Aggregates Manager Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/107584
by Therese Dunphy, Editor-in-Chief tdunphy@randallreilly.com February 2013 Vol. 18, No. 2 aggman.com /AggregatesManager @AggMan_editor Editorial A SOBERING CHALLENGE to Safety Editor-in-Chief: Therese Dunphy Editorial Director: Marcia Gruver Doyle Senior Editor: Kerry Clines News and Digital Editor: Tina Grady Barbaccia editorial@aggman.com Design & Production Art Director: Sandy Turner, Jr. Graphic Designer: Kristen Chapman Advertising Production Manager: Linda Hapner production@aggman.com Construction Media Senior VP, Construction Media: Dan Tidwell VP of Sales, Construction Media: Joe Donald sales@randallreillyconstruction.com 3200 Rice Mine Rd NE Tuscaloosa, AL 35406 800-633-5953 randallreilly.com Corporate Chairman/CEO: Mike Reilly President: Brent Reilly Chief Process Officer: Shane Elmore Chief Administration Officer: David Wright Senior Vice President, Sales: Scott Miller Senior Vice President, Editorial and Research: Linda Longton Vice President of Events: Alan Sims Vice President, Audience Development: Stacy McCants Vice President, Digital Services: Nick Reid Director of Marketing: Julie Arsenault Aggregates Manager TM magazine (ISSN 1552-3071) is published monthly by Randall-Reilly Publishing Company copyright 2013. Executive and Administrative offices, 3200 Rice Mine Rd. N.E., Tuscaloosa, AL 35406. Subscription rates: $24 annually, Non-domestic $125 annually. Single copies: $7. We assume no responsibility for the validity of claims of manufacturers in any advertisement or editorial product information or literature offered by them. Publisher reserves the right to refuse non-qualified subscriptions. Periodical circulation postage paid at Tuscaloosa, Alabama and additional entries. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by an information storage retrieval system, without written permission of the copyright owner. POSTMASTER: Send all UAA to CFS. (See DMM 707.4.12.5); NON-POSTAL AND MILITARY FACILITIES: send address corrections to Aggregates Manager, 3200 Rice Mine Road N.E., Tuscaloosa, AL 35406. T "Start with what is right rather than what is acceptable," Franz Kafka. he words of the German writer neatly sum up my advice to operators in both Colorado and Washington, where successful 2012 ballot initiatives legalized marijuana possession and created an unnecessary challenge to ensuring worker safety. For an industry that prizes the safety of its workers, the idea of employees arriving to work under the influence of marijuana is unacceptable. Zero tolerance policies and random drug screenings have long played an important role in worker safety and should continue to do so — not just for an individual worker's safety, but for that of others as well. Kafka wrote extensively about quarry safety throughout his career. Management guru Peter Drucker even credited him with developing the first civilian hard hat during his tenure at the Worker's Accident Insurance Institute. In "Franz Kafka: The Office Writings," he described a quarry where workers wouldn't even report for work if they were not first promised their quota of brandy. Apparently, the quarry owner also owned a nearby inn. "Every day, the foreman would, as one of his most important tasks, bring large jugs of brandy from the inn to the quarry and distribute them to workers, keeping records of their consumption," he wrote. The cost of the alcohol was later withdrawn from the worker's wages, with deductions running as high as 30 percent of the overall earnings. "In effect, the workforce of this quarry was made up largely of men who were, to a greater or lesser extent, drunk," he noted. A workforce operating under the influence of marijuana makes about as much sense as the intoxicated workforce described by Kafka, which is to say that it makes no sense at all. In today's litigious environment, however, operators must now make sure they take steps to ensure that they stay on the right side of this legal issue. To help readers navigate the legal complexities of these initiatives, Jackson Kelly PLLC's Robin Repass offers guidance on what policy updates can be made to protect both companies and other workers. See page 34 for guidance. And remember, start with what is right, not what is acceptable. 3 things I learned from this issue: 1 Calcium carbonate used in animal feed offers a market opportunity with steady demand, page 4. 2 Higher dredge pump speeds (against a baseline speed) may indicate a worn impeller, page 15. 3 Spherical, crush-resistant silica sand is most suitable for frac sand production, page 19. AGGREGATES MANAGER February 2013 3