New Tech Helps Mass. Contractor
Among its many projects, MacKay Construction, a heavy civil and utility contractor based in Wilmington, Mass., recently tackled a challenging electrical duct bank trenching project at Boston College.
Gorilla Hydraulic Breakers supplied the attachment and optimized the hydraulics on MacKay’s Cat 340 to run it properly.
The company, now in its 21st season, continues to expand its capabilities by investing in new technology while maintaining a strong focus on service and relationships.
Founded in 2004 by James MacKay, the company has grown steadily from a single pickup, mini-excavator and dump truck to a significant construction company with 55 union employees plus additional union help during peak season. The company also boasts a large and diverse fleet of equipment of all sizes and trucks ranging from crew cabs to tri-axles,
see TECH page 10
The
Working On Conn. Projects
The Connecticut Department of Transportation’s online map of roadway projects shows a total of 604 active road improvement and maintenance projects across the state in 2025.
Some of those construction efforts are in the planning phase while others are still being designed. CTDOT noted recently that 179 active projects are being built.
Despite temperatures 90 degrees and above, CTDOT spokesperson Josh Morgan told CT Insider, “It’s a super busy time of year given we only are able to work April-October — maybe a smidge later — because of weather.”
day, according to the state agency, most construction restarted on July 7.
Here is a list of various ongoing CTDOT road projects:
Though all work halted for the Independence Day holi-
Surface Treatment in Eastern Connecticut
A high-friction surface treatment project in the towns of Preston, Hampton, Montville, Mansfield, Pomfret and Salem began July 7. The contract was awarded to WJ Surface Treatments at a cost of $1.5 million. Crews are working on Conn. Highway 2A in Preston, in addition to Conn. 6 in Hampton, Conn. 163 in Montville,
OPRROOVVEN U WITH UPTI
PTIME IME KITS
SENNEBOGEN, in kee philosophy to maxim created UPTIME Kits
eping with their mize uptime, has Whether you are a service technician i road, these kits have need for every service and PM task in one p created to save you t Managing hundreds o parts, from belts and and special tools bec single part number to n-house or on the everything you e, maintenance place. They were ime and money.
They are:
• Easy to order and ea t d t ockst asy to s l dow NO I th Norour intspar om c with omerscust
• Ideal for stocking se and trucks
Choose from the follo
• Central lubrication
• Preventive mainte
• O-Ring kits
• Electrical service k
• Hydraulic service k
Hydraulic service k : kits shops ols ervice owing kits system kits nance service kits its kits
And the best thing is in stock and ready to built to match your m and series. Count on
in-house. For more in UPTIME Kits, scan th
s that these kits, go, are custommachine model SENNEBOGEN nformation on he QR code.
e orf ) OCT(Ownership of
of related service d nuts to O-Rings omes easy with a o order and stock C OND YBE E H HE HIN T MA virtua lI entim lose llyt
xim ma ommitmentc h about e morad ontract Demolition C parepairtsinsthavether andvirtuinanothermachineI onttoback.If very e ctomehavea Theyechnician machine, wntim w American o-shiptady- of oriesinventplete orf uptime izes aftersale achine”M he yond “Beour ow , Bloomfield Hills, MI or theunitbackquickly. kIg losedonoSinctheey ally Ihaveasituation,[they]bringjust ogooverthroncougheamontht wntime… ock.get theSENNEBOGEN y-t t act OGEN f tor ained technicians tr ned tec cians components and too
Officials in Rutland Anxious to Advance Streetscape Project
Late last month, the city of Rutland, Vt. received a $3 million Catalyst Grant from the Northern Border Regional Planning Commission (NBRC) to help cover the approximately $7.8 million needed to revitalize Center Street, designed to provide new infrastructure, sidewalks and a hotel.
WPTZ-TV, an NBC affiliate serving the Plattsburgh, N.Y., and Burlington, Vt., market, reported that the Vermont Economic Progress Council approved a Tax Increment Financing (TIF) District for Rutland. The council is now in the process of approving a phase filing for the district.
Following that, the TIF district will be heading to the polls in the fall on a $3.1 million bond. The city said other grants will help to cover the rest of the cost.
Rutland Mayor Mike Doenges said this project has been in discussion since the 1970s and, now that it has gained momentum, he is hopeful to see it through.
“I think the most important thing is to communicate that while [Rutland residents] have to vote on us taking out this debt, the debt will not affect their property tax rate,” he said.
