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nuca directory 2011 final changes2.qxp3/2/20118:14 AMPage 4General InformationMessagefromAs I enter my first yearas Chapter President ofNUCA of Oregon and SWWashington, I would liketo thank all of the members for the support youhave given NUCA in becoming what it is today.Steve DukartNUCA has grown from anDuke Constructionorganization that nobody& Excavationhad heard of before, toone that is well recognized by Senators, Representatives, Mayors, Councilors, and City and Municipality officials around Oregon andWashington. Without the hard work and dedication of our members, this would not be possible.I would also like to send out a special thanks toour Executive Director Melinda Dailey. Withouther, we would not be anywhere close to wherewe are today.In 2011, NUCA of Oregon and SW Washingtonwill continue to develop stronger relationshipswith local and state government agencies andregulatory bodies. We will also maintain our commitment to raise NUCA to new heights. To makethis happen, we need to continue to grow ourmembership and encourage strong member participation. I understand that the economy hasbeen tough on us the last couple of years, probably the worst I have seen it in my 15 years ofowning an excavation business. Many companiesare in trouble, losing money, going out of business, and sometimes even excited about justbreaking even. But like the old saying, “when thegoing gets tough the tough gets going,” it’s timeto get tough and get going. This is not a time ard MeetingTexas Hold’em TournamentBoard MeetingGeneral MeetingSalmon Derby – TBABoard MeetingWashington D.C. SummitDozer Day, Vancouver, Wash.Board MeetingGeneral MeetingNUCAlay back and let things happen. We need to be involved and make things happen for the better ofour industry, and our business.If you want to make a difference, better yourbusiness, and help NUCA while improving yourknowledge of the industry, get involved. Participate in our general meetings, and join a publicworks or municipality committee in your servicearea. One of the many benefits of NUCA membership, and possibly the best, is the ability to be involved with other contractors at general meetingsand participating on committees. You can talkabout problems you’re having, and hear solutionsothers have found to the same problem. You canbe informed about new regulatory changes, andthe possibility of tailoring them for the bettermentof our industry. Discussions of new trends in theindustry can better prepare you to position yourbusiness and to be more successful.I would like to share an approach I read abouthow to stay positive and handle the problems ofrunning a business. Simply live life like a bridge.Imagine a huge train is about to cross an oldrickety bridge over a river. The massive trainlooks like it will crush the bridge, but because ofthe length of the bridge, it only has to carry theload of one train car at a time. The train crosseswith no problem. In business, if we can handleone problem at a time, like the train on the bridge,we can move on to the next one. Our businesswill never crush us.On another positive note, the NUCA insurancedividend program has finally reached the 2 millionpremium mark which, with a good loss ratio, willpay a dividend to our members that participatedin the program last year. To reach that threshold2011-2012 C A L E N D A RMarch3152011July7Board MeetingAugust419Board MeetingNUCA Golf TournamentO Fand become more successful, the programchanged significantly last year. NUCA took overthe administration of the program, and all of thebrokers have worked together with NUCA to troubleshoot and fix the initial problems the programfaced. It is now a success! I would like to thankthe brokers for all the hard work they put into theprogram. It truly has been a joint effort. The dividend program, which is exclusive to our chapter,is a huge member benefit, and will be a greatasset in growing our membership. The programis a one of a kind, so please take the time tocheck it out to see if it is right for your company.Finally, I would like to continue to grow ourmembership this year. There is strength in numbers, and the more members we have, the louderand stronger our voice will be. Also, with increased membership and member participation,the more eyes and ears we will have on theground to provide input on what’s happening atall levels of government and in the industry. Governmental rules and regulations will likely gettougher, not easier in the future. None of us cango it alone. We