Was environmental message lost on the visitors that flocked to Vegas last week?

Caterpillar is the world’s biggest and America’s best known manufacturer of construction and demolition equipment; and where Caterpillar leads, the industry tends to follow. So when the company’s CEO Doug Oberhelman declared at ConExpo that “The Next Generation Starts Here”, he wasn’t just showcasing the Caterpillar sales message; he was setting the agenda for an entire industry.

And Caterpillar wasn’t just talking the talk; it was walking the walk too. One part of the company’s display was designed to be reused and recycled immediately after the show. And in its main display area, many of its 200+ representatives were wielding Apple iPads, wirelessly taking orders and confirming machine availability in the middle of a packed exhibition hall.

Wandering about the Las Vegas Convention Centre, I was struck by the fact that, product wise, there was nothing really new. Sure, there were some upgraded, updated and uprated machines on show. But anyone that left Sin City believing they had seen a revolutionary product has almost certainly been living in a cave for the past 10 years or more.
But if there was an encompassing theme to the show, it was – as Caterpillar rightly said – the harnessing of technology and the protection of the environment.

From a pure technology standpoint, this was by far the most advanced, forward-thinking and “wired” show I have ever attended in my 25+ years in the construction business. The organisers had developed a free iPhone app containing not just a floor plan and map but a detailed scheduler to keep visitors informed of what was going on, where and when. This was further linked to a social networking system that allowed visitors to share their experiences and to let the friends, colleagues and contacts know where they were, what they’d seen. And, on many stands, the age-old convention tradition of business card exchanges had been largely replaced by a more efficient, paperless electronic alternative. There is no question that ConExpo has set the technological benchmark for future exhibitions

For those of us that have been around for long enough to remember when operator’s cabs were considered an optional extra, the replacement of business cards by iPhones was matched in its new-fangledness by the marketing message driving the sales of most of the equipment on display.

There was a time, in the not too distant past, when equipment was measured in terms of horsepower, torque or the amount of “grunt” it developed. Today’s machines pack more grunt than a Swedish porn movie; but nobody talks about it any more. Power for its own sake has almost become a dirty word; an embarrassing secret like that Justin Bieber song on your MP3 player. Modern equipment is measured on a nominal “muesli scale” that balances the amount of fuel that is put in against the amount of emissions it puts out. The 20 tonne, 200 horsepower excavator of yesteryear has been usurped by a Tier III compliant, biodegradable oil sipping machine that is kind to trees and fluffy bunnies, that does volunteer work at its local homeless shelter, and that probably makes its mother’s eyes leak tears of pure pride.

But this is a tale with a sting in it.

The construction equipment sector, like its fancy-pants cousins in the automotive sector, has invested billions to make equipment that is leaner and greener than the products they replace. They have embraced technologies such as diesel/electric hybrid engines and advanced exhaust filtration systems; they have developed engines clean enough to serve as a dinner plate. Hell, these people have even swapped their business cards for iPhones and Blackberries to help save the rainforests.

But then, through a mix of tradition, received wisdom and a need to keep up with the Joneses, this noble, costly and well-intentioned effort is undermined with a single sweep of the marketing manager’s pen.

Best estimates suggest that ConExpo will have attracted somewhere in the region of 130,000 visitors from locations literally across the globe (my flight from Philadelphia alone contained individuals from the UK, the Netherlands, India, China, Italy and Canada). In addition, the show’s hundreds of stands were each manned (or womanned) by staff that had used a variety of planes, trains and automobiles to get to a city that – perhaps fittingly – stands like a beacon of ostentation and excess in the middle of a barren desert. And because no-one but no-one walks anywhere in Las Vegas unless it’s to the bar or the craps table, every one of those visitors, staff or other associated hanger-on was serviced by a seemingly endless procession of cabs, town cars and limousines, each slurping fuel like a parched camel, each belching emissions like a diner at a Mexican cantina.

This is less carbon footprint and more carbon steel-capped boot stomping down upon the green intentions and environmental ambitions of an entire industry.

There is a lesson to be learned here. As an industry, we have accepted that operator cabs are not an option but a necessity; that clean running engines are of benefit to us all; and that it is possible to attend an exhibition without a tree’s worth of business cards in our back pocket.

