Portsmouth, NH. – Northeast Rehabilitation Hospital Network  is currently adding another Hospital to their Salem and  Nashua, NH. locations as well as outpatient services in Windham, Plaistow and Pelham. The New Hospital will be located on the Pease Development Authority campus across from the backside of the Lonza building. Currently Super Tom Hanley of North Branch Construction is laying out the job for sitework contractor DBU. Northeast Rehab was started by a Army Neurosurgeon (Howard Gardner) in 1984 who saw the benefits that rehabilitation offered Army Soldiers. The site is fairly open and dry, and loam should be coming up in the next week or two. This new facility will be a 2 (two) story, steel and masonry construction building.  Stay tuned!

Ioka Theatre;Recently while in Exeter, I noticed that the historical Ioka theatre was closed due to lack of fire suppression equipment. Louis B. Mayer, production head of Metro Goldwyn Mayer Studios started his career in Haverhill, Massachusetts where he owned six theatres on River St. Edward Mayer; Louis’ nephew was a Rockingham county judge and resided in Exeter. When Edward saw the crowds of people that were lined up at his famous uncle’s theatres in Haverhill he knew what to do. It took Edward two years to secure financial backing and another year to find a suitable spot to put his new theatre. Construction started in March of 1915 and in November the theatre opened its doors at 55 Water Street

Being a layman in construction I was thinking what’s the big deal bring in some plumbers, twist up some black iron pipe, sheetrock a soffit here and there brush on some paint and start taking money for the April vacation shows. Well that mindset does not even scratch the surface as to what would have to be done.

Life Safety Systems: If you have ever been in a building and wondered what will happen in case of an emergency or fire you are not alone and you do not have to worry, that has already been taken care of for you. Before you build, remodel, rehab or renovate any building in any state the engineers that are involved in the planning process have or will incorporate all practices and procedures set forth by the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA). The NFPA 3 Life Safety Code (LSS) helps architects and engineers incorporate state of the art tactics that help building constructors achieve fire and life safety in the built environment. The LSS is designed, inspected and enforced by fire fighting personnel nationwide and no occupancy permit is issued without the local inspector’s seal of approval.

After looking into the nuts and bolts of a LSS I was blown away how much work and effort goes into a system and can see that my mindset before doing the research for this article was pretty bad. Luckily after this you and I now have a much better understanding how cool these systems are and a little about how they work.

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Plaistow, NH – Contractor Andy Galloway is through second season with his PT-80 track loader and as far as he is concerned “he made the right choice”. Andy utilizes his PT-80 year round by coupling the unit with an Erskine ES2400 high flow snow blower in the winter time to manage the nearly 15 acre site in Plaistow, NH which houses the Wal-Mart, Home Depot, Bed Bath and Beyond and Staples. This past spring Andy was able to work through some unfavorable weather that many other track machines “would have been useless”. Come Summer and Fall the PT-80 is a very valuable tool especially as job nears the end and you need a “great finishing machine”. Amidst all of the enormous equipment that Galloway Trucking owns and runs from a Cat 980G loader to one of the many 90,000lb excavators or D8 or D9 bulldozers, there is still a need for the right tool for the job and that is why Andy added a PT-80 to his fleet.

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Although not directly related to the construction industry, many readers are certainly avid snowmobile enthusiasts and club members. When it came to trail grooming, snowmobile clubs had to rely on either a small sled with a 4’ wide drag or a much larger machine which very often was cost prohibitive and/or just too large for their trail systems. Many attempts have been made to find the right mid-size machine with an enclosed cab and heater along with the ability to carry a passenger. These typically consisted of a 4wd utility vehicle equipped with tracks but they just didn’t have the power needed to handle snow loads and steep terrain.

Almost two years ago, ASV introduced the Scout utility vehicle. Although designed for many different applications, one primary use was snowmobile trail grooming. The Scout is a dedicated track vehicle equipped with a 50HP Perkins diesel engine, 2 speed hydrostatic transmission and a conventional steering wheel. Many options include a fully equipped 2 passenger heated cab, front snow blade and hydraulic dump box. With the dump box removed, the machine is left with a flat bed and the perfect place to mount a gooseneck hitch.

