Wednesday, April 29, 2009

WE'VE MOVED

The new home of the Pit & Quarry Editors Blog is at:
www.pqeditors.blogspot.com

Already five aggregate-industry deaths in 2009


With not even a third of the year behind us, the Mine Safety & Health Administration (MSHA) is reporting that five fatalities have occurred in the nonmetal mining sector -- a pace that would double the total industry deaths of 2008. Three of the five fatalities involved “falling/sliding” material.
The National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association (NSSGA), in its latest e-newsletter, noted that one of the recent fatalities occurred when electrical work was being done. NSSGA also provided some MSHA advice regarding electrical work, and it’s worth repeating here:
• Be trained and knowledgeable in the task.
• Be trained on all electrical test and safety equipment necessary to test and ground the circuit being worked on.
• Use properly rated personal-protection equipment, including arc flash protection such as a proper hood, gloves, shirt and pants.
• Positively identify the circuit on which work is to be conducted.
• De-energize power and ensure the circuit is visible.
• Place your lock and tag on the disconnecting device.
• Verify that the circuit is de-energized by testing for voltage using properly rated test equipment.
• Ensure all electrical components in the cabinet are de-energized.
• Ground all phase conductors to the equipment grounding medium with equipment that is properly rated. -- Darren Constantino

Monday, April 27, 2009

Quarry marks Earth Day


Eight middle school-aged students from Grace Academy, a private school in Georgetown, Texas, plunged their hands and their shovels into mounds of dirt to commemorate Earth Day by planting trees and wildflower seeds at KBDJ, a limestone quarry in Hays County. “What better way to celebrate Earth Day than by getting a little dirty?” said KBDJ President Jill Shackelford. “KBDJ is thrilled that Grace Academy traveled to the quarry to learn more about the local environment and take an active role in improving it.”

During the field trip, the students also got an up-close look at a working rock quarry and saw the steps KBDJ has taken to protect the environment and wildlife on the quarry site. “I thought it was just going to be a rock quarry,” said eighth grader Kristen Klein. “It’s much more than that.” Added Ashton Murphy, who is in ninth grade, “We’re currently studying the age of the Earth in school, so the quarry pit allowed us to see the different layers and colors of the Edwards limestone formations.”

Hays County Commissioner Karen Ford, also a member of the Clean Air Force of Central Texas, visited the event to encourage the students and to give them information on regional efforts to ensure Central Texans breathe clean air. “We’re working very hard to get the word out about what people can do to keep the air clean,” Ford told the students. “Trees help clean the air, so thank you for being here.”

With help from quarry staff and a backhoe donated by Texana Machinery, the students planted three live oak trees, which they named “Grace,” “Faith” and “Love,” at the quarry entrance along FM 967. The trees came from the tree farm at Texas Disposal Systems, and KBDJ worked with the Hill Country Conservancy to pick the appropriate type of tree to plant. Students also planted a mix of wildflowers at the quarry site, which included Black-eyed Susan, Mexican Hat, Prairie Coneflower, Indian Blanket, Lemon Mint, Bluebonnet, Plains Coreopsis and Clasping Coneflower. -- Mark S. Kuhar

Labels: , ,

Friday, April 24, 2009

Fatality #4


On April 7, a 36-year-old supervisor with 15 years of experience was fatally injured at a sand and gravel dredging operation. It was the fourth metal/nonmetal fatality of the year. The victim was attempting to connect the 4160 volt cable for the dredge to load side terminals in the electrical panel when he came into contact with energized 4160 volt line side terminals. This is the fourth fatality reported in calendar year 2009 in the metal and nonmetal mining industries. As of this date in 2008, there were five fatalities reported in these industries. This is the first electrical fatality in 2009. There were no electrical fatalities for the same period in 2008. -- Mark S. Kuhar

