| March/April 2025 |
TSSA Recognized for Safety Excellence for the 4th Consecutive Year TSSA is proud to announce that it has been recognized — once again — with a 5-Star Safety Cultures Award by Canadian Occupational Safety (COS) magazine. This marks the fourth consecutive year that TSSA has received this national honour, which celebrates Canadian organizations for their exceptional commitment to building and sustaining a strong culture of safety.  “Receiving this award for the fourth year in a row is a tremendous honour and a meaningful validation of our commitment to safety,” said TSSA’s President and CEO, Bonnie Rose. “Our journey to becoming a modern, Outcome-Based Regulator depends on fostering a collaborative mindset and a strong safety culture throughout our organization—and these are instrumental in driving our transformation forward.” The 5-Star Safety Cultures Award is given to organizations that exemplify excellence in fostering robust workplace safety cultures and demonstrate a steadfast commitment to proactive risk management, comprehensive training, and employee engagement. Read more Fee Changes – Effective May 1, 2025 Fee increase of 3.8% for all safety programs Effective May 1, 2025, TSSA will increase the fees for Elevating Devices, Amusement Devices, Ski, Fuels, Boiler and Pressure Vessel and Operating Engineers programs by 3.8%. This level of adjustment aligns with the 3.8% average Consumer Price Index inflation rate for Ontario reported for 2023. Over the last several years, TSSA’s fee increases have been less than the average rate of inflation. As Ontario’s public safety regulator, TSSA is committed to enhancing safety across the province. With TSSA operating as a not-for-profit regulator, fees are set on a cost-recovery basis that reflects the true cost of providing public safety services. Read more Submit Nominations for Safety Awards 2025 The annual award program recognizes Ontario leaders in public safety TSSA is now accepting nominations for its 2025 Safety Awards honouring Ontario leaders in public safety. TSSA presents Safety Awards every year to individuals and organizations that have made significant contributions to Ontario’s public safety in TSSA’s regulated sectors: Fuels; Boilers and Pressure Vessels and Operating Engineers; Elevating and Amusement Devices and Ski Lift. Access nomination forms on TSSA’s website. Nominations of individuals and organizations working in TSSA’s regulated sectors will be accepted until June 2, 2025 (Monday). Read more Incident Reporting Keeps Ontario Safe Incident reporting is a key part of making Ontario a safe place to work, live and play. For industries regulated by TSSA, reporting all incidents is the law. An incident is an occurrence involving a regulated facility, work, or product where its use has resulted in or has the potential to cause death, personal injury, or property damage. Reportable incidents fall under two categories: Those where an accident has already occurred, and Those with the potential to cause death, personal injury, or property damage. TSSA must be notified of all reportable incidents by calling 1-877-682-8772 and selecting option 1. This option connects to our incident hotline at the Spills Action Center. TSSA must be notified immediately when the incident is severe and has resulted in: Death Injury requiring medical attention Carbon monoxide poisoning Explosion or rupture and damage to property Accidents or failures of equipment or components that may result in release of gas Spills and confirmed leaks of petroleum products For details about the updated incident reporting requirements, read Report an Incident. Mandatory Documents for Engineering Applications To enhance the efficiency of processing design registrations, engineering applications submitted after February 1, 2025, without mandatory documents will not be processed. TSSA reviews designs and engineering submissions across regulated industries (Boilers and Pressure Vessels, Fuels, Elevating and Amusement Devices, and Ski Lifts) to ensure compliance with the Technical Standards and Safety Act and other applicable regulations or adopted safety codes and standards. Submitting completed mandatory documents with the engineering application is critical to ensure the timely processing of design registrations. Below is a list of mandatory documents for: Boilers and Pressure Vessels Fuels Amusement Devices Elevating Devices Ski Lifts TSSA Celebrates Persian New Year, Nowruz  TSSA was proud to recognize Nowruz, the Persian New Year which falls on the spring equinox, usually on March 20 or 21. Marking the first day of spring and the beginning of the new year in the Iranian calendar, Nowruz is a festival of renewal, joy and cultural heritage celebrated for more than 3,000 years across Iran, Central Asia, the Middle East and parts of the Balkans. Rooted in ancient Zoroastrian traditions, Nowruz represents the triumph of light over darkness and the harmony between humans and nature. Nowruz celebrations last about two weeks. TSSA Observed International Women’s Day 2025 Continuing on the important recognition of the achievements, contributions and resilience of women around the world observed on International Women’s Day, some TSSA employees will attend the annual Young Women’s Conference (May 5-6, 2025) organized by Skills Ontario to promote skilled trades and