LOBBYING INITIATIVES your hardwood floors in order to conduct a “Can Test.” The Ban the Can initiative sounds comical, yet the air test that it refers to caused grief for plumbers in the City of Saskatoon. The air test was re- quired as part of the final inspection that took place upon completion of the build; it was designed to test the plumbing systems. Saskatoon was the only place on the planet that required the test. The issue with the test – it wasn’t accurate and didn’t prove if the plumbing system was installed and functioning properly. Former Board member Daryl Schwartz remembers quite well the time and effort that was put in by the MCAS to “Ban the Can.” He recalls, “While sitting on the Board of Directors of the MCAS, I was approached to take on a proj- ect that quickly became tagged ‘Ban the Can.’ This was to request the removal of the can pressure test being a mandatory requirement for the final plumbing inspection. It was a long-fought battle with many Monday night COS Counsel meetings and a few heated discussions with the COS Plumbing inspections division. Perseverance did pay off and ‘Ban the Can’ became a reality. With it the City lost the distinction of being the last urban centre still using the Can!” CHANGES TO APPRENTICESHIP RATIOS An apprentice spends approximately 85 per cent of the time work- ing on the job, learning the knowledge and skills associated with a trade from a certified journeyperson. This on-the-job training is a vital component of the education that the student receives. When they return to the classroom, the instruction they receive reinforces and expands upon what the apprentice learns on the job. The journeyperson who works with the apprentice has a respon- sibility to pass their knowledge and trade skills to the apprentice. The on-the-job training is critical but in the past the ratio of apprentice to journeyperson was 1:1. While the apprentice certainly benefited from the one-on-one training, it created an issue – there were not enough apprentices entering the plumbing program because there weren’t enough journeypersons available to provide the necessary training. MCAS saw the issue and brought it forward so that changes could be made to the system. The result was a change to the ratio. Now it sits at 2:1 and this resulted in an increase in the number of apprentices receiving on-the- job training and eventually their journeyperson papers. GAS TICKETS FOR REFRIGERATION MECHANICS In 2007 the Mechanical Contractors Association of Saskatchewan Inc. es- tablished a gas committee whose mandate was to examine the gas training that was being provided in Saskatchewan. The committee was to identify the pros and cons of different ways to provide gas training while still ensuring public safety. The recommendations made by the committee would help to meet the future needs of the industry. The committee provided several recommendations to the Sas- katchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission (SATCC) but a key one was to allow the refrigeration trade access to gas training. With proper training, refrigeration technicians would be certified for gas at the domestic level. Since the pilot program ran in 2011, all of the refrigeration me- chanics who have taken the course have successfully challenged the domestic gas exam. The program continues to run through Saskatchewan Polytechnic. The Romans, circa 1200 BC, were the first known civilization to use any type of warm-air heating system. It was called a “hypocaust” and it pumped heated air through the walls and floors. During the 13th century, Cistercian monks used naturally flowing rivers, heated by furnaces, to warm their monasteries. 19 A Century in Review MCAS