The Construction Record Podcast™ - Episode 342 – Stantec’s Jag Singh on small modular reactors

04/12/24 • 20 min

On this episode of The Construction Record PodcastTM, digital media editor Warren Frey speaks with Stantec nuclear lead and engineering manager Jag Singh about small modular reactor (SMR) technology and its potential uses in western Canada.

Singh explained SMRs are smaller, more flexible and modularized plant which consume much less water than conventional reactors and can make use of alternative nuclear fuel including material that previously was considered as waste material. He also pointed out while SMRs are generating new interest the idea has been around since the mid-1950s when a version of the technology was used in nuclear submarines, but are a leap forward in safety with reactors that become less reactive as they become hotter and others that run at normal atmospheric pressure, eliminating the hazard of a meltdown.

He also touched on how SMR technology can be used in western Canada and Alberta specifically to assist in oil and gas work by generating emission-free steam power and pointed to increased energy demand across the Prairies as a use case for adoption of SMR technology as well as conventional nuclear power.

You can listen to our recent interview with Nashville contractor Brandon Mason here and our episodes are available at the Daily Commercial News and Journal of Commerce websites, on Libsyn and at Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music’s podcast section. Thanks for listening.

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The Construction Record Podcast™ – Episode 341: Nashville contractor Brandon Mason on building and community

On this episode of The Construction Record PodcastTM, digital media editor Warren Frey speaks with Nashville-based Brandon Mason, the president of BCMason Group about his work as a contractor on both community-based and large-scale projects in the city.

Mason said he grew up around construction and after work across North America with other firms he set out on his own path, starting with projects in Nashville’s African-American neighbourhoods that reflect his commitment to giving back to his own community.

He’s also worked on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in the area at varying levels of complexity and reflected on working on a project at Fisk University where his mother was once a student. Mason’s latest project was contributing to the National Museum of African American Music which he pointed to as an uplifting and collaborative experience with African-American construction firms working at all levels of the project.

You can listen to our recent interview about economic diversification with ConstructConnect chief economist Alex Carrick and senior economist Michael Guckes here and our episodes are available at the Daily Commercial News and Journal of Commerce websites, on Libsyn and at Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music’s podcast section. Thanks for listening.

DCN-JOC News Services

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The Construction Record Podcast – Episode 343: Interviews from COFI 2024

On this episode of The Construction Record PodcastTM, digital media editor Warren Frey has two interviews from the BC Council of Forest Industries (COFI) 2024 annual conference in Vancouver.

The first interview is with Don Iveson, the former mayor of Edmonton and current executive advisor on climate investing and community resilience for Co-Operators Insurance. Iveson is also the co-chair for the Task Force for Housing and Climate and he spoke to the important ways both the current affordable housing crisis and the present and future climate change emergency are linked together and can be mitigated in an integrated fashion.

The second interview is with Abacus Data CEO David Coletto. In his address to COFI 21024 delegates he revealed public perception of the forestry industry has changed in a positive manner because of a continuing wildfire crisis. Most of those polled in B.C. understood the industry’s role in mitigating wildfires when they occur and changing practices to manage forestry resources in a way that addresses ongoing risks, a big change from the public’s views of the industry in previous decades.

You can listen to our recent interview with Stantec’s Jag Singh here and our episodes are available at the Daily Commercial News and Journal of Commerce websites, on Libsyn and at Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music’s podcast section. Thanks for listening.

DCN-JOC News Services