Pit & Quarry, October 2015

INDUSTRY SNAPSHOT ACQUISITIONS Summit acquires company Summit Materials acquired LeGrand Johnson Construction Co a construction materials company in Utah that services markets in northern and central Utah western Wyoming and southern Idaho LeGrand operates five sand and gravel pits four ready mix concrete plants and five asphalt plants It will become a part of Summits Kilgore Cos business in Utah U S Concrete picks up two facilities U S Concrete Inc acquired two sand and gravel operations from E A Materials Inc and Pitts Sand Gravel Inc respectively The operations are located near Vernon Texas and Waurika Okla According to a press release U S Concrete plans to improve the operating dynamics of its northern Texas and southern Oklahoma operations by combining the efforts of this business into one cohesive unit with its existing readymixed concrete operations New Enterprise sells quarry asphalt plant Aggregate company Glenn O Hawbaker purchased New Enterprise Stone Limes quarry and hot mix asphalt plant in Milroy Pa according to an ARI report Hawbaker will handle operation of the facilities The quarry which has been in service since 1913 produces a range of limestone products The asphalt plant in the same location as the quarry will continue to serve the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and other customers Rogers Group makes purchase Rogers Group acquired Greer N C based Ashmore Bros an asphalt company that also offers mobile crushing and screening services reports Greer Today The sale price was not disclosed According to Greer Today Mark Ashmore president of Ashmore Bros made the announcement at the companys annual picnic EYE ON THE BLOG Publication exhibits poor judgment in attack on industry quarry owners People trespass into abandoned quarries every now and then Occasionally trespassers get injured or killed because of the risks they take Yet the property owners are to blame At least thats the logic of the opinion staff at The Express Times of Lehigh Valley Pa The Express Times published an editorial BY KEVIN YANIK Aug 25 in reaction to 11 drowning deaths that occurred in its coverage area between May 24 and Aug 18 The editorial becomes an attack on the aggregates industry calling quarries relics of the industrial age and for quarry owners to provide security patrols rather than posting signs and expecting police to do the rest The editorial is recklessly constructed The Express Times makes quarry owners the scapegoats despite acknowledging that quarry trespassers routinely cut through fences to gain access to properties A fence around a quarry should serve as an inherent warning to keep out A sign provides that takeaway Signs like this one provide the warnings necessary to keep outsiders out more directly Once people put wire cutters to a fence or hop it and ignore warning signage theyre breaking the law and should be held responsible for their actions The Express Times makes this point within its editorial writing we cant stop everyone from risking death Thats a logical statement at least But the publication calls out the wrong people in citing property owners as not doing enough The attack on quarry owners is particularly irresponsible considering reporting the publication did for an Aug 19 article that summarizes the 11 drownings in its coverage area Based on details provided in the article two of the 11 are quarry related The other deaths happened along roadways in parks and in other areas Based on the editorial youd think the majority of incidents occurred at quarries Another report The Express Times published this summer accentuates the mark the publication misses The report from July 30 gets at a real issue surrounding the areas drownings The report reveals that at least 31 people died in the last five years in accidents in a 200 mile Delaware River stretch As the publication writes The one striking commonality not one of those victims was wearing a personal flotation device or life jacket when they died If The Express Times wants to write an editorial related to drownings how about one that serves as a call to action to wear safety equipment while swimming Or one that simply discourages people from trespassing How about taking a stance for upping the trespassing penalty rather than going after quarry owners who are following the law At least a number of The Express Times readers called the opinion staff out for their editorial As one reader responds At some point where is personal responsibility People will always take risks despite all efforts to the contrary It is human nature JEEPERSMEDIA FLICKR 12 PIT QUARRY October 2015 www pitandquarry com