United Contractors Magazine August 2023

Everything You Need. Plus Equipment.

BAKERSFIELD 3340 Allen Rd. Bakersfield, CA 93314 (661)631-5777

CONCORD

5151 Port Chicago Highway Concord, CA 94520 (925)822-0366

FRESNO

5704 S. Toyota Place Fresno, CA 93275 (559)442-8989

HAYWARD

4125 Breakwater Avenue Hayward, CA 94545 (510)786-9506

RENO

12905 Old Virginia Road Reno, NV 89521 (775)348-0140

SACRAMENTO

8565 Elder Creek Road Sacramento, CA 95828 (916)383-7475

SALT LAKE CITY

1135 S. Pioneer Road Salt Lake City, UT 84104 (801)886-0586

SAN JOSE

2969 Daylight Way San Jose, CA 95111 (408)224-1052

SAN LUIS OBISPO

635 Tank Farm Road San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 (805)543-0113

TURLOCK

2800 N. Golden State Blvd. Turlock, CA 95382 (209)632-5084

SANTA ROSA

3963 Santa Rosa Ave. Santa Rosa, CA 95407 (707)523-2350

SAN FRANCISCO 251 Shaw Road South San Francisco, CA 94080 (415)642-2350

WE BUILD

INFRASTRUCTURE

2023 UNITED CONTRACTORS BOARD OFFICERS

President Ron Bianchini, Preston Pipelines, Inc.

VP/President-Elect Kevin Hester, McGuire and Hester

Secretary/Treasurer Dale Breen, Midstate Barrier, Inc.

Sec/Treas-Elect ...... Juan C. Arrequin, Bay Line Cutting & Coring, Inc.

UNITED CONTRACTORS BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Kelly Attebery, F & M Bank; Tom Barr, Ghilotti Bros., Inc.; Bryn Burke, Dees Burke Engineering Constructors, LLC; Teresa Dias, Peterson Trucks, Inc.; Kurt Eddy, Pavement Recycling Systems, Inc.; Greg Goebel Jr., Goebel Construction, Inc.; Alan Guy, Anvil Builders; Jeff Peel, Steve P. Rados, Inc.; Joe Sostaric, The Conco Companies

UCON LEADERS

United Contractors Committee Chairs

Associates: Teresa Dias (Associate Director), Peterson Trucks, Inc. | Kelly Attebery (Associate Director-Elect), F & M Bank |

Caltrans: Michael Ghilotti (Chairman), Ghilotti Bros., Inc. |

Legislative: Rob Layne, O.C. Jones & Sons, Inc. | Political

Action (PAC): Chris Young (Chairman), D.W. Young Construction Co., Inc. | Safety & Insurance: Robert Sabin, Harbor Linx, Inc. | Attorney Roundtable (ART): Facilitated by Mark Breslin

| SF City Contractor Liaison: Mike Ghilotti (Chairman), Ghilotti Bros., Inc., Miguel Galarza (Chairman), Yerba Buena

Engineering & Construction, Inc. | Scholarship: Trony Fuller, West Coast Sand & Gravel | Southern CA Steering Committee: Steve Concannon, Pavement Recycling Systems, Inc.

UNITED CONTRACTORS STAFF

Mark Breslin, Chief Executive Officer; Emily Cohen, Executive Vice President; Tejel Patel, Executive Assistant to CEO; Ursula Becker, Executive Assistant to EVP; Victor Sella, Vice President of Labor Relations; Clay O’Neal, Regional Vice President, Southern CA Operations; Ray Baca, Regional Director, Southern California; Michael Belmear, Director of Labor Relations; Dave Jenkins, Contractor Services, Southern California; Ruby Varnadore, Labor Contracts Manager; Lucia Mixon, Contractor Member Services, Southern CA; Sandra Kaya, Administrative Specialist; Sue WeilerDoke, Labor Relations Consultant; Melissa Gutwald, Vice President of Finance & Operations; Denise Ramirez, Online Services Manager; Emmy McConnell, Senior Accountant; Michelle Hannigan, Bookkeeper; Gabrielle Gonzalez, Office Administrator, Southern California; Angelica Gouig, Director of Events & Education; Christine Traina, Event Manager; Rachel Oraa, Event Assistant; Avanti Mehta, Education Assistant; Marissa Miller, Marketing & Communications Manager; Michelle Vejby, Publications Manager; Eddie Bernacchi, UCON Chief Lobbyist; Christopher Lee, Safety Consultant; Drew Delaney, Mike Buckantz, Regulatory Consultants

UCON’s Southern CA Beach Bash

By Mark Breslin, UCON CEO

KEEPING UP WITH TECH STRATEGIES

TO STAY SAFE AND SANE

When I stepped into the role of CEO of UCON, it was the late 80s and a remarkable time to lead a business as technology and progress marched forward in ways we would have never anticipated or imagined.

Back then, I remember having a cell phone in my truck with a battery as large as a loaf of bread that probably baked my leg as I drove down the road. I remember having someone say, “I’ll fax it,” and I didn’t know wtf they were talking about. I remember deciding, with major staff pushback, that we had to dump Wordperfect and Lotus and move to all Microsoft products. I remember tossing all my Thomas Maps and falling in love with GPS. Many benchmarks came and went, and the pace became even faster.

But at some point, I had to stop chasing to keep up and had to work to get ahead. As the organization has grown, the primary tool for scale and membership value (besides amazing personal responsive service) was to deliver more at the same price for more members. To do this we had to cross the threshold entirely and so we converted UCON to run on the Salesforce CRM – something no other association we have found has adopted. We became more responsive, informed, organized, and data driven than anyone.

And now, after all this change and innovation, I am still running as fast as I can to keep up with technology. And while I struggle to learn and adapt and stay ahead, my Millennial and Gen Z talent just cruise—experts in a world that they created and now will run for the decades ahead.

Taking what I’ve had to learn over the last couple of years, I’d like to offer you three concrete technological

strategies that you should be considering now:

Cyber Security Expertise and Investment

UCON has had a surprising number of members who have had their systems hacked and locked for ransom. No one wants to talk about it, but it is far more widespread than you can imagine. I have had more calls on this in the last three years and it is not uncommon for members to have to hire “tech hostage negotiators” to get their stuff back operational. DO NOT TAKE THIS FOR GRANTED. There are even reports where the criminals have figured out how to manipulate the “people” element to intercept electronic progress payments. Hire a firm to do an audit of your systems. Make sure your people are tuned in and aware of being hacked. And be super vigilant.

Utilization of AI

I have a friend who is one of the top high net worth strategic advisors in the United States (I don’t qualify for his services by three zeros). He shared that the introduction of AI, despite all the hype, is going to be as game changing as the introduction of the chip or the internet. He is a very serious guy with very serious money under his management. I pay very close attention to what he has to say versus what I see on Linkedin or on the news. The key strategy here is to identify people in your organization that are interested in new technological innovations and have them perform continuing research on how this technology can be applied in a meaningful way.

Continued on next page

Cultivating Your Information Sources

This one is more personal. Technology is skewing information delivery for us in ways that are too subtle to see all the time and more time consuming than ever before. TikTok, for example, was the most downloaded app in 2022, with over 682 million downloads. Over 4.48 billion (yeah, that’s with a B) users globally are utilizing social media to get their information and logging over eight hours a day of screen time. Driven by ad dollars, news sources and social media tend to push for eyeballs

versus accuracy or relevance. The advice here is to be disciplined with the curation of your information sources. Deliberately seek out the best information you can find from sources not presented to you but selected for value and relevance. And the same goes for your kids wherever possible. It is not hard to see that technology has had a corrosive effect on the mental and spiritual health of the nation—so like anything else, a disciplined approach to consumption avoids “junk in—junk out” experiences that leaders can ill afford to indulge in. z

Let’s take a quick trip back in time to see how fast we got here. Almost all these milestones have had significant, world-changing impact. And the companies and leaders who created them have brought value and momentum—you’ll note that almost every single year in a really short period of time featured another groundbreaking change. There is not one of those things that we would consider doing without.

1987

UCON has 70 contractor members and a budget of $280K and a staff of four. We had an Apple IIc computer that we had to sign up for in time slots.

• Microsoft windows 2.0 operating system is released (VGA 16 color graphics).

• The coolest gadget was the boom box

• The best-selling video game was “Zelda II: The Adventure of Link” by Nintendo

• The first cell phone small enough to fit into a pocket is launched in Britain with a price tag of £2,500.

