DOL announces accessibility improvements
The Department of Labor (DOL) has announced efforts to improve the public's accessibility to the department's agencies and ensure the department functions effectively.
Previously, only DOL's Mine Safety and Health Administration posted worker fatality data on its Web site. Now, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration also is publishing employer-specific information about occupational fatalities online and allowing users to download the data. Comprehensive weekly reports regarding the topic are available at www.osha.gov/dep/fatcat/dep_fatcat.html.
According to DOL, this will give employers with reported fatalities more incentive to improve safety and prevent future accidents. In addition, responsible employers will be able to use the database to identify dangerous conditions and take precautions.
Other DOL agencies are making additional information available to the public. The Bureau of Labor Statistics is contributing new information to www.data.gov, and DOL's Employment and Training Administration recently launched a Web-based competition at www.dol.gov/challenge that enlists entrepreneurs, technology firms, work force professionals and the public to help identify the best online tools to help U.S. job seekers connect with jobs quickly and easily.
On Dec. 7, 2009, DOL released its entire regulatory agenda online. The information can be viewed at www.dol.gov/regulations. The Web site also contains links to resources and testimonials and helps visitors submit comments regarding specific regulations.
DOL also has launched a weekly electronic newsletter and is using social networking tools such as Facebook and Twitter to engage the public online.
USGBC launches LEED® Pilot Credit Library
The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has launched its LEED Pilot Credit Library, introducing six proposed new Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) credits.
USGBC's newest version of LEED—LEED v3—was introduced in April 2009 and includes the ability to introduce proposed new credits and prerequisites to LEED through a credit-by-credit pilot process so USGBC can introduce new ideas without waiting for the launch of a new version of the rating system.
With the LEED Pilot Credit Library, LEED project teams are encouraged to pilot test any proposed credits they believe fit their projects. Participants will submit evaluation forms offering input regarding the proposed credit's strengths and weaknesses. Feedback will be reviewed by a Pilot Working Group to help improve the proposed credit or determine whether it should be introduced into LEED.
Each project that helps pilot test a credit and offers feedback receives one Innovation & Design or Innovation in Operations credit regardless of whether it would have achieved the actual credit being piloted. Because the pilot credits are not yet part of LEED, points will not be awarded for achieving a pilot credit.
Credits currently being piloted are: Pilot Credit 1: Life Cycle Assessment of Building Assemblies and Materials; Pilot Credit 2: PBT Source Reduction: Dioxins and Halogenated Organic Compounds; Pilot Credit 3: Medical and Process Equipment Efficiency; Pilot Credit 4: Innovative Ventilation; and Pilot Credits 5 and 6: Preliminary Integrative Project Planning & Design.
More information about the program is available at www.usgbc.org.
NRCA has concerns regarding the LEED Pilot Credit Library and wrote a letter to USGBC addressing those concerns. The letter can be accessed at www.professionalroofing.net/news/files/1109_pilot_credit.pdf.
Army uses SPF to cool tents in Iraq
According to Discovery News, the Army has begun coating tents with spray polyurethane foam (SPF) to protect soldiers from the heat of the Iraqi desert where temperatures can reach 130 F.
To help make troops more comfortable in the harsh climate, the Army has begun coating 900 air-conditioned tents with TerraStrong, a specialized SPF, to prevent cool air from escaping. Workers spray the SPF, which reportedly hardens within about 20 minutes and offers 25 to 33 percent energy savings.
"For the Army, there is no other solution even close to this given speed, flexibility and mobility," says Joseph Lstiburek, a principal of Building Science Corp., Boston. "You don't have to ship lots of big pieces of stuff around. Think about it: a big tent insulated on the exterior that acts as a combined water control layer, air control layer, vapor control layer and thermal control layer that also is structural."
Morristown, N.J.-based Honeywell is executing the $12.5 million project and plans to train 50 local residents and donate the technology to the Iraqis when the project is finished.
The SPF project is part of the Army's 2009-15 strategic plan to improve facility efficiency and overall quality of life for soldiers, families and civilians.