Labels: , , ,

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Stimulus praise




In a statement released by the Associated General Contractors of America, CEO Stephen E. Sandherr praised the stimulus package and its effect on funding projects and putting people back to work. "Our member companies involved in highway and transit construction have been pleased with the speed with which the federal government and its state partners have been able to move in identifying and awarding stimulus-funded projects," Sandherr said. "Indeed, our member companies have consistently cited the transportation program as a model for being able to quickly and effectively fund projects in a way that puts construction workers back to work promptly while restoring America's aging infrastructure. Given the extremely challenging economic environment our contractors are operating in, with significant declines in private-sector construction activity, it is hard to imagine how much worse conditions would be if not for the stimulus. The bottom line is our members are eager and anxious to get to work rebuilding America's economy, and the stimulus is helping them do just that." -- Brian Richesson

Labels: , , ,

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

World construction demand sinks


Construction activity is now falling quickly around the world, increasing the downward pressure on construction costs, according to Reed Construction Data. The construction decline is much deeper in many developing countries where investment, which includes construction, is a much larger share of the economy than it is in the U.S. Through March, U.S. GDP has dropped about 4 percent while investment spending has fallen 12 percent. Investment spending has already plunged more than 20 percent in several Asian and Middle East markets, which have experienced more frequent shutdowns of construction projects already underway than have occurred in the U,S.

World GDP fell at a 5 percent annual pace in the 4th quarter of last year and continued to decline at about the same pace through the winter. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projects world GDP will fall as much as 1 percent this year, the first worldwide decline in 60 years. The IMF outlook foresees stable or slightly rising economic growth by the end of the year but a relatively sluggish recover in 2010. World construction activity is unlikely to return to the peak 2008 level until 2011 at the earliest.

The consequence is weak pricing for the resources used in construction. This occurred first in materials. The materials price surge that occurred in mid-2008 has now been fully reversed. Materials price indexes are likely to slip slightly lower later this year before rising modestly next year. Price declines for other project resources are harder to measure but have now begun. This includes design and contractor bidding where more competition has forced discounting. Prices for new construction equipment appears to have had little impact so far but used equipment prices are falling at a double-digit pace.

It also includes labor. Construction hourly wage gains abruptly slowed from more than 4 percent (annual rate) to below 2 percent in the last three months even though few union contracts have yet been re-negotiated in this weaker construction economic environment. Expect the pullbacks in professional fees, contractor margins and skilled labor rates to persist will into next year long after materials prices have begun to recover. Many union locals will have to anguish over contractor demands for wage concessions before the contract expires. -- Mark S. Kuhar

Labels: , , ,

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

AEM head pens op-ed piece


Association of Equipment Manufacturers President Dennis Slater wrote an interesting article last month in the Argus Leader newspaper of Sioux Falls, S.D. It's worth checking out and even passing along to others. Slater does a good job of putting infrastructure spending, specifically for roads and bridges in South Dakota, into perspective. He points out that South Dakota's roads and bridges are deficient – as TRIP, a national transportation research group, reported – and must be improved to enhance the economic health and quality of life in the state. (There is a similar TRIP report about Idaho's roads, highways and bridges.) The federal stimulus package will provide a boost to improving roads and bridges in South Dakota, Slater writes, but it's not the end-all solution. Therefore, every funding option must be considered, and South Dakotans should recognize the benefits of paying for these projects. "You get what you pay for," Slater writes. -- Brian Richesson

Labels: , , ,

Monday, April 13, 2009

From dust to dust


The dust is about to hit the fan. According to NSSGA, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is under court order to issue a revised opacity rule by April 16. The New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) Subpart OOO is the visible emission, or opacity, standard for non-metallic mineral processing plants, which includes aggregates.

The rule limits how much visible dust is allowed to be emitted to the air from crushers, screens and conveyor transfer points. In response to a lawsuit filed last year by the Sierra Club against EPA, NSSGA has negotiated a final rule that would lessen the administrative burden on the aggregates industry.

While the Sierra Club suit claimed that the existing opacity standards are too easily achievable by industry, NSSGA's NSPS task force, using member data from 23 states and more than 600 individual source tests, discounted the environmental group's claim and proved to EPA that the federal standards do more than an adequate job of protecting public health and welfare from fugitive dust emissions from aggregate processing plants.

NSSGA will issue a summary of the final rule soon after April 16 for all members. The association will also host several webinars demonstrating the changes to the rule and how it affects their individual operations. -- Mark S. Kuhar

Labels: , , ,

Tuesday, April 07, 2009

PCA: Home construction tied to sales


What will jump-start the home-construction market? According to the Portland Cement Association, a recovery in housing starts must be preceded by increased sales, followed by a reduction in inventory. A new PCA economic research report indicates the conditions needed for this process to begin will not be in place until mid-2010.

