Author: support

MCM attended the conférence Réinventer la ville : infrastructures, organized by Les Affaires, to listen to the challenges facing municipalities, understand field priorities, and validate how our solutions align with the recommendations put forward by the experts.

Here are the key takeaways that caught our attention.

“Encourage versatile infrastructure projects that deliver multiple benefits“
— Catherine Morency, Canadian Infrastructure Council

The Canadian Infrastructure Council calls for encouraging versatile projects capable of delivering multiple benefits at once. It highlights that significant opportunities exist to meet future needs with existing assets — particularly by strengthening asset management planning to improve climate resilience and reduce costs.

MCM’s Versatile Offering

An MCM pedestal is a versatile solution that consolidates multiple network types into a single piece of equipment: electricity, telecommunications, cabling, and other technical connections. It enables municipalities to centralize several functions within one durable infrastructure integrated into urban street furniture — shifting from a logic of adding equipment to a logic of organizing networks.

“Design infrastructure to withstand future climate conditions and demographic changes”
— Catherine Morency, Canadian Infrastructure Council

Infrastructure can no longer be designed only for current needs. It must account for future climate conditions, demographic growth, and regional differences. The Council notes that its first National Infrastructure Assessment report focuses specifically on essential public infrastructure supporting access to housing, in a context where population growth and climate change are placing increasing pressure on these systems.

MCM: Robustness and Resilience

With densification, electrification, and the growth of telecommunications, urban networks will face increasing demand. Today’s equipment must be built to last. Designed to withstand impacts, harsh weather, and extreme climate conditions, MCM pedestals are certified to resist Category 5 hurricanes. By centralizing connections, they also make networks more organized and less vulnerable.

“$1 invested in preventive maintenance consistently avoids $10 in major repairs or reconstruction”
— Marc Didier Joseph, CERIU

This was arguably the most powerful statement of the conference. It captures in one sentence the importance of acting before problems escalate. CERIU emphasizes that proactive intervention means acting at the right time, maximizing asset lifespan, and avoiding far greater costs down the road.

MCM: A Prevention-First Approach

Better network planning from the start means avoiding costly interventions later.

By consolidating electricity and telecom in a single infrastructure, MCM pedestals simplify maintenance: less excavation, easier access, and less improvisation in the field. Designed to last 50 years without maintenance, they enable a 73% reduction in maintenance costs compared to conventional pedestals — equivalent to $2.2M in savings over 50 years for 100 pedestals.

MCM s’inscrit ainsi dans une logique de prévention — non seulement pour installer, mais pour mieux prévoir la durabilité et l’évolution des réseaux sur le long terme.

“Require long-term financial plans (10+ years) that include full asset lifecycle costs”
— École nationale d’administration publique

In a comparative report covering six public administrations — including Quebec, Ontario, Norway, and the United Kingdom — ENAP stresses that multi-year planning is essential to move beyond short-term management, better prioritize investments, and ensure continuity in public decision-making. The report also notes that unpredictability and budget instability are a major shared challenge across all administrations studied.

Key Takeaways from MCM

These recommendations reinforce MCM’s vision: well-designed infrastructure doesn’t just respond to an immediate need. It must also facilitate maintenance, reduce future interventions, and support the evolution of networks over time.

In concrete terms, MCM pedestals make it possible to:

• Consolidate multiple networks into a single piece of equipment;
• Reduce the dispersion of enclosures in public spaces;
• Facilitate access to connections;
• Protect equipment against impacts and harsh weather;
• Better integrate technical infrastructure into urban street furniture;
• Support the gradual modernization of neighbourhoods;
• Reduce unplanned interventions and long-term costs.

Better planning today means building more coherent, more sustainable, and easier-to-maintain neighbourhoods tomorrow.

Québec does not lack electricity. It lacks it… for a few hours each year.

A grid designed for 10 to 20 critical hours annually

Québec’s electrical grid is not built for average consumption, but for the winter peak.