Complete Streets Reconfiguration Plan
Doenges and other Rutland municipal officials want to reconstruct the entire streetscape on one block of Center Street downtown, from Wales Street west to Merchant’s Row.
Center Street currently has two opposing travel lanes with parallel parking stalls on both sides of the roadway. The city plans to convert the block to a one-way street (motorists would travel west bound), to generate additional space for pedestrians, outdoor seating for merchants and new green space, according to Rutland’s RFP for engineering services.
The city also intends to construct a curb-less streetscape and install protective barriers between motorists and pedestrians, such as bollards, and incorporate masonry planters into the design.
Although Center Street’s current on-street parking is oriented parallel with the curb line, the city wants
the new streetscape to incorporate a combination of both parallel and angled parking, including spaces dedicated for delivery purposes only.
In addition, in the green space where street-side trees and rain gardens have been proposed, the city wants modular, suspended pavement/concrete systems so that trees have enough uncompacted soil to thrive.
Before visible streetscape improvements on Center Street can begin, the Rutland Herald noted, critical underground infrastructure work must first take place.
The engineering proposal also noted that in advance of the streetscape project, Rutland intends to replace the existing below grade utilities, such as water, sewer and stormwater drainage. The new design will need to consider stormwater management, which will be critical in that the street will be rebuilt without a curb.
Tree pit modular systems must have underdrains that discharge stormwater to a new pipe, the city noted, as well as new catch basins.
Planners also want to build a new hotel on the improved block of Center Street at its northwest corner with Wales Street where the
corridor’s current “parking pit” is located.
RutlandÊs Downtown Infrastructure Funding
The new grant represents just one piece of the larger funding puzzle needed to move this phase of the TIF District forward, the Rutland Herald noted.
To understand how projects like the Center Street upgrades are funded, the Rutland news source turned to Stephanie Clarke, vice president of White + Burke Real Estate Advisors in Burlington. The firm is helping to guide Rutland through its TIF and infrastructure planning and implementation.
“To make private development projects like the hotel feasible, the city must ensure the property has the necessary infrastructure in place,” she explained in answer to a question about the differences between private development and public infrastructure projects, and how they connect within the TIF framework.
“In a downtown where building is especially difficult, the City of Rutland wants to step up to be part of the solution. TIF is one tool the city is using to remove utility and access barriers that have historically made the site impossible to rede-
velop.”
Rutland’s $3 million NBRC grant fits into the financing structure for this first infrastructure project, she said, because the city does not want to burden its taxpayers with the cost of the downtown infrastructure upgrades.
“This is a large undertaking, so the city must use as many available dollars as possible to fund the project,” Clarke said.
Although TIF and the Catalyst Grant are the two biggest source of funding, she said, Rutland has projected that other monies “will come from a variety of state and local sources,” which could include funds via Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) programs, Sales Tax Reallocation and city’s capital project funds.
Opinions of Streetscape Run Gamut
Rutland Mayor Mike Doenges said Center Street project has been under discussion since the 1970s and now that it has gained momentum, he is hopeful to see it through.
If the bond passes, it’s unclear exactly when construction will start. While the project has gained support, the work would almost certainly be disruptive to businesses along that block of Center
Street.
WPTZ-TV spoke with one business owner who feared how long the construction might last and was afraid the project could potentially put them and others out of business.
Doenges said he will do as much as he can to prevent that from happening.
“We want to make sure that there’s still at least access [to their businesses],” he said. “We’re thinking about parking, we’re thinking about the dust and how we’re going to physically control it. We are cognizant that this is the lifeblood of many of those people who own businesses.”
Other store owners, though, said the city’s investment in creating a streetscape will be worth it.
Michele Farrington, the manager of Phoenix Books’s Rutland location on Center Street, said after experiencing the pandemic, she and her employees will be able to work through the construction.
“We have ways to be creative to get books into people’s hands,” she told WPTZ-TV. “So, we’ll be looking for all those opportunities to work with our customers and our supporters of Phoenix Books, as well as our other downtown businesses.”
City of Rutland photo
A photo of the current state of Center Street, before revitalization.
Concord, NH Berlin, CT
Middleboro, MA
Scarborough, ME
Zero percent financing for 60 months on JCB skid steers including wheeled, tracked, and even the revolutionary Teeleskid!
Zero percent financing for 60 months on JCBcompact excavators including the 19C, 50Z, 55Z, 85Z, and 86C!
Zero percent financing for 72 months on JCB35Z!
Zero percent financing for 60 months on the JCB3CX and 4CX backhoe loaders!
