and Staff to maintain a secure gas distribution network in his territory. He is also responsible for Emergency Response for this part of the Quebec province. Prior to this, Frederick was a first-level supervisor for 7 years. He started at Gaz Métro as a Gas Network Service Technician. His strong operations’ experience makes him an ideal candidate for development of new practices at Gaz Métro. He was a leader of Gaz Métro’s review of the Intrinsic Safety Levels of Telecommunications and IT Tools for its staff. | |
| Mathew Desbiens Mathew Desbiens, BSc GIS Mathew Desbiens is the GIS Manager at AtlaGas Utilities in Leduc, Alberta where he is responsible for the GIS Administration and Drafting groups. These groups provide GIS/GPS support to the AltaGas operations, engineering and construction departments. Growing up in British Columbia, Mathew obtained his Bachelor of Science in Geographic Information Systems from the British Columbia Institute of Technology in 2007 and began his career with ESRI software development in Redlands California. Mathew has spent many years as GIS Manager in the seismic survey/oil and gas industry throughout the US Southern States. Mathew has over 9 years experience in the GIS industry, 4 years in gas utilities and a strong background in a wide range of geospatial related technologies. | |
| Julien Dolléans Julien Dolléans (Eng., École Polytechnique de Montréal, 2001) is a mechanical Engineer with over 14 years of experience in automotive and transportation fields. He currently works as a main project manager at the fleet department of Gaz Métro, located in Montreal, where he is in charge of the vehicle acquisition and design program. For several years, he formerly worked as a vehicle defect investigator, tasked by Transports Canada, and as a forensic consultant specialized in vehicle fire investigations, car collision and mechanical failures. | |
| Chuck Dubeau Chuck Dubeau has spent over 28 years working for Union Gas in various engineering related roles in Storage Development, Station Operations, Major Projects, Compressor Operations and currently Pipeline Engineering. As Principal Engineer he is involved in supporting the pipeline integrity program, reviewing and updating various engineering practices and procedures, conducting engineering assessments, establishing utility crossing agreements and criteria, recommending pipeline repair methods, the design and approval of new and replacement pipelines, creating a new water crossing inspection program, as well as ensuring compliance with various codes, standards and regulations. Chuck is very engaged with various industry groups, and is a past member of CGA Engineering Conference organizing committees (2009 and 2010). Chuck is actively involved in the regulatory framework affecting standards, and is currently the chairman of the CSA Z662 Distribution Technical Sub-Committee (Clause 12), as well as a member of the CSA Class Location Task Force. Chuck was an inaugural member of the ORCGA design best practice committee on damage prevention, and has also participated on the TSSA committee on Guidelines for the Distribution of Natural Gas in Multi-Family Buildings. Chuck graduated from the University of Waterloo in 1987 with a degree in Chemical Engineering, and obtained a business degree from the University of Windsor in 2004. He is a registered professional engineer in the provinces of Ontario and Manitoba. | |
| Graeme Feltham Graeme Feltham is the Vice President, Engineering & Construction for ATCO Pipelines. In this role, he is responsible for leading a diverse team of professionals in various departments, including Major Projects, Construction, Planning & Customer Relations, Project Controls, Facilities & Measurement and Integrity Management. Graeme has been with ATCO since 1993 and has held progressively senior engineering and operations positions, most recently as Vice President, Technical Services and Chief Engineer with ATCO Gas. Graeme holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA, both from the University of Alberta. He is a member of the Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists and Geophysicists of Alberta (APEGA), a past member of the Standing Committee on Operations with Canadian Gas Association (CGA), and a Board Member with Spatial Data Warehouse. He is also the Chair of the Canadian Standards Association PNGIS Strategic Steering Committee. | |
| Charlie Higgins Charles Higgins is a Senior Advisor Distribution Operations Support for Union Gas Ltd. With 45 years’ experience in the natural gas industry he provides technical support to all Union Gas districts for clarification of company policies and practices as they pertain to the operating groups in the field. He also provides mentorship to new engineers within the operations group. He participates on multiple corporate committees like development of corporate Green Initiatives, Environmental Health and Safety, Measurement Technician group and Utility Services group. His role is to insure any new policies or practices are developed with the operations group in mind. He also project manages the Meter Protection Project for Union Gas. A 5 year multimillion dollar project designed to mitigate the risk of vehicular damage associated with residential driveway meters sets by installing excess flow valves, bollards and barricades as required. | |
| Bernie Inman Bernie Inman is a 49 year old family man and dynamic public speaker who has traveled worldwide sharing his story. Born and raised in the Bonnyville region of Alberta, Bernie grew up in an area that is renowned for its oil and gas industry. In 1984, after receiving his 4th Class Power Engineers’ Certificate, Bernie entered this field of employment. It was while working in the petroleum industry that he was critically injured. As a result of this 1994 incident, Bernie is now confined to a wheelchair. Along with the rehabilitation came the realization that the events surrounding this incident should be shared, so as to prevent others from incurring a similar fate. As president of Handi Ventures Inc., Bernie now takes his message to people from all walks of life.
