Ultra Stop Canada to build mold-free portables

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Menacing mould Steel called school solution

The Toronto Star

5-19-99

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Firm aims to build mould-free portable units

Steel called school-mould solution

He usually designs arenas, warehouses and airport hangars, but now he's

building smaller structures that will be mighty mean to mould.

Neville Spillman, vice-president of Ultra Stop Canada Ltd. in Thorold, says

he has the solution to the mould problem plaguing Ontario schools.

For the last eight months, he has been trying to take his group of steel,

aluminum and glass contractors in a new direction by designing a mould-free

portable that he estimates will last up to 30 years.

The solution is simple, he says, noting the new style of portables will be

made out of steel with insulated walls and ceilings rather than the

mould-friendly wooden and drywall models now in use throughout the

province's school system.

``We feel we have a solution here that no one else has,'' says Spillman, who

has spent 11 years at Ultra Stop.

The oil and mining industry already uses steel buildings because of their

portability and durability, he notes, adding it's about time the school

system smartened up and did the same for the safety of children.

``It's a growing concern,'' he says. ``Current portables out there are

poorly constructed because there's no ventilation and the moisture gets

trapped between the walls, particularly in wood.''

Spillman has three children, including one in Grade 2 and two who are not

yet school-aged.

``As a parent myself, I'm very concerned with my kids spending time down the

road in a portable,'' he says.

He doesn't have any orders for the new portables yet, but has made a

presentation to the Niagara Region public health department and has

contacted school boards including Dufferin-Peel Catholic, Metro separate and

York Region Catholic.

St. Catholic School in Orangeville was closed indefinitely this week

and 553 children were to be moved to nearby facilities so emergency

environmental testing for mould could be performed on the 38-year- old

school.

A similar situation forced the closing of Our Lady of Grace Catholic School

in Aurora, where the board now has to find alternate accommodation for 540

students until the end of the school year.

Some medical officials and building engineers say prolonged exposure to some

moulds can lead to migraines, nosebleeds, asthma, fatigue, rashes, diarrhea

and irritability.

The Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board planned to spend $300,000

to renovate St. , but parents persuaded officials to hold back until

the testing is done and specific problems are identified.

``Basically everybody is talking cleanup but they're not talking about a

solution,'' Spillman says.

The pricetag for his 1,000-square-foot model is about $35,000, which is

about 20 per cent more than the average cost of a portable in Ontario. He

says the higher cost is offset by lower maintenance costs and longer life.

``Can one really put a price on the health of our kids?'' Spillman asks.

``Virtually no maintenance needs to be done to these buildings,'' he says,

noting they simply need to be washed down every once in a while.

Copyright © 1999 Toronto Star, .