Godwin will be exhibiting in Hall A6, Stand 406 at the New Munich Trade Fair Centre in Munich, Germany April 19 –25.

Located at www.godwinpumps.com/bauma or from Godwin’s homepage at www.godwinpumps.com, Godwin’s bauma site invites show attendees to visit the Godwin Pumps stand, where it will debut two new pumps for the international market: the model HL260M 10-inch x 8-inch (250 mm x 200 mm) single-stage automatic priming centrifugal Dri-Prime pump for high heads and the model CD500M 24-inch x 18-inch (600 x 400 mm) automatic priming centrifugal Dri-Prime pump for high flows.

Godwin Pumps is inviting show attendees to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of its Dri-Prime product at its bauma stand on Tuesday, April 20.

“This is the world’s largest construction equipment event, and we are dedicated to helping our customers and prospects find us quickly,” says Bryan Gassler, Godwin Pumps marketing Mmanager,in a written press statement. “Our goal for this site was to providm information about our show activities including international product launches and our Dri-Prime 40th Anniversary Celebration.”

“The country’s aging infrastructure continues to be an issue of concern particularly with regard to public safety,” said Bob Christensen, senior vice president, Hanson Building Products, East, in a written press statement. “Hanson was glad to service its community with a structurally sound, sustainable and reliable precast concrete product.”

Metal pipes typically have a life expectancy of 25 to 30 years, while concrete structures are engineered to last a lifetime. According to Ontario’s Concrete Pipe Association, many of the 50,000 or more culverts in Ontario, including more than 320 on Highway 417, were installed 30 or more years ago. Pipe failure before the intended life expectancy has been related to pollutants causing earlier corrosion, as well as improper installation, maintenance and poor specification.

“Alternative pipe products require very specific soil conditions and other installation requirements in order to be successful,” added Christensen in the press release. “Concrete can withstand large amounts of weight and is not affected by weather, soil or other factors.”

Highway 417 was reopened on March 5 and the Ministry of Transportation is continuing to address the testing of pipes and problem areas in the Province.

Hanson Pipe & Precast is a division of Hanson Building Products North America.

The cross-country campaign features a JCB 3CX backhoe loader, which will travel from Georgia to California to help raise the still-needed funds that will be critical to Haiti’s long-term rebuilding efforts.

With a fundraising goal of $1 million, JCB will donate all monies raised during the 26-day road trip directly to the American Red Cross Haiti Relief and Development Fund. Those who wish to make a donation to the Backhoe Across America charity drive can either visit one of the 11 route stops or go to www.JCBforHaiti.com.

No ordinary road trip

The JCB 3CX backhoe loader will begin its coast-to-coast trek from the beach at Tybee Island, Ga., on Friday, March 26, 2010. The backhoe then will travel more than 3,000 miles across the U.S., making fundraising “pit stops” at JCB dealerships in nine cities along the way, before reaching its final destination – the beach at California’s Santa Monica Pier – on April 20, 2010.

“Haiti’s road to recovery will be long and difficult,” said John Patterson, chairman and CEO, JCB Inc., said in a press release. “On behalf of everyone at JCB, we hope that the miles traveled and donations secured during Backhoe Across America will help ease the burden of the journey that lies ahead for this devastated nation.”

No ordinary driver

JCB veteran employee Neil Smith will be the man behind the wheel as the backhoe makes its way across America. When Neil was growing up in Rocester, England, he walked by a large factory on his way to school each and every day. That factory was JCB’s World Headquarters. Not surprisingly, Neil dreamed of operating JCB’s signature bright yellow machines – but he had no way of knowing that the family-owned manufacturer would play a major role in his life for many years to come.

Now in his 37th year with JCB, Neil will operate the 3CX machine from start to finish, traveling at speeds up to 30mph on secondary roads, which, by law, must be used throughout the trek due to the backhoe’s maximum speed limitations.

“This is exciting news, but there are still far too many people dying in traffic accidents,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood in a written press statement. “Drivers need to keep their hands on the steering wheel and their focus on the road in order to stay safe.”

The projected fatality data for 2009 places the highway death count at 33,963, a drop of 8.9 percent as compared to the 37,261 deaths reported in 2008. The fatality rate for 2009 declined to the lowest on record, to 1.16 fatalities per 100 million Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) down from 1.25 fatalities per 100 million VMT in 2008.