His presentation, entitled “Safety Starts With Awareness, Awareness Starts With You”, provides a revealing account of what transpires when a life threatening injury occurs. His message gives an honest insight and depicts how a major incident, such as his, affects not only the injured person but also many others. Bernie gives an experienced opinion of what it is like to live with limited physical abilities in today’s society. It is his goal to have everyone reconsider the importance of having and maintaining a “Positive Safety First” attitude.
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| Arnim Julien Coming from a background in Information Technology, Arnim held the Fleet Analyst role at Enbridge Gas Distribution for 14 years. In this role he was the team lead which was successful in acquiring ISO 9001 and ISO 1400 registration and a Gold rating from the E3 Fleet (Energy, Environment, Excellence) a Fraser Basin organization. He is currently the Fleet Manager at Enbridge and has been in this position for the last 3 years. | |
| Michael McGivery Michael McGivery is a Program Manager within the Distribution Protection Group at Enbridge Gas Distribution. He oversees the company’s Locate Service Providers throughout the Niagara, Peel, Durham and Ottawa Regions. He is also accountable for the management of the company’s Sewer Safety Program across the company’s Franchise area. The Sewer Safety Program aims to create awareness towards the public, plumbing industry, and municipalities of the importance of “Call before you Clear” to mitigate incidents as a result of potential crossbores. He has been active in the natural gas sector for over 13 years and has received a B. Comm. Degree from Ryerson University as well as a MBA from Clarkson University. | |
| Leanne McNaughton Leanne McNaughton manages Union Gas’ social media and the company’s brand and graphics. She is currently leading the development and implementation of a long-term social media strategy, and providing graphic design for company initiatives including executive presentations, corporate advertisements, and more. Leanne tells the Union Gas story through professional visuals and digital communications. Leanne is a member of the association of registered graphic designers (RGD), SocialMedia.org and Camp Quality - a volunteer organization for children with cancer. Leanne has been awarded a CCNA (Canadian Community Newspaper Award) for best front page design, Canada-wide, and has had the privlidge to work with Don Cherry developing his Rock’em Sock’em product line. | |
| John Oakley John is Vice President Distribution Operations. He oversees all construction activity, system maintenance, measurement and regulation, emergency and customer service-related work as well as damage prevention, corrosion survey, leak survey and major projects. Previously, he was the General Manager of Toronto Region and Niagara Region and held progressively more senior positions in the Work Management Centre, Finance, Regulatory, Budgets and Gas Storage areas of the company. John is on the Board of Ontario One Call, a call center that receives excavation locate requests and notifies registered owners of underground facilities of activity within the designated excavation. John is a member at the Standing Committee on Operations for the Canadian Gas Association and is a Director on the Habitat for Humanity GTA Board. John is a graduate of Ryerson University where he earned a Bachelor degree in Business Management. He is also a Chartered Professional Accountant. John lives in Niagara Region with his wife and two children. In his free time, he enjoys skiing, golfing and cycling, including as a rider in the annual Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer. | |
| Nik Ong Nik Ong is a registered professional engineer in BC, and a project management professional (PMP). He obtained a mechanical engineering degree from the University of British Columbia. Nik has been with FortisBC for close to 8 years. He has held positions in FortisBC with Engineering, and the Project Management Office. Nik used to manage their cathodically isolated steel gas mains replacement program. Currently he is the regional engineer in Operations/Asset Management overseeing capital improvement projects in Metro Vancouver. Nik has a focus on PE distribution gas main installations and gas regulating stations. He is a committee member of their internal PE Working Group focusing on PE pipe/fusion issues. | |