Zero percent financing for 60 months on JCB411, 417, 427, 437, and 457wheel loaders!
Oh... and don’t forget to ask about our 5-year/3,000 hour warranty!
MacKay Construction Conquers Project With New Technology
TECH from page 1
trailer dumps and lowbeds to move everything.
MacKay Construction performs site work, utility work, asphalt paving and infrastructure projects across the Northeast. Its private client base includes Boston College, GE Vernova and many other institutions and companies, along with numerous government defense contractors and public agencies like Massport, Boston Public Works and MassDOT, all making for a well-rounded client base.
According to MacKay, a key to the company’s success has been a focus on quality service and longterm client relationships.
“We are usually not the cheapest contractor,” MacKay said. “We just give the best service and the best quality. That’s how we’ve grown.”
One of the company’s earliest turning points was a 2006 site and concrete package for Cell Signaling Technology (C.S.T.), a local cancer research firm. That job led to repeat business on a second job for C.S.T that helped the company weather the effects of the 2008–09 recession. More recent milestones include $8 million dollar jobs in Somerville and East Milton Square and a $20 million MassDOT project in Newburyport in 2021.
On the Boston College project, MacKay Construction was tasked with installing 10,000 ft. of electrical duct banks across a property that neighbors the former residence of Tom Brady and current homes of Robert Kraft and other highprofile figures.
“We were digging in pudding stone, a soft rock that doesn’t fracture like granite or shale,” said shop manager Brian Gillis. “It breaks into powder and makes hammering extremely inefficient.”
To reduce disruption in the upscale neighborhood and avoid over-excavation, the company turned to Joe Tedesco of Gorilla Hydraulic Breakers, who proposed a solution: try the Kemroc chain cutter with no obligation beyond a
one-month rental and pick maintenance costs. If it didn’t work to MacKay’s satisfaction, the company was under no obligation to purchase.
“Joe [Tedesco] gave us the opportunity to demo the equipment without forcing a full purchase,” MacKay said. “That kind of service is rare.”
The attachment — a 36-in.-wide double drum cutter with a center
chain, located between the two drums — allowed MacKay’s crews to dig clean, accurate trenches in one pass. The design of the attachment eliminates the need to move the drums from side to side while cutting. The result is a trench that is the actual width of the cutter and eliminates the wear on the excavator of moving the stick back and forth. It produces a finely ground material suitable for applications that require neatness and minimal surface disturbance. The result is the neatest trench on the planet, according to MacKay.
“It was like putting a reclaimer on the end of an excavator,” Gillis added. “It left a great finish and cut through frost without producing chunks.”
Of the 10,000 ft. installed, approximately 5,000 ft. were completed using the Kemroc. The duct banks, fully encased in concrete and rebar, were installed to spec under utility oversight.
This type of operation created a significant amount of wear on the
attachment. The chain cutter’s picks (cutting teeth) were inspected daily and replaced, as needed.
“It comes with a tool kit,” Gillis said. “Swapping a pick takes about two minutes. If you stay on top of greasing and pick maintenance, wear on the chain itself is minimal.”
Gillis added that Gorilla’s service was unmatched.
“They were instant — whether we needed to talk to someone or have a tech come out, it happened fast. It is among some of the best service we have ever received.”
Ultimately, MacKay purchased the Kemroc from Gorilla.
MacKay said the company owns a number of hydraulic hammers from different manufacturers, but going forward, he plans to transition to Gorilla products as existing hammers phase out. A 10,000lb. Gorilla hammer with an automatic greaser also was part of the recent purchase, and it has exceeded all of the company’s expectations, he said.
MacKay first heard about Gorilla through long-time industry contacts and Jeff Masterson of Master Rents, who gave him Tedesco’s number.
“It was a call I am very pleased
that we made,” he said. “Jeff [Masterson] is someone whose recommendations we take seriously; he has never steered us wrong and has been a good friend.”
Though MacKay Construction remains open to multiple brands, it prioritizes service and resale value over initial cost.
“We buy based on the relationship and the support behind the product,” MacKay said.
Today, MacKay Construction typically runs 10 to 15 jobs at any one time, including site, utility, paving and emergency maintenance for 24-hour facilities. One client estimated a million-dollarper-hour loss if water was lost, highlighting the stakes involved.
Despite a busy workload, MacKay maintains a hands-on approach with a great team led by Kyle Annutto and support staff that works extremely hard to keep everything going around the clock.
“We’re a blue-collar company built on safety, quality and service,” he said. “We keep hitting singles, staying on base. That’s how you stay in the game.” CEG
(All photographs in this article are Copyright 2025 Construction Equipment Guide. All Rights Reserved.)
