MBAC Ontario Technical Conference 2017 January 26-27 Toronto, ON
Event Overview
The MBAC Ontario Technical Conference 2017 brought together brewing professionals to share insights and innovations.
The Master Brewers’ Association of Canada (MBAC) held its 44th Annual Ontario Technical Conference in January at the Westin Toronto Airport Hotel. This event remains the longest‑running and most informative Canadian technical conference for brewing technologies.
The organizing committee began planning and preparing early, building on the success of the 2016 conference. As a result, this year’s event was even bigger and better, featuring great content, additional breakout sessions, and a Brewery Tour and Tastings event to kick things off on January 25. Moreover, the conference was well attended, with more than 200 participants joining over the two days.
Cemcorp’s Role and Contributions
At last year’s event, Cemcorp’s President Stephen Harkness and Steve Durston, Part Owner of Eri‑Son Instrumentation, presented on Automation Scale‑Up in a Brewery.
This year, Cemcorp was proud to be one of the event sponsors. In addition, Stephen Harkness moderated the Safety Panel Discussion on day one of the program. The panel focused on safety in the brewery — including the responsibilities of operations supervisors and employees.
Safety Panel Highlights
The discussion covered several key topics:
- Safety requirements and an overview of Ontario laws and regulations
- Safety costs and benefits
- Safety culture versus compliance
- Safety support services available from the Master Brewers’ Association of America (MBAA) and other organizations
Furthermore, the panel members included:
- Stephen Harkness, P.Eng., Consulting Engineer, Cemcorp Ltd.
- Joshua Kearley, Beverage Protect, Benson Kearley IFG
- Jonathan Crawshaw, Brewing Technical Specialist, Sleeman Breweries
- Gary Nicholas, Brewery Safety and Packaging Specialist, MBAA (USA)
- Jennifer MacFarlane, CHSC, Workplace Safety and Prevention Services
- Wagish Yajaman, Occupational Hygienist, Workplace Safety and Prevention Services
The Ontario Technical Conference continues to be a cornerstone event for Canada’s brewing industry. Overall, it provides an excellent opportunity for professionals to share insights and strengthen safety practices. Take a look below at some of the photos we captured at the event, and stay tuned for the 45th Annual Ontario Conference in January 2018 — we’re already looking forward to it!
