Category: Industry News

2023 LDC RETREAT REPORT

Posted on by Dan Osborn

WEDNESDAY EVENING, JULY 26

It was quite toasty at 82° F.

We had around 15-30 attend the informal reception in the Valley Bar. Fish convinced the John the barkeep to open the extra room for us at no cost. John was fantastic and accommodating. Those in attendance had a great time. A few tables stayed after we closed our tab.

THURSDAY MORNING, JULY 27

The day started out at 88° F. Whew.

Dr. Rich Arkanoff spoke about the book, “The 6 Types of Working Genius: A Better Way to Understand Your Gifts, Your Frustrations, and Your Team”, by Patrick Lencioni. Most session attendees participated in a survey and received their results prior to attending Dr. Arkanoff’s presentation. With great energy and engagement, he showed them how they could leverage their “genius” and help develop that of their coworkers.

THURSDAY AFTERNOON, JULY 27

Hot enough to fry an egg on the sidewalk at 93° F.

Eric Fisher presented advice to contractors to build their “on-ramp” for new talent – including a recommendation for a talent acquisition specialist position for high school recruitment.

Dan Osborn brought MORE HEAT to the day filling in the attendees about newly enacted project delivery methods Construction Manager/General Contractor (CMGC) Progressive Design-Build (P D-B) and Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT).

Many folks hit the pool for a couple hours prior to the welcome reception.

THURSDAY EVENING, JULY 27

Still sweltering at 91° F.

The welcome reception turnout was great – almost 60 attendees! They gathered at the Valley Bar adjacent to the casino for drinks and heavy apps. Lots of shop talk about projects they worked on together. New attendees met old attendees and forged new friendships.

FRIDAY MORNING, JULY 28

It was a scorcher at 93° F.

It was *so hot* our 13 golfers chose sports drinks and water over beer. What else is there to say?

The after-golf pool party featured attendees moving back and forth between the pool and the poolside bar all afternoon, enjoying the best of both worlds and making the most of their time with friends.

You can find photos of the event here.

CPESC Certification Requirements

Posted on by Dan Osborn

Envirocert (ECI), one of INDOT’s approved environmental certification providers, has recently decided that individuals holding a Certified Professional in Erosion & Sediment Control (CPESC) certification are now required to obtain a Certified Erosion, Sediment and Storm Water Inspector (CESSWI) certification if they perform storm water, erosion and sediment control inspections.

Anyone performing inspections holding a CPESC certification shall obtain a CESSWI certification on or after July 1, 2023.

CPESC certification holders wishing to obtain CESSWI certification should visit the following link for instructions.
https://envirocert.org/cpesc-field-inspection-authority/

ECI also published a FAQ notice accessed via the following link.
https://envirocert.org/cpesc-field-inspection-authority-faq/

Contact Dan Osborn (317) 634-7547 with any questions regarding certification.

IRI Training Opportunity

Posted on by Dan Osborn
Source: Indiana Department of Transportation Construction Management

INDOT has fully implemented IRI for measuring highway smoothness on all QC/QA HMA & PCCP contracts. The 2023 construction season will be our first with full implementation of IRI utilizing high speed inertial profilers. The following RSP’s are now included in contracts when smoothness measurement is required: RSP 401-R-577 for HMA and RSP 501-R-752 for PCCP.

Recognizing that this is an emerging technology, INDOT will be offering an “Advanced IRI Pavement Smoothness for Construction” training course for contractors. This advanced training will be delivered by Brian Schleppi and Steve Karamihas. Schleppi is retired from the Ohio Department of Transportation and has decades of technical and field-based experience working with both DOT and contractor personnel on IRI equipment and software. Karamihas is a research area specialist at the University of Michigan Transportation Institute and has been involved in the research and development of IRI technology for decades and brings a wealth of knowledge and experience from his work in multiple states.

This “Advanced IRI Pavement Smoothness for Construction” course will cover the effective use of ProVAL by reviewing the following concepts: overall smoothness and payment utilizing the Ride Quality Module, areas of localized roughness utilizing the SAM Module, verifying equipment utilizing the Certification Module, verifying corrective work ahead of time utilizing the Grinding Simulation Module, and much much more.

This training course will be a single day event offered on two separate dates: May 24 and May 25 at INDOT’s Traffic Management Center (TMC) on the east side of Indianapolis. Training will be from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on both days. Cost for the training will be $180 per attendee. To register and make payment for this Advanced IRI training event, please contact our training vendor: Brian Schleppi at (614) 270-7001 or indottraining@vihsc.com.

INDOT and the training vendor require registration and payment be completed by May 11th. This Advanced IRI training requires each operator attending the course to bring a laptop computer and have the latest version of the ProVal software downloaded and installed.

This training is not mandatory and is not required as part of the requirements found in ITM 917 Section 7.1 in order to attend INDOT’s Annual IRI Certification day. All contractor personnel planning to attend this Advanced IRI training event should have already attended one of the mandatory training methods listed in ITM 917 Section 7.1 in order to have a baseline working knowledge of IRI concepts and IRI software use. However, for contractor operators that are re-certifying, this training course will count towards the ITM 917 Section 7.1 Triennial operator training requirement.

Expert New Hire to Build Up/Skill Up Construction Industry Workforce

Posted on by Andria Hine

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 20, 2022

CONTACT: Andria Hine, Indiana Constructors, Inc. (317) 634-7547

Indiana Constructors, Inc. (ICI) is pleased to announce the addition of Eric K. “Fish” Fisher as director of talent development. Fisher worked in vertical and horizontal construction, civil engineering and architecture education at Hamilton Heights High School for more than 30 years. He is a national master teacher for Project Lead The Way (PLTW), certified craft instructor for National Center for Construction Education Research (NCCER) and curriculum developer for PLTW and Ivy Tech Community College.

A graduate of Ball State University with a bachelor’s degree in technology education, Fisher earned his master’s degree in building construction management from Purdue University. A former construction Laborer, he is passionate about construction workforce development, lean construction methods and new construction technologies.

Bringing Fisher into the ICI fold under the Work IN Roads banner will allow him to share his expertise with high school students and their parents, teachers and counselors throughout the state. He’ll be developing teachers and curriculum that will, in turn, build the workforce the highway, heavy and utility construction industry needs for the future. Along the way, he’ll be helping industry workers skill up through association programs such as the Indiana Constructors Leadership Institute and the Leadership Development Committee.

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Indiana Constructors, Inc. is the voice of the Indiana highway, heavy and utility construction industry. We promote and protect the well-being of our members through legislative and agency advocacy, labor relations and negotiations, education and workforce development opportunities, safety initiatives and communications tools.