1988

• A 23-year-old computer science student had written 99 lines of code and launched the program to the ARPANET (early version of the Internet), which turned out to be the Internet’s first self-replicating worm “The Morris worm”, that crashed about 10 percent of the world’s internet-connected computers in 24 hours.

• Netherland became the 2nd country to get connected to the Internet.

• MS-DOS 4.0 is released.

1989

• The World Wide Web is invented.

• The first episode of Simpsons aired.

• The first broadcast of high-definition TV aired in Japan.

• The first GPS satellite went into orbit.

1990

• The Hubble space telescope is launched.

• Portable GPS is made available.

• Caller ID is introduced.

• Adobe released the first version of Photoshop.

1991

• The world’s first webcam comes into existence.

• HP introduces the first color scanner.

1992

• The internet browser comes to be

• Visual basic for MS-DOS is released.

1993

Intel introduces the Pentium Processor.

1994 Yahoo is created.

About the Cover: Playing with AI

For this issue, we employed Artificial Intelligence to craft this month’s cover artwork. Using Midjourney, an AI-powered graphics platform, we entered an unassuming query related to construction and technology, which returned several wild and fantastical images. Neither the cover image nor the ones shown here underwent any human modification. See if you can spot some of the anomalies that distinctly signal the intervention of AI.

While our enthusiasm for leveraging AI as a tool to alleviate our workload is undeniable, nothing can replace the talent and personal human touch of our teammates.

In fact, this was written almost entirely by ChatGPT, after entering the topic into the chat box. I made some edits, backing up my theory that using AI tools is like driving a car. Should never be solely relied upon, always done with caution, and with significant human interaction.

—Marissa Miller, UCON’s Marketing & Communications Manager

1995

• Amazon and eBay are launched, setting the pace for modern e-commerce.

• Internet Explorer is released.

• 16MB RAM is a big deal.

1996

• Universal Serial Bus (USB) is created by a group of seven companies.

1997

• Digital Video Disc (DVD) is a high-tech platform.

• WiFi standards are introduced.

1998

• Google happened.

• The iMac is launched.

• Windows 98 operating system is launched.

• Go Daddy is founded.

1999

• The first Blackberry mobile device is launched (Blackberry 850).

• Bluetooth 1.0 is launched.

2000–2010

• Myspace (2003). Facebook (2004). Youtube (2005). Twitter (2006). Instagram (2010).

• First iPhone (2007).

• Google Chrome (2008).

• Android goes mainstream (2009).

2011 -2017

• Control of Nanorobotics (2011).

• Super HD 4k TVs (2012).

• Voice recognition gets better (2013).

• 3D Printing gets better (2014).

• Computer on a stick: Intel (2015).

• Reusable rockets (2016).

• IoT Smart Home Tech (2017).

2018 to 2023

• 2020 is the year of the bots.

• Cryptocurrency (bitcoin) rises and falls and rises.

• Self-driving cars are now mainstream.

• Your home becomes smarter, utilizing internet technology to run the lights, climate control, and more.

• 3D Printing becomes common technology, utilized by laypeople.

• Cybercrime becomes a worldwide trend on the rise.

• AI arrives with ChatGPT and others.

By Victor Sella, Vice President of Labor Relations

DECIPHERING CBAS THE

KEY TO YOUR COMPETITIVE EDGE

arlier this year, UCON offered a series of webinars to help contractors with challenging topics that we frequently get questions on. This opened the floodgates for members calling UCON (and especially calling me!) with even more questions and

Through these trainings, one thing has become apparent: virtually all contractors unintentionally take on unnecessary cost and risk simply because of a lack of understanding of their collective bargaining

UCON isn’t just here to help negotiate CBAs, provide industry updates, and advocate for our contractors—we are also here to help you understand and maximize your agreement(s) to drive competitiveness and improve your bottom line. And now that everyone has become accustomed to webinars and Zoom meetings, we can reach more of our members easily and on a larger scale.

This year alone we provided company-specific trainings on various CBA and union-related issues listed below, connecting with more than 300 PMs / PEs, estimators, payroll, HR, and all kinds of other operations and field leadership across the state to date. It’s how we’re leveraging technology to increase your competitiveness, and we’re doing it at no cost to you.

All our webinars have been recorded and are available to our members for viewing in the Contractor Resources Library (CRL), through the UCON app, and in UCON’s Education Library. Here’s a taste of what you and your team can take advantage of today:

CBA Subcontracting Rules

Overtime & Special Shifts (Northern CA)

Overtime & Special Shifts (Southern CA)

• Skilled & Trained Workforce

• Mastering Project Labor Agreements (PLAs)

• Mastering Pre-Jobs and Jurisdictional Disputes

Underground wet and dry utilities, cabling, signals, and lighting; soils testing, management, and disposal; and fill site management.

PRESTONCO.COM

Ready to level up your team on the most challenging aspects of being a union contractor? Contact me to schedule a FREE training session, via Zoom or in-person, tailored to your team’s needs: vsella@ unitedcontractors.org or (510) 362-6959.

If just one (1) hour of training your team can enhance your competitiveness, reduce liability, and improve bottom line—what’s the risk of giving it a try? z

UCON’s 2023 Industry Partner Meetings (IPMs) Continue

United Contractors recently held two inperson Industry Partner Meetings (IPMs). The Partnering 365 Meeting held with the Southern California Laborers in Covina, CA in June was attended

by 32 contractors and representatives from SCDCL leadership (photos above). The Industry Partner Meeting held with the Northern California Laborers in San Ramon, CA in July was attended by 38 contractors and representatives from NCDCL leadership (photos below). Both programs focused on relationshipbuilding and discussions addressing critical issues and challenges in our industry. Key topics included union market share, trust fund status, and the political landscape. UCON and our union partners will continue working together to explore solutions to these issues throughout 2023. z

UCON’S LABOR TEAM IS GROWING

UCON is aggressively expanding our Labor & Member Services. Already the largest labor relations team in the state, we welcome our new Director of Labor Relations, Michael Belmear.

Michael comes to UCON’s labor relations team with over 25 years of HR Management experience and 17 years of labor relations experience gained from the pharmaceutical, manufacturing, food processing, and cable/ technology industries. Aside from a strong history as a HR business partner, Michael has an impressive track record in contract negotiations, conflict resolution, and handling grievances and arbitration. Most recently, Michael was the Vice President of HR and Labor Relations for Foster Farms from 2020 to 2023, where he oversaw all HR operations and labor relations across seven states, including California.

Michael earned a Bachelor of Arts in Education from the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA, and a Master of Arts in Counseling & Guidance from West Virginia University in Morgantown, WV. Michael lives in Modesto, CA. He has a son, Carson Belmear, who is a Junior at the College of William and Mary. Michael enjoys traveling, music, and spending time with friends and family in his free time.

Michael is excited to join the United Contractors team— he is relationship-focused and is thrilled to be part of a talented and growing team dedicated to our contractors across the state. Michael looks forward to meeting with and engaging our members and union partners. Please don’t hesitate to contact Michael with any HR, Labor Relations and or employment law questions/concerns— (412)588-4303 or mbelmear@unitedcontractors.org. z

ERRATUM, MAY 2023:

In UCON’s May 2023 Magazine, our Labor section featured articles from several of our craft partners focusing on training and apprenticeship. The author of the article from our Northern California Laborers Apprentice Program was incorrectly noted. The actual author of this article is Hugo de la Torre, Director of Apprenticeship of the Laborers’ Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee

UCON PAC EVENT RAISES MORE THAN $300K FOR POLITICAL ACTION EFFORTS

Record-Breaking Number of Member Companies Show Up in Support of UCON’s PAC

The sixth Annual PAC Fundraiser, at the home of UCON CEO Mark Breslin, concluded the 2023 PAC fundraising year, raising more than $320,000 for UCON’s Political Action Committee (PAC). The funds raised at this event, and at the first-ever Southern California-based fundraiser held in May, broke all previous records.

Addressing the more than 100 guests representing 80 member companies, UCON EVP Emily Cohen shared, “every single dollar we have raised is used to support candidates and elected officials who fight for our union contractors. These funds will expand our political influence across the state.” She continued, “as we gear up for a tsunami of open seats and pivotal elections in 2024, your support matters more than ever.”

“The strength of UCON’s PAC is a testament to the collective strength of our membership,” said UCON PAC Chairman, George Furnanz. “Our success as contractors is often the direct result of our fight in Sacramento. It’s critical we continue to support the UCON PAC and UCON’s advocacy efforts on behalf of all of California’s union-contractors. We are all in this together.”

