August 16-22, 2002

KEEPING UP
As almost any automaker will tell you, to stay alive you've got to stay on top of current tastes and technological trends. The only exception that comes to my mind is the sorely missed manufacturer of the renowned Checker taxi cab. It's a vehicle that probably would sell quite well in today's world. Undoubtedly its fans would call it "stylishly retro" and extremely practical. Especially for the tall and/or large in stature. But I digress. With eyes solidly fixed on the future, last week AutoAlliance International Inc. (A2I2) disclosed plans to sink $644 million in upgrading its Flat Rock assembly plant. The corporation is a joint venture between Ford Motor Co. and Mazda Inc. The improvements primarily will consist of new equipment to expand output and increase the plant's flexibility to assemble a greater variety of models. To assist in this effort the Michigan Economic Development Corp. has awarded a 20 year single business tax credit of $94.9 million to A2I2, with the city of Flat Rock chipping in another $31 million tax abatement. A day later General Motors Corp. said it will be spending around $500 million to upgrade its assembly and forging plants at Lordstown, Ohio, which is located about 60 miles east of Cleveland. Previously the automaker was considering shutting that plant down and moving its production of Chevrolet Cavalier and Pontiac Sunfire subcompact cars to Mexico. According to GM a new paint shop is to be built. The assembly plant's general assembly area as well as its body shop will be renovated and retooled. In addition, improvements have been scheduled for its stamping plant.

LESSONS FROM DAVIS-BESSE
As reported in earlier columns, the unexpected corrosion and erosion of steel from the head of one of the nuclear reactors at the Davis-Besse power plant in Oak Harbor, Ohio, has caused great concern. Discovery of the problem was made last February and March during a fueling outage. The plant's operators were responding to an Aug. 1, 2001 bulletin issued by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission on the possibilities of circumferentially cracked and leaking penetration nozzles in reactor pressure vessel (PVR) heads used in pressurized water reactors (PWRs). Such cracks were discovered at Davis-Besse on Feb. 16. Then, on Mar. 7, a large cavity was found on the reactor vessel head. "Followup characterization by ultrasonic testing indicated wastage of the low alloy steel RPV head material adjacent to the nozzle (Control Rod Drive Mechanism Nozzle 3,)" the NRC says. "The wastage area was found to extend approximately five inches downhill on the RPV head from the penetration for CRDM nozzle three and was approximately four to five inches at its widest part. The minimum remaining thickness of the RPV head in the wastage area was found to be approximately 3/8ths inch. The thickness was attributed to the thickness of the stainless steel cladding on the inside surface of the RPV head…" On Mar. 18 the NRC responded to the Davis-Besse report by asking all PWR operators to supply additional information on their vessel head inspection plans. Having assessed that information, the commission has now sent out another bulletin, advising the operators they may need to supplement their inspection plans by adding ultrasound, electric current, and liquid dye testing. A copy of the new bulletin can be accessed at www.nrc.gov/reactors/operating/ops-experience/vessel-headdegration.html. On Aug. 23 NRC staff will be discussing the new bulletin with the Nuclear Energy Institute and operators of all of the nation's PWRs. Open to public observation, the meeting will run from 9 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. at the NRC's offices at One White Flint North Building. 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Md. The meeting's contact is Michael Marshall at 301/415-2734. You can also listen in on Aug. 23 by telephone by calling 888/566-5771 and entering pass-code 31063 at the prompt. One hundred and fifty telephone lines will be available.

RINGING THE SAME OLD BELL
With the primary behind them, expect Michigan's two gubernatorial candidates to heat up their rhetoric about the dilapidated condition of our state's schools. The financial reforms generated by Proposal A have been credited with spawning the current rapid pace of new school construction and renovation. Yet overall conditions had been left to deteriorate for so long that even at current levels it will take decades to catch up. Yes, we are spending more money right now but we're still not spending enough. A survey conducted by the National Education Association in 2000 indicated a need for at least $9.9 billion in school building improvements - and that figure today is considered too low. Republican candidate and current lieutenant governor Dick Posthumus says he's opposed to tinkering with Proposal A. He's also against raising taxes to increase school building repairs and construction. Instead he's been pushing a bill approved by the Michigan House of Representatives that would allow school districts to ask voters to increase millages for building improvements beyond Proposal A's current limits. The legislation would also allow them to use local sinking fund money for new purposes, such as technology improvements. His Democratic opponent, State Attorney General Jennifer Granholm, also wants to increase the use of local sinking fund money but instead wants to revamp Michigan's school bond law to reduce interest rates for school districts. While I can't say which is the better plan, it seems clear that neither would generate sufficient revenue to meet projected needs - a point both candidates tend to gloss over. Certainly Proposal A has bought Michigan time but a much more comprehensive solution is called for. That is, if want to our children, and their children, to schools that are structurally sound, healthy, and conducive to education.

COMING TO THE WINDY CITY
The tenth annual conference of the National Council of Structural Engineers will be conducted Oct. 17-18 at the Millennium Knickerbocker Hotel in Chicago, Ill. Adrian Smith, FAIA, a design partner with Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP will be the keynote speaker, discussing "Tall Buildings and Sustainability." Also on the rostrum will be R. Sankar Nair, PhD., SE, senior vice president of Teng & Associates, speaking on "Tall Building Structures, Past, Present, and Future;" Clyde N. Baker, SE, senior vice president, STS Consultants, on the "History of High Rise Foundations in Chicago;" and Stan-Lee Kaderbeck, SE, chief bridge engineer of the Chicago Dept. of Transportation, who'll talk about the history of Chicago's moveable bridges. The conference's second day will start with a report by W. Gene Corley, PhD., SE, on the Building Performance Team study of the World Trade Center tragedy. He'll be followed by S. Shyam Sunder, chief of the structural division of the National Institute of Standards & Technology, who'll discuss the NIST's proposed building and fire safety investigation of the WTC. Other presentations will be made on the National Building Design Coalition Report, the Structural Engineering Emergency Response Plan, the Engineer's Role in Construction Quality, Professional Certification, Code Developments, Infrastructure Security, and a number of related topics. Registration for the conference is $495 per person. More information can be accessed at www.ncsea.com. Incidentally, Dave Ruby, PE, president of Ruby & Associates, PC, Farmington Hills a former president of the Structural Engineers Association of Michigan and a member of the Great Lakes Fabricators & Erectors Association, is a national director of the NCSEA. He's also in the running for service as its national secretary.

SAY THAT AGAIN?
The federal Occupational Safety & Health Administration is seeking comments until Nov. 4 on whether it should add a requirement for a hearing conservation program to its construction noise standard, "similar to the requirements covering general industry workers." Such a program, the agency says, could include providing hearing protection, hearing tests, and periodic noise exposure monitors to workers exposed to high noise levels. "Many construction activities involve high levels of noise that can cause hearing kiss and create safety hazards," says John Henshaw, OSHA's administrator. "While these difficulties occur in other occupational environments, they are of particular concern in the construction industry, where a variety of activities often occur simultaneously." Written comments on this proposal are probably best sent via a web site accessed at http://ecoments.osha.gov/. OSHA has requested they not be sent through regular mail, because of security related problems. You can, however, send written comments (in triplicate) by express mail or an overnight delivery service to the Docket Office, Docket No. H-011G, Room N-2625, OSHA, U.S. Dept. of Labor, 200 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20210. The telephone number there is 202/693-2350.

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!