technologies to students in grades 7 to 12. To encourage more young women to explore opportunities in skilled trades and engineering, the TSSA team will engage with students and share insights about the work TSSA does and the educational paths that can lead to careers in this field. Administrative Penalties for Elevating Devices As part of ongoing efforts to enhance public safety and ensure compliance with safety standards, TSSA will impose administrative penalties for certain issues with residential elevating devices, starting June 9, 2025. The administrative penalties currently apply to specific non-compliances related to passenger elevators in residential buildings, including those in the following settings: Rental buildings Condominiums Long-term care homes Student residences The administrative penalties will be imposed when a business or an individual fails to comply with three specific safety requirements listed on TSSA’s website. Read more Experts Shared VaIuable Insights at Amusement Ride Safety Training 2025 More than 160 attendees from the amusement ride industry gathered in Vaughan, Ontario for the Amusement Ride Safety Seminar held from March 25 to 27, 2025. Hosted by TSSA in collaboration with the National Association of Amusement Ride Safety Officials (NAARSO), the annual event brought together industry experts, regulators, professionals from Canada’s Wonderland, manufacturers and third-party engineers for three days of knowledge-sharing, collaboration, and hands-on training. Participants earned 16 hours of continuing education credits while gaining valuable insights from industry leaders through both In-class and practical sessions. Topics covered ranged from ride inspection and auditing to incident investigation, evacuation, industry best practices, and Electrical Safety Authority training. A key highlight was a field trip to Canada’s Wonderland where participants received a behind-the-scenes look at the park’s safety practices, upcoming attractions and the latest technology used in the amusement park. Read more Trained Personnel to Perform Daily Escalator Start-up This is a safety reminder to escalator owners and operators that the daily start-up of an escalator must be completed by a trained person. Seven per cent of orders that TSSA issued in 2024 were due to the failure to keep a record of authorized personnel trained in escalator start-up procedures. Start-up checks protect passengers from potential mishaps. Follow the procedures below when starting an escalator or a moving walk. Procedures for Starting an Escalator or a Moving Walk Before starting the escalator, observe the steps or pallets and both landing areas to ensure no persons are on the escalator or about to board. Run the escalator away from the landing. Verify that the starting switch operates correctly. Verify that the stop buttons function correctly. Verify the correct operation of each stop button cover alarm, if furnished. Visually examine the steps or treadway for damaged or missing components, combplates for broken or missing teeth, and the skirt or dynamic skirt panels and balustrades for damage. Verify that both handrails travel substantially at the same speed as the steps or the treadway and are free from damage or pinch points, and that entry guards are in place. Visually verify that all steps, pallets or the treadway are properly positioned. Verify that ceiling intersection guards, anti-slide devices, deck barricades, and caution signs are securely in place. Verify that demarcation lighting is illuminated if furnished. Check for uniform lighting on steps or tread and the surrounding areas. Verify the safety zone is clear of obstacles and the landing area and adjacent floor area are free from foreign matter and slipping or tripping hazards. Check for any unusual noise or vibration during operation. If any of the operations above do not work as intended, put the escalator out of service and barricade the landing areas. Back to Industry News Starting in April 2025, TSSA will launch the Biogas Facility Audit Program, which applies to all biogas facilities in Ontario — commonly referred to as digester, landfill, and biogas (DLB) facilities. This program aims to support improved compliance and ensure ongoing safety in the sector. These audits will roll out in phases over the next three years. TSSA will contact each biogas facility owner directly to schedule their first audit and offer necessary assistance throughout the preparation and audit process. Facilities can anticipate an audit approximately every three years. This audit program is expected to eventually transition to a risk-based model, where high-risk biogas facilities would be audited more frequently than lower-risk facilities. TSSA’s inspection rate will be charged for the audits and follow-ups if one is required. Read more Compliance Standards for Propane & Liquid Fuels Facilities in Effect Compliance Standards for Propane and Liquid Fuels came into effect on April 14, 2025, for all licensed propane-filling and retail liquid fuels facilities in Ontario. The Propane and Liquid Fuels Compliance Standards identify high-risk non-compliances that pose significant risks to safety. TSSA will apply this standard during periodic inspections to enhance safety and regulatory consistency. If high-risk non-compliances are found during a periodic inspection, TSSA