Fuelled-Up and Ready to Standardize

2010-10-14

The race to cut harmful emissions in Canada and around the world may be fueled less by the rush of discovery than by the plotting of careful, methodical regulations.

Ry Smith advocates for a different, greener way to propel vehicles along our streets and highways. As the head of Change Energy Inc., an alternative fuel and technology consultancy based in Mississauga, Smith has held key roles in shaping industry standards for the energy sector. He believes it’s time for a standards renaissance in Canada.

According to Smith, the lack of standardization in the natural gas vehicle industry prior to the 1990s led to some “real safety concerns”. By 2000, Canada had become a world leader in developing the new standards to drive the technology, however priorities have since shifted. Smith contends that Canada is no longer at the forefront.

In terms of standards for natural gas fuel vehicles, Smith cites three main benefits: public safety; consistency of manufacturing; and assistance in overcoming roadblocks in commercialization.

“Although it seems like more work at first, or more onerous in the design/build process”, he says. “It really makes more sense to have standards in place.”

While standards development may have taken a back seat to other priorities over the past decade, that doesn’t mean things have to start at square one, according to Smith. The first generation of work left a legacy of knowledge and experience, and a solid library of information upon which to build. Smith says all that’s needed is for government and the private sector to come together. If a multi-party platform of stakeholders—industry, end-users and manufacturers—were engaged, and the necessary secretariats and committees were put in-place, progress could easily be made.

Alicia Milner, president of the Canadian Natural Gas Vehicle Alliance, explains “there currently are no Canadian standards for LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) vehicles and refueling stations.” The association she leads—along with a range of other stakeholders from across Canada—is currently working with Natural Resources Canada on a Deployment Roadmap for Natural Gas in Transportation, an initiative spearheaded in March 2010.

As part of this work on a deployment roadmap, a Codes and StandardsWorking Group has been established. Milner says that under this group’s direction, the Standards Council of Canada is in the final stages of “preparing a matrix that identifies all existing codes and standards and highlights gap areas with perspective on how to address gaps.”

“Of great importance for the natural gas vehicle industry in Canada is a re-initiation of formerly active codes and standards committees to ensure that gap and issue areas are addressed and that a lack of standards does not become an impediment to market development,” says Milner.

The market won’t have to be built from scratch. Steve Steinebach is the business development manager at IMW Industries Ltd., a B.C.-based supplier of compressed natural gas (CNG) equipment for vehicle fueling and industrial applications. Steinebach notes that the standards developed in Canada are helping manufacturers of natural gas vehicles and station-related equipment from North America find markets worldwide.

“Standards form the basis upon which all development takes place,” says Steinebach. “In fact, over the last 15 years, Canadian and U.S. CNG standards have been widely used as a starting point for the development of CNG infrastructures in other countries without their own existing standards,” he explains. “Or as the starting point for their own standards development,” he adds.

“This has enabled North American products, technology and expertise in this field to be deployed all over the world,” says Steinebach.

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This article first appeared in Volume 37 of CONSENSUS Magazine, 2010. The information it contains was accurate at the time of publication but has not been updated or revised since, and may not reflect the latest updates on the topic. If you have specific questions or concerns about the content, please contact the Standards Council of Canada.

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