In January of 2008, M.B. Tractor & Equipment coupled a 6’x12’ MTN snow drag behind the Scout and began promoting it at groomer shows, Snodeos and individual club demos. Dan Weed of Bow Pioneers Snowmobile Club assisted us with testing and providing valuable feedback. “After a long search for a mid-size grooming tractor we found the ASV Scout SC-50. Last year the Bow Pioneers Snowmobile Club became a test site for the Scout in the Northeast. We had been looking for a mid sized machine that would bridge the gap between a snowmobile type groomer and a full sized groomer such as a Tucker Sno-Cat or Pisten-Bulley. Until last year there were no viable alternatives. You either had under powered ATV/UTV conversions adapted with tracks or utility vehicles that were feeble attempts at being a grooming tractor. After testing the Scout during the summer we were excited to test it in the winter with the optional snow track and a drag. The 50HP diesel and hydrostatic drive system is a good match with a 12’ long drag. After having the snow tracks put on we tested it last year on our trail system. We found that the Scout is very maneuverable in tight areas and has plenty of power with this configuration. The machine has been very successful in filling the void for a mid sized tractor. We are looking forward to our second season with the Scout.”

In addition to trail grooming, another attractive feature of the Scout is its versatility. It can be used during the spring and summer for trail maintenance as well as moving material at a job site. Other possible markets include utility companies and fire/rescue departments.

M.B. Tractor successfully sold and delivered seven Scout/Groomers to various clubs throughout New Hampshire.

The New Year brings with it a time for new hopes and new beginnings.  For all of us in business it also usually brings many new laws, regulations and filings.  In an effort to ease the paperwork burden many forms can now be completed online.  It still requires effort to assemble the data but at least we’re saving some trees.

This year you should be using the 2010 version of the W4 for income tax withholding.  This only applies to new hires and those who are changing their withholding status.  New hires must also complete the new version of the I-9 form.  This form is meant to verify whether a new hire is eligible to work in the USA.  These forms are available on the US DOL web site and the IRS website.  Changes to the FMLA law also require an updated posting for those who are subject to this law.  Many of the state postings and even many of the federal postings are also available on the NH DOL and Mass DOL websites.  Unless you use a payroll service that completes the NH New Hire Reporting form for you, you must also complete this form for your new hires and forward it to the state. 

Many businesses are also subject to other reporting requirements under the NH Workers Compensation Law.  Current NH law requires that employers with ten or more employees must complete a Safety Summary Form every two years.  This is very easy to overlook since it is only required every other year.  This form may also be completed online these days.  This same law also requires all employers with five or more employees to establish a Safety Committee comprised of an equal number of employer and employee representatives.  If you have ten or more employees (whether full-time, part-time or seasonal) you must develop a written Safety Plan and a temporary alternative duty program in addition to the Safety Committee.  You should consult your WC carrier’s loss control department for any assistance in developing these plans.  This service is usually priced into your rates so take advantage of what you are paying for.  The result should translate into lower rates as your safety performance improves.  These days especially, lowering expenses is critical.

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Seacoast Area – Truck mounted snow plow thefts are increasing and have doubled in recent years. This past week I spent time in all the seacoast regions, Gloucester to Newburyport,  Hampton to Portsmouth, Dover to Rochester and York County, Maine. I visited many people in these area’s and  at least one person each day told the tale of a stolen  snow plow (plows). Either they were the victim themselves or it was someone they did business with, nonetheless the common denominator was that they were  all  Fisher brand plows. I grew up Quincy, Ma. and the Police Captain John Dougan reported there were 3 plows stolen in a weekend and 1 of them was stolen from the city itself, the fact is that with the lack of snow and fewer snow removal jobs theft cases have increased everywhere.

Fisher Engineering is aware of this issue and is busy developing Anti-Theft devices for us like; The Security Guard snowplow anti-theft system.  This system, currently available on their new HT series snowplows renders the plow “dead”  to anyone who connects to the blade and cannot input  your programmed security code on the controller. This is the same principle as German made automobile audio systems as I have “heard” that if a BMW or Mercedes radio is taken from it’s original vehicle that it will not work no matter how “good” your wiring guy is, why steal it if it is going to be useless once in your possession?

New England has been “Fisher Country” for some time now and if you pass 10 vehicles on the road equipped with snow plows,  chances are 7 of them will be Fisher Plows. This ratio is partly the result of 1; Fisher Engineering manufacturing snow plow blades in Rockland, Maine for almost 60 years or 2; The fact that they just plain make the best snow plow on the market hands down. If you have never been to their website and you are interested in a snowplow you owe it to yourself to check it out www.fisherplows.com. M.B. Tractor is stocking Fisher distributor for new snow plows and sanders so if you are looking for a plow you are in the right place. Even if you are looking to buy a used blade, check with your local MB store to find out which plow is right for your truck and how much money the new equipment is going for, that way when you are dealing with a private seller you will be informed.

Alright so we are aware there is a problem and that there may be a great solution coming from the class leader some time in the future, but what do we do with the unit that is already installed on your money maker?  Scott Carlson and Dean Outhouse, two seacoast snow management professionals are very in-tune with these issues. Well here is what they came up with, the lock is installed in a position that in most cases the lock would need to be cut on both sides for removal without the key. The thought is that thieves will not be prepared for this system (no cutting equipment) or that they would not be interested in generating  the noise that would accompany lock removal without the key.