“Housing construction activity cannot begin until sales recover,” said Edward J. Sullivan, PCA chief economist. “Increased foreclosures, coupled with deteriorating labor markets and tight credit conditions, will delay significant sales activity until mid-2010. Improvements in housing starts are not expected to be significant until 2011.”

Although the housing recovery bill, along with bank efforts to rewrite toxic mortgages will mitigate the magnitude of potential defaults and foreclosures during the next 18 months, PCA expects a weak labor market and declining home prices will increase the number of foreclosed properties being added to the housing market inventory.

“Without further government cash injections into the banking system, tight lending standards could characterize the economy and mortgage lending through mid-2011 dragging down home sales,” Sullivan said. “Under such a scenario, the housing recovery and overall economic recovery could be delayed significantly.” -- Mark S. Kuhar

Labels: , , ,

Friday, April 03, 2009

Construction outlook released


McGraw-Hill Construction, part of The McGraw-Hill Companies, has released its 2009 Construction Outlook Spring Update, providing updated 2009 forecasts of construction starts for various project types. The major findings of the forecast, authored by Robert Murray, vice president of economic affairs for McGraw-Hill Construction, include:

* New construction starts for 2009 are estimated at $463.1 billion, down 15 percent, but cushioned by support provided by the recently enacted stimulus legislation, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
* Public works will see the most immediate benefit from the stimulus act, with construction starts climbing 10 percent, including a 15 percent rise for highways and bridges. Without the stimulus funding, it is estimated that public works in 2009 would have fallen 10 percent, restrained by the deteriorating fiscal health of state and local governments.
* Institutional building in 2009 will retreat 6 percent, as the weak financial environment takes its toll on educational and healthcare facilities. The stimulus funding will provide a lift to military facilities and energy upgrades for federal buildings, which will moderate this year’s overall institutional decline.
* Commercial building in 2009 will drop 27 percent, steeper than the 17 percent slide reported last year. The tight lending environment has made it extremely difficult to obtain project financing, leading to more projects being deferred or cancelled. All commercial project types will register declines in 2009, with the most severe retrenchment anticipated for hotel construction.
* Residential building in 2009 will drop an additional 31 percent, continuing the downward trend that’s been underway since 2006. Similar declines are expected for single family housing (down 30 percent) and multifamily housing (down 31 percent). Steps taken in early 2009 to address the foreclosure problem should help to ease the rate of descent for housing as 2009 progresses.

“The construction industry is facing divergent forces in 2009,” said Murray. “The economy has weakened substantially, and despite all the efforts last fall directed at thawing frozen credit markets, there’s yet to be any sign that lending conditions for construction have improved. On the plus side, the federal stimulus bill is now in place, which will provide quick support to public works this year.”
-- Mark S. Kuhar

Labels: , , ,

Thursday, April 02, 2009

A boost for equipment buyers


With the tax-filing deadline fast approaching, we figured a tax-related item here would be appropriate. We recommend that business owners review Section 179 of the tax code because it might be helpful to your aggregates operation. Section 179 allows a small business to deduct, for the current tax year, the full purchase price of financed or leased equipment that qualifies for the deduction. All businesses need equipment on an ongoing basis, be it machinery, computers, software, office furniture, vehicles or other tangible goods. It's likely that your business has purchased many of these goods during the past year, and will do so again. Section 179 is designed to make purchasing that equipment during this calendar year financially attractive. The equipment purchased or leased must be within the specified dollar limits of Section 179, and the equipment must be placed into service in the same tax year that the deduction is being taken. For tax year 2009, this means the equipment must be put into service between Jan. 1, 2009, and Dec. 31, 2009. After the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008 was passed, the deduction limits rose to $250,000 (from $125,000), and the total amount of equipment allowed for purchase increased to $800,000 (from $500,000). These limits were set to expire for 2009, but were extended until Dec. 31 under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Look through Section179.org and determine whether this continued benefit in the tax code will benefit you this year. -- Brian Richesson

Labels: , , ,