During a handful of very cold evenings, nearly all electric heating systems run simultaneously, in addition to normal usage (cooking, hot water, lighting and appliances). Even though this situation lasts only about 10 to 20 hours per year, the grid must be able to handle it — otherwise equipment would overload and outages would occur.

Transmission lines, substations and transformers are therefore built for this extreme scenario. The rest of the time, demand is much lower and a significant portion of capacity remains unused.

On average, the grid operates at roughly 50% of its capacity.

https://www.hydroquebec.com/data/achats-electricite-quebec/pdf/complement-dinformation-du-plan-dapprovisionnement-2023-2032.pdf

In practical terms, this means you can sell electricity back to the grid.

What is islanding?

Islanding is a home’s ability to temporarily disconnect from the electrical grid and operate independently.
You essentially become a small energy “island.”

Concretely: if the grid goes down, your home continues running using its battery.

Your car = a massive battery

An electric vehicle typically stores 50 to 100 kWh of energy, while a home uses about 30 kWh per day. In other words, a vehicle can power a residence for several days for essential needs: refrigeration, lighting, internet and minimal heating.

With some bidirectional charging systems, that energy can even be sent back to the home…
or to the grid.

Why this matters

When homes produce, store and redistribute electricity, the citizen’s role changes. You are no longer only consuming energy — you help stabilize the system.

Distributed micro-sources have direct effects:

• peak demand pressure decreases
• major infrastructure investments are reduced
• local resilience increases
• outages have less impact

A smart grid no longer relies only on a few large generating stations, but on thousands of distributed sources.

It relies on thousands of small, distributed energy producers.

This may be the key to a more stable — and above all, more resilient — grid.

This model already exists elsewhere

In California, the transition is already underway. The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) actively subsidizes residential battery installations through the Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP).

https://www.cpuc.ca.gov/industries-and-topics/electrical-energy/demand-side-management/self-generation-incentive-program

Support is substantial: hundreds of millions of dollars are dedicated to residential storage, with incentives reaching approximately $1,100 per kWh. The objective is not only environmental — it is electrical: reducing stress on the grid during peak demand hours.

Solar-plus-battery systems allow homes to continue operating during outages, lower electricity bills and, most importantly, support the grid during peak consumption periods.

Germany, Australia and Japan follow the same approach: integrating homes into the balance of the electrical system.

The citizen will no longer be only a consumer. They will become a participant in the grid.

The question is no longer whether this model will arrive here.

The real question is: are we ready to adopt it?

Twenty years ago, a power outage mostly meant a temporary inconvenience. Today, it’s different. The electrical grid no longer only powers lights and household appliances.

Outage duration has more than doubled in one year

According to data published by Hydro-Québec, the average annual outage duration per customer increased from approximately 5 hours 45 minutes in 2021 to more than 14 hours in 2022. This increase cannot be explained solely by an exceptional storm. It points to a structural vulnerability.
https://www.qub.ca/article/hydro-la-duree-des-pannes-a-plus-que-double-en-un-an-1098379892

Why is this happening?

What if tomorrow’s energy resilience depended as much on homes as on power plants?

We depend more than ever on the grid, while outages are lasting longer and infrastructure is aging. The centralized model is reaching its limits.

With micro-islanding and residential energy storage, homes can become more autonomous.
Modernizing the distribution network is becoming essential.

Let’s take the example of a municipality with 100 pedestals.

Note: Savings are expressed in current dollars; in reality, they will be even higher over time.

50-Year Comparison – 100 Pedestals

Cost reduction: $2.2 million, or 73% savings over 50 years.

The JDP pedestal isn’t just a technical decision — it’s a long-term financial strategy that can save municipalities millions in replacement and maintenance.

The Urbanova project, located at the western edge of the City of Terrebonne, is one of the largest residential developments in the region. For over 15 years, Urbanova has embodied a modern vision: compact, well-designed homes that reflect the new trend in urban planning. This large-scale project will eventually include hundreds of units: single-family homes, semi-detached, and townhouses.

