Thanks for clarifying.

The speaker system was installed (in part) because previously Campus Events was renting similar equipment. The cost of renting equipment was costing more money over time than buying a sound system. Furthermore, the rented speakers were often breaking...which quite obviously is a pain in the ass.

Also, this makes it easier for other groups on campus (clubs, Maroons etc) to hold events in Quarters without having to rent speakers.

About the speaker installation...it wouldn't have been done by electrical engineers. It would have been done by electricians. Although engineers may have designed the actual set-up of the circuitry/wiring/electrical loads etc they wouldn't do an install.

Originally Posted by AndrewC

I don't disagree with you here. I think that the disconnect between the MSU and many faculties is embarassing. Specifically Engineering and Commerce. However, the cooperation should be there. A good example is I believe the MES has a commerce student as their finance executive (I am not 100% sure on this though). This kind of cooperation should exists between the MSU and faculties in the same way.

Where were last year's Commerce SRA? Would it not have been their job to suggest these kinds of things to the MSU?

As a newly-elected SRA member, how are you going to make sure there is no disconnected-ness this year?

About the speaker installation...it wouldn't have been done by electrical engineers. It would have been done by electricians. Although engineers may have designed the actual set-up of the circuitry/wiring/electrical loads etc they wouldn't do an install.

I did not realize that electrical engineers do not have the same labour skills as an electrician. I still wonder though, whether or not the project could have been accomplished in house, or if that option was explored.

Where were last year's Commerce SRA? Would it not have been their job to suggest these kinds of things to the MSU?

As a newly-elected SRA member, how are you going to make sure there is no disconnected-ness this year?

I am not sure where last year's commerce SRA members were. I cannot speak on behalf of them however in large part I do not feel they were very visible and I think, with exceptions, they are not even that connected with the rest of the faculty.

The disconnect, IMO, comes from (and I will speak about commerce because that is what I know) the lack of cooperation between the MSU and DCS (Degroote Commerce Society). Both bodies in many instances have the same goals however they never work together. In addition, many students join clubs such as the DMA, DAA, DFA and more. The members of the SRA should always be in close contact with these clubs, and should always be in close contact with faculty affiliated club presidents and faculty society presidents. And this year we are lucky, our new DCS president and many of the executives are prepared to show a serious committment to the MSU, and they deserve a return from the MSU, particularly SRA. For the last few SRA meetings DCS executives have been there.

Hopefully we can get over all the discrepancy and misfortune that the MSU has been exposed to this year and we can focus in the upcoming year building these relationships. It seems unfortunate that this year, the major task for the SRA has been to fix the MSU, set it back on the right track. However if we can get the MSU back on the right track, then we can focus on trying to reach out, instead of continually being concerned within.

I did not realize that electrical engineers do not have the same labour skills as an electrician. I still wonder though, whether or not the project could have been accomplished in house, or if that option was explored

The setup was accomplished in house. Campus Events has an entire staff and full time manager dedicated to installation, maintenance and all technical aspects of shows we put on.. they're called AvTek and they spent days setting up the equipment. So we didn't pay anyone anything aside from normal wages for the hours they put in.

Terrific, thank you for the clarification.

Originally Posted by AndrewC

The members of the SRA should always be in close contact with these clubs, and should always be in close contact with faculty affiliated club presidents and faculty society presidents.

Completely right. This applies to every faculty, and is a two way street.

Faculty society Presidents need to be at every Student Academic Council meeting, and SRA members need to be at every Faculty society meeting so that there are constant lines of communication kept up.

My personal favourite system is that of Arts and Science. They have only one seat on the assembly, but every week there is a second "observer" who attends meetings, presumably takes notes; reporting back to Society of Arts and Science Students. It allows the SRA member to concentrate on the issues of the meeting while the observer can concentrate on remembering details to take back to SASS.