Industry leaders in attendance at the July 20 event sipped wines generously provided by Layne Family Wines, a family project of UCON member, Legislative Chairman and Past President, Rob Layne of O.C. Jones & Sons, Inc. and his wife, Beth. The Wine Militia provided additional wine experiences, including champagne and caviar tasting.

The annual UCON PAC Fundraiser was established by UCON’s PAC Committee Members just six years ago with the goal of raising awareness about the importance of UCON’s work to elect candidates, while raising money for our political allies. The event has quickly emerged as one of the most effective, owner-centric industry fundraiser events in California. Thank you to everyone who sponsored UCON’s 2023 PAC fundraisers. We are incredibly grateful for your trust and support.

Thank you to UCON PAC Committee Members: George Furnanz, Stacy and Witbeck, Inc. (Chair); Steve Concannon, Pavement Recycling Systems, Inc. (Vice Chair); Mike Bauman, Bauman Landscape and Construction, Inc.; Randy Cram, Tri-West Tractor, Inc.; Bruce Daseking, McGuire and Hester; Rich Gates, DeSilva Gates Construction; Dominic Sposeto, Vanguard Construction; Wahid Tadros, California Engineering Contractors, Inc.; Rita Vigil-Ferguson, G&F Concrete Cutting, Inc.

Ron Bianchini, Preston Companies, UCON 2023 President; Kevin Hester, McGuire and Hester, UCON Vice President, 2023

Mike Preston, Preston Pipelines, Inc., Richard Ghilotti, and Greg Choma, Ghilotti Construction Co.

Hal Stober, Gordon N. Ball, Inc., Ken Lindberg, Power Engineering Construction Co.

Steven Kats, and Rob Farrell, Kiewit Infrastructure West;

Michael Ghilotti, Ghilotti Bros., Inc., Brian Gates, Goodfellow Bros. California, LLC

Andy Vasconi, Casey-Fogli Concrete Contractors, Emily Cohen, UCON EVP; (below) Mark Breslin, UCON CEO addresses the guests

Brock Grunt, McGuire and Hester,

John Franich, Joseph J. Albanese, Inc., Randy Somerday, McGuire and Hester, John Gasiorowski, Joseph J. Albanese, Inc.

Erik Pierce, California Bank of Commerce, Sam Rahebi,

Christi Plum, P C & N Construction, Inc., Paul Cianciarulo, Graniterock

Bill Ayers, WMA Landscape Construction Inc., (below) Joe Capriola, Silverado Contractors, Inc.

Dale Breen, Midstate Barrier, Inc., Greg Gruendl, Ray’s Electric

Brent Fogg, Granite Construction Company, Teresa Dias, Peterson Cat

(Right) Steve Clark, Granite Construction Company, Nicole Laurence, Graniterock, Bill Moody, Graniterock, (Far Right) Brandon Lovell, CMC Traffic Control, Miguel Lemus, Ray’s Electric

Adam Thompson, Trademark Concrete Systems, Inc., Jim Gallagher, Teichert Inc.

Photos by Cathy Breslow, Breslow Imaging

Paul Cocotis, Foundation Pile Driving, Emily and Blaise Fettig, Vortex Marine Construction, Inc.; (right) Robert Chrisp, Chrisp Company

Bernie Hale, Pavement Recycling Systems, Inc., Ray Baca, UCON’s Regional Director, Southern California, Steve Ward, Pavement Recycling Systems, Inc., Mike Prlich, Mike Prlich & Sons, Inc., Miguel Lemus, Ray’s Electric

Robin Jackson and Renee Peppars, Western States Oil

Drea Breslin, Host; Jenee Rehrmann, Stomper

Andrew Holloway, Woodruff-Sawyer & Co., Alan Guy, Anvil Builders, Dermot Fallon, Foundation Pile Driving, George Furnanz, Stacy and Witbeck, Inc., PAC Committee Chairman

Matt and Lyndsie Lovingier, JMH Engineering and Construction, Inc.

Thomas Fluehr, Jr., J.F. Shea Construction, Inc., Ken LIndberg, Power Engineering Construction Co.

Erik Pierce, California Bank of Commerce, Cody Gunning, GSW Construction, Inc., Kyle Park, Teichert Inc.

Ted Pumphrey, Volvo Construction Equipment & Services, Kyle Preston, Preston Pipelines, Inc.

Saif Lodhi, and William Knudson, California Engineering

Brian Algren, Security Paving Company, Inc.; Gavin Stilts, CMC Construction, Steven Kats, Kiewit Infrastructure West

Josh Hall, Tri-West Tractor, Inc., Brent Fogg, Granite Construction Company, Richard Leider, Anvil Builders

HOW CHATGPT AND AI IMPACT CYBER RISK

Since the public release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT in November 2022, the internet has exploded with content on the pros and cons of the use of artificial intelligence (AI).

For business owners, the primary discussions revolve around the question of how we can harness the power of this and other emerging AI tools to make our work run more efficiently without compromising security.

As chatboxes and other AI services seem destined to become the new normal, organizations must stay on top of best practices and have plans in place to manage new technologies safely. They can do this by assessing AI risk, focusing on cybersecurity hygiene, and maintaining appropriate cyber liability coverage.

Assessing AI Risks

First, it’s important to gain some perspective. AI is a tool not unlike any other piece of software your company uses.

Using the latest ChatGPT (a product name combining “chat,” which refers to its functions as a chatbot, and the acronym for generative pre-trained transformer, a large language model) or another AI service is essentially a way for businesses to enhance their services. For example, your business may use AI to gather information much more quickly than you once did.

When you look at it that way, the use of AI itself does not add additional risk to how you do business. It is the speed at which you are now gathering information that introduces risk.

By Dan Burke, Sr. VP, National Cyber Practice Leader Woodruff-Sawyer & Co.

Let’s say your company once provided “X” amount of service per week. However, with the use of AI to gather information, you can now offer “10X” service per week. That increased speed means that if there was a chance of error before, that chance of error is up to 10 times greater.

IN

OTHER WORDS, THE TYPE

OF RISK TO WHICH YOUR COMPANY IS EXPOSED IS NOT WHAT’S CHANGING; IT IS THE AMOUNT OF RISK THAT IS CHANGING.

Additionally, as new AI tools become more popular, hackers are finding new ways to use them to wreak havoc with sophisticated email phishing schemes, malware, and more.

Focusing on Cybersecurity Hygiene

AI is a double-edged sword. Although it can help your business run faster, that enhanced speed can open you up to more risk.

It’s no secret that hackers—including nation-state hackers—use AI tools to infiltrate business networks and break through security protocols. However, while hackers are continually developing new methods for causing trouble, cybersecurity teams are identifying ways to use AI to thwart those forms of sabotage.

We expect this ebb and flow to continue for some time. That’s why as new AI technologies emerge and hackers learn how to exploit them, the need for robust cybersecurity hygiene measures is more important than ever. Here are some steps to take (or re-evaluate) to ensure your cybersecurity hygiene is up to speed.

Educate your employees on strict password management, phishing prevention, and the reporting of any suspicious activity.

Deploy multi-factor authentication across your enterprise.

• Patch new software updates as soon as they are available.

• Limit access to AI tools.

• Use encryption to safeguard sensitive data.

• Monitor remote connections through VPNs.

• Conduct regular cybersecurity assessments.

Since the use of chatboxes in business is still relatively new, current rules can be vague. However, it’s critical to keep an eye on them as they are likely to change as governing bodies adjust to the new technologies.

If you think your business is not big enough or important enough to be a victim of a cyberattack, you’re making a mistake. We’ve found that most cyber-attacks are crimes of opportunity rather than intentionally targeting a victim. Data from cyber insurance carrier Coalition suggests that companies utilizing software with one unresolved critical vulnerability are 33% more likely to experience a claim.

Continued on next page

Maintaining Appropriate Cyber Liability Coverage

The cyber liability insurance market is working diligently to stay on top of the risks associated with new AI technologies. And fortunately, there are insurance solutions to cover the higher volume of risk that AI presents.

The amount of cyber liability coverage you need depends on your industry, your business, and the type

Along with managing your organization’s internal AI concerns, make sure you also have a plan to address any state, federal, and international cybersecurity regulations.

If you have an existing cyber liability policy, it’s essential to clearly understand your coverage limits and whether those limits are appropriate. Since most policies are written on a 12-month basis, two key questions to consider are:

• What limits do you have now?

• Will those limits still be appropriate 12 months from now?

