b'COVERWe had gloves and we had masks. Thatwhole understanding of the necessity for PPE is just baked right into what we do.-Joanne Harpauer-Dignean, Welldone Mechanical ServicesJoanne Harpauer-Dignean is the general manager for the SaskatoonBecause they work with air quality, Welldone already had many branch of Welldone Mechanical Services Inc., a service contractorPPEs on hand. We had gloves and we had [n95] masks, she said. specializing in preventive maintenance. That whole understanding of the necessity for PPE is just baked We were particularly well suited when COVID-19 became an issue,right into what we do. Because the company had already gone said Harpauer-Dignean. Because preventative maintenance of me- through COR certification through the Saskatchewan Construction chanical systems is, to a great extent, about eliminating dangerousSafety Association, compliance, when it comes to safety, was already microbes from the air, she said the learning curve was somewhatfamiliar. Everyone was very much on board.flattened. Thats built right into the type of preventive maintenanceThere had been some early, limited hesitancy when it came to vac-that we do, she said.cinations, but eventually everyone came around. Weve been fully Welldone was also fortunate to have been in the midst of developingvaccinated for quite a while. In fact, a couple of people have already their own pandemic strategy when the news of the pandemic hit.got their third shot, she said.We already had a pandemic response plan in place because we workNow that the worst of the lockdowns appear to be in the rear-view with vulnerable populations, explained Harpauer-Dignean.mirror, things are getting back to normal at the office. In June, the But even with the plan in place, it really came down to following thelast of the staff working from home returned to the office. When regulations that were announced from the provincial and federalthe mask mandate ended, we also stopped wearing masks unless governments. Welldone closed their office and only went into theirwe went to a site that required masks, she said. However, she noted customers facilities in emergency situations. We kept our twothat considering the recent spikes in cases, some people are now offices completely separate. We kept our office and our field staffback to wearing masks. separate. We dispatched the office from our dispatchers home, saidHarpauer-Dignean said that there were some positives that came Harpauer-Dignean. As one of the owners, I was in the office to makeout of the pandemic. During downtime, when site visits werent sure everything was running well. The other owner (her husband,an option, the company took advantage of training opportunities who works as the service manager) was also on site. So, not onlytechnicians could do remotely. Even though our guys might not be was the office able to social distance, it was also limited to a singleworking in the field, they were still improving their skills, she noted.household. The other four employees from the Saskatoon officeThe availability of remote training and remote communications in worked from home.general are likely to remain part of the company culture moving Harpauer-Dignean said there were no issues with getting the staffforward. The ability to train on an international level, locally is on board. We were up front, we were very transparent, and we tookcertainly something that well continue to take advantage of, said it seriously, she said. We wanted to make sure everyone here andHarpauer-Dignean.We used to have to send our people for train-their families were safe, as well. We provided PPE right off the hop.ing for a week, she said, noting that the company would have to We started taking temperatures of everybody right away.cover expenses including flights, accommodations and food. Suppliers of HVAC equipment to the industrial and commercial markets.Regina- 306-757-5656Saskatoon- 306-242-3333www.cypresssales.comMechanical PerspectiveMCAS 13'