Heavy Equipment

June 13, 2008

EarthFirst Canada begins construction of Dokie I project

EarthFirst Canada Inc., a Victoria-based company, announced last month that it has started construction on the Dokie I project, a 144 MW wind farm in the Peace River area of northeast British Columbia.

June 6, 2008

New York probe examines failed weld on collapsed crane’s turntable

Investigators are examining how a worn-out part was taken off a construction crane last year, rebuilt and installed on another crane, which collapsed last week in an accident that killed two workers.

June 3, 2008

Slurry wall misses the cut at Burano

It looks like Toronto will have to wait. The Burano, a 48-storey condo planned downtown, was billed as the first highrise in Toronto to use an unusual slurry wall excavation but minds have changed and a traditional caisson wall structure will be specified instead.

May 30, 2008

Older buildings make excavations in New York City risky

The crack in the facade of the century-old apartment building looked ominous. Nearly an inch wide and jagged, it ran through the basement and up the front wall, causing the building to list precariously to the right.

May 28, 2008

British Columbia pilots on-site skills assessment for crane operators

The B.C. Association for Crane Safety (BCACS) has launched a pilot program for assessing crane operators, which is a key part of the implementation of new safety regulations.

May 13, 2008

Resolve truckers’ problems at the negotiating table, AEMO says

Solutions to the Ontario Dump Truck Association’ concerns about rising fuel costs and overloading are more likely to be found while sitting at the negotiating table, rather than rolling along the highway in protest, says the Associated Earth Movers of Ontario (AEMO).

May 9, 2008

Maintaining growth during U.S. economic slowdown poses biggest challenge for Finning, new CEO says

Finning International Inc. CEO and president Mike Waites believes maintaining growth in this “time of uncertainty” will be his first challenge at the helm of the world’s largest Caterpillar heavy equipment dealer

May 8, 2008

Rolling dump truck protest takes to the highway

The Ontario Dump Truck Association (ODTA) organized the rolling protest, which started at Derry and Dixie roads on Thursday, May 8. The ODTA wants to send a message to contractors, excavators, road builders and pavers that they cannot continue to face financial hardships and strain.

April 11, 2008

Cranes rank low on list of occupational hazards

New York expanded has its regulation of tower cranes, now requiring an inspector to be at each one as it is raised and lowered. The new rules were put in place in the wake of the March 15 collapse of a 19-storey crane that demolished a townhouse and killed seven people in New York City.

April 8, 2008

U.S. Crane and Rigging completes first New York crane ‘jump’ since March 15 crash

After the last massive section of crane slid into place on a recent afternoon at a construction site in Brooklyn, Thomas Auringer, the owner of the company that pulled off the feat without a hitch, sat on the bed of a pickup across the street, swinging his legs.