No one knows exactly where AI is headed in the long term. Some experts are optimistic that the benefits outweigh the risks, while others take a dimmer Pandora’s box perspective.

What is true is that as soon as we grasp the abilities of a new AI tool, another more sophisticated one appears to take its place. At Woodruff Sawyer, we aim to stay on top of this changing technology so we can help you understand the higher risk you may be facing and how to cover those risks appropriately. z

All views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent the position of Woodruff-Sawyer & Co. As National Cyber Practice Leader, Dan drives the strategy to grow our cyber business, such as developing tools to help clients and prospects understand and quantify their cyber exposures, as well as thought leadership. He frequently speaks at industry conferences and has been quoted in various trade magazines and newsletters, including The Wall Street Journal. Contact Dan at dburke@woodruffsawyer.com, or for additional insights, visit www.woodruffsawyer.com, a UCON member since 1994.

Other law firms interpret construction law. Carno Law Group Defines it.

By Shanthi Rajan, CEO and Founder, Linarc

BIG DATA ANALYTICS IN CONSTRUCTION Leveraging Technology for Success

The construction industry has experienced a substantial transformation in the post-COVID era due to the emergence of startups and technological advancements. Historically, this industry has faced challenges such as low profit margins and limited improvements in productivity. However, things are changing now.

A major catalyst for this change is the adoption of big data analytics. This involves gathering, storing, organizing, and interpreting large sets of information. By embracing this data revolution, construction companies can unlock valuable insights, enhance their operations, make data-based decisions, and ultimately boost their profitability.

Nowadays, construction sites utilize various technologies for managing projects and carrying out onsite work. This shift towards technological integration marks a significant step forward in the industry’s approach to innovation and efficiency.

What is Big Data in Construction?

Efficiently capturing data is vital for big data analytics to be effective. It’s important to collect valuable information without overloading the workforce. Construction companies achieve this by integrating data capture mechanisms into their existing systems to disrupt their operations minimally. By embracing different data sources, they can get a complete and comprehensive view of the construction process. This streamlines the data capture process and improves the analysis. As a result, construction operations are optimized, costs are reduced, and decision-making becomes more informed and effective in the industry.

Efficient Data Capture Methods

To effectively capture and utilize data in construction, leveraging a wide range of cutting-edge technologies and tools is imperative. These sophisticated methods facilitate seamless and precise data acquisition at various stages of construction projects. Presented below are a few widely adopted methodologies within the industry.

• Building Information Modeling (BIM) — BIM technology revolutionizes construction by enabling digital representations and collaborative work on virtual models. It improves coordination, detects clashes, integrates data, and enhances project efficiency.

• Estimating Software — Estimating software provides accurate cost estimation by inputting project parameters, materials, labor costs, and variables, streamlining the process, and enhancing project efficiency.

• Project Management Software — Project management software catalyzes big data analytics, empowering professionals to leverage vast amounts of data to enhance project planning, resource allocation, and decision-making processes. It centralizes project plans, schedules tasks, and facilitates resource management. Real-time collaboration and communication are enhanced.

• Field Mobile Apps — Mobile apps have revolutionized the construction industry by enabling on-site data collection through smartphones and tablets. These apps streamline progress updates, quality inspections, and safety checks. They allow workers to record completed tasks, track work

hours, and report issues in real-time. Mobile apps enable teams to perform inspections, record observations, and share data instantly, leading to improved quality control.

• Video Capture and Processing — These technologies visually monitor and analyze construction activities, identifying potential issues promptly. High-definition cameras capture realtime footage for remote monitoring. Video processing automates analysis, detecting events, and generating alerts for risks or deviations. The recorded footage is valuable project documentation and aids in dispute resolution and quality control.

• Internet of Things (IoT) Sensors — IoT sensors provide insights into utilization, performance, and maintenance needs, enabling proactive planning and maximizing productivity. They gather environmental data, allowing informed decisions to mitigate risks. IoT sensors track workforce activities and safety, promoting compliance and preventing accidents.

Challenges in Data Capturing

Efficiently capturing data is crucial for leveraging big data analytics in construction. However, several challenges need to be addressed.

• Importance of Data Quality and Timeliness — Flawed insights and project delays can result from poor data quality or delays in data capture. Organizations must prioritize establishing robust data collection systems and protocols, gathering comprehensive and error-free information promptly.

• Managing Data Distributed Across Multiple Systems — Managing and integrating data in construction projects is challenging due to its complexity. Project data is scattered across platforms, hindering consolidation. Overcoming data fragmentation is vital for collaboration and decision-making. Robust data management strategies centralize collection, organization, and integration through governance frameworks and technology solutions. Efficient data management

and enhancing project coordination for successful outcomes.

• Ensuring Data Privacy and Security — Protecting sensitive construction data is crucial. This involves adopting strong encryption, access controls, and

Continued on next page

Photo: Lake Isabella; courtesy of Flatiron West, Inc.

Stormwater Management & Civil Engineering Solutions

This evolving landscape offers exciting opportunities to unlock new possibilities and stay competitive.

1. Predictive Analytics for Proactive Identification of Challenges — Predictive analytics uses historical data and machine learning algorithms to forecast potential issues and risks in construction projects.

2. Real-Time Video Analytics — Video capture and processing technologies enable construction companies to monitor job sites remotely. This enhances safety, quality control, and progress tracking.

3. Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) for Quality Control — AR and VR technologies provide immersive experiences that allow stakeholders to visualize and assess construction projects before they are built. This helps in identifying design flaws and ensuring quality control.

4. Natural Language Processing (NLP) for Enhanced Risk Assessment and Contract Management — NLP techniques can analyze unstructured data, such as contracts and project documentation, to identify potential risks and improve contract management processes.

5. AI-Driven Procurement Strategies for Cost Savings and Efficiency — Artificial intelligence (AI) can optimize procurement processes by analyzing

understanding of project performance, resource allocation, and risk management, enabling informed decision-making and proactive problem-solving. Furthermore, emerging technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), Building Information Modeling (BIM), and Artificial Intelligence (AI) offer unprecedented opportunities for efficiency gains and process optimization.

Companies that embrace these technologies can streamline workflows, enhance collaboration, and improve project outcomes, ultimately leading to increased productivity, cost savings, and competitive advantage. With the construction industry becoming increasingly complex and demanding, implementing big data analytics and emerging technologies is no longer an option but necessary for companies aspiring to thrive in this evolving landscape. z

Shanthi Rajan is a seasoned entrepreneur, CEO, and founder of Linarc, a collaborative construction management solution focused on revolutionizing the antiquated construction industry. With a strong focus on enterprise applications, Shanthi brings extensive experience in all aspects of company building, including ideation, product development, productmarket fit, product strategy, team building, and go-to-market strategies. As a product leader, Shanthi is committed to delivering innovative solutions that streamline construction management operations and enhance project outcomes. Learn more at www.linarc.com, (833) 546-2720, a UCON member since 2020.

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Dublin 6400 Sierra Ct, Ste G (844)829-1910

Fresno 4569 E. Home Ave (888)585-8137

Napa 10 Enterprise Ct (800)675-2656

Oakland 425 Market St (877)689-7223

Sacramento (I-50) 8400 24th Ave (800)267-1444

Sacramento (I-80) 5425 Stationers Way (844)717-8579

San Carlos 1691 Bayport Ave (888)700-3349

San Francisco 200 Florida St (877)686-7223

San Jose 630 Quinn Ave (800)619-4723

San Rafael 1151 Andersen Dr (888)454-8282

Santa Clara 605 Laurelwood Rd (877)685-7223

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By Elizabeth Torrez, West Region Territory Manager Tenna LLC

WHY TRACKING EXTERNAL PTO MIGHT BE A GAME CHANGER FOR YOUR FLEET

At one time, the epitome of using technology to manage fleets meant GPS (Global Positioning Systems) location data—where is my stuff? But as vehicles and equipment get more complex and computer-reliant, the technology behind fleet management has also grown to make it possible to find out so much more than where assets are. Fleet managers today use IoT (Internet of Things) and telematics to determine not just where assets are, but how they are being used, how they should be billed, when they should have maintenance performed, and more.

Utilization data is particularly important for longrange planning and financial decisions. Should a company buy or rent a particular piece of equipment?

Will there be enough assets to expand the business or schedule multiple concurrent jobs? When will expensive assets need to be replaced? How can disruptive emergency maintenance be avoided with more effective preventative maintenance?

