Pandemic Policy – Covid-19 and working with CEL

Given the evolving situation around the globe, we are interrupting our usual blog cycle to bring everyone’s attention to our Policy on Pandemic Response. Note that this policy is in effect and will guide how you and our staff interact when you work with CEL until such time as our administration officially stands down from Pandemic Response.

Policy on Pandemic Response

We have a primary Duty of Care to the Public. During a pandemic we are committed to remaining calm and delivering professional services in a manner adapted to safeguard the well-being of our clients and staff, as well as the public.

Upon declaration of a Pandemic, CEL Administration shall implement this policy.

Our Messaging to Clients :

– Please be aware that we are working to provide continuity of services. When you contact our office, we may ask you some questions prior to attending to site. These are intended to protect our clients, staff, and the general public. Note that our staff are required to practice social distancing.

– If you or a household member returned from ANY travel outside of Canada, please do NOT visit our offices or request a site visit from our Staff. Contact our office to obtain suitable engineering support.

– We continue to provide services to clients, however we are moving to carry out more of our work by telephone and through the internet. Support to existing project documentation which would normally be carried out by phone will continue to be carried out as a courtesy and thus without cost. Services moved to telecommunications channels due to the situation shall remain as chargeable fee-for-service engagements. Where appropriate, site visits will be carried out remotely using telephone/computer and requests for photographs. All work which may be completed remotely shall be carried out remotely.

Operational Changes :

Staff shall :

– avoid unnecessary physical contact. This means no hand shaking, etc.

– take what precautions are needed to in order to feel comfortable (ie : the exchange of business cards can be replaced with the exchange of information or sharing of contacts.)

– when arranging for a site visit, ask if the client or anyone at the location has travelled outside of Canada or felt ill in the last two weeks. If they have, carefully weigh whether the site visit is prudent.

– work from home if experiencing any illness of concern, or if anyone of the household becomes similarly sick. Send an email with details to admin@celottawa.ca. This shall continue until they feel well for a period of two weeks.

– where the federal government orders staff to work from home, so shall we. Our firm is well placed to continue operations remotely.

CEL’s Expectations

In the event of a pandemic, we all have a role to play in reducing the spread of infection. Measures developed for managing influenza outbreaks are a good baseline. Implement measures as recommended by the Public Health Agency of Canada and local officials.

At a minimum, we expect staff to:



• practice social distancing as much as possible
• wash hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds
• cough or sneeze into a tissue or the bend of an arm, never the hands, and wash hands afterwards
• avoid touching the eyes, nose, or mouth, etc with unwashed hands
• clean high-touch surfaces frequently