A close-up view of the Kemroc attachment, which, when using it, means no need to hammer or haul away oversized materials.
A uniform width trench is created with far less wear on the excavator.
WHY CHOOSE ABLE TOOL and EQUIPMENT...
• Local Ownership with flexible approach
• Trained staff for repairs and maintenance
• Dedicated Parts personnel on site
• Focused on the Heavy Construction Industry
• Providing the BEST support equipment available • Experienced outside sales staff
Conn. City Scrambling to Find New Funds for Bridge Projects
City officials in Meriden, Conn., are seeking confirmation from the state’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) office that its funding to replace a twin bridge project will not be cancelled, the Record-Journal reported July 28, 2025.
“If the grant got cut off, we would have to find additional money to finish Phase I,” Brian Daniels, Meriden’s city manager, recently told members of the town’s senior center building committee. “We have sent a letter to FEMA asking them to confirm we are not going to get cancelled.”
The federal agency shut off its funding stream in April of 2025, a move that left the city scrambling to complete the work on two bridges.
“We are halfway through that project,” Daniels said. “We have to finish that bridge replacement.”
Meriden was set to receive Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) monies for its Cedar Street and Center Street bridges. However, FEMA eliminated the program in the spring and put several other emergency programs on life support.
BRIC funding is used by municipalities across Connecticut to mitigate the impact of potentially disastrous floods.
State Attorney General William Tong said during a recent news conference in Stamford that Connecticut and 19 other states are filing suit in federal court over the loss of funding through the program.
“For more than 30 years, states and municipalities have depended on BRIC funding, and Connecticut is no different,” he said at the briefing. “And now $84 million has been cut, starting in April.”
At a separate news conference in Hartford, Meriden Mayor Kevin Scarpati was joined by U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal to address the funding loss.
Scarpati noted that Meriden had
spent the past decade working with federal and state governments to address its flooding issues, primarily along Harbor Brook in the city center. He added that the bridge projects are not only making the city more flood resilient, but more attractive to people looking to move to Meriden and open businesses.
“We have a project that is going on right now that is in jeopardy of coming to fruition and finishing,” Scarpati explained at the news conference. “We literally have shovels in the ground today. We have excavators on site for two bridges that need to be torn down, widened and rebuilt.”
He added that one bridge has already been demolished and needs to be rebuilt. The two-year project started only seven months ago, the Record-Journal said, but local officials have now been told they must finish work at the site in August.
“We are relying on funds from FEMA … to continue this project, funds we’ve already been awarded,” he said.
If Meriden is not able to receive the federal money, the city will have to turn to its taxpayers to cover the
cost of that project and the two or three flood control projects that go with it.
Daniels told the local building committee members that the city is working with Meriden-based LaRosa Construction to ensure that money does not interfere with finishing the project’s first phase, even if that means putting it into the city’s capital improvement budget in the future.
The initial component of the construction is not expected to be finished until either late 2026 or early 2027, according to the Meriden news source.
“We’re going to have to see how it plays out,” Daniels said. “We have gotten our entire [federal] grant money for the project.”
New Senior Center, HHS Renovation
As of late July, the city was still waiting on a grant application that it sent to the state to pay for work to deepen and widen the Harbor Brook channels.
Eventually, Meriden hopes to truck the dirt from the waterway’s channels to 116 Cook Ave. to raise
that lot’s elevation. A new senior center is planned for the site, but design and construction work cannot begin until the channel and dredging work are complete.
The Record-Journal reported that the city initially planned to build a new health department along with the senior center on Cook Avenue, but municipal officials agreed to separate the two projects and renovate the existing health department at 165 Miller St.
Approximately 20 prospective architectural bidders recently walked through Meriden’s twostory Health & Human Services (HHS) building to assess the rehabilitation project ahead of the city choosing a designer by Aug. 15 to recommend to the state. The selected architect will then work on plans that will accompany a Community Investment Fund grant application before a Dec. 5 deadline.