IRS releases 2010 standard mileage rates
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has announced the 2010 optional standard mileage rates for calculating deductible costs associated with using an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes.
As of Jan. 1, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car, van, pickup truck or panel truck are 50 cents per mile for business miles driven; 16.5 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes; and 14 cents per mile driven in service to a charitable organization.
During 2009, the business mileage rate was 55 cents and the medical and moving rate was 24 cents.
Revenue Procedure 2009-54, which contains additional information about the mileage rates and taxpayers who qualify, is available at www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/rp-09-54.pdf.
Details
Brian J. Whelan
What is your position within your company?
I am senior vice president of Canton, Mass.-based Sika Sarnafil's roofing business unit.
What is the most unusual roofing project of which you have been a part?
Reroofing the 63-story, 797-foot-tall John Hancock Tower, a landmark building in Boston. Working closely with the engineering experts at Simpson, Gumpertz & Heger Inc., Waltham, Mass., we designed and detailed the reroofing of this unique project. Twenty-two years and two hurricanes later the roof is still performing.
Why did you become involved with the roofing industry?
I was always interested in building construction. My first job out of college exposed me to roofing. Single-ply roofing seemed like a good idea to me.
What was your first roofing experience?
Reroofing my parents' house working beside my father and brother. I am surprised we survived.
When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A professional baseball player
If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?
Monterey Peninsula in California with my wife and friends, including a round of golf at Pebble Beach—definitely on the bucket list
What do you consider a waste of time?
Putting out fires created by competitors' dirty sales tactics
List three words that best describe you.
Honest, loyal and hardworking
What three items are always in your fridge?
Milk, cold cuts and on Friday night, a nice cold Heineken Light
What is your biggest pet peeve?
Negative thinking
Name one luxury you allow yourself.
Skiing with my friends
If you could invite any three people (dead or alive) to dinner, whom would you invite and why?
My father who is 86 years old, my brother who is different in most ways from me and my grandfather whom I never met. It would be entertaining.
What is the most challenging aspect of your job?
Keeping our tradition of delivering quality roof systems while expanding our business
What is your roofing industry involvement?
I am on the board of directors for the Center for Environmental Innovation in Roofing and participate in numerous NRCA committees.
People would be surprised to know …
I am a co-owner of three patents having to do with welding thermoplastic roof membranes and profiles.
Construction business owners respond to a changing economy
Inflection Point: Defining the Future of the Worldwide Construction Industry—a survey released by FMI Corp., a Raleigh, N.C.-based construction industry management consulting and investment banking firm, and the Construction Management Association of America—indicates the construction owner community is responding to changing economic conditions by looking to service providers for more comprehensive support across the entire building life cycle.
According to the survey, between 2009-14, construction business owners expect to attach more importance to selecting a project delivery system; maintenance management support for processes and technologies; proactive strategies to avoid claims and disputes; development and use of construction management plans; and effective documentation and processes designed to support facility commissioning or turnover.
Additionally, construction business owners were asked to identify the areas they believe most need improvement among specific groups of service providers. They ranked team coordination first for every group or firm type with the exception of labor and unions, for which knowledge transfer and safe workplaces were mentioned most frequently.
The survey indicates construction business owners desire more commitment to collaboration from their architects and general contractors while program managers and construction management service providers are seen as performing better in this regard.
"A variety of services or functions viewed as relatively unimportant today will gain significantly in perceived importance by 2014," states a report based on the survey. "These emerging key areas reinforce the survey's overall finding that owners are seeking a more holistic approach to their construction. Among the largest gainers are factors related to ongoing maintenance and applications of new technologies to provide effective maintenance management."
Motivate employees with humor
Running a business is a serious matter, but that doesn't mean you can't have a sense of humor. Humor can be a powerful motivator and can help you gain your employees' loyalty and affection. Following are tips for using humor in the workplace:
Source: Adapted from The Manager's Intelligence Report, November 2009 issue
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