Our next challenge is to overcome our need to press flesh and kick tyres (or tracks), and to utilise technology to allow us to conduct business without the need to fly halfway around the world.

Good as ConExpo was – and for all I have said above, it really was VERY good – there has been only one real winner from the show; the oil companies that are eking out the last vestiges of rapidly depleting and finite resources. The big loser is Mother Earth, for precisely the same reasons.

And the sad thing is that – as I write this – I realise that for all my hippy ideals and environmental leanings, I am equally (or even more) culpable. My round-trip clocked up around 14,000 air miles and I took a taxi twice a day every day I was there. But, like all journalists, I contributed nothing to the industry, humanity or the planet other than some words that, with hindsight, I might have done almost as well from the comfort of my own home in the UK.

As much as I enjoyed the show and as much as I love the US (how can you fail to love a nation in which turkey bacon – that’s one meat made to taste like another – is proffered as a viable vegetarian sandwich filling), I would find it hard to justify repeating this trip.

Looking back at the two-year NFDC presidency of David Darsey.

Later today, the National Federation of Demolition Contractors will welcome a new president as Gary Bishop takes over the hot seat from current president David Darsey.

Of course, the media focus will be on Gary Bishop – we have already recorded an exclusive audio interview with Bishop to celebrate his incoming presidency – and rightly so. His accession is the culmination of a decade-long journey that has seen him scale the Federation ladder through numerous regional ranks to second vice and vice president.

But we can’t let today pass without a look back at the two-year presidency of David Darsey.

Like his successor, Darsey’s presidency was the culmination of a lifelong ambition. And despite the fact that he took up the reins at precisely the time that the recession caused the industry horse to bolt, his presidency is memorable for its steadfastness.

From the cutting of the ribbon on the Federation’s new head office just a few days after being named president back in March 2009, through insisting that the Federation’s Site Audit Scheme was made a prerequisite of membership, to the backing of several news sets of guidance notes and the “repatriation” of the National Demolition Training Group – The highs of Darsey’s presidency more than outweighed the economic lows that the industry endured while he wore the chains of office.

Darsey’s presidency was further marked by its outgoing and engaging nature. He attended the European Demolition Association conference in Stockholm meeting up with EDA president Giuseppe Panseri and overcoming their language barrier with a shared passion for demolition. Panseri was later Darsey’s guest at the NFDC’s own Demolition Day event in London. And he has been a regular guest at National Demolition Assciation events in the US for the past three years, something he intends to maintain now that his time in office is at an end.

And, of course, Darsey and the team members from his company – Erith Group – conquered last year’s Demolition Awards winning several key trophies including the big one: The World Demolition Contractor of the Year.

The NFDC is the model upon which several other national and international demolition associations were built, and the Federation continues to pride itself on its reputation as the voice of the demolition industry. The fact that the Federation’s top man won the industry’s top award was a fitting and well-earned end to a memorable presidency, and he can take his leave knowing that he is leaving the Federation at unprecedented levels of strength, reputation and influence.

Oh, and he supports the greatest football team in the world,not that this in any way influenced the above!

Caterpillar unveils new heavy excavators at ConExpo show.

Caterpillar has used the ConExpo show in Las Vegas to unveil a pair of uprated models in its excavator line: the Cat 374D and the 390D. The new Cat 374D hydraulic excavator, a direct replacement for the model 365C, combines added horsepower, stronger hydraulics and greater operating weight to boost overall performance, whether trenching, loading, lifting or handling attachments. Complementing these design basics are undercarriage improvements, a new range of buckets, operator-convenience features, safety enhancements and serviceability improvements. The 374D weighs 71,132 kg.

Rated at 355 kW, the Tier 3/Stage IIIA-compliant Cat C15 engine provides the 374D with 18 percent more power than its predecessor, the 365C.

The 374D implement hydraulic system features a 10-percent increase in flow and a 9-percent gain in main pressure, resulting in a significant boost in hydraulic horsepower. The added hydraulic power combines with larger digging arm and bucket cylinders to yield 17 percent higher digging arm forces and 12 percent higher bucket forces on machines with the standard (reach) boom and arm configuration. For units in the mass excavation configuration, digging arm forces also are up by 17 percent and bucket forces by 5 percent. The net result is shorter cycle times and increased bucket fill factors.