| Daniel-Marc Paré Daniel-Marc Paré has been with Gaz Métro for over 20 years and an Advisor in Projects Management for the last 10. He obtained his Black Belt Certification in Lean Six Sigma Projects in 2014. He has coordinated Process Review and Continuous Improvement Projects in many areas of the company such as Customer Service, Business Continuity Planning, Security Management (CSA Z246.1) and IT processes. He coordinated Gaz Métro’s review of the Intrinsic Safety Levels of Telecommunications and IT Tools for its staff. Daniel-Marc gives some of his free time as a member of the Board of the Montreal Diet Dispensary, which provides each year nutritional and social support to more than 1 500 pregnant women in need to help them to give birth to babies in good health. He is the father of two teenagers. | |
| Greg Prieur Greg Prieur is accountable for the development of strategic plans for the company’s website, mobile, self serve and social media assets by combining stakeholder requirements and user experience feedback, and for leading the implementation, governance, management and sustainment of these plans. Greg is currently leading the development and implementation of a revised long-term digital strategy, which includes web, mobile and social media efforts for all business units at Union Gas. The company’s digital strategy is helping business units develop digital solutions that make doing business easy and effortless for their customers. Greg is also a member of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC), and received the 2012 IABC Award of Excellence for the companies Centennial Celebration. | |
| Suzana Prpic Suzana Prpic Suzana Prpic is the Director, Corporate Emergency Management at FortisBC, focusing on Emergency Management, Public Safety, and Security for the company. She has been with FortisBC for 21 years. She obtained a Bachelor of Science (BSF) from the University of British Columbia. She has held positions in FortisBC with the Operations’, Asset Management, Marketing/Communications, and Environment, Health and Safety teams. Suzana has a focus on OHS and Security protocols in support of the company’s extensive major projects’ portfolio. She is the current Chair of the CGA H&S Committee. | |
| Gerry Pumphrey Gerry Pumphrey has been with Enbridge Gas Distribution for over 25 yrs. He has held several positions within the organization over his career such as: Field Manager AR&I, Field Manager Engineering, Operations Supervisor Tie-Ins (tapping Crew), Gas Technician Tie-Ins and Gas Technician Operations. This will be his 3rd time presenting at the CGA. | |
| Stephen Rawlinson Stephen Rawlinson, M.Sc. (Eng), PMP Steve is Vice President, Americas, of STATS Group and has leadership of the US and Canada business. STATS Group are providers of piping and pipeline isolation, intervention and hydrotesting work scopes to the global oil, gas and petrochemical industries. Steve has been actively involved in the upstream, midstream and downstream oil and gas service sector for more than 20 years. Steve has been instrumental in developing the Western Canadian and US pipeline isolation business streams for STATS Group and has been integral in a number of industry firsts: the first double block and bleed isolation in high pressure CO2 (2000 psi, 30”), the first large diameter (48”) piggable double block and bleed isolation plug, and the first completely weldless small bore isolation tool system provided in the gas distribution market to name just a few. Prior to STATS, Steve held a number of senior technical and business development roles in engineering departments of oil and gas service industries in Canada and overseas. Steve holds a Master’s of Science in Engineering from the University of New Brunswick, Canada and a Project Management Professional (PMP) designation from the Project Management Institute. | |
| Keith Recsky Keith Recsky, PEng is a Senior Integrity Engineer at FortisBC and is based in Kelowna, BC. Keith has been with FortisBC and its predecessor companies for the past 36 years, and has held a number of engineering and operations positions during that time. His current duties include providing support and administration for the company’s Integrity Management Program. Keith has served on the CSA Z662 Technical Sub-Committee for Coatings; and was the leader of the work group that drafted CSA Z245.30-14, Field Applied External Coatings for Steel Pipeline Systems. He is also actively involved with the Association of Engineers and Geoscientists of BC. | |
