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February 3, 2016 • Vol. XXIX • No. 3 • 470 Maryland Drive • Ft. Washington, PA 19034 • 215-885-2900 • Toll Free 800-523-2200 • Fax 215-885-2910
Inside
Skilled Worker Shortage Costs Industry Billions
A controversial project that allows for a high occupancy toll road is now under construction in Charlotte, N.C. The I-77 express lanes will reportedly help resolve current and future problems on more than 20 mi. (32 km) of I-77 from the Brookshire Freeway in Mecklenburg County to N.C. 150 in Iredell County. “The I-77 Express Lanes project will provide immediate and long-term traffic management solutions within three years,” said Jordan-Ashley Walker, NCDOT communications officer. “Under the project agreement, NCDOT is investing $95 million directly in the I-77 Express Lanes project, and an additional $145 million in other transportation projects for a total $240 mil-
The U.S. heavy equipment distribution industry loses at least $2.4 billion each year as a result of dealers’ inability to find and retain technically skilled workers. The figure, based on an estimated 9 percent of earnings foregone by American dealerships represented by Associated Equipment Distributors (AED), was included in a report released on Jan. 20 by The AED Foundation (AEDF). The foundation, established in 1991 and directed by AED members, focuses on professional education and workforce development issues specific to the equipment distribution industry. AEDF commissioned a team of public policy researchers from the College of William and Mary to analyze the industry’s technician shortage based on a summer 2015 survey of AED’s members in North America. “This report provides a window into the current state of our industry’s workforce,” AED President & CEO Brian McGuire said. “Distributors have known for far too long that finding the right people is tough and it’s getting tougher. A report like this tells policymakers this isn’t just an anecdotal or local problem, it’s a national crisis.” According to the report, the equipment distribution industry is suffering badly from the mismatch between the capabilities needed to fill technical roles and the skill possessed by prospective
see TOLL page 66
see AED page 72
Contractor Wins I-10 Job, FDOT Smoothness Award…8
Sugar Creek Construction photo
The I-77 express lanes will reportedly help resolve current and future problems on more than 20 mi. (32 km) of I-77 from the Brookshire Freeway in Mecklenburg County to N.C. 150 in Iredell County. AED Holds Summit, CONDEX Show…12
Controversial Toll Lane in Progress on I-77 in Charlotte By Cindy Riley
CEG CORRESPONDENT Jeff Martin Auctioneers Conducts Sale…86
Table of Contents ................4 Attachment & Parts Section ......................................30-35 Truck & Trailer Section ........ ......................................37-41
Archaeologists Dig Up 300-Year-Old Ship on Site
Recycling Section ........51-63
By Patricia Sullivan THE WASHINGTON POST
Business Calendar ............76 Auction Section ............84-93 Advertisers Index ..............94
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) A large, heavy ship, scuttled between 1775 and 1798, is being dug out of its damp grave at the site of a new hotel construction project in Old Town Alexandria.
Archaeologists found the partial hull of a ship at 220 S. Union Street, part of the city’s major redevelopment of the Potomac River waterfront. It’s on the same one-block site where workers two months ago discovered a 1755 foundation from a warehouse that is believed to have been the city’s first public building.
“It’s very rare. This almost never happens,’’ said Dan Baicy, the hard-hatted field director of Thunderbird Archeology, the firm watching for historic evidence during construction. “In 15 years that I’ve done this work, I’ve never run into this kind of preservation in an urban environment where there’s so much disturbance.’’ see SHIP page 72