A new line of buckets for the 374D are designed for added strength and durability to accommodate the higher digging forces of the new machine. Bucket types include general duty, heavy duty, severe duty and extreme duty. All Cat buckets feature K Series™ GET (Ground Engaging Tools). Work tools for the 374D extend the machine application into such operations as demolition, scrap processing and quarry work.

The new 90 tonne Cat 390D L Hydraulic Excavator, which replaces the 385C L, incorporates a refined design that provides greater hydraulic power, stronger structural components, added safety and convenience features, plus improved serviceability.

Design enhancements in the implement hydraulic system allow the 390D L to deliver significantly greater digging and lifting forces than its 385C predecessor. Main relief pressure in the implement circuits has been increased to 35,000 kPa, up nearly 10 percent from that of the 385C.

A universal quick-coupler circuit is available for factory installation and is compatible with both dedicated and pin-grabber type couplers. The system features an offset lifting eye and easy-to-use controls.

Caterpillar has transformed a 1,858 square-meter outdoor exhibition space at the Las Vegas Convention Center into a park where CONEXPO-CON/AGG visitors can learn more about the company’s long history of innovation and sustainability leadership. Called Generations Park, the venue was built by Las Vegas-based Sun City Landscapes, Inc. using Cat equipment that was sold and supported by Cashman Equipment Co., the regional Cat Dealer.

Following CONEXPO-CON/AGG, more than 98 percent of the materials used in the construction of the park will have a second life. Paving blocks and concrete products donated by Pavestone Company of Las Vegas will be returned for reuse or recycling. Other materials will be donated to Opportunity Village, a local organization that provides vocational training, employment services and social experiences to people with intellectual disabilities, and Boys & Girls Clubs of Las Vegas, an agency devoted to helping children and youth achieve their full potential.

On display in Generations Park are both the oldest and newest products in the Cat line. The Caterpillar Expo Twenty Tractor is a pre-production example of the first tractor model wholly designed and built by what was once called Caterpillar Tractor Co. Manufactured in 1927, it shares exhibit space with the Cat CT660 Work Truck, a 21st-century vocational truck that is being introduced at CONEXPO-CON/AGG and will be commercially available later in 2011.

Case uses ConExpo as skid steer launch pad

Case Construction Equipment has launched its new Alpha Series line of skid steers, introducing nine models. The new Case machines deliver best-in-class horsepower and breakout force.

The engines in the new Alpha Series skid steers range from 34 kW to 90 67 kW, with rated operating capacities ranging from 590 kg in the new class-size SR130 to 1,360 kg in the SV300.

“Case skid steers have always been known for power and productivity,” said Curtis Goettel, Case marketing manager. “Our new Case Alpha Series skid steers deliver industry-leading bucket breakout forces. The Case SR175, for example, has more than twice the bucket breakout force of the current best-selling model in this size class.”

The Alpha Series includes both radial-lift and vertical-lift models. The radial lift machines (designated with an R in the model name), are engineered for digging, prying and pushing, while the vertical lift models (designated with a V), excel on lift-and-carry applications. The Case Alpha Series includes six radial-lift skid steers, the SR130, SR150, SR175, SR200, SR220 and SR250, and three vertical-lift models, the SV185, SV250 and SV300.

Improved visibility, operator comfort, climate management and operator controls define the new Case Alpha Series machines. To begin, the skid steer cabs are 25-percent larger—the widest in the industry. They feature a revolutionary ultra-narrow wire side-screen design that improves operator visibility. Plus, the glass surface was increased to provide 360-degree visibility.

“The spacious Alpha Series cabs are ideal for the long, hard days operators spend in equipment,” Goettel said. “An increase of 25 percent makes a world of difference.” He added that test operators really appreciated the extra room and improved visibility provided by the new design.

Construction firm fined for demolition site asbestos failings

A construction company has been fined for its role in exposing workers to asbestos in Derby.

Quarnmill Construction Ltd was preparing the former Allens Printers building in Webster Street for demolition in October 2009 and had employed a contractor to remove asbestos-containing materials.