will: Issue an order(s) requiring corrective action. Conduct a follow-up inspection to confirm compliance. If compliance is not confirmed within the specified time, further enforcement action will be taken, including possible shutdown. High-risk non-compliance may require immediate compliance (0 days), could result in a shutdown or allow 14 days to rectify the issues. In some cases, a high-risk non-compliance may be given more than 14 days to resolve, depending on practical considerations and circumstances. Other non-compliances, categorized as safety tasks (low- and medium-risk), will be noted on the inspection report. Owners and operators are responsible for resolving safety tasks within the time specified in the inspection report. TSSA will not conduct a follow-up inspection if only safety tasks are found during a periodic inspection. For more information, visit: Compliance Standards for licensed propane-filling and retail liquid fuels facilities in effect Propane Compliance Standard Liquid Fuels Compliance Standard Gerow Propane Ltd. Fined $80,000 For Safety Violation in Fatal Carbon Monoxide Incident One fatality and seven injuries resulted from the poisonous gas exposure Brighton-based propane distributor, Gerow Propane Ltd., pleaded guilty on March 19 to one count of an offence under the Technical Standards and Safety Act. The offence involved a fatal carbon monoxide exposure at a property in the Township of Hamilton, Ontario. The Ontario Court of Justice ordered Gerow Propane to pay a fine of $80,000, plus a 25 per cent victim surcharge. Read more Thomas Cavanagh Construction Fined $100,000 for Gas Line Strikes in Ottawa Thomas Cavanagh Construction Limited (Cavanagh Construction) has been fined $100,000 after pleading guilty to five safety violations under the Technical Standards and Safety Act. Cavanagh Construction’s violations resulted in damage to multiple gas lines in and around Ottawa, causing gas outages for six homes and a retail mall. The Ontario Court of Justice also imposed a 25% victim surcharge. Read more Back to Industry News Insurers to Report Specific Violations Found During Inspection Owners must resolve high-risk violations before a Certificate of Inspection can be issued Insurance companies and third-party inspection agencies are required to report specific violations through the Boilers and Pressure Vessels Certificate of Inspection (BPV COI) Portal for Insurers. As of April 14, 2025, the BPV COI Portal became available to support this reporting requirement. The 20 violations – of which 11 are high-risk requiring immediate compliance – are outlined in the Director’s Order BPV-25-02. Equipment owners must resolve high-risk violations before a Certificate of Inspection (COI) can be issued. Once the high-risk violation is resolved, the owner or operator shall advise the insurer for reinspection and verification so that the high-risk violation can be resolved in the BPV COI Portal, and a COI can be issued. This initiative is part of TSSA’s transition to an Outcome-Based Regulator that ensures the collection of high-quality, consistent and complete data on high-risk non-compliances and incidents. Read more Advisory on Alternate Process for Pressure Piping Inspection Updated TSSA has updated the advisory on the Alternate Process for Pressure Piping Inspection that took effect on October 1, 2023. A key update is the addition of the CSA-Certified Medical Gas Piping and Systems Installer Certificate (clause 2.3.2) as one of the requirements a qualified piping contractor must meet to inspect eligible piping systems as an alternative to a TSSA inspection under the Alternate Process. Other minor updates serve to clarify some of the requirements of this voluntary process. Read the updated advisory. Updated Manufacturer’s Data Report for Pressure Vessels TSSA has updated the Manufacturer’s Data Report for Pressure Vessels. Data reports are updated continually to align the requirements with changes to the CSA and ASME Codes, updates required by TSSA and industry feedback. Please use this updated manufacturer’s data report for pressure vessels. Changes to this data report include: A new section to document data for pressure testing the shell side and tube side separately Additional lines for tubes, tubesheets and jackets Back to Industry News 25% Percentage of professional contractors who did not request a locate in their last project. With April 2025 designated as Dig Safe Month, requesting locates before digging or excavating can help prevent accidental damage to underground infrastructure that could endanger lives. Source: Ontario One Call Joining Hands to Fight Against Hunger Ten TSSA employees volunteered at the Daily Bread Food Bank on March 4 to help in the fight against hunger. The team was assigned to work with granola, which involved breaking down end pieces, packing them into containers, labelling, running them through a metal detector and boxing them for distribution.  TSSA volunteers packed 12 boxes, each containing 32 prepacked granola containers, totalling 384 containers all set and ready for distribution. We would like to hear from you. Please send your comments or story ideas to media@tssa.org. Click the “Subscribe” button and get safety updates delivered to your inbox. You can access the issues online. Subscribe Now |
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