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Industry News - Page 427 of 695

  • Why Good Employees Leave And What To Do About It

    The impact felt when an employee leaves is exacerbated when labor markets are tight. Leaders at all levels in the organization need to be cognizant of the message their actions send to employees when someone leaves.

    When Good Employees Leave
    “Leaders are always being watched. How the leadership reacts when someone leaves is going to impact how everyone else reacts,” says Marissa Levin, co-founder of Successful Culture International, and a culture and leadership expert.
    “If they are transparent, honest, and don’t act like the sky is falling, they acknowledge the loss, but pivot quickly into fill that gap, employees will take that cue, and things will go on without a glitch.” she says.
    If you feel that workers today don’t have the same loyalty to employers that previous generations did, you are correct. “Younger generations definitely have less tolerance for being unhappy,” says Levin. “They are just not going to stay in a job if it’s not fulfilling a purpose that they believe in.”
    So what can employers in construction do to attract and keep employees on the job in this market? Levin offers five key strategies.

    Pay Attention To Exit Interviews
    When people leave an organization, it’s critical to find out why.  According to the 2018 Retention Report from the Work Institute the top three reasons employees leave are:
    Career Development – No opportunity to grow in a preferred job and career.
    Work-Life Balance – Better work-life balance, which includes more favorable schedules, shorter commute times and scheduling flexibility.
    Manager Behavior – Unprofessional or unsupportive managers.  Exit interviews can be a useful tool in identifying the reasons why employees are leaving, provided they ask the right questions.
    “The goal of the exit interview should be to find out where the company did well or fell short on communication or meeting expectations,” says Levin.  While exit interviews can be a useful tool, it’s about more than just collecting data. Companies need to analyze and share the information and then follow up with action.
    Levin cautions that exiting employees might not be comfortable providing answers. “If you haven’t already developed a culture of trust, when an employee leaves they are not all of sudden going to divulge everything to you,” she says.
     
    Examine Your Mission, Values And Vision
    “Problems such as high attrition, low trust, low morale, and low engagement are all a result of a compromised culture,” says Levin.  Companies that start to deviate from their mission, vision, and values struggle.  She recommends that businesses re-engineer their hiring processes to ensure that new hires have the technical competence and are culturally aligned with the company’s core values before they begin. “Interviewing is the key piece to ensure that you have strong retention of great people,” says Levin.  
    PCL Construction, ranked #98 on FORTUNE magazine’s Best Places to Work,and #7 on Engineering News-Record’s Top 400 list of general contractors, uses behavioral aptitude tests such as the Predictive Index to help gain a clear understanding of the motivating needs and behaviors of potential team members. “We use a two-pronged approach to seek out interest and if the potential candidate seems like a good fit, the next steps would include an in-person interview,” says Dianna Hemphill-O’Byrne,communications specialist for PCL.
    construction employee retentionBE PROCESS-CENTRIC, NOT HERO-CENTRIC
    The more your processes are documented and employees are trained on those processes, the less risk there is to the organization when a key person leaves. Employees can then easily step in and fill the void. “When a company revolves around a handful of heroes, it can be demoralizing for the people who are not one of those heroes,” says Levin. 

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    Jul 16, 2020 - 5 years ago

  • Reaching The Summit

    FRONT PAGE STORY: John Deere equipment helps Vancouver Island logger achieve peak performance. 
    Story: Kevin Orfield, Photography: Todd Dacquisto

    When asked why he wanted to climb Mount Everest, George Mallory famously replied, “Because it’s there.” At the time, no one had reached the summit of the highest mountain in the world. To Mallory and other mountaineers, its very existence posed a challenge to be gloriously overcome.

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    Jul 16, 2020 - 5 years ago

  • Leading Aggregates Producer Wm. D. Scepaniak Share 6 Keys For Business Success

    Based in Holdingford, MN, Wm. D. Scepaniak Inc. is one of the nation’s leading family owned and operated producers and transporters of construction aggregate materials. The company, now in its third generation, also provides mining and construction services, including crushing and screening, washing, recycling, overburden removal, pit reclamation, aggregate hauling and placing and road building.
    Its operations cover Minnesota, North and South Dakota, Iowa, Wyoming, Montana and Colorado.
    John Scepaniak, aggregate project manager, says there are six keys to the company’s longevity: open communications, recruitment, onboarding, employee development, technology and future planning.