The Meriden Board of Education intends to relocate its Success Academy alternative high school program to the HHS building’s second level, which would translate into a 70 percent reimbursement on that part of the overall project.
www.equipmenteast.com
61 Silva Lane
Dracut, MA 01826
978-454-3320
196 Manley Street Brockton, MA 02301
508-484-5567
1474 Route 3A Bow, NH 03304
603-410-5540
www.barryequipment.com
30 Birch Island Road Webster, MA 01570
508-949-0005
7 Harry’s Way Webster, MA 01570
508-949-0005
72 Olde Canal Way Gorham, ME 04038
508-949-0005 1608 John Fitch Blvd South Windsor, CT 06074
860-288-4600 Rhode Island
NEW ENGLAND SUPPLEMENT
Many Projects Under Way in Conn. Over Summer Months
• Conn. 69 in Bristol;
• Conn. 71 in Berlin;
Conn. 195 in Mansfield, Conn. 101 in Pomfret, Conn. 164 in Preston and Conn. 354 in Salem.
19 Bridges Along Conn. 8 to See Improvements
Tradesmen began metalizing Conn. 8 bridges over Laurel Hill Road in Torrington on July 10. The project involves refurbishing a total of 19 bridges along Conn. 8 between the towns of Torrington and Colebrook between now and Sept. 8, 2025. Allied Painting Inc. was awarded the project at a cost of $15.7 million.
Laurel Hill Road is closed to traffic for the duration of the project, with eastbound traffic detouring onto Harwinton Avenue.
Decaying Trees, Plants Cleared Along Conn. 9
A vegetation management operation on Conn. 9 between Exits 29 and 37 in the communities of Cromwell, Berlin and New Britain got under way July 14 and is expected to last until Sept. 5, excluding scheduled holidays.
CTDOT said the effort by J&J Brothers LLC. in Meriden consists of the removal of dead, diseased and decaying trees and other plants that have grown into the safety space along the side of the roadway.
Pinnacle Road in Ellington
Weather permitting, drivers will be detoured away from Pinnacle Road in Ellington on July 14. According to CTDOT, “the project consists of increasing the radii of the horizontal curve west of the Pinnacle Road intersection and three horizontal curves east of Hopkins Road, as well as realigning the intersections of Pinnacle Road and Hopkins Road.”
There also will be improvements made to drainage and roadside safety systems.
The $8.3 million project was awarded to Ludlow, Mass.-based Baltazar Contractors Inc., and is scheduled to be completed by Nov. 30, 2027.
Joint Sealing Ahead On Several Hartford-Area Roads
From now until Nov. 7, 2025, a large number of routes in the Hartford area will be subject to a joint and crack-sealing maintenance project.
Stretches of the following highways and streets are included in the project and may experience lane closures:
• Conn. 533 in Vernon;
• Conn. 171 in Union;
• State Highway 31 in Coventry;
• State Highway 528 in Somers;
• State Highway 536 in Plainville;
• State Highway 70 in Meriden;
• Conn. 99 in Wethersfield;
• State Highway 502 in East Hartford and Manchester;
• Conn. 534 in Manchester and Bolton; and
• State Highway 319 in Stafford.
Upgrades to Interstate 95
CTDOT set up a traffic split to perform prefabricated joint installation on southbound I-95 in Westport through Aug. 17. The project involves median replacement, resurfacing, drainage and safety improvements, and was awarded to Yonkers Contracting Co. of New York at a cost of $103.4 million. It is scheduled to be completed by Aug. 31.
The state transportation agency noted that although there is currently a traffic split on the freeway, the same number of lanes on southbound I-95 are open between Exits 17 and 18.
Other improvements happening in the greater Hartford area include:
• New light poles going up along I-95 near Guilford. The work is taking place between Exits 51-62 on I-95 northbound and southbound in East Haven, Branford, Guilford and Madison. The project is expected to be completed on Aug. 22, according to CTDOT.
• Connecticut Highway 41, from the town of Sharon’s Stonehouse Road north to U.S. Highway 44/Main Street in Salisbury, is being milled and resurfaced through Aug. 19.
• Another milling and resurfacing project on I-291 in Windsor and South Windsor is slated to begin July 20 and last until Sept. 18. The project will resurface a 3.61-mi. segment of the interstate in the two cities from a short distance east of the overpass across I-91 to eastbound I-291’s overpass of Conn. 30/Ellington Road.
• Also in Windsor, on Conn. 218/Cottage Grove Road, a milling and resurfacing project is set to get started July 20 and be finished by Sept. 18. The work will rehabilitate a 1.06mi. segment of the roadway from Windsor Avenue to Deerfield Road. Motorists can expect lane closures along the route, according to CTDOT.
• In far western Connecticut, near the New York State line, the existing chain link fence along Conn. 6/I-84/U.S. 202 from Saw Mill Road east to Milestone Road in Danbury is due for an upgrade, starting Aug. 11. The project should be completed by Sept. 15.