I often get the opportunity to work in the Eliot, Maine branch of MB Tractor and in doing so I have recently met some folks that have come into the store and asked specifically for Fluid Film. One gentleman was so excited we carried it that he wiped us out of product and told us – “get more I’ll be back”. What is this stuff, and why are these people so excited about it? Well let me tell you, if you use Fluid Film you will be excited about it as well.

Fluid Film was developed in the 1940’s to combat and inhibit corrosion in the ballast tanks of World War II supply and attack ships. The main ingredient in Fluid-Film is wool wax (lanolin). It has NO solvents therefore it will not evaporate, it is NOT water soluble, so it will not wash away with severe road moisture, it will NOT dry out making it ideal for all exterior applications, such as vehicle and truck undercoating.  Fluid Film will NOT freeze, therefore all snow and ice management professionals have a great non toxic rust inhibitor for all of there equipment.

As with any product you will want to follow the manufacturers instructions – but here’s the rundown. Fluid Film is approximately the same viscosity as latex house paint. It can be applied by brush or roller in bulk form, or from standard aerosol or spray pump cans. Standard airless sprayers will work well as long as they can apply latex paint without it needing to be thinned. If applying with sprayer, as with all liquids, proper fan size is imperative. There are 3 numbers associated with sprayer tip sizes; these represent both the fan and orifice size. For example a 515 tip will give you a 10” material spread with gun 12” away from surface being treated, so the “5” represents ½ the 10” spread. The next two numbers represent the actual orifice size in thousands of inches or .015. A tip size of 313-515 is recommended for applying Fluid Film. As far as I am concerned the applications for this product are endless.

If you are in construction Fluid Film can help with any moving part in any machine on the job site, as well as small equipment that is stored in the construction trailer or shop. If you are a landscape professional you can extend maintenance intervals on cutting and shaping equipment without fear of polluting customers land. Automotive enthusiasts will go crazy with this stuff, I personally am addicted to it. Locks, slides, door hinges, hood hinges, tailgate pivot pins, clutch pedal linkage, shifter linkage, and suspension components oh my god, suspension components are the best. I have an old Ford F-series pick up (1978) and after supporting and applying Fluid Film to all shackles and spring perches and in between each spring, I swore that the ride quality in my truck doubled. I needed verification of this badly, so I told my wife that I wanted to take her for a ride, get a coffee and just sit and talk for a bit, almost in disbelief of this suggestion she proceeded to check me for a fever and irregular heart rate. Once I checked out OK and we were getting ready to leave she realized that she would be the one  to verify the increase in ride quality of my beloved F-series. Michelle being the java junkie that she is, joined me for the cruise and told me that “yeah this rides like a dream” I ignored the sarcasm and enjoyed my coffee.

Fluid Film comes in a variety of sizes, 11 ¾ oz aerosol ($10),  12 oz pump sprayers ($12), one gallon containers ($45),  five gallon containers ($210) and if you really love the stuff you can get fifty five gallon drums for around $1,500.00. Go to www.fluid-film.com or just stop into your local MB Tractor & Equipment store, and if you do you will be like me – looking for a “couple of friends” to go in on a 55 gallon drum. Maybe Michelle is reading this and will get me a 5 gallon container for my Birthday, you never know.

- Joe Elliott -

Ladies and Gentlemen, at the end of September, 2010 our current Federal Highway programs will expire. The administration that is now in Washington D.C. and all of it’s supporters are pushing for a meager 18 month under funded bill. This short sighted “let’s just get by” mentality is unacceptable. In the wake of our sister state Massachusetts electing republican Scott Brown – that’s right this is not a typo, MA elected a republican state senator for the first time since Ed Brooke in 1972. If that is not a wake up call to the people in Washington, then I don’t know what is. We are heading into a long slow climb out of the state that we are in and it will take a lot of  hard work to stay afloat in this atmosphere. I always ask contractor’s “how did you do last year?” and “what do you think this coming year (2010) will bring?”  I get a variety of responses as you can imagine. One of my friends told me today “Joe if you answered the phone between 2002 and 2005 you got the job.” There simply was not enough contractor’s to meet the demand. I am not telling anybody anything they don’t already know. I urge you to go to www.startusupusa.com and do something about the current situation we are in. Sign the petition on the front page, go to “take action” and send a letter to your state representative, I did and it felt great.

- Joe Elliott -

Portsmouth, NH contractor experiences excellent performance with ASV PT-80 trackloader.

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