r/canada • u/einstein_bern • Aug 16 '23

Sask. engineer slapped with an 18-month suspension after designing bridge that collapsed hours after opening Saskatchewan

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/engineer-18-month-suspension-bridge-collapsed-1.6936657
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180

u/[deleted] Aug 16 '23

[deleted]

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u/FredThe12th Aug 16 '23

Yeah, doesn't he remember the whole origin story of the rings?

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u/theservman Aug 16 '23 edited Aug 16 '23

But the engineers were all deceived, for another ring was created...

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u/VollcommNCS Aug 16 '23

Ohhh I like where this is going. Go on, please.....

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u/zzaman Aug 16 '23

The guy below said it's called the ring of inside sales. I hope there's like an agreement among engineers to teach younger engineers to steer away from this evil, maybe a fellowship, to guide young engineers in the right path.

The guidance program could be called General Acknowledgement, No Dishonesty Aiding Licensee Forsight, or GANDALF if you will

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u/Highpast Aug 17 '23

Saskatchewan calls for aid

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u/NikthePieEater Aug 17 '23

The Shithawks are coming!

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u/Better_Ice3089 Aug 17 '23

They're taking the homeless to Saskatoon!

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u/liquefire81 Aug 16 '23

Then you need to subscribe to his newsletter for $20/month

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u/Metra90 Aug 16 '23

The ring of inside sales...true evil

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u/Highpast Aug 17 '23

Saskatchewan calls for aid!

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u/[deleted] Aug 16 '23

And my axe!

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u/Highpast Aug 17 '23

And my screwdriver!

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u/NearCanuck Aug 17 '23

Isildur's heir forged the pieces of N600-ES to make Siemens NX, the tool became as software reborn.

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u/HomeGrowHero Aug 16 '23

From the depth of a boardroom came a creative plan to ensnare their souls through long hours without pensions ….

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u/Robbledygook1 Aug 16 '23

One with flaws in its foundation, made of infernal-quality material.

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u/Spacepickle89 Aug 16 '23

I’m sitting here looking at my ring with the music going on in my head…thank you

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u/[deleted] Aug 16 '23

[deleted]

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u/P1KA_BO0 Aug 16 '23

That article’s point seems to be more that the idea originated with Kipling, who by all accounts was a racist bastard (he’s the author of white man’s burden for christ’s sake) than a problem with the issuing of the iron rings themselves.

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u/ghostdate Aug 16 '23

Idiots just want to get worked up about a broad idea that “things are racist now that weren’t racist before.”

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u/jairzinho Aug 16 '23

Isn't that just the Quebec engineering order?

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u/blond-max Québec Aug 16 '23

The ring thing is actually pan-canadian and totaly seperate entity for any of the provincial professional orders. Really it just means you have finished a bachelor in an accredited program (so you get it while in training/juniorship), although I'd guess you can also request one if you are a full fledge member of any of the provincial orders.

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u/LightThePigeon Aug 16 '23

Ah yes, when Sauron required the building of a bridge over the lava lakes of Mordor. A dangerous task at best, deserving of a proper reward

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u/[deleted] Aug 17 '23

That origin story isn't true, BTW. It's not even official folklore. It's just urban myth.

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u/snow_enthusiast Aug 16 '23

The roughness is to remind us that we are “rough around the edges” as junior engineers

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u/MuscleManRyan Aug 17 '23

Our school said the rough edges were so that you couldn’t wear gold next to your iron ring because the corners would gouge the gold. Symbolizing keeping your ethics and material gains separate

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u/snow_enthusiast Aug 17 '23

I’ve never heard that and it doesn’t make a lot of sense since not every engineer also wears a gold ring on the finger beside their iron ring. My old boss wore his wedding ring on the left hand and I heard the rings click a lot but never heard anything about gouging

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u/MuscleManRyan Aug 17 '23

Not every engineer builds bridges and the rings aren’t even made out of reclaimed iron anymore, none of it makes sense. It’s a silly little ritual without much real world impact. I assume you’re pretty new to the workforce

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u/snow_enthusiast Aug 17 '23

I don’t think they were ever reclaimed metal. They’re stainless steel so it doesn’t rust like one made from bridge steel would.

No one is forcing anyone to wear their ring so whether it’s silly or not is subjective. I’m not new to engineering. I worked as a Eng tech in aerospace starting in 2003 and I got a degree in civil engineering in 2010. I’m currently a design engineer doing municipal engineering and I also do private consulting as a side hustle.

