Even as the fall is leaving a cool but pleasant atmosphere, with falling leaves, crisp air and wet weather, winter is just around the corner. Is your crew prepared? Does your department have sufficient personal protective equipment in good condition for the season to keep your crew warm and working well? At Team EJP, we're all about providing you with the information you need to keep your crew rolling along. Here's a quick checklist for your crew's winter personal protective safety equipment.
With the water quality concerns being highlighted in the news recently many utilities have begun testing their own supply in response to customer demands for higher levels of safety. But how about the school district? Over 90,000 schools nationwide don't fall under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). Though testing is the only way to make sure, there are some other indicators that may come into play to help you decide whether lead and other contaminants could be a problem for schools in your district. Here's the basics about whether water quality could be an issue in your utility's school districts.
When budgets are tight and oversight is heavy, it can be very difficult to operate a utility effectively and efficiently. At Team EJP we want to help. That's why we've created our Value Added Services (VAS) program, which supports your utility in running effectively. How? We maximize our distribution inventory while minimizing what you need to keep on hand.
When you're working around heavy machinery, there's always a risk of danger from the weight and power of these big machines. Because heavy equipment is designed to handle very large volumes or loads of material, they can have issues with line of vision and can cause accidents as a worker is caught in or under the machinery. For this reason, it's vital that they be operated properly and with a crew that is alert to everything going on around them. Here are some basics of how your heavy equipment should be operated and how your crew should work around it safely.
Though winter may seem a long ways off, it's important to remember that winter's cold, frozen pipes and house fires from portable heaters are just a few short months away. How do you keep your municipality's waterworks department running smoothly through the cold? Part of the process is to have a checklist you start on now so that everything is in place instead of panicking and having to pay extra to get what you need in a cold-weather emergency.
When you have a paving job that needs to get done, it's easy for it to either get delayed or go over budget. How do you get the job done effectively and efficiently? One option that many contractors are putting into effect are the stabilization and paving products from Tensar. Two of the most popular products they offer is GlasGrid and Geogrids. Let's take a solid look at each product and what their advantages and disadvantages are for your situation.
If it wasn't hot, it wouldn't be summer. Unfortunately, that means you need to watch out for your crew to ensure they don't become dehydrated on the job or succumb to heat-related illnesses and injuries. Here's a quick guide to keeping your crew moving without endangering their condition.
Ductile iron pipe is the industry standard in supply main piping. But sometimes, in some situations, you need a tougher option. Many municipalities facing problematic soil conditions or corrosion issues are starting to turn to zinc-coated ductile iron pipe to ensure a longer-lasting supply main while lowering your overall maintenance and replacement costs. But how does it work and why is it superior to plain ductile iron? Here's the basics.
*Updated 07/23/2020*
When you deal with water distribution lines on a regular basis, you know two things for certain: sometimes they leak and meters aren't always correct. How can you get around these two issues and stop losing revenue for your operation? One solution is large meter testing, which helps you determine where the problems are in your system and prevents low flow losses from industrial or institutional clients. Here's more information on the process:
We've all seen it happen. A poorly set up hydrant installation goes badly and damages the hydrant, the worker or both. How do you safely handle a heavy hydrant on damp ground with improvised equipment? The simple answer is that you don't. Safety needs to come first, not last. Here are some tips on how to safely handle hydrants during installation or removal to best ensure the condition of the hydrant and the safety of the crew:
