Underground Construction - November 2017 - 6

NEWSLINE LATEST INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENTS
Industry Continues Support To Hurricane Response, Recovery
While it's history, as far as national
news is concerned, the August/
September 2017 hurricane season
and impacts are current issues in
the areas affected by Hurricanes
Harvey, Irma and Maria. The needs
are still there; recovery will take
months and even years.
Revered organizations are
playing major roles in the relief and
rebuilding, with support from our
industry,

Hard Hustle
Veteran-led disaster response
organization Team Rubicon's heavy
equipment cadre first arrived in
southeast Texas on Sept. 14, and
has continued operating throughout Texas and Florida in response to
Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.
Since Hurricane Harvey made
landfall, "Operation Hard Hustle"
has deployed 768 volunteers to
Texas in support of the ongoing
relief efforts with debris removal,
damage assessments, muck outs,
expedient home repair and chainsaw operations. Strike teams on
the ground have conducted more
than 5,000 damage assessments

and serviced 135 homes to date.
It's the most-severe natural disaster
and largest response for the Team
Rubicon heavy equipment group.
CASE Construction Equipment
provided machines and on-site
support personnel, and CASE
dealerships also participated:
Sonsray Machinery Inc. of California
shipped compact track loaders in
for the operation, and Michelin
North America Inc. donated sets of
its Tweel airless radial tires to outfit
skid steers working in demolition
applications.
"You can't understand the devastation leveled by a hurricane until
you're standing at the point where
the eye made landfall and see the
damage. It disrupts basic services
and infrastructure for weeks and
potentially months," said John
Dotto, brand marketing manager
with CASE, who was on the ground
with Team Rubicon in Texas. "We're
inspired by the spirit and resiliency shown by Texans, and are
committed to doing what we can in
conjunction with Team Rubicon to
start rebuilding the community."
Team Rubicon, a nonprofit

organization, unites
the skills and experiences of military
veterans with first
responders to rapidly
deploy emergency
response teams. Its
Photo by CASE Construction Equipment and Matt
Mateiescu,Team Rubicon
heavy equipment
competency was
by the John Deere Foundation to
created to train volunteers in the
the American Red Cross Annual
safe operation of equipment to
Disaster Giving Program that
support disaster response. CASE
helps the Red Cross pre-position
has provided ongoing equipment
supplies, secure shelters, maintain
and training support since the
vehicles and train volunteers, so
beginning of the heavy equipment
response can begin immediately.
program in November 2015.
* Personal employee contributions
of more than $100,000 to the
Hammering Back
Red Cross, local food banks,
Deere & Company will make a $1
and other aid organizations - a
million cash donation to support
total matched by the John Deere
Habitat Hammers Back, a long-term
Foundation.
recovery initiative organized by
* Deployment of heavy equipment
Habitat for Humanity International
by John Deere's business divisions
to help repair and rebuild comand dealers to help in the recovery
munities ravaged by Hurricanes
efforts.
Harvey, Irma and Maria.
The donation is another step in
FOR MORE INFORMATION
the response by Deere and its Foun- Case Construction Equipment, casece.com;
dation to the hurricane disasters,
teamrubiconusa.org
including:
John Deere, johndeere.com;
habitat.org
* An annual $500,000 contribution

Vacuum Lifting Technology Lands On White House Steps
Vacuworx lifting technology made its way to the White
House as part of the National Park Service's historic
renovation of the building's South Portico steps. The $1
million project, which included dismantling Truman-era staircases and installing carefully selected cuts
of Missouri limestone, was completed in August.
A material-handling solution incorporating a
Vacuworx MC Series Vacuum Lifting System proved advantageous as crews pulled two base stones weighing
approximately 2,400 pounds each, and set a total of
46 new slabs. Each new South Portico step - 21 on the
east and 21 on the west - is approximately 10 inches
long, 7 inches deep and 20 inches wide. Four new
landing stones are 11 feet long, 7 inches thick and 6 feet wide.
The MC 5 operates using a self-contained diesel engine. When activated,
the system pulls a vacuum between the pad and object to be lifted,
providing a powerful positive seal. Eliminating the need for straps, the MC5
method saved crews nearly eight hours - an additional 10 minutes per
limestone step during the installation process. The application of vacuum

ucononline.com

lifting also mitigated the risk of chipping the top-grade
material by prying on it with a bucket or fork, and
curbed the possibility of damaging an adjacent patio
on the South Lawn.
"We're moving, fitting, lifting, spreading the mud
and laying it down," said Jessica Gordon, an exhibits
specialist with NPS' Historic Preservation Training
Center (HPTC). "All the re-handling adds up. With the
remote operation, we can safely pick up and maneuver
materials without compressors, hoses or other accessories presenting trip hazards. What really sold us is
that everything is self-contained, in one unit.."
Founded in 1999 in Tulsa, OK, Vacuworx engineers
and manufactures innovative, heavy-duty, material-handling equipment
for the oil and gas, water and sewer, highway and heavy construction, and
other industries worldwide.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Vacuworx, (918) 259-3050, vacuworx.com
Underground Construction November 2017

http://www.casece.com http://www.teamrubiconusa.org http://www.johndeere.com http://www.habitat.org http://www.vacuworx.com http://www.ucononline.com

Underground Construction - November 2017

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