For Alberta landscape architects
Playground Equipment for Landscape Architects in Alberta
BDI Play Designs helps landscape architects specify Alberta-made playgrounds, picnic shelters and site furnishings, from the first concept to the inspected handover, including our own SteelCore, CedarScape, StoneWood and UnderCover lines. We design, manufacture, install and inspect, so one team answers for the equipment you put on the drawings: CAD blocks, 3D renderings, CSA Z614 layout review, tender pricing and P.Eng-stamped structures.
Our Own Product Lines
Four lines designed and built by BDI in Alberta, and available only through us. Specify them on their own or combined with Blue Imp equipment in the same play area.
SteelCore Rope Systems
Signature rope and net play structures that become the focal point of a park.
Powder-coated steel frames with 20 mm steel-reinforced nylon rope netting, built to resist vandalism.
See the full SteelCore line →CedarScape Timber Playgrounds
Natural timber play for nature parks, schools and sites where steel and plastic would look out of place.
Premium Western cedar, which naturally resists rot and insects.
See the full CedarScape line →StoneWood Concrete Play
Boulders, logs and climbers that read as landscape, not equipment.
Glass-fibre-reinforced, high-MPa concrete, textured to look like stone and wood, with decades of low-maintenance use.
See the full StoneWood line →UnderCover Shade Structures
Picnic shelters and gazebos to anchor a play area, plaza or trailhead.
P.Eng-stamped drawings, designed to Alberta Building Code snow and wind loads for the site.
See the full UnderCover line →What We Provide for Specifiers
CAD blocks for your site plan
Plan-view CAD blocks (DWG/DXF) of play structures, shelters and furnishings, so the equipment drops straight into your drawings at true scale.
Layouts & 3D renderings
We lay out play areas to your site, budget and age groups, and produce 3D renderings you can put in front of a client, council or community group.
CSA Z614 & Annex H review
Use zones, fall heights and surfacing checked against CAN/CSA-Z614, including Annex H for accessible play spaces, before the design goes to tender.
Budget & tender pricing
Order-of-magnitude budgets at concept stage, then firm supply or supply-and-install pricing against your specification at tender.
P.Eng-stamped structures
Picnic shelters and custom structures come with professional-engineer-stamped drawings, designed to Alberta Building Code loads for the project location.
Inspection at handover
Our in-house Canadian Certified Playground Inspector (CCPI) can inspect the finished playground to CSA Z614, so your client gets a documented handover.
What You Can Specify
Commercial play structures from Blue Imp, made in Medicine Hat since 1917, alongside BDI’s own lines: SteelCore rope and net structures, CedarScape timber playgrounds, StoneWood concrete play and UnderCover shade. Because both are built in Alberta, you can combine them in one design and one order.
Around the play area: picnic shelters, park furniture and site amenities (benches, tables, receptacles, bike racks, outdoor classrooms), spray park features and sports equipment.
Equipment meets or exceeds CAN/CSA-Z614 (including Annex H) and ASTM F1487, uses in-line galvanized steel posts, 19 mm UV-stabilized HDPE panels and stainless-steel slides and hardware, and carries the Play Strong warranty, including a lifetime warranty on steel support posts. Blue Imp equipment is available on the Kinetic GPO cooperative contract 23-12 for eligible public buyers.
How We Work With Your Office
1. Concept
Send us the site, the budget and the age groups. We return equipment options, a layout and an order-of-magnitude budget.
2. Design development
CAD blocks, use zones, surfacing areas and 3D renderings for your drawings and client presentations.
3. Tender
Firm pricing against your specification, for supply only or supply and install.
4. Construction & handover
Installation by COR-certified crews in Southern Alberta and Calgary, and a CSA Z614 inspection by our CCPI.
Recent Alberta Work
St. Mary’s Accessible Playground
A Calgary school playground for children of every ability, entered by a wide wheelchair-accessible ramp.
View project →StoneWood Social Space
BDI StoneWood glass-fibre-reinforced concrete play elements in Varsity Acres, Calgary.
View project →Cardston Rotary Park
A splash pad plus a 20' x 30' Steel Canopy shelter that BDI supplied and engineered.
View project →Calgary Firehall No. 7
Two multi-storey tube slides installed in place of the firehall’s fireman’s poles.
View project →140+ completed projects since 2009. See the full project map.
Landscape Architect FAQs
Can I get CAD blocks for BDI and Blue Imp playground equipment?
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Yes. BDI provides plan-view CAD blocks (DWG/DXF) for play structures, picnic shelters and site furnishings on request, so landscape architects can place equipment at true scale on a site plan. We can also lay out a complete play area to your site boundary and send it back as a drawing and a 3D rendering.
Does your equipment meet CSA Z614 for Alberta projects?
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Yes. Our play equipment meets or exceeds CAN/CSA-Z614, including Annex H for accessible play spaces, as well as ASTM F1487. Blue Imp, our primary manufacturing partner, makes IPEMA-certified products under an ISO 9001:2015 quality system. BDI also has an in-house Canadian Certified Playground Inspector (CCPI) who can inspect the finished installation.
Where is your equipment made?
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In Alberta. Blue Imp has manufactured playground equipment in Medicine Hat since 1917, and BDI Play Designs, established in 2009 in Lethbridge County, designs and builds its own lines: SteelCore rope structures, CedarScape timber playgrounds, StoneWood concrete play and UnderCover shade, plus picnic shelters and park furniture. The one exception in our catalogue is Freenotes Harmony Park musical instruments, which are made in the United States.
Can you price my specification for a municipal or school tender?
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Yes. We give budget ranges at concept stage and firm supply or supply-and-install pricing at tender, priced to your specification. Blue Imp equipment is also available on the Kinetic GPO cooperative purchasing contract 23-12, which lets eligible municipalities, school divisions and public bodies purchase without running a full tender.
Do you install anywhere in Alberta?
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BDI supplies and installs with its own COR-certified crews in Southern Alberta, Calgary and area, and Eastern BC. In Edmonton and northern Alberta we connect you with the local Blue Imp representative, and BDI’s own lines and picnic shelters ship direct from Alberta. Either way, we can support your design and specification from the start.
Do your picnic shelters come with engineered drawings?
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Yes. BDI picnic shelters and custom structures are supplied with professional-engineer-stamped drawings, designed to the Alberta Building Code snow and wind loads for the project’s location, with foundation details for the site.
Working on a park, school or community project in Alberta? Request CAD blocks, a layout or budget pricing. Also see Calgary, Lethbridge & Southern Alberta, Edmonton and spray parks & splash pads.