b'THERE ARE SO MANY IDEAS FOR INNOVATION AND THINGS TO RESEARCH, AND I THINK WE WOULD BENEFIT FROM A LARGER NUMBER OF RESEARCHERS, MORE FUNDING ANDMULTI-DISCIPLINARY COLLABORATIONS.interest in materials is what brought me into building scienceIve been working on this project for about 10 years, so my and doing a masters degree and PhD. I like to create materialsadvice to newcomers, like I was at one stage, is to stay focused and assemble them in a way that gives them purpose. on what you want to accomplish. BE: Describe your role at BC Housing. BE: What are some of the greatest challenges you currently face in your line of work?DI:Prior to BC Housing I worked as the technical directorDI: There are so many ideas for innovation and things to of a construction material manufacturing company, so it wasresearch, and I think we would benefit from a largera natural progression to continue researching construction- number of researchers, more funding andrelated themes. I first joined the Homeowner Protection Officemulti-disciplinary collaborations. (HPO) as a senior researcher at the height of the leaking condo crisis, and my work was to focus on the durability of buildingBE: What are your goals for the future?envelopes. HPO was later integrated into BC Housing. My research has evolved over time. Now I am involved withDI: My goal in the future is to tap into artificial intelligence and developing innovative solutions to build faster, better, moredigitization of building science and constructionthat will be energy-efficient buildings. my next professional challenge.BE: Do you have any advice for new and emerging engineers in the field?DI: [My advice is] take a holistic view and look at innova-tive solutions to drive the industry to more efficient ways of604-946-9910 AQUA-COAST.CAworking. Look beyond established methodologies andoptimize processes.BE: What do you consider to be the proudest moment ofyour career?DI: Developing improved construction products in the labora-tory, formulating and testing for compliance with code stan-dards, manufacturing in large scale and seeing final users appre-ciate the characteristics of the products are some aspects of my career that I enjoyed the most. At one point I had to shift from working with high-temperature metallurgical processes to construction processesa big change. I really enjoyed applying the scientific knowledge Id gained to practical applicationsfor construction. AQUA-COAST ENGINEERING LTD.BE: What was the most exciting or interesting project youveBuilding Enclosure Engineeringworked on? Energy Modelling & SustainabilityRoofing & Re-roofingDI: [It was] the Building Envelope Thermal Bridging Database,Airtightness Testingmanaging this project on behalf of a group of funding organi-zations. I had a chance to work with a lot of brilliant minds to bring this digital database into public awareness. The project received a 2021 Canadian Consulting Engineering Award. It is a digital tool being used in Canada, the U.S. and Europe. Its use continues to expand as requirements for more energy-efficient buildings increase. FALL/WINTER 2023 9'