To ensure the health and safety of area residents, Liberty Quarry has several mitigation measures in place to limit the amount of emissions that could be released into the atmosphere by the proposed project. These measures include a requirement that there be no visible dust within 100 feet of any equipment or beyond the property boundary line and several other measures specifically intended to reduce dust emissions such as enclosing equipment and conveyor belts.

“Ensuring the health and safety of our neighbors will always be a priority for Granite Construction,” said Gary Johnson, Granite Construction’s aggregate resource development manager, in the press release.

Illinois Coalition Launches Federal Outreach Program

The Transportation for Illinois Coalition (TFIC) is launching a new federal outreach program to refocus its efforts toward key staff and lawmakers both from and outside of Illinois that influence transportation issues.

In the past, TFIC has organized trips to Washington, D.C., to meet with the Illinois Congressional delegation to discuss transportation issues and receive information about the transportation activities at the Capitol. These D.C. trips will still take place, but the federal program will provide additional focus, says John Henriksen, executive director of the Illinois Association of Aggregate Producers (IAAP) and a member of TFIC’s coalition, in a written statement.

“To maximize our impact with the Illinois delegation, we are forming Congressional District Transportation Teams who will not only build on our past efforts but will, we believe, become even more effective by meeting with members of Congress from Illinois right in their home districts,” Henriksen notes in a written statement. “By using local and familiar constituents, we believe that our outreach to each member of the Illinois delegation will be better than ever, more responsive, and more informative for all concerned.”

The teams will be composed of representatives from labor, business, local political leaders, and other TFIC member organizations. Each Congressional District Transportation Team will be lead and supported by a volunteer district coordinator. Some of the activities the Congressional District Transportation Teams may choose to undertake are the following:

• Meeting with a Congress member in their district;

• Writing letters when needed and getting local letter writing efforts started when necessary;

• Participating in town hall meetings both as people who ask questions and as authorities that the member can “invite” to answer transportation questions of constituents who come;

• Inviting the member to tour sites of transportation-related businesses, workplaces, construction sites, etc.; and

• As individuals further develop rapport with their own members of Congress, these relationships will present opportunities to attend political fundraisers.

Linatex Implements Merger Plan With Durex

Since acquiring Durex Products Inc. in October 2007, Linatex Corp. of America has been implementing a merger plan to ensure customers and employees experience minimal disruption. Both companies are continuing operations as normal while sales and operations merge.

“There is no rush to force the two companies together without proper, robust planning,” says Greg Caddle, president of Linatex Corp. of America, in a written statement. “We’ve seen too many organizations try to do this in the past with disastrous results. We really want to embrace the best of both companies and to ensure that our customer experience remains a priority.”

Caddle says one of Linatex’s major goals in 2008 is to focus on improving customer delivery. “Durex Products Inc. has adopted modern methodologies combined with a strong customer focus to continuously improve delivery performance,” he says in the statement. “This is something we want to preserve, strengthen, and adopt throughout our combined organizations.”

Vulcan, Lafarge Receive Stars of Excellence Award

The National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association (NSSGA) has recognized seven member operations in its National Stars of Excellence program for 2007. At Aggregates Manager press time, the seven winners, along with the Excellence in Community Relations Gold Award recipients, were slated to be recognized on March 12 during an awards breakfast at NSSGA’s annual convention in conjunction with ConExpo-Con/Agg in Las Vegas.