need to communicate with eachother regularly. We need to hear about changes ingovernment and industry that have potential impact on our businesses. We need to stand shoulder to shoulder with our fellow contractors, ourassociate and affiliate members, and NUCA as aunited group, to make this year and future yearsbetter. So, if you are not a member, I encourageyou take a serious look at NUCA and the benefitsof membership. If you are already a member, tella friend about NUCA of Oregon & SW Washington. Above all, get involved.Thanks, I hope you all have a great year.E V E N T SNovember3Board Meeting12NUCA Holiday AuctionDecember1Board Meeting13General Meeting – Board ElectionsSeptember7Board Meeting20General Meeting, Monarch Hotel inClackamasOctober6Board Meeting18General MeetingPresident2012January5Board MeetingFebruary2Board Meeting21General Meeting – Engineers Night2011 NUCA of Oregon and SW Washington Membership Directory

nuca directory 2011 final changes2.qxp3/2/20118:15 AMPage 5General InformationNUCA of Oregon & SW Washington recognizesmembers’ accomplishments with awardsOur chapter has established an award programto acknowledge the efforts of company membersand individuals who serve as role models andprovide outstanding leadership to our association.People in our line of work generally don’t do whatthey do to win awards. That said, we all knowthat it’s gratifying and affirming to be recognizedfor a job well done.NUCA devotes its energies and resources tothree core competencies, each of which describes a fundamental aspect of who we are andwhat we do. They are legislative/regulatory advocacy, jobsite safety promotion and professionaleducation. We are recognizing the impressiveachievements of individuals and companies whoexcel at aiding NUCA in these goals. The scopeand breadth of this volunteerism is not only inspiring, but also a source of great pride for ourindustry. We honor those members that havedemonstrated exceptional leadership.THESAVE DATES!MARCH 15TEXAS HOLD’EM TOURNAMENT MONARCH HOTELMAY 21 - 22DOZER DAY VANCOUVER, WA CEMEX/FISHER QUARRYAUGUST 19NUCA GOLF TOURNAMENTNOVEMBER 12NUCA HOLIDAY AUCTION PORTLAND HILTON HOTEL ROOM BLOCK AVAILABLEThe Contractor ofthe Year award is givento the person or company that has goneover and above for theindustry in the pastyear. The 2010 awardfor Contractor of theYear, is awarded toContractor of the YearEmery & Sons ConBill Martinakstruction, Inc.Bill Martinak, president of Emery & Sons, notonly serves on our board of directors, but he andhis company do much more for our associationand our membership. Bill represents our ownership interests withCollege Properties LLC, which owns the NW College of Construction building. He also chairs theLegislative Committee and the City of Salem Public Works Committee, and was just nominatedand approved to serve a three-year term as a Director on the National NUCA Board starting in2011. Bill is finishing up his fourth year on the EastSide Combined Sewer Overflow (ESCSO) Tunnel,Shafts, and Pipelines Project Citizens OversightCommittee. This committee, which reports to thecity council, is charged with maximizing cost efficiencies; maintaining a safe working environment;minimizing impacts to the affected businessesand residents; creating opportunities for minority,women, and emerging small businesses, and ofcourse, the subcommittee that Bill chaired wascharged with maximizing the use of local contractors and vendors which are critical to our membership. The commitment to serve in this roledisqualified Emery & Sons from bidding on any ofthis work, so this was indeed a significant sacrifice on the part of Emery & Sons. Emery & Sons provided equipment, manpower, materials, and a site for the recent OSUPipe Ramming Study, in which our chapter participated. (See related story, Page 6) They alsoallow Jennifer Carter to represent us, the excavation contractors, on the Oregon Utility NotificationCenter Board, where she also serves as chair ofthis critical state board. This position requiressignificant use of Jennifer’s time, including travels outside Oregon to attend regional events.For these reasons, Emery & Sons Constructionearns our Contractor of the Year award.2011 NUCA of Oregon and SW Washington Membership DirectoryThe Associate of the Year award is given tothe associate, or the associate’s representative,that has gone over and above for the industry inthe past year.The 2010 award forAssociate of the Year isDawn Morse with D.P.Nicoli, Inc. Dawn notonly sits on our boardas the Associate Committee chair, she