December 2009 Utility Contractor - Table of Contents |
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COVER STORY - 2009 Legislative Wrap Up - Big Progress on Infrastructure, but Challenges Remain
The end of any legislative year depicts a common picture — lawmakers in Congress work at a whirlwind pace to push whatever they can before year’s end, and 2009 is no different. At press time (late November), health care reform was effectively gobbling up all floor time in the U.S. Senate, but NUCA was engaged in year-end activities related to a broad range of legislative priorities. The association has achieved considerable success on efforts to expand the water and wastewater infrastructure market, although much work remains to get the industry working again. Health care was obviously in the works, and the harmful card check bill dealing with union organizing issues was still threatening the business community. more >>
By Eben Wyman |
Feature Story - The Good News - The Exciting New Machine Releases of 2009
Here at UC headquarters, our editors are having a tough time coming up with new euphemisms for the economy. Day in and day out, our e-mail inboxes are filled with news of financial woes. Frankly, we’re tired of being the bearers of bad news. There were a number of exciting and positive success stories this year that were overshadowed, and many of those stories came in the form of brand-spankin’ new equipment. more >>
By Jason Morgan |
Feature Story - The Essential Inequity of Trench Mishaps - A Veteran Firefighter Talks About Trench-rescue Techniques, the Insidious Nature of Trench Accidents and the Basic Unfairness of It All
Steve White’s presentation will make you promise yourself, that if ever you must work within an excavation, you will refuse to do so unless protected by shoring or shielding. One photo in the presentation looks into a partially collapsed, 11-ft deep trench, where a worker has been buried to his waist. Only the victim’s hand is visible, the rest of his body obscured by an immense chunk of clay, weighing an estimated 300 lbs, which has been stopped inches short of crushing his torso by — of all things — a shovel that he had rested (providentially?) at just the right angle against the trench wall. more >>
By Walt Moore |
Feature Story - Motorin’ - Finding Your Motor Grader-operating Mister Right
There’s a man the entire crew looks up to as he proudly walks the jobsite. He double checks his work, even though his grade was spot-on from the first pass. more >>
By Jason Morgan |
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