Spring 2007

Population growth throughout the area has fueled construction of the required infrastructure to support new homes and businesses. New water, sewer, roads, communications, and traffic infrastructure might be some of the more obvious examples. Less noticeable, but just as important is the building taking place at substations. General Excavating has been busy working with the Omaha Public Power District on the expansion of existing substations in Nebraska City and Omaha and on the construction of new substations in Papillion and Gretna. The Gretna substation will provide power to MUD's Platte West Water Treatment Plant while the expanded Nebraska City substation will help supply power to the city of Lincoln.

Precision concrete work is one of the primary components on these projects as pier foundations are augered, steel baskets placed, anchor bolts set, concrete poured and finished to within 1/8" of compliance. Transformer foundations must also be true and level. Over the past few months General Excavating has augered and poured over 300 pier foundations with depths reaching thirteen feet. While the general scope of the work has remained consistent, the unique requirements of each site as well as the time of the year has posed some challenges. At the Nebraska City expansion project, General Excavating had 28 days to build the foundations for buswork, transformers, breakers, install cable trench, manholes, and associated work before a scheduled shut down. A tight schedule increased the difficulty, but the weather provided a greater challenge. Cold temperatures in January and February turned the ground into a block of ice. "Before we could start the piers we used an excavator to remove the top three feet of frozen ground. We then augered the holes, set steel, and poured concrete on over 40 piers during this short window," said Lonnie Bullock, project foreman for General Excavating.

It ends with the flip of a switch as we exit a room and seldom does it cross our minds the effort required to bring power to our homes and businesses. At General Excavating our best work is seldom seen and the OPPD substation projects are another example of the type of work YOUR "UNDERGROUND" PARTNER can do for you.

The completed projects are only as good as the individuals working on them and at General Excavating we have some of the best in the industry.

THANKS to all of our employees who recently celebrated milestone years of service. Commitment by General Excavating employees means better service as we help clients solve problems.

2006 Milestone Anniversaries

• 20 Year—Bill Lindburg
• 15 Year—Leon Bergfield
• 10 Year—Dale Carman, Michael Schwebach, George Stoner, and Dennis Willeford
• 5 Year—Pedro Juarez, Paul Anderson, Randy McDonald, and Doug Weatherly

Steve Stowers and Dan Erickson recently renewed their State of Nebraska Underground Storage Tank Removers License. General Excavating has been removing UST's for twenty years. As part of General Excavating's Environmental Division, Steve (Oakie) and Dan will construct remediation systems, remove UST's, and complete HAZMAT clean-up projects.

General Excavating, working with Olsson Associates and the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality, received an Excellence in Construction Award at the 11th Annual ABC Awards Banquet. The honor was in recognition of General Excavating's work on the Soil Vapor Extraction and Hydraulic Control Remediation Systems for Ag Valley Coop in Bartley, Nebraska.

You have questions and we have the answers! One of the more common questions General Excavating is asked by engineers, mechanical contractors, general contractors, and others is the following:

What can General Excavating do early in the process to assist in the Design-Build delivery method?

"Many potential problems can be averted or cost saving ideas provided early in the project development process. While providing budget numbers for utilities is a good starting point, we can also help with alignments. General Excavating may also propose alternate construction methods or recommend different materials."

• Brian Egr
• Project Manager, General Excavating

What were you doing 20 years ago?

In Lincoln, Nebraska a small excavating contractor was building the foundation for what would become one of the leading utility contractors in the area.

What will you be doing 20 years from now?

At General Excavating we will still be solving your underground problems.

Project

• Army Ammunition Plant Site Remediation
• Grand Island, NE

Owner

• US Army Corps of Engineers

Engineer

• URS Group, Inc.

Scope

• Excavation and loading of explosives-contaminated soil and site restoration.

Project

• Sawmill Building Renovation
• Lincoln, NE

General Contractor

• The Weitz Company

Sub-Contracted To

• Ace Plumbing

Scope

• Construction of domestic water, fire line and associated work.

Project

• Former Mike's Service Station Remediation
• Council Bluffs, IA

Agency

• Iowa Department of Natural Resources

Engineer

• Geotechnical Services, Inc. (GSI)

Scope

• Excavation of petroleum impacted soil, installation of soil vapor extraction system, and site restoration.

Project

• Fiber Relocation
• Cedar Rapids, IA

Owner

• Sprint Nextel

Engineer

• Sprint Nextel

Scope

• Construction of nearly 8½ miles of interduct, pull fiber, set hand holes, and appurtenant work.

The Common Ground Alliance (CGA) program was created in 2000 by a federal mandate to assist in the development of best practices for the prevention of damage to underground infrastructure. Prior to the establishment of the FCC-designated national 811 number, sixty-two different One Call Centers, or "Call Before You Dig" centers existed. The national 811 number will reduce confusion and provide homeowners and professional excavators a consistent resource to utilize before digging. The Common Ground Alliance, with over 1,400 members, will continue to promote damage prevention practices and educate the digging world on the importance of calling 811.

An opportunity for General Excavating's employees to show others the work they perform. Winner's receive cash and have their photo displayed at General Excavating.

Todd McMann submitted this quarter's winning photograph. A project foreman, Todd has worked at General Excavating for nearly 12 years. Todd completes a wide range of water, sanitary sewer, and storm sewer projects for private and public owners.

General Excavating, working for the City of Lincoln, replaced a water main and the associated work along Cornhusker Highway in northwest Lincoln. The photograph illustrates the work taking place in the median in preparation for tapping an existing 12" water main.