One specialized type of utilization data involves external PTO (power take-off). Monitoring the use of external or auxiliary attachments on vehicles and equipment has many benefits and financial implications. So, what is external PTO and what are the benefits of tracking it? Let’s find out.

WHAT IS EXTERNAL PTO?

External PTO stands for external power take-off. It refers to a mechanism or device that allows the transfer of power from a vehicle or machinery to an external attachment or equipment. The power is typically derived from the main engine or power source of the

asset. It enables the use of the vehicle’s or equipment’s engine power to drive added equipment or perform specific tasks.

In the context of vehicles, such as trucks or heavy machinery, an external PTO is often used to provide power to external accessories or implements. These accessories can include hydraulic pumps, generators, winches, compressors, and other types of equipment that require mechanical or electrical power to operate.

External PTO systems usually consist of a power takeoff unit, which is connected to the main engine or power source, and a driveshaft or power transmission mechanism that transfers the power to the external attachment. The PTO unit is typically engaged or disengaged using a control mechanism, such as a lever or switch, allowing the operator to activate or deactivate the power transfer as needed.

External devices using PTO can be various types of equipment or attachments, including:

Auxiliary Equipment — Hydraulic pumps, generators, air compressors, or winches. These devices can use the engine power to perform specific functions, such as operating hydraulic systems, supplying electrical power, supplying compressed air, or pulling heavy loads.

Construction Equipment — Cement mixers, concrete pumps, or hydraulic cranes. By connecting these attachments to the PTO, the equipment’s engine power can be harnessed to perform specialized construction tasks efficiently.

Municipal Applications — Street sweepers, snow blowers, or vacuum trucks. These applications can

Tracking external power take-off (PTO) usage on vehicles and equipment can provide several benefits, including:

1. Operational Efficiency: Monitoring external PTO usage helps optimize operational efficiency by supplying insights into how and when PTOs are used. This information allows fleet managers and operators to find opportunities for improved

scheduling, task allocation, and resource management. By tracking PTO usage, fleet and equipment managers can ensure that vehicles and equipment are being used effectively and that PTOdriven tasks are completed efficiently.

Maintenance and Service Planning: PTOs are mechanical components that undergo wear and tear during operation. By tracking PTO usage, shop managers can gather data on the runtime and frequency of PTO engagement. This information allows them to implement preventative maintenance and service planning, ensuring timely inspections, lubrication, and repairs to prevent unexpected failures and costly downtime.

3. Fuel Consumption and Cost Management: PTO usage is often associated with increased fuel consumption. Tracking and analyzing PTO operations makes it easier to quantify the fuel

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consumption attributed to PTO engagement and find opportunities for fuel-saving measures. This knowledge can lead to more efficient route planning, task sequencing, and equipment selection— ultimately reducing fuel costs and improving the overall fuel economy of a fleet.

4. Diagnostic and Troubleshooting: Monitoring PTO usage can aid in diagnostics and troubleshooting. If irregularities or issues pop up during PTO operation, tracking the usage data can help pinpoint potential causes. This information can guide

maintenance personnel in identifying and resolving problems quickly, minimizing equipment downtime, and optimizing productivity.

5. Compliance and Safety: Certain industries and regulatory standards may require tracking and reporting PTO usage for compliance purposes. Accurately monitoring and documenting PTO engagement ensures compliance with regulations and safety guidelines. Additionally, tracking PTO usage helps identify potential misuse or unauthorized use of PTOs, promoting safety practices and preventing accidents or damage to equipment.

6. Cost Allocation and Billing: In scenarios where PTO-driven tasks are performed for external clients or departments within an organization, tracking PTO usage makes it easier to accurately distribute costs and billing. By recording the duration and extent of PTO engagement, billing departments can generate precise usage reports and invoices, enhancing transparency and ensuring fair billing practices.

Overall, tracking external PTO usage supplies valuable data that enables informed decision-making, improves efficiency, reduces maintenance costs, enhances safety, and streamlines operations for vehicles and equipment that use PTO-driven functions. z

Elizabeth Torrez is the West Region Territory Manager for Tenna, focused primarily on the California market. Elizabeth spent many years working for heavy civil construction companies specializing in wet utilities, and four years with United Rentals Trench Safety. She has extensive first-hand experience in helping contractors with solutions for asset and fleet management. For more information, contact Elizabeth at (310) 357-6073 or email her at etorrez@tenna.com. Tenna is a UCON member since 2020.

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By Christopher Lee, UCON Safety Consultant

HOT WEATHER ALERT

Heat Illness Prevention is the Most Frequently Cited Regulation in the Construction Industry

The National Weather Service continues to issue warnings nationwide of high heat. Ocean temperatures, soil moisture, forecast models and long-term trends are all contributing factors in predicting a warmer-than-normal summer season this year.

Continuing into August and September, temperatures are likely to be above normal, and there’s an increase in what’s called the “heat index.” High relative humidity combined with high heat makes a person feel hotter than just the temperature.

Since 2005, Cal/OSHA has regulated outdoor worker exposure to heat through enforcement of this regulation, and a wide array of educational and training materials for use by employers to help them voluntarily comply. Two excellent resources are

• Cal/OSHA’s “Heat Illness Prevention eTool” prepared by the Cal/OSHA Consultation Service (the non-enforcement arm of Cal/OSHA). It contains the regulation, Best Practices, and Employer Sample Procedures for Heat Illness Prevention. It can be reviewed here: https://www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/ etools/08-006/index.htm

• UCON’s Safety Handbook, Section Q—Heat Illness Prevention. Visit UCON’s Contractors

Resource Library for additional information (a UCON members-only benefit).

Exposure to high heat can result in a serious medical condition due to the body’s inability to cope with a particular heat load, and includes heat cramps, heat exhaustion, heat syncope, and heat stroke. When temperatures reach or exceed 95 F degrees, employers must invoke the high heat procedures found in the standard under Section 3395 (e) as outlined on the Cal/ OSHA website.

Here are some basic precautions required by Cal/OSHA:

1. Train all employees and supervisors on heat illness prevention.

2. Provide enough fresh water so that each employee can drink at least 1 quart per hour, or four 8-ounce glasses of water per hour and encourage them to do so.

3. Provide access to shade and encourage employees to take a cool-down rest in the shade for at least 5 minutes. They should not wait until they feel sick to cool down. Shade structures must be in place upon request or when temperatures exceed 80 degrees Fahrenheit.

4. Closely observe all employees during a heat wave and any employee newly assigned to a high heat area. Lighter work, frequent breaks or shorter hours will help employees who have not been working in high temperatures adapt to the new conditions.

5. Develop and implement written procedures for complying with the Cal/OSHA heat illness prevention standard, including plans on how to handle medical emergencies and steps to take if someone shows signs or symptoms of heat illness.

TAKE ADVANTAGE OF UCON’S SAFETY SOLUTIONS

United Contractors is committed to helping our members meet the safety requirements set for the industry. Let UCON help you with construction safety regulations, and even citations, should they occur. We provide a wide range of services that will ensure your company and employees are protected:

• Assistance of Cal/OSHA questions, problems and citations.

• Advocacy on pending OSHA regulations, and informs members of new requirements.

• Numerous safety products and resources designed to prevent jobsite injuries and OSHA compliance (many FREE to members).

• Safety Advisor—for safety questions and concerns, contact UCON’s Safety Consultant, Chris Lee at (925) 855-7900, ccarllee@sbglobal.net.

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By Kiana Valentine, Executive Director, Transportation CA, UCON Legislative Advocate, Politico Group

LEGISLATURE AND GOVERNOR REACH DEAL ON STATE BUDGET

$180 Billion Unlocked for Transportation and Infrastructure Projects Over the Next Decade

On June 26, Governor Gavin Newsom, Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, and Senate President pro Tempore Toni Atkins announced that they had reached agreement on the 2023-24 state budget. With the clock ticking for gubernatorial action on the previously passed SB 101 (the Legislature’s spending plan approved on June 15), the “Big Three” were able to reach agreement by removing acceleration of the controversial Delta tunnels project from the Governor’s infrastructure proposals. Although the infrastructure bills are not officially part of the budget package, the

deal on the overall spending plan was effectively conditioned on a three-way compromise on the Governor’s infrastructure reforms.

