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46 47 tive. This has become a very important aspect of design, because, in North America, we’re paying more and more attention to how much energy it takes to operate a building. Our studies help to identify how shapes, designs, orientations, materi- al selections, noise, acoustics, vibration, air quality, wind, snow and rain, all affect a building’s perfor- mance. All those factors can also affect how much the building costs both in terms of initial capital outlay, and in terms of long-term operations. “Another major area of our services is in damp- ing systems for tall buildings. Designers have been making buildings taller and taller for de- cades. Today, they’re also trying to make a lot of buildings thinner because the footprints that they have to build on are very narrow. A damper sys- tem helps keep buildings from swaying too much, even when they are extremely tall and slender. There are a couple of reasons why designers need to control how much their buildings sway. One is to avoid too much motion thus affecting the structure. A less obvious but also very serious problem is that sway can cause people on the up- per floors to experience motion effects. If you just paid $20 million for the penthouse suite, feeling nauseated whenever you’re up there is not going to be appealing. Our ‘Motioneering’ department specializes in dampers that stabilize all kinds of buildings; tall, long span roofs, large flooring systems, bridges, stadiums, and the super-tall high-rises.” Regarding competition in the industry, Soligo says the following: “There are companies that do parts of what we do; there is no company that does all the aspects of what we do. And that real- ly separates us. If someone wants a holistic un- derstanding of the impact of the environment on their development – and a complete view of all the strategies they can use to optimize that de- velopment for its context –we’re really the only company that can provide all of these services. That’s what makes us unique.We started out in SorbaraLaw is one of the largest and most respected full service re- gional law firms in Ontario. Our diverse team of skilled lawyers allows us to be responsive to our clients’ constantly changing needs. As a regional law firm, we have a cost structure that allows excellent legal services to be priced competitively. Our clients are individuals, businesses, institutions, and governmen- tal bodies, located across Ontario and around the world. When our clients require legal expertise anywhere in the province, SorbaraLaw is there for them. Our firm’s reach extends beyond Canada as Sor- baraLaw is regularly called upon to assist with the Canadian interests of clients in foreign jurisdictions including The United States, Eastern and Western Europe, China and India. SorbaraLaw is not simply good, but among the very best. We have been the solicitors for RWDI for many years and have represented them in connection with transactions all over the world. RWDI is simply the best in all that they do. WATERLOO OFFICE 31 Union Street E. Waterloo, ON N2J 1B8 GUELPH OFFICE 457 Woolwich Street, Guelph, ON N1H 3X6 T: 519.836.1510 KITCHENER OFFICE 300 Victoria Street N., Kitchener, ON N2H 6R9 PREFERRED VENDOR n SorbaraLaw www.sorbaralaw.com RWDI the small town of Guelph, Ontario, and now we’ve grown into the world’s largest niche environmen- tal company of its kind.We’re doing work from the North Pole to the South Pole and everywhere in between.We have 17 locations around the world and we work on every continent.” Consistently reinvesting in the company is another aspect that helps keep RWDI on top of its game. “There are a lot of advancements that we’re working on right now–we’re always aiming for that next level,” Soligo says. “We have a history of putting a major part of our profits every year into innovation and technical advancement, and that history continues. In fact, in the last few years, we put more money into technical advancement and innovation than we ever have in the history of our company. It’s important that we do so.” Soligo also pays tribute to RWDI’s 500+ employ- ees: “We hire and we seek out the top people in many fields around the world. It’s the top people who have a passion for what they’re doing. That’s why we’ve been successful for 45 years; that’s why we’ve been able to expand and innovate because we have a lot of highly intelligent peo- ple who are passionate about what they’re doing. That may be the most important thing.” Finally, Soligo sums up RWDI’s mandate: “Our primary objective is to ensure a healthy relation- ship between the environment and any type of development. Because if it doesn’t work well, the environment is going to be harmed and the development is not going to be a success.We all know of many examples where a failure to take the environment into account led to bad results all around: problems for people using a devel- opment, problems for the development itself, and problems for the environment. Nobody wins. RWDI works to make sure that any relationship between the environment and a development is an excellent relationship that works well. By protecting the environment, we’re also ensuring a successful development. That’s paramount.”