FEATURED PROJECT...
Lee Bird Field Sewer & Water Improvements
North Platte, NE - T.C. Engineering, Inc.worked with the North Platte Airport Authority to design a project to upgrade the infrastructure for the North Platte Regional Airport - Lee Bird Field. The main components of the project were to eliminate the airport's existing onsite wastewater treatment plant by connecting to the City of North Platte's wastewater treatment facilities as well as tie into North Platte's water system. General Excavating is nearing completion of the large utility job. Heavy and continual rains have proved to be a tough adversary to the final grading and seeding that needs to take place as the North Platte River is running at historically high levels not seen since the early 1980's.
The project site, located just east of the city along Highway 30, is in close proximity to the North Platte River. Work this close to a river means dewatering. Williams Drilling was called upon to install nearly 250 dewatering wells to lower water levels so pipe could be installed. General Excavating constructed an 8-inch sanitary sewer line that connected to a new pump station. Over four thousand feet of a 4-inch sanitary sewer force main was installed that connected the pump station to the City of North Platte treatment plant. Over seven thousand feet of a new 12-inch water main was constructed as well as over 2,000 feet of 24-inch water main for the city. Another key subcontractor on this project was Horizontal Boring & Tunneling. Horizontal provided boring assistance on the project including the bore and steel casing needed to run a water main under Highway 30 to serve future growth on the north side.
"Although everyone is anxious to wrap up the job, other than the rain and water that just won't go away, construction on the project went well."
Lowery Engstrom
Project Manager — GE.
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Trifecta EXCELLENCE
General Excavating's Environmental Construction Division was rewarded for their outstanding work at the TETRA Micronutrients Facility in Fairbury at the 2011 Associated Builders and Contractors Awards Banquet. The Corrective Measures Implementation Project was not only selected as the top environmental project but was also recognized as the "best of the best" from all categories of winners at the ceremony. In addition, General Excavating won the inaugural ABC Safety Award given to honor a contractor whose work on a winning project demonstrated safe work and a high level of training and innovative programs.
"First of all, we are happy that the project was completed to the owner's satisfaction. That is always our number one goal. Our environmental guys do a great job and this project is another example of the high quality work they complete each day."
Joe D'Amico, Vice President - GE
Pictured L-R: Craig Gana-Gana Excavating, Joe D'Amico-GE, Pat Sward-Alfred Benesch & Co., Ken Imig-GE, Adam Root-Gana Excavating
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OSHA TRAINING
Education at General Excavating is continuous. Crews completing work on environmental remediation projects are required to update their 40-Hour OSHA HAZWOPER training on an annual basis by attending a refresher course. In addition, all field employees as well as project managers recently completed BNSF's Contractor Orientation Course as well as e-RAILSAFE System training. Utility, directional boring and OSP communications project often take place in railroad right-of-ways. Completion of the orientation training as well as e-RAILSAFE allows GE's crew to complete work in a safe manner when in close proximity to railroads.
Pictured L-R at OSHA 8-Hour Refresher Training: Dennis Willeford, Steve Crosby, Ken Hood, Leon Bergfield
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NAMES and NUMBERS
John Kooistra - OSP Communications, Directional Boring
(402)440-0327 • jkooistra@generalexcavating.com
Ken Imig - Environmental Remediation, UST's
(402)499-2239 • kimig@generalexcavating.com
Kevin Thiemann - Hourly Service Work
(402)440-5467 • kthiemann@generalexcavating.com
Lowry Engstrom - Water, Storm, Sanitary
(402)432-0982 • lengstrom@generalexavating.com
Jim Brunner - Water, Storm, Sanitary
(402)430-3416 • jbrunner@generalexavating.com
Joe Giesler - Water, Storm, Sanitary, OSP, Environmental
(402)430-9028 • jgiesler@generalexcavating.com
Shelly Henke - Construction and Landscaping Materials
(402)467-1627 • shenke@generalexcavating.com
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Above & Beyond
Working for Pine Bluff Gravel & Excavating, General Excavating completed work on the Cheyenne River Health Center Staffing Quarters Site Utilities Project in Eagle Butte, SD.
"...I knew I could trust GE to do an excellent job from my time spent working in Lincoln and again Jim and his crew proved what type of company you still have. I would call on and recommend GE to anyone who asks me for the best..."
Paul Guhn, Project Manager - Pine Bluff Gravel & Excavating
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Q&A
A common question asked of GE's project managers by engineers, general contractors, mechanical contractors, and owners:
What can General Excavating do early in the design to assist in the efficient delivery of a project?
"The first thing we offer is institutional knowledge. If you have a project in the area, there is a pretty good chance we have been there in the past on other jobs. This experience means many potential problems can be avoided or cost savings ideas provided early in the project development process. While budget numbers for utilities is a good starting point, we can also assist with alignments or propose alternate construction methods. Does directional boring offer savings, or is it more cost effective to open cut the project? These are the types of questions we answer after visiting the site and talking to the design team."
Joe Giesler Project Manager, General Excavating
The PIPELINE . . .
What's making news at General Excavating?
CERTIFIED - by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Underground Storage Tank Section, General Excavating as a UST licensed remover for the State of Iowa.
PURCHASED - a new Vermeer D24x40 boring machine that will allow General Excavating to bore up to 1,000 feet of 12-inch water pipe, sanitary sewer pipe, or communications conduit.
ATTAINED - a S.T.E.P. award that recognizes a high level safety program, safe work practices, and ongoing education from the Associated Builders and Contractors.
AWARDED - by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln as General Excavating was selected to construct the Devaney Steam Line Removal and Replacement Project.
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Dirty Jobs
It's a dirty job, but as they say, someone had to do it. Using a 52-foot EXTENDAVATOR attachment for an excavator, General Excavating was able to reach those "hard to get" places in two sediment ponds on the Glynoaks Plaza Project for Hampton Construction. Over time silt builds up and sediment ponds lose their capacity to store run-off water. The long-reach excavator is a fairly simple method of addressing this problem with a minimum of disruption to the surrounding features. Other applications include shoreline restoration, channel shaping and the clean-up of municipal or private bodies of water.
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Photo of the Quarter
An opportunity for General Excavating's employees to show others the work they perform. Winner's receive cash and have their photo displayed at General Excavating.
Marhlon Brown submitted this quarter's winning photograph. A project foreman,
Marhlon has worked at General Excavating for over sixteen years. Marhlon completes a wide range of outside plant communication projects for a wide variety of clients throughout the area.
General Excavating, working for SPRINT in a BNSF right-of-way, lowered approximately 2,250-feet of fiber cable, covered with split PVC duct, and encased in concrete near the community of Tama, Iowa.