    Leading Aggregates Producer Wm. D. Scepaniak

    From Hauling To Aggregate Processing
    The company was begun by in the early part of the 20th century by William D. Scepaniak, Sr. A truck driver from Holdingford, MN, he primarily hauled livestock, sand and gravel locally and throughout the Midwest. After serving in WWII, he returned home and got back into the trucking business, focusing on transporting sand and gravel. He then began purchasing aggregate processing equipment to offer screened rock and sand products to his customers.
    The 1960s brought consistent growth for the company’s mining and construction services. In 1970, he founded Wm. D. Scepaniak, Inc. With Scepaniak’s untimely passing in 1979, the business was left to his wife Rosemary and his three sons: William Jr., Robert and Joseph.
    In the 2000s, William Jr.’s sons, Tony and Jake, joined the company. John, son of Joseph, came on board in 2014, as did John’s younger brother Bryan in 2017. The company began adding new services and processes to expand into new markets.
    The company has a fleet of 25 trucks for transporting aggregates. There are a variety of crushing, screening, washing and aggregate production machines. There are 90 employees.

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    Jul 16, 2020 - 5 years ago

  • Intelligent Compaction Is The Key To Asphalt Pavement Performance

    Intelligent Compaction

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    Jul 16, 2020 - 5 years ago

  • Alberta Government Supporting Sand And Gravel Operators

    Alberta Govt Supports Sand And Gravel Operators

    The Alberta government is providing certainty for job creators by clarifying how minerals and pits are defined in provincial legislation, and how sand operations are regulated in Alberta.
    By amending the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act, the government is eliminating confusion about what constitutes a mineral by providing clear definitions in legislation. This will ensure sand continues to be regulated under its current process, which is simple, straightforward and protects the environment.
    “Job creators should not need interpreters to understand legislation and regulatory laws. That’s why the government is taking action to ensure that sand and gravel operators have clear definitions that are accurate in legislation. Environment and Parks has had an effective and environmentally sound regulatory system in place for more than 15 years to review and approve projects. This bill will provide clarity and consistency for job creators in the sand and gravel industry while still maintaining stringent environmental protection regulations,” said Jason Nixon, Minister of Environment and Parks.
    If passed, Bill 31 would amend the definition of minerals and pits in the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act (EPEA), and remove references to silica sand in the Public Lands Act (PLA).
    On May 6, the Alberta Court of Appeal ruled that sand is a mineral under the EPEA. This means that sand operations above 45,000 tonnes each year must be regulated as a quarry instead of a pit. Before this decision, all projects removing sand were regulated as pits.
    Legislative changes to two acts are needed to provide clarity and regulatory certainty for operators:
    By amending the EPEA, we are removing confusion about what constitutes a mineral. This will ensure sand continues to be regulated under its curren  process, which is simple, straightforward and reflects its well understood environmental impacts.
    By amending the PLA to remove references to silica sand, we are creating certainty about the interpretation of sand by eliminating unclear and duplicative terminology. Since sand is already defined in provincial legislation, also defining silica sand makes application documents unnecessarily complicated for operators.
    The court decision affects about 500 applications that are currently awaiting review. Applicants submitted the information required for a pit authorization – not a quarry approval – so the applications are now incomplete and cannot be authorized in their current state without the passing of Bill 31.


    Quick facts
    Without government’s legislative amendments, any application for a sand project that is more than 45,000 tonnes annually now needs to be revised to include complex approval requirements and an environmental impact assessment (EIA).
    There are no consequences to the end of life/reclamation as a result of these proposed legislative amendments. Quarries and pits are both required to be reclaimed at the end of their life cycle. 

