Author
House Speaker floats idea of nine-month transportation bill
The U.S. House of Representatives is unlikely to approve a multi-year transportation bill, Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio), Speaker of the House, said in a press conference. According to The Hill, Boehner said a transportation bill that last "some number of months" is most likely to get approval from the House. “I think the idea is to try to find a package that would plug this hole for nine to 12 months to make sure that the highway projects that are under way will continue,” Boehner said. The Highway Trust Fund that pays for road and transit projects is expected to be bankrupt in August, according to the Department of Transportation. Keep Reading
Hundreds turn out for industry lobbying event
Thirty-one national associations and more than 400 people from the aggregates, construction and transportation industries descended on Washington, D.C., last week as part of the 2014 Transportation Construction Coalition Fly-In. The group of producers, contractors, manufacturers and association representatives lobbied to fix the Highway Trust Fund and for a long-term, well-funded transportation bill. The group held a legislative briefing with government officials to address issues with the Highway Trust Fund. Speakers included Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Pa.), chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee; Sen. David Vitter (R-La.), a Senate Environment & Public Works Committee member; and Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx. The group also attended a Capitol Hill reception with members of Congress. Some participated in Rally for Roads, and many attended individual and group meetings with their congressperson and/or staff. Keep Reading
A look at the H-Series wheel loaders
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=327JDu8W9fQ Volvo Construction Equipment invited Pit & Quarry to Tampa, Fla., on June 10 in part to learn about its H-Series wheel loaders. In the video above, Stefan Solomonsson, a wheel loader product manager for Volvo, offers some details of the H-Series during a walk-around of the L150H. The L250H with pit and quarry applications is another loader in the H-Series, and it launched in North America last week. According to Volvo, this loader will load a 25-ton triaxle on-highway truck in two passes – two full buckets for one full truck. The L250H features a Tier 4 Final engine that provides high performance and low fuel consumption, the company adds. Particulate matter collected in the diesel particulate filter during the automated regeneration process is burned off without interrupting performance or productivity, according to Volvo. Keep Reading
Volvo loading, hauling equipment debuts in Florida
Volvo Construction Equipment debuted a wheel loader, an excavator and an articulated haul truck to the North American market June 10 during a press event at dealer Flagler Construction Equipment in Tampa, Fla. The models on display were an L150H wheel loader, an EC380EL excavator and an A40G articulated hauler. Volvo also launched an L250H wheel loader in North America this week. The L250H is designed for quarry use. "We call it our first two-pass machine," says Stefan Solomonsson, a wheel loader product manager for Volvo. According to Solomonsson, the L250H has a 9-cu.-yd. bucket for rehandling material. The increased bucket size allows the L250H to load a truck in just two passes. Previous models and their 7-cu.-yd. buckets required loaders to make three passes to complete a load. "That is the big thing about the [L250H]," Solomonnson says. The press also received a tour of Flagler's Tampa facility as part of the event and had the opportunity to sit down with some of the dealer's leaders. The facility,… Keep Reading
Aggregates app helps perfect pricing
An industry-customized app is helping Bluegrass Materials win more jobs and maximize its freight rate. Pen and paper. That’s how Pat Malaney did business with customers for the overwhelming majority of his 28 years selling aggregates. “I’m old school,” says Malaney, a sales manager at Bluegrass Materials in Atlanta. “I would always carry around my notebook and write things down. If I had a phone call from a customer looking for a sales quote, I’d have to write everything down and call him back.” Within a day or two of a conversation with a customer, Malaney would have to make a trip into the office, read through his notes and spend a few minutes analyzing the route from the customer’s site to the quarry so he could issue a competitive quote. The time Malaney spent calculating sales quotes in the office was time he preferred to spend in the field selling aggregates. Fortunately for Malaney, as well as every other salesperson at Bluegrass, the company adopted a newer, more advanced… Keep Reading
This month in Pit & Quarry history: June 1939
Publishing has come a long way over the last 75 years. So has the aggregates industry. The June 1939 issue of Pit & Quarry – the one published 75 years ago this month –reflects the transformation both industries have made over the last three-quarters of a century remarkably well. The magazine's editors explored several topics in that June 1939 issue, including carbon dioxide recovery, choosing the correct type of rope and sampling for dust control. Take a look back at the cover that month and some of the advertisements in the issue by utilizing the slideshow above. Just a glimpse will show you how far the aggregates industry has come. Keep Reading
Cemex makes executive-level changes
Cemex, whose CEO and chairman of the board died earlier this month, made several changes to its senior-level organization. According to a press release, Cemex's corporate functions will now be organized into six executive vice presidencies, reporting to new CEO Fernando Gonzalez. Jose Antonio Gonzalez was appointed executive vice president of finance and will oversee finance, controllership, taxes and processes assessment. Maher Al-Haffar was named executive vice President of investor relations, communications and public affairs. Juan Pablo San Agustin will continue as executive vice president of strategic planning and business development. Luis Hernandez will continue as executive vice president of organization and human resources. Ramiro Villarreal was appointed executive vice president of legal and will continue serving as secretary of the board of directors. And Mauricio Doehner was appointed executive vice president of corporate affairs and enterprise risk management. Keep Reading
MSHA explores factors involved in latest fatal accidents
MSHA held a summit for training professionals May 22 to discuss causes of the 20 metal and nonmetal mining deaths that have occurred since October 2013. MSHA determined several causes were at the root of the accidents, including failure to provide training, conduct examinations, de-energize power, conduct pre-operational checks, maintain mobile equipment, and provide and wear personal protective equipment. Also, MSHA shared comprehensive data on the fatalities to identify trends related to the accidents. For example, nine of the 20 fatal accidents that happened took place at sand-and-gravel operations (four), crushed stone operations (three) and sand operations (two). Six of the 20 who died were supervisors while seven were general laborers. The operations involved are of various sizes, according to MSHA's data. Six of the 20 fatal accidents occurred at operations with between one and 10 employees. Five occurred at operations with between 20 and 40 employees, and five more occurred at large operations with 100 or more employees. One factor that seems to have played a role in many… Keep Reading
April construction advances 3 percent
New construction starts in April rose 3 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $533.7 billion, according to McGraw Hill Construction, a division of McGraw Hill Financial. The increase maintained the upward movement established in March, which followed sluggish activity at the outset of 2014. By major sector, April gains were reported for nonresidential building and housing, while nonbuilding construction retreated. Through the first four months of 2014, total construction starts on an unadjusted basis came in at $153.8 billion – unchanged from the same period a year ago. April’s data raised the Dodge Index to 113 – up from 110 in March and 102 during the first two months of 2014. For the full year 2013, the Dodge Index was reported to be 112, so April’s increase brings activity back up to a level slightly above last year’s average monthly pace. “With construction starts now climbing for two months in a row, it’s become more apparent that some of the lackluster activity in early 2014 was due to… Keep Reading