| Gord Rossini Gord Rossini joined Cliffside Pipelayers Ltd. in 1969. Through the early 1970’s he worked on hydro installations and was involved with several specialized polyethylene sewer insertion and water main renewal projects. In 1976 he joined Duratron Systems Ltd. working with a variety of specialized polyethylene piping installations such as tailing line renewals for the mines and deep effluent treatment installations, as well as cathodic protection installations for various oil companies. In 1981 he returned to Cliffside Pipelayers and worked as a gas distribution fitter in the GTA. In 1986 he was promoted to foreman primarily working in Toronto. In 1990 he was promoted to assistant superintendent and in 1993 was promoted to superintendent managing various general contracts for various utility groups such as Enbridge, Toronto Hydro, Bell and the City of Toronto. In 2002 he joined Link-Line Contractors as a Regional Superintendent managing the Enbridge distribution contracts in Mississauga and the west end of Toronto. In 2009 the contracts expanded to include all of Toronto. In 2014 he was promoted to the position of General Manager Distribution Contracts overseeing general contracts with Enbridge (Toronto, Niagara, Mississauga, Barrie, Ottawa East and South Valleys), Union Gas (Hamilton, Halton and Kingston districts) and Bell Canada (Mississauga). | |
| Angela Scott Angela Scott is Manager of Pipeline Engineering at Union Gas where she has worked for 15 years including 11 years in the Station Engineering department. Angela is responsible for all Union Gas’ pipeline systems including pipeline design, Class Location assessments and remediations, ILI inspection design and support including defect assessments, owner of Union’s Construction and Maintenance procedures and Standard Operating Practices, MOP verifications, etc. Currently she is focused on leading a Material Traceability initiative and developing a 10 year Asset Management Plan. Angela is also the Union Gas representative on NYSEARCH, a North American R&D group. Outside of work, in addition to actively volunteering with PEO and her local Chapter, she enjoys travelling, spending time with her husband and two daughters, and staying active by jogging or team sports. | |
| Mike Shannon Mike Shannon is vice president of distribution operations for Union Gas Limited. In his role, Shannon leads the company’s distribution operations, which include operating and support activities for the construction, operation and maintenance of the Union Gas distribution system, and related support functions such as fleet, warehousing, meter shop and facilities. He is also responsible for driving the company’s focus on consistently safe, reliable and efficient delivery, and on superior operations across the more than 400 Ontario communities served by the company. Shannon joined Union Gas in 2001, and was named vice president, engineering, construction, and storage transmission operations in 2009. In that role, he was responsible for the operation and maintenance of the company’s transmission and storage systems, construction of major expansion projects and engineering. He also led the company’s environment, health and safety initiatives, policies and programs. Over the course of his 30-year career, Shannon has held a number of senior management positions in operations and construction across Ontario. Shannon graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1983 with a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering. In 2006, he earned his Master of Business Administration degree from Lansbridge University in Fredericton, New Brunswick. Shannon is active in the natural gas industry through his participation as a member of the Canadian Gas Association Standing Committee on Operations, the Technical Standards & Safety Authority’s Natural Gas Advisory Council, and the Board of Directors of Ontario One Call. | |
| John Shore John Shore has worked as a professional engineer for 30 years in electronics, automotive, textile and chemical manufacturing, electric power generation, and the natural gas industry. He has spent the last 23 years at Union Gas and is currently the Principal Corrosion Engineer. John has responsibility for corrosion design and technical support, ECDA, SCCDA, and ICDA Integrity Programs, Coatings, and AC mitigation. John is one of three professional engineers in Canada holding both NACE CP3 (cathodic protection technologist) and CIP3 (coating inspector) credentials. | |
| Dirk Smith Dirk Smith is President of Ionix Gas Technologies. Ionix Gas Technologies specializes solely in static mitigation systems for natural gas distributors. Mr. Smith graduated from the Wharton School of Finance and Commerce at the University of Pennsylvania and holds 3 US patents on static elimination technology. He has written numerous articles about static electricity in gas pipelines which have been published in Pipeline and Gas Journal. | |