The company provided the contractor with a survey detailing the work to be done, but did not check his suitability to carry out the work, or that he held a licence to remove asbestos, as required by law.

Once work was underway, Quarnmill informed the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) that they thought the site had become contaminated with asbestos as a result of the work the contractor had carried out.

Quarnmill Construction Ltd, of Derby Road, Aston on Trent, pleaded guilty to breaching regulation 4(1)(a) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 for allowing such failings at a site it controlled. The company was today fined £13,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2,700 by Derby magistrates.

Read more here

Lofty German restaurant provides test for Atlas Copco attachment

The panoramic restaurant on the Drachenfels, or Dragon’s Rock, above Königswinter in the Siebengebirge Natural Park on the River Rhine is being replaced by a modern glass cube. The whole plateau at the summit is being conditioned to accommodate growth in tourism. An Atlas Copco CombiCutter CC 2500 U has managed to demolish the old restaurant under difficult conditions.

To begin with, the access road to the restaurant was iced over for weeks, making it impossible to drive along. Once the road was clear again, the retaining wall along the road needed to be reinforced in parts to take the weight of the 25-ton CAT 323 D excavator and the CombiCutter. No rubble was permitted to fall down the hillside under any circumstances. As a result, the outside walls needed to be torn down inwards towards the excavator.

As if that wasn’t enough, time was also pressure on foreman Olaf Goldschmidt and his team from Dortmund-based Stricker GmbH & Co. KG. Demolition work had to be completed by the end of February due to strict requirements regarding the protection of nature and species.

Residents, visitors and the media also showed great interest in the progress of demolition work. “I have never had so many curious onlookers and representatives of the press on a building site,” exclaims Goldschmidt. “The work attracted enormous interest.”

ConExpo throws spotlight on campaign to rebuild America.

Demolition and construction professionals have traveled from far and wide to attend the ConExpo show and to see first-hand the equipment that will be shaping their businesses in the months and years to come. And there is certainly plenty to see.

But aside from impressive equipment displays by usual suspects Caterpillar, Volvo, JCB and Komatsu, together with some equally impressive harnessing of communications technology from, among others, Verizon, the overwhelming theme on the opening day of the Las Vegas extravaganza is of an industry uniting behind a single cause.

The I Make America campaign may have seen very little exposure across the Atlantic, but here in the spiritual home of the US equipment manufacturing sector, it’s presence is permeating every aspect of the show and the displays it comprises. Even in a country as famously patriotic as the US, the Stars and Stripes is, perhaps, more evident than ever before.

Unlike the well-intentioned but ultimately flawed Buy British campaign of yesteryear, I Make America is putting the manufacture of demolition and construction equipment at the very heart of the country’s post-recession recovery.

It would, of course, be easy to dismiss this campaign as an example of American protectionism; a knee-jerk if belated reaction to the erosion of it’s market share in the face of competition from – primarily – the Far East.

But while Europe’s economy languishes in the doldrums, appointing blame – the banks, governments, economists – the Americans have rallied. Through a mix of stimulus funding and now this latest campaign, the US is striving to lead the construction industry out of recession with a united front.

It is a shame that a supposedly unified Europe cannot claim likewise.

The sun shines on opening day of the ConExpo extravaganza

It is often said that construction equipment exhibitions are the barometer of the industry. If that’s the case, the ailing co struction equipment industry is clearly on the mend. And while it may not have returned to the rude health it enjoyed just a few short years ago, early indications are that things a looking up.

Certainly, first day exhibitor numbers must have taken the organizers by surprise as the registration process – the stumbling block for all conventions of this kind – was clearly creaking under the strain early on.

But the show ground and inside halls are busy, and while we have yet to see a cheque book being waved in anger, there certainly is activity taking place.

We will be reporting back more fully on individual machines, companies and launches. But if you are coming to Vegas, you’re in for a treat.

It was our intention to use the power of the Apple iPad to broadcast live (well, almost) from the ConExpo show in Las Vegas.

Sadly, the iPad is missing, presumed stolen so we’re currently making do with an iphone.

This will, of course, greatly limit our ability to report live, but bear with us. We’re hoping that normal service will be restored shortly.