On Tuesday June 27, the Senate and Assembly took up and approved about 20 Budget Bills Jr. and trailer bills. Also on Tuesday, Governor Newsom – accompanied by Assembly Budget Committee Chair Phil Ting – signed SB 101, the initial building block of the 2023-24 budget, while aboard a BART train. Notably, the overall 2023-24 spending package saves BART and other transit agencies from toppling off a “fiscal cliff” attributed to flagging ridership and the exhaustion of federal aid related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The accompanying trailer bill, SB 125, includes significant new roles for RTPAs. Several provisions of SB 125 have proven controversial, and Transportation California expects there will be changes to the bill in future trailer bill clean-up later this summer. Key budget items related to transportation include the following:

PUBLIC TRANSIT OPERATIONS AND CAPITAL

The Budget restores the Governor’s proposed $2 billion reduction and $500 million deferral to the Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP), authorizing the full $4 billion supplement included in the 2022 transportation infrastructure package in two installments of $2 billion in 2023-24 and 2024-25. The funding will be allocated to regions on a populationbased formula through the TIRCP, but with flexibility to use up to 100% of the funding for operations purposes, rather than capital, contingent on compliance with regional-level reporting and accountability measures included in SB 125, the transportation budget trailer bill.

The budget also provides $1.1 billion over four years from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) to support transit operational and capital needs through

the new Zero-Emission Transit Capital Program (ZETCP). This includes $410 million in 2023-24 and $230 million annually from 2024-25 to 2026-27. Funds will be allocated to regional transportation planning agencies through the State Transit Assistance formula.

To use the flexible TIRCP funding and the new ZETCP funding for operational needs, transit agencies would be required to meet new accountability measures included in the transportation trailer bill, including the following:

• Accountability and Regional Transportation Planning Agency Role: Provides that a regional transportation planning agency (RTPA) may receive an allocation of funds from the TIRCP or the ZETCP in 2023-24 and use the funds for operations for any of its transit operators in the 2023–24 fiscal year or forecasts operational need between the 2023–24 and 2026–27 fiscal years if both of the following conditions are met:

– The RTPA submits, and CalSTA approves, a regional short-term financial plan for immediate service retention consistent with the adopted guidelines.

– The RTPA submits to CalSTA regionally compiled transit operator data that is consistent with the requirements included in the adopted guidelines and is compiled in coordination with transit operators providing services within the jurisdiction of the regional transportation planning agency.

• Provides that an RTPA shall not be required to submit a regional short-term financial plan if it declares that it does not have an operational need between 2023-24 and 2026-27 for any of its transit operators and will not use funding for operations for any of its transit operators.

• Provides that an RTPA may receive an allocation of funds in 2024-25 if it submits, and the agency approves, an updated regional short-term financial plan, and updated transit operator data by December 31, 2025. Requires all RTPAs receiving funding to submit this plan.

• Requires an RTPA to submit a long-term financial plan to CalSTA by June 30, 2026. Provides that an RTPA is ineligible to receive a grant under the TIRCP in the 2026–27 fiscal year, or any subsequent fiscal years, unless CalSTA approves the long-term financial plan.

Other transit-related trailer bill language includes the following:

• Transit Transportation Task Force: Requires CalSTA, on or before January 1, 2024, to establish the task force, which will include transit operators, MPOs, and other groups interested in transportation. The task force will develop policy recommendations to grow transit ridership and improve the transit experience for all users of those services. CalSTA, in consultation with the task force, is required to prepare and submit a report of findings and policy recommendations to the Legislature by October 31, 2025.

• TIRCP Formula: Requires that funds appropriated from the General Fund to CalSTA for purposes of the TIRCP be distributed through a population-based formula to RTPAs. Provides that funding may be used for capital and/or operating expenses, subject to specified requirements.

• Zero-Emission Transit Capital Program: Establishes the program under CalSTA and requires funds appropriated under the program to be allocated to regional transportation planning agencies through the STA formula. Provides that funding may be used for zero-emission transit equipment and/or transit operating expenditures.

• Accountability and Guidelines: Requires CalSTA to develop and administer an accountability program to govern the distribution of funds made available

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to CalSTA for the ZETCP and the General Fund component of the TIRCP. Requires CalSTA to adopt guidelines governing the distribution of these funding sources in consultation with specified local agencies.

• Ongoing Statutory Relief for Transit Operators:

– Extends the suspension of the financial penalties associated with the Transportation Development Act’s requirements that transit agencies obtain specified fixed percentages of their operating budgets from passenger fares.

– Extends flexibility in the use of STA-State of Good Repair dollars to support all operating and capital expenses.

– Extends the suspension of the financial penalties associated with the STA Program’s requirement that transit agencies’ operating cost per revenue vehicle hour may not exceed operating cost per

revenue vehicle hour adjusted by regional CPI, year over year.

– Extends hold harmless provision for calculation and allocation of STA Program, STA-State of Good Repair and Low Carbon Transit Operations Program allocations (Local Revenue Basis Only).

ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION, CLIMATE ADAPTATION AND OTHER TRANSPORTATION INVESTMENTS

The Budget includes a total of $650 million shifts of funding from the State Highway Account (SHA) to support transportation programs that were funded with excess General Fund in the 2022 Budget Act, specifically:

• $300 million for the Active Transportation Program (ATP), thereby providing the full $500 million supplement included in the 2022 Transportation

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• $200 million to the Local Climate Adaptation Program, maintaining the $200 million allocated to local agency grants under that program in the 2022 Budget Act

• $150 million from the SHA to support freight and goods movement from the 2022 Budget Act. Finally, the Budget approves the Governor’s proposal to delay $150 million in funding to the Grade Separations Program.

OTHER TRANSPORTATION TRAILER BILL PROVISIONS

• In addition to the transit-related items discussed above, the following provisions are included in SB 125, the transportation budget trailer bill:

• Prohibits Caltrans from charging self-help counties with countywide sales tax measures dedicated to transportation improvements more than 10% for the administration of the Indirect Cost Rate Proposal (ICRP) and requires the department to charge those

self-help counties for functional overhead.

• Expands the percentage of licensed drivers who can participate in the pilot programs to evaluate the use of optional mobile or digital alternatives to driver’s licenses and identification cards from 0.5 % to 5% of licensed drivers.

• Appropriates $5,802,000 to Caltrans to support statewide efforts addressing homelessness within the state highway system right-of-way and require the department, on or before January 1, 2026, to submit a report to the fiscal committees of the Legislature and the Legislative Analyst’s Office summarizing the outcomes associated with the activities undertaken by its encampment coordinators. z

Kiana brings more than a decade of policy experience in transportation, local government, and state funding and budget issues. She played a leading role in the passage and implementation of some of California’s most significant transportation funding decisions over the last decade including SB 1. She is the Executive Director at Transportation CA, a Principal at Politico Group, and part of the UCON Legislative Team.

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THE DAY TECHNOLOGY CHANGED THE WORLD

By Sue Dyer, Sudyco.com

Dear Sue,

There is so much talk about new technology these days, what is coming that you think is going to impact Construction?

Tech Curious

Dear Tech,

I recall one evening in 1993 when my electrical engineer husband asked me to come upstairs to see something brand new. It was the World Wide Web. We sat there in awe of how we could be directly connected to different universities through our computer. Watching this I felt like I was experiencing something that would change the world.

On March 14th of this year, I had the exact same feeling. This is the day Chat GPT4 was released. ChatGPT4 was amazing. My Grandson had a school assignment on Joe Biden’s and Donald Trump’s weaknesses as a president (it was supposed to be controversial). We asked ChatGPT4 to create a poem about Joe Biden’s, and Donald Trump’s failures and ChatGPT4 wrote two poems. BTW—He did not use the poems in his paper. You’ll find both poems in their entirety at unitedcontractors.org/newsroom/ucon-magazine.

WOW I thought, this is amazing! All we did was ask a simple question and we got these two poems. (We share both so as not to show any political alliance—my Grandson’s assignment was to be controversial—and so these were!)

Notwithstanding that we have nothing against our Presidents and understand that they have/had an untenable job, we were amazed by how just asking a simple query, we got these poems!

My mind immediately went to what else can we use this for? Here are seven ways I see ChatGPT and AI (artificial intelligence) changing how we work in construction.

1. GET SMARTER

ChatPGT4 can hold over 50,000 words and images (and growing all the time). That means it can hold at once in its “brain” the entirety of your project’s contract, plans, specifications all at once so you can query about anything. Think of how much you can hold in your brain at once. My new book is around 40,000 words that took me a year to write, and I still must look to

remember what I wrote. This capability means you can find exactly where sometime is, or look for patterns, summarize a part, summarize the whole, outline the entire thing, or translate the document into a different language. As ChatGPT4’s capabilities grow, it will be able to hold all of your projects at once in its mind so you can query to compare, contrast, find patterns and lessons learned from every project you’ve ever done–really the possibilities are endless.

