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1775
Old 6 Road, PO Box 535, Brooklyn, IA 52211-0535 USA |
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Trenching/Sealcoat/Stabilization |
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What a spring! I'm sure it will be
one we won't forget for a long time. Between the continual rains
and lack of early work to start on it has been very stressful
seeing the equipment sitting in the yard. I keep thinking this
has to be the last week of rain but it just keeps on coming. Bob
and the crew finally got started May 7th installing subdrain. A
big share of the work we obtained in the winter lettings is
going to be late season. We have been picking up a couple
of jobs here and there with some asphalt projects and have been
able to hold a steady schedule together so far. Total to date
footage on contract is 671,961 lineal feet. A good season is
800,000 to 900,000 feet, so it is looking a little better. Believe it or not these guys have
been able to get 144,000 feet put in the ground since starting
even with all the rain days! Way to go!
Some things to always keep thinking about, fuel is still
outrageous and we need to conserve when ever possible! With all
the rain everything you do is in the mud. Let’s keep the cabs
and floors clean of mud and trash so when you need to hit a
pedal in a hurry your foot stays where you put it and doesn't
slip off. I realize the conditions that everyone works in, but
just a few minutes with a putty knife or whiskbroom could save a
lot of agony! As the season moves along this
crew will also be doing some shoulder stone work so I'm feeling
a lot better for a full season. Like everyone else Virg and the
sealcoat crew has had a very late start and also battling the
weather. It probably has hit them worse than others as we have
to wait for surfaces to dry out, plus the low temperatures. They have managed to finish the
dust coating of Black Hawk County and Holiday Lake. This past
week they have just started sealcoating with a stabilization
project in Ames and will be starting the circuit of small towns
and then moving into County and State work. The winter lettings contained
nothing for sealcoat projects. We have been bidding virtually
everything that has sealcoat on it and hope to get a full season
for this crew also. On
a brighter note, we recently picked up a stabilization and
sealcoating project in Jefferson County, which will take about 6
days to complete. And adding to that a 26-mile sealcoat project
in Muscatine County! I am stilling hearing of some possible
county work so I'm optimistic they too will have a full season! Kurt and the stabilization
schedule are kind of hit and miss. The season started early by
North Liberty mixing Fly Ash inside a huge warehouse that was
built over the winter. The subgrade inside the building was
knee-deep mud and was impossible to pave over. Kurt spent a
couple of days mixing material and greatly improved the area.
I visited the site a few days later and they were driving
mixers where they were earlier dragging equipment with
four-wheel drive backhoes to get through! WE have several small
projects on the schedule along with a very large project in
Jasper County to mix in 398,000 gallon on a 7-mile stretch of
road by Baxter. Another project involving Fly Ash will be the
Chariton Airport that the PCC Division was just awarded. I have
quoted several projects and here too remain optimistic of
obtaining more work for Kurt! I
know it will eventually dry out and there won't be enough hours
in a day to get things completed, but that’s the nature of our
business. Let’s stay on top of the safety game in slow times
and fast times! Remember to take that second look before pulling
out or backing up. Get the right tool for the correct job. Lets
keep it a safe and productive summer!
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