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    Jul 16, 2020 - 5 years ago

  • PTFE Bearing Conversion Improves Operations At Hydropower Station

    Constructed in the mid-1930s, the Norris Dam was the first major project for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). Its purpose was to bring economic development to the region and control the flooding that had long plagued the Valley.

    Constructed in the mid-1930s, the Norris Dam was the first major project for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). Its purpose was to bring economic development to the region and control the flooding that had long plagued the Valley. TVA worked with Michell Bearings after experiencing numerous thrust bearing failures over the life of one of the two generator units. The failures of the original white metal bearings resulted in excessive downtime and associated loss of revenue. Michell Bearings was awarded a design contract to investigate the potential problems with the 1930’s design, which had been subject to various attempts over the years to improve reliability. The engineers at Michell Bearings created a 3D model of the thrust bearing support structure and performed a finite element analysis to determine any issues affecting the bearing’s performance. Michell Bearings’ in-house performance prediction software was used to evaluate the performance of the existing white metal pads. The bearing’s thrust pads were replaced using a PTFE lined alternative as a result of the study. The PTFE material provides a greater safety factor when compared with the white metal solution. PTFE is more durable and has a well-established and proven track record within the hydro power sector. The study concluded that the material will also increase the life of the bearing and provide greater reliability. Steve Dixon, CEO at Michell Bearings, said: “Although the original contract was awarded as a study, we were pleased to hear that our advice was taken on board and led to the supply of the PTFE thrust pads for the Norris unit.” Previously Engineering Director at Michell Bearings, Steve took on the role of CEO in May 2020. “We have been researching the advantages of PTFE for over 20 years and so we were confident that the material would solve TVA’s problem.” Michell Bearings and TVA are working on an additional two projects at the Cherokee and Douglas hydropower plants. Michell Bearings will be presenting a paper on the findings of this project at the Hydrovision exhibition in June 2021. For more information visit: www.michellbearings.com About Michell Bearings designs and manufactures hydrodynamic white metal and PTFE lined bearings for clients across the globe. Founded in Newcastle upon Tyne in 1920, this year Michell Bearings celebrates 100 years of manufacturing products including horizontal bearings, vertical bearings and tilting pad bearings for the industrial, commercial marine and naval markets. b
    TVA worked with Michell Bearings after experiencing numerous thrust bearing failures over the life of one of the two generator units. The failures of the original white metal bearings resulted in excessive downtime and associated loss of revenue.
    Michell Bearings was awarded a design contract to investigate the potential problems with the 1930’s design, which had been subject to various attempts over the years to improve reliability. The engineers at Michell Bearings created a 3D model of the thrust bearing support structure and performed a finite element analysis to determine any issues affecting the bearing’s performance.
    Michell Bearings’ in-house performance prediction software was used to evaluate the performance of the existing white metal pads. 
    The bearing’s thrust pads were replaced using a PTFE lined alternative as a result of the study. The PTFE material provides a greater safety factor when compared with the white metal solution. PTFE is more durable and has a well-established and proven track record within the hydro power sector. The study concluded that the material will also increase the life of the bearing and provide greater reliability.
    Steve Dixon, CEO at Michell Bearings, said: “Although the original contract was awarded as a study, we were pleased to hear that our advice was taken on board and led to the supply of the PTFE thrust pads for the Norris unit.”
    Previously Engineering Director at Michell Bearings, Steve took on the role of CEO in May 2020. “We have been researching the advantages of PTFE for over 20 years and so we were confident that the material would solve TVA’s problem.”
    Michell Bearings and TVA are working on an additional two projects at the Cherokee and Douglas hydropower plants. Michell Bearings will be presenting a paper on the findings of this project at the Hydrovision exhibition in June 2021.
    For more information visit: www.michellbearings.com
     
    About
    Michell Bearings designs and manufactures hydrodynamic white metal and PTFE lined bearings for clients across the globe. Founded in Newcastle upon Tyne in 1920, this year Michell Bearings celebrates 100 years of manufacturing products including horizontal bearings, vertical bearings and tilting pad bearings for the industrial, commercial marine and naval markets. 

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    Jul 16, 2020 - 5 years ago

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