| Greg Thompson Greg Thompson – Manager Construction & Growth Support, Union Gas Ltd.. Greg has spent the last 30 years in a variety of Operational roles within Union across the province. Since 2004, he has been active leading the Construction activities in Eastern Ontario. His current role supports all Ontario distribution construction activities for Union and works closely with the Alliance Partners – Aecon, and Link Line. Greg is a graduate of the University of Guelph, with a B.A. in Management Economics. | |
| Jim Tweedie James Tweedie is the Director, Operations, Safety and Integrity Management at the Canadian Gas Association. In his role at CGA, Jim has been involved in files such as energy security, damage prevention, health and safety, RNG, and asset management, renewal and integrity, just to name a few. Before joining the CGA, Jim had an extensive 35 year career with Enbridge Gas Distribution. From 2004 to 2008, Jim was Manager of Operations, Eastern Region for Enbridge, where he garnered much of his knowledge and expertise in the natural gas distribution industry. Prior to this, Mr. Tweedie was a Manager of Construction and acting Regional Manager of Enbridge’s Eastern Region. Additionally, he has worked on a number of international gas distribution feasibility studies and construction evaluation projects in Turkey, Mexico, and Malaysia. Jim is currently the co-chair of NRCan’s Critical Infrastructure; Energy and Utility Sectors Network and a past Chair of the Board & current Executive Committee member of the Canadian Common Ground Alliance. | |
| Jamie Anne Vaughan Jamie Anne Vaughan is currently a communications specialist for Enbridge Gas Distribution in their Public and Government Affairs department. She is primarily responsible for using digital and interactive media to enhance the Enbridge brand. Jamie is the voice behind numerous corporate social media accounts and acts as the external website editor of the Enbridge website. She also acts as an Enbridge spokesperson when responding to media inquiries. Jamie has a Bachelor of Arts with Honours degree in Film and Media, with a minor in Classical Studies, from Queen’s University. She also has a post-graduate diploma in Corporate Communications and Public Relations from Centennial College and is currently pursuing a certificate in Digital Strategy and Communications Management from the University of Toronto. Jamie is passionate about public relations, social media, and the ancient Romans. In her spare time, she enjoys teaching dance and spending time with friends. | |
| Fernando Velandia Fernando Velandia, Corrosion Control Engineer, Manitoba Hydro Fernando maintains the cathodic protection systems to assure they are in compliance with regulatory requirements. He also supplies technical expertise to assess and resolve design, operating and maintenance issues related to protective coatings and cathodic protection systems. Fernando provides technical reviews and prepares procedures for operation and maintenance of electric and electronic corrosion control systems within the corporation. | |
| Randy Villeneuve Randy Villeneuve is Aecon Utilities General Manager for Southwest and Northern Ontario. His accountabilities include the Distribution Work for the Union Gas General Contract, City of Kitchener General Contract and Bell Canada General Contracts. Additionally, Randy also has operational accountability for Aecon’s Direction Drill and Vac Truck Fleets. Randy started with Aecon Utilities in 2006 as an Utilities Estimator, after graduating from Fanshawe College’s C.E.T program. During his tenure Randy has been a Superintendent, Senior Superintendent, Project Manager and Operations Manager for Distribution and Maintenance Natural Gas Pipeline Contracts during which his main focus has been working with Union Gas and Aecon Alliance. While working in the Alliance Randy has collaborated on many initiatives with Union Gas including Cost Tracking processes, Customer Attachment and Work Load Scheduling. | |
| Kathy Webster Kathy Webster (BSC, McMaster, 1984) Manager of Logistics for Union Gas Ltd is accountable for defining the strategic direction for Fleet and Warehouse operations within Ontario and to define the polices/processes/ procedures to ensure that fleet assets are safe, reliable, in compliance with Ministry of Transport guidelines and meet operational needs. | |
| Clinton Windhorst Clinton Windhorst is a Senior Engineer with ATCO Gas in the Pressure Control group in Edmonton, Alberta. He has been with ATCO for 10 years through various groups including: Standards, Distribution Design, Operations, and as Program Manager of the company’s Steel Mains Replacement Program. Clinton is also a member of the CSA Z662 Clause 12 Technical Subcommittee and chair of the CSA B137.4 Technical Subcommittee on Plastic Pipe. | |
2016 CGA Operations Conference
March 6th - 8th
The Westin Prince Toronto