The 08/09 Arts and Science SRA member: Nick Davies is leaving, and his successor on the assembly, Michael Herman, spent this year as the Arts and Science SRA observer, so he has a running start on the workings of the assembly.

Similarily, I keep in touch with James Steels, who is the new DCS VP Finance, and he also plans on being very involved with the SRA from an observer standpoint. I presume that after his DCS VP Finance position he plans on spending his fourth year involved with the SRA.

Originally Posted by Matt Wright

we have to take into account the deficit facing the MSU, which will not be released until year-end figures are calculated.

Just to correct you, we are projecting to not run a deficit this year, so we shouldnt say that this will be released with year-end figures.

Originally Posted by Matt Wright

I once again stress that I thank everyone for your valuable input and if you wish to attend an SRA meeting they are held every other sunday (the 15th being the next) commencing at 6:30PM. Let's try to address one issue at a time. I know that everyone wants to force things through, but protocol is paramount.

Thanks for this Matt, hopefully students come out more often like some of the regular faces we see in the back!

Originally Posted by AndrewC

This winter we installed a $46,000 speaker system. I am not entirely sure on the logistics as I cannot seem to find the actual proposal on the MSU website, however I am curious whether or not the speaker system installation in Quarters could have been accomplished for a lower price by a group of electrical engineers.

First it did not cost $46,000. Second, we had our own student staff plus a tech expert who is an msu employee instal it, therefore it was done as cheaply as can be, while giving students job opportunities.

Also just to clarify we have talked to many industry experts and have done pleanty of research suggesting the remodling of the venue as well as certain alterations will make it 1)better operationaly, and 2) more appealing to customers. Therefore we are not just trying to throw money at a problem to make it better.

First it did not cost $46,000. Second, we had our own student staff plus a tech expert who is an msu employee instal it, therefore it was done as cheaply as can be, while giving students job opportunities.

The figure of $46, 000 came from the SRA minutes and I could not find the proposal that was issued. Thus I used the $46, 000 figure. And I asked about whether or not the option of doing it in house was explored and Mr. Richardson informed me it was. It was not a criticism, i was a request for clarification.

Also just to clarify we have talked to many industry experts and have done pleanty of research suggesting the remodling of the venue as well as certain alterations will make it 1)better operationaly, and 2) more appealing to customers. Therefore we are not just trying to throw money at a problem to make it better.

What industry experts? Again I am not trying to be rude but the re-modelling accomplishes both of those things however is that what is immediately needed? I do not doubt that changing the actual physical layout will benefit Quarters, however it was less than a decade ago that Quarters opened and by re-designing it, it implies this all may have to be done again in another 5-10 years. A marketing report will cost vritually nothing if done in house and could at the very least, provide a set of reliable primary market research.

Hey andrew, I did not mean to come across as accusing you of being rude, or accusitory. I know you always try to ask questions and be informed before making such comments. Its just a bit better to ask the person than to state it in an open forum such as this automatically. Anyways, we see the remodeling as beneficial in many ways. We note that most clubs renovate to keep current every 3-5 years. To reduce further costs, we plan on looking at options to split the club and restaurant by walls which can be pushed away to open it up when capacity is hit. It will keep costs of renovations down in the future. The Reno will also help by increasing the room for tables so we can serve more patrons faster at lunch. This along with continueing to focus on customer service will increase the number of students we can serve a cheap lunch to! We noticed there are a lot of people who walk away due to the place being packed between 11:30-2. Also during the night we plan on reducing the nooks and making the club more visible to reduce security staff. Also to instal a new liquor distribution system, we can keep costs low by doing it all at once. We also would like to put some nicer lighting in so that students can use quarters as a study space during the day while the space usualy goes underutilized.

So yes we need to do this, and will it need to be redone in 5-10? Maybe, but by doing this right, we can make sure that the costs in 5-10 are minimal. Now it will also cut down on operational costs, increase the profit margins for lunches, and utilize a nice peice of realestate for more hours of the day!