2. COMMUNICATE BETTER/FASTER

The new language models like ChatGPT can generate communications you need for your business or team. You can ask it to be friendly, funny, serious, legalistic in its tone as it writes your emails, ads, and correspondence for you.

3. REDUCE ROUTINE TASKS

You are likely to see many new apps emerging in construction that automatically complete the routine tasks you do daily – like filling out forms or even dispatching trucks and people. ChatGPT4 (and other language models) learn as they do tasks. So, they get smarter as you use them for your tasks. Just remember, they are like the smartest and dumbest person you’ve ever met. So, you must make sure that what you are getting is correct.

4. USE YOUR DATA TO STEER

If you’ve wondered what to do with all the data you’ve been collecting, well your language model AI and other types of AI models will eat it up and spit it out in whatever manner you need. If you aren’t collecting data from your project and business, then you better get started because it will become the cost of admission.

5. USE YOUR VOICE

ChatGPT and other language models are changing how we interface with the internet and applications. Voice commands to use apps are emerging. So, to do a schedule might be less about learning to run an app but how to interpret the results. For the internet today we use browsers to find what we want. But soon you will use your voice commanded AI. And AI will replace

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EXCAVATION OF SOIL IS DANGEROUS WORK and can lead to severe injuries and even death if the excavation process is not properly addressed. National Trench Safety has a full complement of excavation support systems as well as engineering and training services to ensure you have the equipment needed to perform the job safely and effectively.

By Angelica Gouig, Director of Events and Education

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AUG/SEPT 2023

The August/September courses are highlighted—see UCON’s full class schedule on our website: UNITEDCONTRACTORS.ORG/ CALENDAR

AUGUST COURSES:

AUGUST 8

Career Path Mapping

Tuesday, August 8; 2:30pm-5:00pm

Instructor: Stephane McShane, Maxim Consulting Group

Class Style: Virtual | Class Limit: Unlimited Cost – Member: Free | Non-member: $100

AUGUST 10

UCON MEMBER BENEFIT: Level-Up Your Team With Free Learning

Invest in your people, and encourage your teams to learn and grow. UCON has developed education programs specific to the construction industry. Classes are taught by top instructors and most are free for members.

If you have any questions regarding UCON’s Professional Development classes, contact Angelica Gouig, Director of Events and Education, (925) 362-7309, agouig@unitedcontractors.org.

AUGUST 22 Getting Results without Authority

Wednesday, August 22; 2:30pm-4:30pm

Instructor: Cayly Dixon, Dale Carnegie Class Style: Virtual | Class Limit: Unlimited Cost – Member: Free | Non-member: $100

AUGUST 29

Surviving an Active Shooter in the Office and on the Jobsite

Thursday, August 29; 2:30pm-4:30pm

Certified Payroll—Answering Contractors

Most-Frequently Asked Questions

Thursday, August 10; 2:30pm-4:30pm

Instructors: Darbi Griffin and Jesse Jimenez, FFC and Ruby Varnadore, United Contractors

Class Style: Virtual Class Limit: Unlimited

Cost – Member: FREE

Non-member: $100

AUGUST 15

Leading Across Generations

Tuesday, August 15; 2:30pm-4:30pm

Instructor: Cayly Dixon, Dale Carnegie

Class Style: Virtual Class Limit: Unlimited

Cost – Member: Free

Non-member: $100

Instructor: Carol Cambridge, The Stay Safe Project

Class Style: Virtual Class Limit: Unlimited Cost – Member: FREE Non-member: $100

AUGUST 31 & SEPTEMBER 14

Agile EQ

Thursday, August 31 and Thursday, September 14 8:30pm-12:30pm

Instructor: Estie Briggs, Briggs Performance Consulting

Class Style: In-Person | Class Limit: 18 - Earn 8 PDCs! Standard Cost: Member: $390; Non-member $490 Location: United Contractors OfficeConference Room 17 Crow Canyon Ct., Suite 200, San Ramon, CA Breakfast provided.

SEPTEMBER COURSES:

SEPTEMBER 12

Get to Agreement: How Diverse Leadership Teams Identify, Discuss, and Solve Their Toughest Problems in Less Than an Hour

Tuesday, September 12; 2:30pm-4:00pm

Instructor: Eric Anderton, Construction Genius

Class Style: Virtual | Class Limit: Unlimited

Cost – Member: Free | Non-member: $100

SEPTEMBER 19

Working with Labor Compliance Officers/ Programs

Tuesday, September 19; 2:30pm-4:30pm

Instructor: Paul Stout, Power Summit

Class Style: Virtual | Class Limit: Unlimited

Cost – Member: FREE | Non-member: $100

SEPTEMBER 21

Fearless Field Leader (Southern CA)

Previously Fearless Foreman

Thursday, September 21; 4:30pm-8:00pm

Instructor: Mark Breslin, United Contractors

Class Style: In-person | Class Limit: 100

Cost – Member: Early-Bird $210; Standard $225 |

Non-member: Early-Bird $310; Standard $325 (Early-Bird pricing expires August 21)

Location: Long Beach Marriott 4700 Airport Plaza Drive, Long Beach, CA 90815

SEPTEMBER 26

Diversity and Inclusion Workshop

Tuesday, September 26; 2:30pm-4:30pm

Instructor: Elfie Martinez, Jennifer Brown Consulting Class Style: Virtual Class Limit: Unlimited

Cost – Member: FREE

Non-member: $100

MEMBER ONLY BENEFIT:

UCON LIBRARY—COURSES ON-DEMAND

UCON has a library of courses on our website available for members only. If there was a class you missed, check with your manager and take it ondemand. Select the Education Library option on the member homepage.

UP

UPCOMING UCON EVENTS

REGISTER NOW FOR UCON’S SAL RUBINO GOLF CLASSIC

Registration is open for this beloved Annual Golf Classic. UCON will again be playing on both courses but space is limited and this event historically sells out— you don’t want to find yourself on the waitlist!

Hotel accommodations at a discounted room rate can be made at the Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel (1 Old Golf Course Road, Monterey, CA 93940). Contact (831) 657-6560 and mention that you are with UCON’s Sal Rubino Golf Classic (Room rate: $349, Sept. 7; $349, Sept. 8).

See below for more information—We hope to see you on the course! Register today by visiting: www.unitedcontractors.org/calendar

By Christine Traina, Event Manager

SAVE THE DATES UPCOMING EVENTS:

Sal Rubino Golf Classic

Friday, September 8, 2023

Location: Bayonet & Black Horse Golf Course, Seaside

DIG Awards

Saturday, October 21, 2023

Location: The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel (See opposite page)

UCON Government Advocacy Auction

Saturday, November 11, 2023

Location: Claremont Hotel, Berkeley (See page 43)

Friday, September 8th

- Registration

- Shotgun Start

GOLF CLASSIC

Early Bird Ticket:

$350/member

$450/non-member (Expires August 15)

Standard Ticket:

$365/member

$465/non-member

A Night in Paris

2023 ADVOCACY

AUCTION

Saturday, November 11, 2023 5:00-10:00pm

The Claremont Club & Spa, Berkeley, CA

Tickets: $350 member, $450 non-member (Early-bird, expires 10/11) $365 member, $465 non-member (Standard) | Tables of 10 available

To donate auction items or for more information, please contact Christine or Rachel at (925) 855-7900, ctraina@unitedcontractors.org, roraa@unitedcontractors.org Scan the QR Code or visit the UCON Auction website to donate packaged items, register, and sponsor.

Join us for an evening of connection, celebration, and fundraising for UCON’s Government Advocacy programs, which build coalitions, drive local & state ballot measures, ensure regulatory fairness, & assist with complex compliance requirements—all benefiting and supporting union contractors.

2023 SUMMER BEACH BASH

UCON’s second annual Beach Bash at the Huntington Beach House was shorely a night to remember! This Southern California networking event connected UCON members with new contractors, unions, and other industry leaders. Nearly 200 people from across the southern CA region mixed and mingled with UCON staff, Board of Directors, members, and partners as we watched the sun set into the Pacific while sipping handcrafted cocktails and enjoying custom s’mores at the fire pits. Guests received sponsored sunglasses as they soaked up the California sun and UCON sweatshirts to keep them toasty after it set. The Beach Bash is quickly becoming our newest UCON tradition— party waves are the best ones to catch! We hope to see you there next summer.

“Thank you, Mark and the UCON team, for another fantastic event. UCON continues to deliver time and time again.”

