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Midwest Edition
January 22 2011
Vol. XVIII • No. 2
“The Nation’s Best Read Construction Newspaper… Founded 1957.” 470 Maryland Drive • Ft. Washington, PA 19034 • 215/885-2900 • Toll Free 800-523-2200 • Fax 215/885-2910 • www.constructionequipmentguide.com
Inside
Funding Issues in Minn. ASSE Reflects Are Felt Across Country On 100 Years
Northern Green Expo Draws Crowds...16
Fortune Joins Murphy Tractor...20
The Minnesota portion of Highway 14 is the main east-west roadway across the southern end of the state besides Interstate 90.
By Giles Lambertson CEG CORRESPONDENT
Maeda to Display Cranes at ConExpo...33
Table of Contents..............4 ConExpo Section........33-39 Paving Section ..........57-66 Auction Section ........72-79 Business Calendar ..........76 Advertisers Index............78
As Minnesota addresses its highway construction needs, so might the country. The upper Midwestern state, like the United States, starts 2011 with new Republican clout in the capitol, conservative resistance to flagrant earmarks, and way more projects than project dollars. To illustrate highway funding issues facing the United States, CEG decided to
ratchet down the national confrontation to state and local levels. Specifically, what lessons are there for Washington in a southern Minnesota standoff over a dangerous stretch of U.S. Hwy. 14? Not many, as it turns out. CEG found that similar political roadblocks frustrate policy-making at the state and national levels. But the numbers facing legislators in St. Paul are smaller than in Washington and, hence, more comprehendible. The state’s road-building process also seems see FUNDING page 24
In 1911, coffee prices were at 18.75 cents per pound, a first class U.S. stamp was $.02, and “ready-to-wear” trousers were the newest development on the men’s fashion scene. It also was the year the first airplane was landed on the USS Pennsylvania, stationed in San Francisco, Calif., and the year the first Monte Carlo races were held. 1911 also was the year of one of the most recognized tragedies in the history of workplace safety and the beginning of a movement that would change the way the world viewed safety on-the-job. The modern occupational safety and health movement began in 1911 after the horrific Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in New York City, N.Y., March 25, 1911, where 146 garment workers were killed due to unsafe working conditions and inadequate fire escapes. Seven months later, in October of 1911, a small group of people gathered with the collective goal to reduce injuries and illnesses in the workplace and ensure that employees arrived home safely to their families each day. This group formed the United Society of Casualty Inspectors, now known as the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE). It grew steadily for the past 100 years and its members experienced some of the most pivotal times in American history as highlighted in ASSE’s new Celebrating 100 Years of Safety film. ASSE members work in all industries, including education, government, manufacturing, construction and technology, and are instrumental in helping businesses and the public recognize the importance of being safe at work. Prior to the formation of ASSE in 1911, workplace fatalities were prevalent and workers frequently suffered see REFLECTION page 46
Construction Spending Rises in November Construction spending increased by 0.4 percent in November, the third straight rise in the total, the Associated General Contractors of America noted Jan. 3 in an analysis of new Census Bureau data. Private residential and public construction each gained 0.7 percent compared with October’s totals, while private nonresidential construction edged down 0.1
percent. “It is heartening to see three increases in a row for the total,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “But most categories showed more of a seesaw pattern over the past three months, indicating that construction spending remains fragile at best.” Simonson noted that the strongest category
appears to be power construction, which has climbed for four consecutive months from a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $75.7 billion in July to $85.7 billion in November. He added that power construction will be helped in 2011 by extension of tax credits for building wind and other renewable power facilities. see SPENDING page 74