Get the Buzz ... APM Gas Canada Raises 30K In Donations Through Safe Work at TransAlta Sarnia!
Estimated Read Time: 4 minutes
APM Gas Canada mobilized for an outage in Sarnia, Ontario on February 24th, 2025. They exhibited a high level of teamwork with the site team at TransAlta Sarnia and accomplished not only 100% safety and quality execution but also raised $30,000 in charitable donations!
This outage took a unique approach to encourage safety. TransAlta Sarnia rewarded crews for working safe shifts by donating to the Blue Water Health Hospital children’s department! For every day worked safely, the customer would commit $500 so the hospital could purchase incubators. Having a charitable cause provided a common goal and created a team building atmosphere across all the supporting groups. Knowing how much was raised for the charity day by day was a constant incentive and talking point to kick off work with a focus on safety. By the time the outage wrapped up on March 29th, the crew raised a total of $30,000 from combined matched donations from TransAlta and GE.
Leading the Alstom 11N2 C Inspection job scope was APM Dayshift Superintendent, Luke McFadden, with a crew of twenty and APM Nightshift Superintendent, Norm Metke, with a crew of fourteen. After reflecting on what contributed to the success of this outage, three main driving forces were discovered – crew expertise, teamwork, and recognizing stop moments.
For this job, Superintendents and key personnel were brought in from other parts of Canada to Ontario. Having the wealth of experience and knowledge aided the team’s success on the C Inspection.
The alignment across APM crews, the site customer, and sub-contractors, unified by the goal to raise donations through safe work, was a major motivator to work as one team and work through stop moments together. One such moment used the Mechanical Lifting Life Saving Rule. The crew stopped work after identifying an issue with the overhead crane. After a third-party inspection and approval to continue work, they resumed operations and were back up and running in a timely manner. Having the support of Gary Vanderloo, Eastern Canada Operations Division Leader, and Craig Mosier, APM Canada Operations Division Manager, as well as the customer made this stop moment a smooth transition that ensured both safety and efficiency.
On the topic of efficiency, this site kept a strict focus on critical path. Having all parts needed on site and the help of Michel Frapper, GEV Outage Manager, to direct bladers and support groups, prevented lost time and maintained good continuity.
We’d like to give a sincere shout out to everyone on this outage for not only a job well done but also for the $30,000 raised towards incubators at Blue Water Health through their safe shifts! Thank you for outstanding safety and quality focus on this job, teamwork, and impact on the community!
Thank you to:
All supporting groups and sub trades
TransAlta for your support through this outage and investment in the community
Ryan Richards, Field Engineer Lead
Michel Frapper, GEV Outage Manager
Randy Michalko, TransAlta TAE project manager
Brian Vanderburgt – TransAlta contact
Aaron Carlson, Dayshift EHS Field Rep
Afton Johnson, Nightshift EHS Field Rep