“This continuing decline in highway deaths is encouraging, but our work is far from over,” said National Highway Traffic Safety Administrator David Strickland said in the same press statement as LaHood. “We want to see those numbers drop further. We will not stop as long as there are still lives lost on our nation’s highways. We must continue our efforts to ensure seat belts are always used and stay focused on reducing distracted and impaired driving.”

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration attributes the decline in 2009 to a combination of factors that include, high visibility campaigns like Click It or Ticket to increase seat belt use, and Drunk Driving. Over the Limit. Under Arrest which helps with the enforcement of state laws to prevent drunk driving and distracted driving. In addition, the decline is also the result of safer roads, safer vehicles and motorists driving less.

NHTSA annually collects crash statistics from the 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico to produce annual reports on traffic fatality trends. The agency intends to update 2009 estimates regularly as more data becomes available. The final counts for 2009 will be made available in the summer of 2010. To view the preliminary fatality statistics click here.

The Senate voted 25-10 for the proposal by Democratic Sen. Lowell Barron of Fyffe. Support came mostly from Democrats and opposition mostly from Republicans, according to the AP report.

Barron’s proposal is a constitutional amendment that won’t take effect unless passed by the House and be approved by Alabama voters in the general election Nov. 2, according to the report

One opponent, Sen. Scott Beason (R-Gardendale), said in the AP report that people in Alabama are treating the Alabama Trust Fund “like it’s free money.”

The Senate has already passed the legislation, but it was amended by the House and now goes back to the Senate for another vote set for Tuesday, March 16. The highway program is currently operating under a 30-day extension. For bill provisions previously passed by the House and Senate, which were not the subject of any changes made by the House, are the following, according to the National Stone, Sand and Gravel Association (NSSGA):

Wall Street firms have received fees exceeding $1 billion in less than a year selling “Build America Bonds” meant to spur jobs in struggling cities, often charging municipalities higher costs than for traditional bond deals.

The new bonds were introduced last year as one of the administration’s economic stimulus tools, and one goal was to use them to finance road building. They came with a high interest rate to help local government borrow at a time when borrowing is tough.  It would seem from Ianthe Jeanne Dugan’s WSJ story that the banks are, surprisingly, getting more stimulus from the bonds than municipalities.

But the terms used to describe this technology are often used interchangeably, leading to confusion. And with so much information in the marketplace, determining the right match of technology to application can be difficult.

“While manufacturers are moving as quickly as possible to get these new technologies to market, contractors will likely need clarification of the benefits of each in various machines before they can determine the value each solution brings to their businesses,” said Joe Mastanduno, product marketing manager for engines and drivetrains at John Deere Construction & Forestry.

“As new products hit the market, it is very important that contractors understand how each technology applied in different machines will provide different levels of benefits and payback.”

Pencils up

It’s helpful to start with a basic vocabulary lesson to realistically break down the technologies, their best applications and the potential payback.

Hybrid electrification technology in construction equipment simply means two sources of energy, such as diesel and electricity – with energy being created, transferred or stored. Think of “hybrid” as an umbrella term over subcategories like electric traction, auxiliary or ancillary electrification, energy management and integrated/starter alternators.

With electric traction, the engine drives a generator to create electricity used by an electric motor or motors to drive tracks or wheels. This is in the market today with large mining trucks.

“Electric drive is a future just waiting to happen,” said Mike Vorster, professor emeritus of construction engineering at Virginia Tech. “Thanks to research there’s going to be mega-levels of reliability with motors, drives and computer controls in handling of high-voltage current, and the diesel engine will be able to stick to the basic job it does best.”

John Deere has been heavily involved in electrification research and development, and has already launched a number of electric drives on greens and fairway mowers. The E-Cut series mowers use electric-driven cutting units, improving fuel economy and reducing environmental risk of hydraulic leaks.

“Electric drive technology sets the stage for energy storage. As energy storage reuse capabilities and costs improve over time, this technology will provide contractors with viable paybacks on equipment that does a lot of repetitive motion, or equipment with short cycle times such as loaders and excavators,” Deere’s Mastanduno said.