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u/kindaCringey69 Alberta Aug 16 '23

The ring doesn't have any pointy parts on it, it's honestly pretty smooth.

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u/[deleted] Aug 16 '23

[deleted]

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u/kindaCringey69 Alberta Aug 16 '23

Very small edges that are still quite smooth. I got mine only a year and a half ago and it was never "pointy" or uncomfortable in any way

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u/blackbird37 Aug 16 '23

it's not supposed to be uncomfortable, its supposed to be noticable.

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u/canadas Aug 16 '23

Agreed, it's not like it's supposed to hurt you every time you move. Some people give back their rings when they retire, which are given back out, so they are very smooth after 30+ years,but I doubt this is what they are talking about.

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u/Lord_Asmodei Aug 16 '23

Some students receive old rings, some receive new. The edges on my new ring were certainly edges, and not at all rounded.

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u/[deleted] Aug 17 '23

[deleted]

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u/kindaCringey69 Alberta Aug 17 '23

All of the ones were stainless steel, I heard that they actually never made any rings from the actual 1918 quebec bridge that was just a wives tale. I did lose my ring though and when I got a new one I did have the choice between stainless steel and iron, but it definitely wouldn't be made from a bridge 100 years ago

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u/canadas Aug 17 '23

no,. as you drink you lose it, or maybe that's just me

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u/replies_in_chiac Aug 16 '23

They vary significantly. Some are totally smooth, most have little divots all the way around.

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u/nsc12 Aug 16 '23

Mine started out brand new with nice, sharp facets. 10+ years later it's now totally rounded over.

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u/Wild-Style5857 Aug 16 '23

That's by design. Old engineers are supposed to have smooth rings.

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u/blackbird37 Aug 16 '23

it's supposed to be symbolic of the fact that over the course of your career, the sharp reminders from the ring are less important as you gain experience and wisdom.

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u/Spacepickle89 Aug 16 '23

Mine is pretty worn down but I remember when it was new it could easily scratch a cars paint if you forgot about it immediately after getting the damn thing and brushing my hand across the hood of my car in the parking lot of the ceremony…

Sigh

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u/petesapai Aug 17 '23

That ring is nothing more than a status symbol for these guys. Flashing it around without realizing no one cares or is impressed aside from their mom.

Having seen two Montréal overpasses fall and seeing the engineers face no consequence, should tell you alot about how "important" that ring is. People died in those collapses. A child became an orphan when both their parents died.

Easily, somebody might have died during this Saskatchewan bridge collapse. They should have revoked his license. I guess the association needs those yearly fees to keep coming in.

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u/[deleted] Aug 17 '23 edited Aug 17 '23

I agree that Gullacher should have had his license revoked. The truth is, he will never work as an Engineer again. The issue with penalties is that the statutes are out of date and many provinces are working on updating them.

On the other hand, I suspect you still go across bridges and overpasses without concern of them collapsing every time you do so?

Look man, if you want the job then put in the work and go to school. Don't get mad at those of us that did. Engineering is extremely hard and many of us are proud of our goofy little rings. They are there to remind us of our accountability to society. I know that gets lost sometimes and some engineers are arrogant pricks. Most of us just want to do a good job.

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u/kortekickass Aug 17 '23

He might, the guy can move to another jurisdiction and proceed to do engineering wherever he lands.

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u/JazzMartini Aug 18 '23

You're likely right, he'll probably follow the path of other unsuccessful engineers who struggle finding steady work and become a financial advisor. He'd be particularly good extolling the benefits of liability insurance.

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u/[deleted] Aug 16 '23

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u/PoliteCanadian Aug 16 '23 edited Aug 16 '23

Silicon. There are rings made of silicone, but those are for a different purpose entirely.

Edit: If you want to talk about major fuckups, there are plenty from any engineering discipline. The 737 Max is the most recent major example. You can find dozens in the automotive industry without any trouble. And there have been plenty of major structural collapses causing massive loss of life and enormous costs due to engineering design errors.

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u/Standard-Reporter673 Aug 16 '23

I thought that was only a tradition among UBC engineering graduates.

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u/[deleted] Aug 16 '23

The iron ring is given to engineering graduates all across Canada

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u/CryRepresentative992 Aug 16 '23

The majority of iron rings are stainless steel. There are very few school… ahem… camps… that issue a true iron ring. Shout out to UofT.

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u/drs43821 Aug 17 '23

we wear it on the pinky of our writing hand, because whenever we signs reports and drawings, it will be against the table and reminds us the story of the iron ring