—Western Paving Contractors, Inc.

“Meeting up with fellow contractors, sipping a cocktail while enjoying a beautiful ocean sunset—can’t get much better than that!”

—Chrisp Company

THANK YOU TO OUR UCON 2023 ANNUAL SPONSORS:

ANNUAL PLATINUM SPONSORS —

Ghilotti Construction Co.

R N R Construction, Inc.

Trench Shoring Company

ANNUAL GOLD SPONSORS —

Anvil Builders

Bay Area Traffic Solutions

Chrisp Company

Granite Construction Company

Graniterock

Griffin Soil Group

Joseph J. Albanese, Inc.

PACE Supply

Pavement Coatings Co.

Pavement Recycling Systems, Inc.

Peterson Cat

R & M Paving

Smith Currie & Hancock, LLP

Stacy and Witbeck, Inc.

Sukut Construction

Sully-Miller Contracting Company

Sweeney Mason LLP

Teichert Inc.

United Rentals Trench Safety

Vulcan Materials Company

Woodruff-Sawyer & Co.

ANNUAL SILVER SPONSORS —

Acrisure/PentaRisk Insurance Services LLC

Alliant Insurance Services, Inc.

Bauman Landscape and Construction, Inc.

Bay Area Temporary Sanitation

BFBA, LLP

Blue Iron Foundations & Shoring LLC

BrightView Landscape Development, Inc.

California Bank of Commerce

Carno Law Group

Cell-Crete Corporation

CliftonLarsonAllen LLP

The Conco Companies

DMZ Builders

Doyle’s Work Company, Inc.

Dynamic Office & Accounting Solutions/

Dynamic Technical Partners

Ghilotti Bros., Inc.

The Hartford

Heritage Bank of Commerce

Hoseley Corporation

JCC, Inc.

Kiewit Infrastructure West Co.

Knife River Construction

McSherry & Hudson, LLC

Midstate Barrier, Inc.

Moss Adams LLP

National Trench Safety, LLC

Newfront

Silverado Contractors, Inc.

Smith Denison Construction Co.

Team Ghilotti, Inc.

Toro Enterprises, Inc.

TYS, LLP

Underground Construction Co., Inc.

Volvo Construction Equipment & Services

Walsh Construction Company II, LLC

Special Thank You’s: Thank you to our UCON Board

of Directors, Huntington Beach House, Jessica Franz Photography, Lucky Devils Band, and Construct Your Image

In 2021, LIUNA’s commitment to training and apprenticeship in California included:

635,709 HOURS OF TRAINING

4,782 CLASSES PERFORMED

1,881 APPRENTICESHIP GRADUATES

26,957 STUDENTS TAUGHT

MEMBER

ANNIVERSARIES: AUGUST

United Contractors would like to take this opportunity to recognize and thank the following companies who are celebrating their anniversary of membership with our organization in August:

27 YEARS – 1996

Contractor Member:

Stacy and Witbeck, Inc.

Kurt Kniffin

26 YEARS – 1997

Contractor Member:

Bay Cities Paving & Grading, Inc.

Ben Rodriguez, Jr.

Associate Member: County Asphalt, L.L.C.

Nicki Turrin

25 YEARS – 1998

Contractor Member:

Bruce Carone Grading & Paving, Inc.

Erica Carone-Blanke

24 YEARS – 1999

Contractor Member: Golden Bay Construction, Inc.

Johnny Zanette

23 YEARS – 2000

Associate Member: Storm Water Inspection & Maint. Svcs. (SWIMS) Ric Campos

22 YEARS – 2001

Contractor Member: Dixon Marine Services, Inc. Mark Sutton

21 YEARS – 2002

Contractor Member:

TerraCon Constructors, Inc.

Steve Lydon

19 YEARS – 2004

Contractor Members: M. Hernandez Const. dba

Hernandez Engineering

Mariano Hernandez

Martin General Engineering, Inc.

Adrian Martin

17 YEARS – 2006

Contractor Members: Precision Engineering, Inc. Finbar Brody

Robert Burns

Construction Inc.

Mark Burns

Wayne E. Swisher

Cement Contractor, Inc.

Brian Swisher

16 YEARS – 2007

Contractor Member: Pacific Coast General Engineering

Sam Baugh

15 YEARS – 2008

Contractor Members: Pavement Recycling Systems, Inc.

Steve Concannon

W. Bradley Electric, Inc.

Joe Murphy

14 YEARS – 2009

Contractor Member: Smith Denison Construction Co.

Matt Goldsmith

13 YEARS – 2010

Contractor Member: Suarez and Munoz Construction, Inc.

John Suarez

Associate Member:

Andreini & Company

Kathleen Earle

11 YEARS – 2012

Contractor Member: Vulcan Construction & Maintenance, Inc.

Robert Flores, Jr.

10 YEARS – 2013

Contractor Members:

De Haro Ramirez Group

Marco Ramirez

RC Underground, Inc.

Ryan Caulfield

Teichert Inc.

Mary Teichert

Associate Members: National Casting Corporation

Gautam Kedia

The Hartford

Keith Lovitt

9 YEARS – 2014

Associate Member: Dynamic Office and Accounting Solutions/ Dynamic Technical Partners

Tiffany Stuart

Photo courtesy Stacy and Witbeck, Inc.

8 YEARS – 2015

Contractor Member:

Azul Works, Inc.

Sandra Rocio Hernandez

Associate Member:

JAM Services, Inc.

Jeff Momaney

7 YEARS – 2016

Contractor Member:

Walsh Construction Company II, LLC

David Cramer

6 YEARS – 2017

Contractor Members:

Duran Construction Group

Ray Duran, Jr.

Industrial Plant Reclamation, Inc.

dba Plant Reclamation

Dan Moitoza

Shimmick/Disney JV

Wendy Bonnell

Associate Members:

G. Peterson Consulting Group, Inc.

Gary Peterson

5 YEARS – 2018

Contractor Members:

A.M. Stephens Construction Co., Inc.

Greg Stephens

Super Seal & Stripe

Brenda Hampton-Ortiz

Total Traffic Control Inc.

Jeffrey Pike

Tracy Grading & Paving Inc.

Robert Rocha

4 YEARS – 2019

Associate Member:

SMTD Law LLP

Marilyn Klinger

3 YEARS – 2020

Contractor Member:

KRC Safety Co., Inc.

Gary Castro

Associate Member: Linarc Inc.

Shanthi Rajan

2 YEARS – 2021

Contractor Members:

Cantor Construction Corp.

David Cantor

Engelke Construction

Jerry Engelke

Loza & Sons, Inc.

Juan Manuel Loza

Wahlund Construction Inc.

Ryan Wahlund

Associate Members:

Bobcat of the Bay

Russ Thielen

Carno Law Group

Anna Carno

Construction Genius

Eric Anderton

1 YEAR – 2022

Contractor Members:

Jacobsson Engineering Construction, Inc.

Dan Jacobsson

Michels Pacific Energy, Inc.

Benjamin Nelson

Michels Trenchless, Inc.

Christopher Fleming

Urban Habitat

Brett Brennan

Associate Members: Cavignac

Daniel Dias

Isco Industries, Inc.

Doug Moe

LD Innovations, LLC

Loren Johnson

Littler Mendelson, PC

Richard Hill

Monzon & Son Enterprises Inc.

Hugo Willanueva

DID YOU HEAR THAT JIM?

HAVE YOU UPDATED YOUR CONTACT INFORMATION?

It’s time to update your company information for our 2024 edition of the UCON Directory & Industry Resource Guide—Deadline September 14th!

UCON’s 2024 Directory and Industry Resource Guide is in production. Look for “Verification Request” email(s) coming from UCON. Use the email links to:

• Update your contact information

• Add branch locations (especially any Southern California branches!)

• Add/update your specialties

• Review and approve the information that we have so that you will receive UCON emails—labor bulletins, safety alerts, compliance requirement, legislative update, upcoming UCON events, professional development programs, and more For more information, or questions about updating information, contact Marissa Miller, UCON’s Marketing & Communications Manager, (925) 621-7520, mmiller@unitedcontractors.org

LOOKING GOOD GUYS–GREAT JOB!

NOTHIN’ BETTER THAN ON-TIME, ON-BUDGET.

Advertising Opportunities Available: Place an ad in this valuable industry resource guide— contact Michelle Vejby, UCON’s Publication Manager at (925) 413-4038, mvejby@unitedcontractors.org or scan the QR Code:

www.unitedcontractors.org