“Any application that slows down, dumps, swings, or basically has built-in times to recover energy can be a match for electric drive,” continued Mastanduno. “Electric drives can also be used on machines that operate at a more constant speed, but the energy storage option is most beneficial on repetitive movement machines.

“When Deere launches its first electric construction product, it will be the right machine form for the right application, with the right payback for the contractor,” Mastanduno said.

Auxiliary or ancillary electrification is generating electric power to run an attachment off the main machine or a component of the machine. An example of this is already in use: Deere’s e-Premium agricultural tractors, which run implements like sprayers with electric power.

For construction equipment, electrification could mean running items such as the HVAC (heating/cooling) system, the hydraulic pump, or using electricity as the input as opposed to mechanical gearing. That could also mean fewer moving parts and improved uptime.

Energy management involves having the right technology to recover unnecessary propulsion or work energy and store it. John Deere engineers are looking at energy storage for equipment, but at this time, the widespread storage of energy on construction and forestry equipment does not carry the right payback for customers.

The bottom line

With hybrid technology, whether it takes the form of electric drives, electrification, or energy storage, many factors have to come together to justify the cost of the added technology.

“No matter what the base equipment adds, contractors want a return on their investment in a reasonable time frame, an emissions benefit and the productivity, uptime and low daily operating costs they’re used to,” Mastanduno said.

“Contractors need a trusted equipment partner that offers the right technology combined with the right machine at the right time in the industry. John Deere is preparing itself to be just that.”

Contributed by John Deere

To help gain a little perspective, let’s quickly review how emission tiers for new diesel engines and equipment all started and then look at where you can start – on the road to compliance.

Today’s regulations have their roots in the Clean Air Act of 1970, one of the most significant environmental laws in U.S. history, which created sweeping laws to reduce and control air pollution. Among other air pollutants, the Clean Air Act addresses particulate matter (PM, known as “soot”) and nitrogen oxides (NOx). Nitrogen oxides react with sunlight and other substances in the atmosphere to create ground-level ozone, otherwise known as “smog.” Particulate matter and NOx come from many sources, including diesel engines.

In an effort to reduce and control PM and NOx emissions, the Clean Air Act required the EPA to, among other things, establish and enforce progressively more stringent emissions requirements for all new off-road diesel engines starting in 1996, known as the “Tier” emissions standards.

We’re now in the Tier 3 and Interim Tier 4 (IT4) period, which requires a significant reduction in PM and NOx emissions. Interim Tier 4 standards are based on timetables determined by the horsepower rating of the engine. Final Tier 4 standards begin phasing-in during 2013.

So what should you do first?

See your local dealer for an assessment, which will help you determine local and/or state emission requirements for your existing equipment or fleet and what strategies, such as repower, retrofit or repurchasing (buying newer iron), might be right for your particular location, equipment and applications.

“Make sure your dealer has a designated IT4 focus person responsible for spreading IT4 expertise across the dealership organization,” says Joe Mastanduno, product marketing manager for engines at John Deere. “That’s a sign they’re committed to emissions solutions.”

“Also, ask the dealer if they are part of a manufacturer’s ongoing emissions compliance training program that covers more than just IT4 technology – you’ll want the benefits from a broad range of training, like knowledge of changing regulations and government funding resources.”

Contributed by John Deere

Last month, the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) cancelled its February bid opening and now the state agency is canceling its March bid opening — originally planned for March 26 –  because of concerns about federal funding levels.

When MoDOT canceled the Feb. 26 bid opening, it announced future bid openings were contingent on Congressional action to fix highway and bridge funding. Since then, the failure to address the $12 billion annual shortfall will make it impossible to deliver many needed improvements that were scheduled for the 2010 construction season, MoDOT maintains.

For Missouri, this means nearly $243 million worth of city, county and state highway and bridge projects are at risk.

“Because MoDOT’s federal funding stream for the remainder of this fiscal year is still uncertain, canceling the March bid opening is the most prudent decision we can make,” MoDOT Director Pete Rahn said in a press stateement. “MoDOT will not seek bids on future projects until the funding shortfall is corrected.”

MoDOT is working with its statewide planning partners to develop contingent schedules for future bid openings and will announce those schedules once the federal funding level is defined.

The February and March bid openings included approximately $130 million worth of highway and bridge projects.