TORONTO, ON, June 16, 2008 - Canadian Standards Association (CSA), Canada’s leading developer of standards and codes, today officially announces Vince Rowe, P.Eng., partner and vice president of MAREX Canada Limited and as the recipient of the 2008 John Jenkins Award. The award is CSA’s most prestigious honour, bestowed upon the person who is judged to have rendered distinguished service in the development, advancement, and application of voluntary standards.
The 2008 John Jenkins Award was presented to Vince Rowe, P.Eng., of West Bank, British Columbia by Julia Hill, Chair of the Board, CSA Group at a special awards ceremony held during the CSA Annual Conference in Calgary, Alberta. The award was conferred in recognition of Mr. Rowe’s remarkable contribution to electrical safety standards at national, regional and international levels, and a steadfast commitment to developing and advancing the standards system.
“CSA could not have asked for a more remarkable contribution from any of its members,” says Suzanne Kiraly, President, Standards, Canadian Standards Association. “The unique vision and leadership Vince Rowe has shown in developing CSA codes and standards, based on an international approach, is unmatched. Through his amazing persistence, Mr. Rowe almost single-handedly changed the paradigm of thought used by Canadian electrical safety stakeholders.”
Vince Rowe has been active with CSA in developing safety standards for electrical equipment and advancing installation codes for more than 25 years, participating on almost 50 different technical committees and subcommittees. Through his drive and leadership, CSA codes and standards were developed with an international perspective such as proposing that the IEC Zone system of protection be incorporated into hazardous location requirements in North America.
Mr. Rowe spearheaded a fundamental shift in the design, selection and installation of electrical equipment in hazardous locations. In addition to driving changes to the CEC Part I, Mr. Rowe provided Canada-wide seminars on the IEC system to regulators, installers and designers. He was also instrumental in having the IEC 60079 series of Part II product standards adopted in Canada. It was Mr. Rowe’s uncompromising fight for his vision and his ability to convince his technical peers on the committees that made such a transformation possible.
He has also relentlessly pursued the recognition of alternate technical solutions that meet prescriptive requirements of the installation Code based on fundamental safety objectives. As a result, two new very unique documents are taking shape through the CSA consensus process: the CSA Objective Based Industrial Electrical Code and the CSA Standard for Safety Management System under which the Code is to be used.
In addition to chairing the integrated technical committee on Hazardous Location products, Mr. Rowe chairs subcommittees for Sections 18 and 62 of the CE Code and actively participates in more than two dozen other technical committees and subcommittees.
About the John Jenkins Award The John Jenkins Award is CSA’s most prestigious honour. Nominations for the Award are open to individuals who have: shown leadership in various areas – through personal involvement over a period of years – in the development, advancement, and application of voluntary standards; encouraged the development and advancement of standards both nationally and internationally; and through foresight and action, helped to substantially advance the arts and sciences related to standardization. CSA employees are not eligible.
Established in 1978 in memory of Dr. John Jenkins, the award commemorates the devotion and commitment demonstrated by Dr. Jenkins’ more than 27 years of voluntary service to CSA and standards development. Dr. Jenkins immigrated to Canada from England in 1912 and went on to graduate from the University of British Columbia in 1923 as the country’s first Forest Engineer. He served as a Colonel and Director of Military Planning at Defence Headquarters during World War II and, before his retirement in 1966, he was Director of the Forest Products Research Branch for the Federal Department of Forestry.
During his time with CSA, Dr. Jenkins served as President – now Chairman of the Board – from 1967 to 1969, Chairman of the Standards Policy Board from 1969 to 1977, and Chairman of all major Standards committees related to lumber and building products. On June 19, 1975, Dr. Jenkins was inducted as an Honorary Member of CSA in recognition of his outstanding service. He passed away at his Ottawa home on November 7, 1977.
About CSA
Canadian Standards Association (CSA) is a membership association serving industry, government, consumers and other interested parties in Canada and the global marketplace. As a leading solutions-based standards organization, providing standards and codes development, application products, training and advisory services, CSA aims to enhance public safety, improve quality of life, preserve the environment and facilitate trade. The Canadian Standards Association is a division of CSA Group, which also consists of CSA International, which provides testing and certification services for electrical, mechanical, plumbing, gas and a variety of other products; and OnSpeX, a provider of consumer product evaluation, inspection and advisory services for retailers and manufacturers. For more information visit www.csa.ca.
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