May 29 - June 4, 2002

VAN BUREN TOWNSHIP SCORES!
If you can take your mind off hockey for a few moments, Wayne County's Van Buren Township will soon become the home of Visteon Corp. The major supplier of automotive parts has hired the Smith Group as architect and Walbridge Aldinger as construction manager for an approximately $320 million administrative headquarters and research facility. Visteon is presently headquartered in Dearborn; the other two hail from Detroit. Ground for the 800,0000 to 1 million sq. ft. complex is to be broken this summer on a 265 acre site located near the southeast corner of I-275 and Ecorse Rd. When finished, sometime in 2004, it will employ up to 4,000 workers who currently are scattered in offices in 15 different locations. The complex will feature a cluster of buildings on grounds dominated by a man-made lake. It is to be known as Visteon Village. While the company has been given a $7.3 million property tax abatement to encourage the project, an economic analysis provided by the University of Michigan estimates it will result in an increase of $50.5 million in total net state revenues. As Michigan Gov. John Engler says, "Visteon's decision to locate its new headquarters and technical facility in Michigan is further proof that Michigan is the global automotive brain center." And may it stay that way forever.

NO GO
A challenge by the Steel Joist Institute against the recently implemented federal steel erection standard has smacked into the losing side of a 2-1 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. The institute had asked the appeals court to invalidate the three provisions of the new standard that related to open web joists. In a nutshell, the provisions call for steel joists to be temporarily field bolted during steel erection activities. The idea is that the temporary bolting will protect those who work on and around them until the joists are permanently welded in place. In its decision, the appeals court said the institute's objections to the provisions lacked merit because the Occupational Safety & Health Administration has made it clear it will not be enforcing them against joist manufacturers. In the court's view, the new standard expressly limits the scope of the provisions by stating that steel manufacturers are not "affected employers" covered by the standard. In presenting its case, the SJI also argued that OSHA was trying to regulate the design of the joists. Not so, the court disagreed, adding, "OSHA's authority to regulate the safety characteristics of tools and materials uses at a worksite is well established." Is it time to fire the lawyers?

REMEMBERANCE AND REBIRTH
Tomorrow the last steel column will be ceremoniously removed from the World Trade Center site in New York City's lower Manhattan, signifying the official end of recovery efforts. Debate will now intensify on what to do with the cleared land, with calls ranging from a complete reconstruction of the twin towers and buildings destroyed by terrorists to smaller developments offset by memorials and parks. Currently two public agencies are in charge of this process - the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey as well as the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. On May 22 they announced the selection of two design consultants. They are the architectural firm of Beyer, Blinder, Belle Architects & Planners, and the engineering firm of Parsons Brinkerhoff. The design consultants were selected from fifteen proposals submitted by teams of more than 90 firms. The two were awarded a $3 million contract for an urban design study and a transportation analysis. Beyer, Blinder, Belle is noted for its architectural design work used for the restoration of Grand Central Station in New York City, the Ellis Island Museum of Immigration, and the U.S. Senate Chamber in Washington, D.C. With near 9,000 workers, Parsons Brinckerhoff is an employee owned firm famous for designing New York City's first subway over a century ago - besides many other great works since.

NSPE UNVEILS ITS 'SHORT FORM.'
Now available from the National Society of Professional Engineers is its new Short Form of Agreement Between Owner and Engineer for Professional Services. Released May 23rd, it's the latest standard agreement from the Engineers Joint Contract Documents Committee. "This short form agreement is invaluable for projects of limited scope and complexity that do not require the level of detail provided in EJCDC's full version Owner-Engineer agreement," says Joseph W. Ebere PE, the NSPE's representative to the committee. The document targets projects carrying a maximum liability exposure of $50,000 or up to the engineer's total compensation. Key provisions include payment procedures; additional services; termination; controlling law; successors, assigns, and beneficiaries; general considerations; and four payment method options to best suit the project. The Short Form (#E-520) is available for immediate download as well as in hard copy. Information about purchasing and obtaining EJCDC contract documents, such as the Short Form, can be found on the society's web page, as www.nspe.org. Click on the "Shop NSPE" tab at the top of the home page. You can also call the society at 703/684-2804.

ANYBODY FOR A DIP?
Hot-dip galvanization is becoming a more frequently used process to provide corrosion protection for structural steel systems. To promote this practice, the American Galvanizers Association has published an eight-page document. It covers the considerations that need to be made before galvanizing welded black steel or for welding on galvanized steel. The publication is simply entitled, Welding and Hot-Dip Galvanizing. Additionally, the AGA has created a 20 in, by 25 in. poster displaying similar considerations for designing steel fabrications that are to be hot-dip galvanized. The poster is crafted for display in drafting offices as well as throughout your detailing and fabricating facility. Copies of the welding document and the poster can be obtained by calling the AGA at 800/468-7732. For a free reading of the welding publication you can also accessing its web site at www.galvanizeit.org/publications/ad_resources.htm. It's the second document on the page. You can view it with Adobe Acrobat Reader. I thought it was a pretty good read.

ELIMINATE IT FOR GOOD
My spies in Washington, D.C., predict that a big push will get underway next month in the U.S. Senate for a final vote on the Kyl/Gramm amendment, to make elimination of federal estate taxes permanent. Indeed, Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) has promised a vote before the Senate's July 4th break. During the present Memorial Day recess, which runs through this Friday, May 31, many senators are expect to make appearances at their local offices. If you feel strongly about the impacts the taxes have made on the passing down of family owned businesses, you may be able to button-hole Michigan's contingent in person. Good luck and good hunting! Otherwise you should discourse on your dislikes in what's called a "grassroots letter," dispatched to their Washington, D.C., desks. Here's the contact information. You can reach U.S. Sen. Carl Levin at 269 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510; 202/224-6221; e-mail: senator@levin.senate.gov. U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow is at 702 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510; 202/224-4822; e-mail senator@stabenow.senate.gov. Elimination of federal estate taxes is heavily favored by Senate Republicans. As Michigan's contingent is solidly of the Democratic Party persuasion, one might think they won't want to listen. Well, make them. If the senators representing our state are suddenly hit with a deluge of letters, calls, and e-mails, all opposing estate taxes, they'll be forced to sit up and pay attention. And it may well take such a strong push to win approval for the amendment. If the vote were to be held today, many observers predict only 56-58 senators would vote for permanent abolishment. That would be two to four votes shy of victory. And, of course, a shame.

Questions? Comments? Idea?
Please submit your responses to the Great Lakes Fabricators & Erectors Association as soon as possible. You can call our new offices in downtown Detroit at 313/309-2000. Or you can drop an email to Guy Snyder at guysny@concentric.net or call him at 313/961-9217. We hope to hear from you soon!