Equipment World Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/536721
July 2015 | EquipmentWorld.com 12 reporter | by Equipment World staff St. Louis construction fi rms help establish $10 million Contractors Loan Fund for minority and women-owned businesses A iming to boost the number of con- struction compa- nies owned by minorities and women in the St. Louis area, a group of fi rms and banks joined forces to establish the Contractors Loan Fund. The $10 million loan fund will be a big help to those companies who can't get traditional loans. Certifi ed busi- nesses owned by minori- ties and women will be able to apply for up to a $1 million loan. St. Louis NAACP President Adol- phus Pruitt called the loan fund, "a big deal," as the city prepares for tens of billions of dollars worth of construction projects over the next 15 years. "Cash fl ow is like oxygen for a business. Without it, it will truly die. And that has been the case over the years – well over a couple of decades locally – for a lot of small minority and women-owned contracting businesses," says Pruitt. "And today is a great giant step towards dealing with the issue." The Associated General Contractors, SM Wilson and Musick Construction are part of the fund coali- tion along with six banks, two universities and other major corporations. More information and an application for the fund can be found at the Con- tractors Loan Fund website, clfstl.org. – Wayne Grayson Volvo CE's new SmartCare service will monitor and translate your telematics data for you Volvo Construction Equipment's new fl eet management assistance service, SmartCare, takes dealer involvement to a new level. The service features three tiers: Basic, Plus and Complete, which progressively involves your Volvo dealer more in helping to monitor and translate the CareTrack telematics data being generated by Volvo machines in your fl eet. Volvo CE director of Service Solutions Jim Bretz says while CareTrack is helping equipment owners and operators tap into data including fuel consumption, idle time, machine location, fl uid levels and service alerts, it can all at times be overwhelming. "With SmartCare, our dealers can help simplify fl eet management by evaluating machine and operator data, and providing corresponding recommendations for maintenance and operations that can positively impact the customer's bottom line, increase uptime, and allow the customer more time to focus on their jobs and clients," Bretz says. The Volvo dealer acts as an extension of the customers' fl eet management team, providing services such as operator familiarization training, daily machine monitoring, on-site inspections and strategic recommendations. Briefs