alsoparticipates on severalother committees, inAssociate of the Yearcluding Safety, MemDawn Morsebership, City ofGresham, BES, Portland Water, Publicity, Golf andthe Auction committee. In addition, Dawn has ahabit of arriving early for our general membershipmeetings to assist Melinda at the registrationtable. For these reasons, Dawn Morse earns ourAssociate of the Year award.The Committee Person of the Year awardis given to the memberthat really separatesthemselves from thepack on the committeelevel.The 2010 Committee Person of the YearCommittee Personis John Kalkhoven withof the YearTitan Utilities, LLC.John KalkhovenJohn chairs the BESPublic Works Committee, the Clean Water Services Public Works Committee, and the PublicWorks Self-Performing Works Committee. Theissue of public agencies self performing publicworks is an escalating trend and John has spentan enormous amount of time and effort on thisissue, often late at night, researching statutes andcompiling supporting data. John’s passion forour industry, and this issue, have resulted in Johntreating this committee as a second job. Melindarefers to John as “her most valuable resourceand an ongoing source of help and support.”John also participates on one of our most keycommittees, the Budget Committee. For thesereasons, John Kalkhoven truly deserves ourCommittee Person of the Year award.Congratulations to all on your well-deservedawards!5

nuca directory 2011 final changes2.qxp3/2/20118:15 AMPage 6General InformationSuccess in Pipe Ramming Research: A Team EffortBy Melinda Dailey, Executive Director,NUCA of Oregon & SW WashingtonEngineers at the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) recognized that pipe ramming,an efficient trenchless technology for new pipe installations, could yield significant savings in itsculvert construction work. However, they alsoknew that ODOT didn’t have access to the information needed to write high-quality specificationsand evaluate the quality of designs and bids submitted. To improve their understanding of piperamming applications, ODOT has teamed up withthe School of Civil and Construction Engineering atOregon State University in a 30-month researchprogram. Professor Armin W. Stuedlein, P.E., andhis students began the study in January 2010 byperforming a review of the pipe ramming literature,issuing a state-of-practice survey, and planning ofan instrumented field trial of a pipe ramming installation.Experienced in the full scale field testing of various geotechnical elements, Dr. Stuedlein recognized that the success of the project depended onan experienced contractor with the skill and experience to perform a quality test ram; what he didn’tknow was that a national organization comprisedof many experienced contractors stood ready toassist in the study. The Oregon and SouthwestWashington Chapter of the National Utility Contractors Association, led by President Lyle Schellenberg and Executive Director Melinda Dailey, workedto organize a cadre of member firms that wouldvolunteer equipment, labor, and expertise to support the ODOT pipe ramming study (see Table).“Having worked in the field of civil infrastructure construction, I was quite frankly surprised tosee the level of cooperation and teamwork displayed by the NUCA members throughout theplanning and installation of the test ram,” says Dr.Stuedlein. “There is no doubt that the credit for oursuccessful field study rests with the contractorsand equipment suppliers, who volunteered theirequipment and effort.”The field study was performed in the yard ofEmery and Sons Construction, Inc., in August2010 and involved the installation of a 115-foot,42-inch-diameter pipe donated by Gonzales Boringand Tunneling, Inc. The pipe was instrumentedwith more than 90 resistance strain gages requiring two miles of electrical conduit, and two pairsof high-frequency strain gages and accelerometers(see Figures 1 and 2).Additionally, the ground surface above the pipewas instrumented to observe ground displace-6Contractor and Equipment Suppliers contributing to ODOT pipe ramming studyArmadillo Underground, Inc.Lyle SchellenbergEmery & Sons Construction, Inc.Bill MartinakGonzales Boring and Tunneling, Inc.Jim GonzalesPeterson Machinery Co.Jeff GogginJames W. Fowler Co.James FowlerWyo-

On another positive note, the NUCA insurance dividend program has finally reached the 2 million premium mark which, with a good loss ratio, will pay a dividend to our members that participated in the program last year. To reach that threshold and become more successful, th