Southeast #13, 2010

Page 1

Published Nationally ®

Southeast Edition

June 30 2010

$3.00

Vol. XXIII • No. 13

“The Nation’s Best Read Construction Newspaper… Founded 1957.” 470 Maryland Drive • Ft. Washington, PA 19034 • 215/885-2900 • Toll Free 800-523-2200 • Fax 215/885-2910 • www.constructionequipmentguide.com

Inside

Louisiana’s Geaux Wider Project Underway By Mary Reed CEG CORRESPONDENT

Flagler Moves Into New Orlando Facility…8

Sand Science Picks Up Ultra Trommel…31

Ritchie Sells More Than 1,200 Lots in Atlanta…52

At the risk of many puns being made on its name, Louisiana’s Geaux Wider project is Louisiana Department of Transportation & Development’s ambitious multi-year project to decrease travel time between Interstates 10 and 12 in East Baton Rouge and Livingston Parishes. The goal of this $86 million federally funded project is to enhance safety and relieve congestion along these heavily traveled highways by widening them from four to six lanes. With an expected completion date in the third or fourth quarter of 2012, the Geaux Wider Initiative will be built in three phases with stages. Phase I Stage I, now completed, consisted of construction of temporary lanes for traffic detours on the east and eastbound lanes. Phase I Stage II will involve construction of new inside lanes and shoulder throughout the existing median, with work beginning on center phases of Wards Creek, Essen Lane, Bluebonnet and Siegen Lane overpass bridges in Baton Rouge. Phase II Stage I will allow westbound traffic to be shifted to the new lane and shoulder in the center median while the westbound bridges and lanes are being rebuilt. Eastbound vehicles

Austin Bridge & Road constructs a portable trestle bridge as a value engineering concept due to crane access issues.

will continue to use the existing bridges. Phase II Stage II will allow westbound traffic to be shifted from the center median to the new westbound lanes. Eastbound traffic will then move to the center of the new lane and shoulder while outside portions of road and bridge construction of the eastbound lanes is carried out. Phase III is expected to begin in the first

quarter of 2011 and end in the last quarter of the same year. It will open traffic on the new inside and center lanes while permanent shoulders and outside lanes are constructed eastbound and westbound. Phase III-A involves reconstruction of the on/off-ramps in designated areas of Interstates 10 and 12. see GEAUX page 44

Table of Contents ............4

Caterpillar to Invest $700M in Production Upgrades

Truck & Trailer Section .... ..................................25-27

By Josh Funk

Crushing, Screening & Recycling Section ....31-40

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) Caterpillar Inc. said June 17 that it plans to invest almost $700 million over the next four years to start producing mining shovels and expand production of its trucks at plants in Illinois and India. The world’s largest maker of construction and mining equipment said it plans to add a new mining shovel production line at its Aurora, Ill., plant and expand truck production in Decatur, Ill., and Chennai, India. The new mining shovels will range from 125to 800-ton (113 to 725 t) models. The 125-ton

Parts Section ................41 Business Calendar ........48 Auction Section ......50-55 Advertisers Index ..........54

AP BUSINESS WRITER

shovels are expected to be available in 2011 with larger models following in 2013 and 2014. The Aurora plant is likely to gain about 300 jobs through 2014. Caterpillar spokesman Jim Dugan said jobs will be added at the other plants as demand increases, but the Peoria company doesn’t know how many. Caterpillar said these expansions should increase the truck production capacity of the Decatur plant by about 30 percent. That plant produces Caterpillar’s largest mining trucks, including its 400-ton (363 t) model. The truck capacity of the Indian plant will double to help Caterpillar meet increasing demand in commodity-rich developing regions

like Asia. “This investment of nearly $700 million demonstrates our commitment to Caterpillar mining customers around the world,” said Doug Oberhelman, who will become Caterpillar’s CEO in July. “It also is a great example of the job-creation benefits of global trade.” Oberhelman said more than 60 percent of the large mining equipment made at Caterpillar’s Illinois facilities are sold outside the United States. Caterpillar has said it’s seeing stronger demand for its iconic yellow-and-black machinery because the economy has begun to recover from the recession.


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