Since 2010, the City of Terrebonne has trusted our connection systems. About one hundred 5th-generation JDPswere installed during Phase 1, delivering exemplary long-term performance. After more than 10 years, these pedestals are still in place, corrosion-free, with an estimated lifespan of over 50 years.

In 2025, the developer, Groupe Mathieu is moving forward with Phase 2, called Natura, with a new series of around fifty JDPs. The goal is to preserve the same look and durability as in Phase 1.

Although it appears unchanged,several improvements have been integrated into the new 7th-generation JDP

These new pedestals offer:

• The same rigid internal steel structure (about 200 kg)
• A fully painted aluminum enclosure resistant to UV rays
• Rolled aluminum doors providing the best price-to-performance ratio
• An improved assembly method with hinges fixed using invisible self-locking bolts, eliminating welding issues
• Several enhanced internal technical features

The result is a maintenance-free product with outstanding climate resilience.

The City of Terrebonne has shown vision by investing in resilient, easily repairable integrated infrastructure. We are proud to have supported this project for 15 years, phase after phase.

Since 2005, our team has been designing and improving multi-use pedestals with consistent rigor. Each generation tells a story—of testing, mistakes, learnings, and most of all, a drive to do better. Here’s a look back at 20 years of real-world evolution.

Generations 2 and 3 (2005): Painted mild steel

The first pedestals were made with mild steel casings, coated with a thin layer of standard baked-on paint. After a few years, rust began to appear—especially around the door edges exposed to snow and salt.

Generation 4 (2006 to 2012): Improved paint, persistent corrosion

We tested various, thicker paint formulas, including primers. While we saw some improvement, rust still came back over time. Repair costs climbed, and municipalities began to lose confidence. Back to the drawing board.

Exemple : Example: The City of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu has JDPs from generations 4, 5, 6, and 7—meaning they experienced this full learning curve.

Generation 5 (2013 to 2017): Stainless steel

A major turning point. The Urbanova real estate project introduced the first stainless steel casings. The result: zero rust, with a projected 50-year lifespan. But the price became unsustainable. We had to find a more cost-effective alternative.

Generation 6 (2018 to 2022): Molded aluminum doors

We invested nearly $100,000 to build industrial molds for casting aluminum doors. But over time, the idea backfired: each door came out slightly different, hard to align, too thick. Rust was no longer a problem—but everything else was.

Generation 7 (2023 to 2025): Rolled aluminum doors

A breakthrough. After years of testing, we perfected a door made from rolled aluminum. The result: consistent, durable, and cost-effective. Welding was eliminated, hinges were fastened with near-invisible rivet-screws. Every detail was optimized for unbeatable value.

The only issue? We now had six generations of casing designs in the field—a maintenance nightmare.

Generation 8 (Today): Total backward compatibility

Generation 8 doors are compatible with all previous generations, up to 2025. Through smart reverse engineering and standardization, we can now retrofit an old pedestal with Generation 8 components.

The difference is striking:

• A Generation 2 casing had around 40 parts and took a full day to replace.
• oday, a Generation 8 casing has only 12 parts, takes about an hour to install, and can be adapted to fit a Generation 2 pedestal.

In addition, when replacing the doors, the entire casing can also be upgraded—offering a simple, scalable, eco-friendly solution that’s fully backwards compatible with the entire network installed over the past 20 years.

This is the power of smart reverse engineering: not only enabling innovation, but also breathing new life into existing pedestals.

Generation 8 marks the culmination of a long journey—a synthesis of past mistakes, real-world constraints, and municipal demands. A mature, stable, field-tested, and future-ready pedestal—built to last the next 50 years.

Conclusion 

Each generation brought its share of lessons. But what truly drove this evolution was our commitment to deconstruct in order to rebuild better.

