Hands-On Training - The 10 Foot Wall Challenge

We are so excited to announce our second course at our Centre for Excellence in Port Coquitlam. The students will be able to attend the 3-day Seminar which will include hands on tools training along with some classroom instruction.

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This course has been in development for over a year and finally it is ready to change the way homes are built. The Home Building Industry has been told that all new houses built must be a Net Zero (ready) for energy in less than 14 years. There are 5 Steps to Net Zero that communities can choose as this transition takes place, and Builders are now faced with designing and constructing homes at all 5 Steps starting today.

The 10 Foot Wall Challenge is the Builders' tool to success. This 3-day course is limited to not more than 24 students divided into 4 teams. When you book your course, you can pick the general above grade wall system that appeals to you (Double 2 x 4, single 2 x 4 with Continuous Insulation (CI), or 2 x 6 with CI), or wait until Day 1 and make that choice with your team after the Introduction Session discussing risks and rewards of each. When you arrive, a 10' x 10' frame wall will be ready for you to complete including cladding choice (vinyl, stucco, modified stucco, fiber-cement, wood or metal), Insulation (conventional or split) (blown cellulose, ½ or 2 pound foam, batt, rigid EPS/XPS, or rigid mineral fiber), Capillary Break, Flashings, Sealants, Sheathing Membrane, Air Barrier, Vapour Barrier, & Drywall finish.

The Wall that you work on is no ordinary wall. We have packed at least 1 of everything into it: Rim Joist, Leger Connection, Alcove, Windows, Door, Electrical/Vent/Hose Bib penetration, & Alcove Roof Transition. Day 1 and Day 2 will be hands on construction with 3D CGI graphics, 2D section drawings, and course assistants circulating to instruct you every step of the way. This is not a test of your skills (many Builders tell us that they swing a mean Cheque book). We will be there every step of the way to ensure that everyone succeeds with every detail. We will even qualify your success by spending all of Day 3 poking, prodding and testing to industry standards all of the completed walls for airtightness, rainwater penetration resistance, and structural performance. The testing is where the proving happens and our test rigs have been designed and built by our team of fabricators to dramatically highlight the forces mother nature deals out and how the walls fabricated by the class perform under these difficult conditions. Throughout all 3 days are short but important technical and budget discussions to round out this in-depth learning experience.

What you will gain from this course is the following:
- Understanding how well walls above grade will perform with respect to wind, water, and lateral loads,
- Awareness of risky approaches to higher energy efficiency,
- Relative costs, construction challenges, and complexity associated with different materials and systems used to achieve higher energy efficiency, and
- Clarity of which above grade wall assembly(ies) work(s) with the unique combination of construction skills, client needs, and value deliverables that make up your business.