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Mack Trucks names regional vice president of Canada
Mack Trucks named Dayle Wetherell its regional vice president of Canada, effective Jan. 1. Wetherell will be responsible for driving sales and increasing market share and profitability in Canada. Wetherell has more than 20 years experience in the heavy-truck industry and has served as the vice president of strategic projects and business development for Volvo Group North America since 2013. Wetherell is succeeding John McQuade for the vice president of Canada position. McQuade retired this year. Keep Reading
East Manufacturing creates parts center
East Manufacturing redesigned its parts center into a modernized facility at its headquarters in Randolph, Ohio. The parts center provides aftermarket parts and accessories for dealer, fleet and owner-operator customers within 150 miles of the company. The company reported that the facility’s new layout allows customers to access parts more efficiently with a large display wall of the company’s parts, impulse buy items and the company’s apparel. The new layout extends two big-screen monitors that let customers view enlarged pictures of the schematics to help them identify what parts they need. The company also created a drop-ship program, which allows parts to be shipped directly to the customer. Keep Reading
Ralph Rogers: 2014 Pit & Quarry Hall of Fame Inductee
Ralph Rogers, a 2014 Pit & Quarry Hall of Fame inductee, laid the groundwork for what is now one of the largest privately owned aggregate companies in the United States. Rogers and his partners were among the first road builders involved in President Dwight Eisenhower's Interstate Highway System, supplying stone and building major interstate sections in Alabama, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee. He created and maintained a corporate culture where the "man in the pit" was just as important as the executives or elected officials. Keep Reading
House passes bill to block Cemex mine in California
The House of Representatives passed a bill aimed at blocking the development of the proposed Cemex sand-and-gravel mine in Canyon Country, Calif., according to the Santa Clarita Valley Signal. Rep. Howard “Buck” McKeon, R-Santa Clarita, has been working for more than two decades to block the mine and has introduced eight bills working toward a solution. His most recent bill is the Soledad Canyon Settlement Act. “This tremendous achievement is the result of more than two decades of tireless work to develop a practicable solution that would take the Soledad Canyon Mine out of commission and lift this burden off of the backs of my constituents,” says McKeon, the bill’s sponsor. The bill now goes to the U.S. Senate. According to the Santa Clarita Valley Signal, Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., has also introduced legislation aimed at resolving the Cemex mine issue. Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Sherman Oaks, praised the bill’s bipartisan support. “This is the way government is supposed to work,” Sherman says. “I mean, there aren’t too many folks here… Keep Reading
Lafarge and Holcim set to receive merger approval
Lafarge and Holcim are set to receive the European Union’s approval for their merger deal to create the world’s largest cement maker, says an article on Reuters. According to the article, the two companies have already offered to sell business worth around 12 percent of their combined revenues. However, they might have to sell one or two more assets to ease EU competition concerns. The assets are to be sold off in France, Germany, Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, the United Kingdom, Canada, Brazil, the Philippines and Mauritius. The European Commission has set today as the deadline for the final decision, and eight regulators, including Russia, Turkey and South Africa, have already approved the deal. According to Reuters, last month Holcim said it had received more than 60 bids from industry interests and private equity firms for the assets. Keep Reading
Mack opens uptime center to enhance customer support
Mack Trucks opened a new uptime center in Greensboro, N.C., to enhance customer support. The 123,000 sq. ft. facility “co-locates personnel from every customer support function and connects them to Mack customers and dealers with the latest telematics, communications and case management tools,” says the company. Mack “uptime solutions” offered through this new facility include Mack OneCall agents, Mack ASIST, Mack GuardDog Connect, dealer support and parts ordering. “The Uptime Center facilitates the balanced mix of technology, live expert support and proactive communication we need to quickly deliver solutions that directly impact customers’ bottom lines,” says Stephen Roy, president of Mack Trucks North American Sales and Marketing. “It’s yet another signal to our customers that Mack’s got their backs.” Keep Reading
SME keynote session highlights future of mining
The Society for Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration (SME) will host its keynote session during its Annual Conference & Expo Feb. 15-18 at the Colorado Convention Center. The keynote is set to take place at 8:30 a.m. on Feb. 16. The session, titled “The Mine of the Future: Forecasting Opportunity and Challenges for the Global Mining Industry,” will showcase a range of mining sectors and feature a number of industry leaders. Peter Bryant, senior fellow and co-founder of the Kellogg Innovation Network, will moderate the keynote. Participants in the panel include Red Conger, president of Freeport-McMoRan; Dean Gehring, president and CEO of Rio Tinto Minerals; Greg Boyce, chairman and CEO of Peabody Energy; Christopher Curfman, vice president of the mining sales and support division of Caterpillar; Barry Hudson, director of aggregates in Northern Europe for HeidelbergCement Group; and Brian Conlin, president and CEO of Golder Associates. According to SME, the panel will address the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead for each of the sectors in the mining industry. Keep Reading
Cat executes officer changes
Caterpillar implemented officer changes that will be made effective Jan. 1, 2015. Julie Legacy will become Cat’s chief information officer and vice president with responsibility for the Global Information Services Division; Mike DeWalt will become vice president with responsibility for the Finance Services Division; and Doug Hoerr will become vice president with responsibility for the Strategic Services Division. Keep Reading
Fuel consumption, emissions reduced in excavators
The EC250E and EC300E crawler excavators deliver a 5 percent improvement in fuel efficiency over past models, saving customers both time and money, Volvo Construction Equipment says. This efficiency is due to a Tier 4 Final Volvo engine, as well as to advanced features designed to optimize flow and minimize pressure losses in the hydraulic system. One such feature is Volvo Eco mode, which automatically reduces fuel consumption without any loss of performance in most operating conditions, according to Volvo. Operators also have the ability to manually control flow to the hydraulics using the integrated work-mode system. Operators can choose from a selection of work modes according to the demands of the task at hand. volvoce.com Keep Reading