At MCM, we don’t play with words.

•  Our product is fully designed by Canadian engineers.
•  It’s assembled and manufactured in Canada, from start to finish.
•  The steel is Canadian, and the mechanical components are made here.
• Only the electrostatic paint and the bolts come from abroad—for technical reasons—from Germany and the United States, respectively.

The result: our product meets 98% of the “Product of Canada” criteria. And we’re proud to say: 100% designed and made in Canada.

Why it matters

By choosing a Product of Canada, you:

• Support local jobs and small businesses;
• Reduce the environmental costs of importing;
• Benefit from local quality control and responsive after-sales service;
• Work with a company rooted in Canada’s industrial landscape.

In a market where it’s often hard to tell the difference between marketing and reality, MCM stands out for its authenticity.
No need to sugarcoat it:

Our products are Canadian. Period.

Many contractors reach out to us for information about the MCM BRBT and BRC pedestals. These products are referenced in certain Hydro-Québec standards, including datasheet 10-6005 from standard B.41.21, an excerpt of which is shown below.

(Note: This is not a verbatim copy of standard 10-6005)

Conventional connection pits are only designed for small or medium-sized cables. And while underground junction boxes can accommodate large cables, they are far too expensive.

LVDP and JDP pedestals: the optimal solution for large cable configurations.

With today’s electric equipment […], now is the time to ask the question.

And ideally… even before you buy your house.

An undersized electrical service can lead to costly upgrades — and sometimes, it’s not even possible to fix after the fact.

Power required for typical household electrical equipment

Without an EV charging station

With a standard EV charger (8 kW)

With a high-speed EV charger (50 kW)

* A load controller is required to keep total usage below 320 A.

What’s the difference between “connected load” and “required capacity”?

It all comes down to the usage factor. Any equipment expected to run more than 2 hours at a time is considered 100% active — so it gets a usage factor of 1.0.

Using devices at full power for too long can overload your system — or worse, cause a fire. That’s why the Electrical Code includes safety margins to prevent the risks of overuse.

Electrical service sizes available for homes

At 120/240V, residential services are available in 200A, 300A, and 400A capacities.
The Code requires a safety margin: your actual load should never exceed 80% of the rated capacity of your panel, wires, and outlets.

Important: You are not allowed to have two electrical services of the same voltage at the same address.

What if your system isn’t powerful enough? You’ll need to:

• Contact your utility provider to increase your service size, and

• Hire an electrician to replace your electrical panel (expect several thousand dollars), and/or

• Consider complementary solutions like batteries, solar panels, or a load controller to manage your usage.

Make your life easier: plan it right from the start.

When designing infrastructure, whether for transportation or electricity networks, it is crucial to integrate preventive maintenance and upgrade strategies from the start. These measures ensure long-term durability and efficiency while generating cost savings.

Preventive Maintenance: Anticipating to Avoid Costs

Preventive maintenance helps prevent major failures before they occur. For example, in electrical networks, regular inspections can prevent costly breakdowns and avoid emergency repairs. This approach reduces service disruption risks while keeping repair costs under control.

Why Poor Design Choices Can Be Costly

Failing to anticipate future challenges can lead to significant expenses. For instance, networks built on wooden poles have become highly vulnerable to climate change. Had different criteria been applied from the start, repair costs after storms could have been significantly reduced.

Continuous Upgrades: Ensuring Easy Evolution

A well-designed infrastructure must be scalable and capable of integrating updates without invasive work. For example, smart control systems in electrical networks allow for the adoption of new technologies without requiring a complete infrastructure overhaul, reducing long-term costs.

Real-World Example: Subway Modernization

Cities like New York and London have integrated real-time monitoring systems into the design of their new subway lines. These systems enable predictive maintenance, helping to reduce long-term maintenance costs.

Investing in preventive maintenance and continuous upgrades from the initial infrastructure design phase helps lower costs, enhance safety, and ensure long-term efficiency.