Labor Estimating Class – FULL!
MCAA came to town and put on a day and a half course on how to use the MCAA Labor Estimating Manual (LEM). Forty participants were shown how to use the MCAA LEM by itself when estimating by hand or in conjunction with their estimating programs. To get the most out of the LEM instructors grouped participants into teams of four making the class more hands on, real life-like, and a team effort. Some participants took their workbooks home to prepare for the simulated bid that needed to be submitted by 9 a.m. on the second day. When talking to participants, who all returned the second day, they said all of the information was beneficial and included a lot more information on estimating than was in the LEM.

MMCA Drug and Alcohol Policy Gets Contractors Atte
The New 2007 MMCA Drug and Alcohol Policy has started up with many member companies putting the policy into place. The policy is a voluntary effort by individual companies to stop drug and alcohol use at the worksite. So far MMCA has held three reasonable suspicion training seminars for participating contractors. More will be held as needed to fulfill the training requirement of the policy.
To participate in the MMCA Drug and Alcohol Policy contractors must register as a participant, give employee’s names and the last four digits of their SS# to T.E.A.M., and give employees a copy of the policy. The policy can be viewed and downloaded from www.MinnesotaMCA.org under volume 6 of the Encyclopedia Mechanica.
The policy will help make your jobsite a safer place for you and all of your employees. In addition, we’ve had reports of discounts on insurance of up to 5%. It’s a good policy any way you look at it.

New Member
MMCA is proud to welcome new member George Rhoden, Vice President of Rum River Mechanical Inc., of Oak Grove, MN.

Don’t Forget MCPAP, It Means Money to You!
The Minnesota Contractors Premium Adjustment Program (MCPAP) is a voluntary program that provides up to a 25% premium credit for qualifying employers to be applied after the experience modification factor. The credit form is due by April 1, 2007 for full credit. After April 1st there is a two-point (.02) late processing penalty. We have included the 2008 MCPAP brochure and credit form in the last bulletin but the 2008 MCPAP application and instructions are also available at www.mwcia.org and the on-line application is preferred and quicker to use.

New Training Reimbursements
St. Paul Pipefitters Local #455 will be reimbursing #455 members for hours spent at approved industry training. Members must include the name of the training, location, date, and hours attended. Local #455 will only reimburse for the base wage with the member responsible for any travel expenses, registration fees, fringe benefits and credit union payment. The local will reimburse for 24 hours of training per member each year. If you or your employees have questions they should be directed to Julie or Kara at (651) 647-9920.

New Building for the U of M
The Board of Regents Facilities Committee approved schematic plans for the first of five potentials buildings for the University’s new campus. The new medical biosciences building will house neuroscience and infectious disease laboratories. The estimated cost of the building is $67.5 million. The higher price is due to the specialized lab research needs to deal with organisms that need to be contained.
The five story building will be completed in the fall of 2009 along with the TCF Bank Stadium. The committee also approved the $18.2 million capital budget amendment for the East Gateway District and gave the go ahead for a $3.75 million lab and office renovation of the 11th floor of Moos Tower.

MCAA Honors U-W Stout
The Annual Awards of Excellence Ceremony on February 28 at the national convention in Orlando, Florida recognized members, chapter affiliates, and winners of the Student Chapter Competition. The MMCA student chapter didn’t win the competition but the Career Development Committee honored our Student Chapter at the University of Wisconsin - Stout with the 2006 Chapter of the Year Award.
The award was given to Stout due to their activity in the Student Construction Association and the character building of members. Stout members have great communication and keep each other informed on construction topics (keeping them involved). The university just introduced a new mechanical minor to Stout’s construction program. They have also shown community involvement by raising money for Special Olympics, Toys for Tots, American Cancer Society, and picking up trash for Adopt a Highway. Congratulations to each member of the Stout Chapter.

MMCA Contractors go for NHQ Certification
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) have a certification program called the National Housing Quality (NHQ) program and several MMCA contractors went through that training this month. The NHQ Certified Builder Program was initiated to foster consistency and quality in building practices. Participating companies have noted measurable improvements in their productivity, homebuyer satisfaction, and their bottom lines. Contractors are audited through a third party to become NHQ certified. The certification indicates to homebuilders that a company has a well-trained staff and the necessary skills and business practices to perform high quality work. You can find more information on NHQ at www.nahbrc.org/qualitymatters.

Water’s Off is Here and Trucks are Needed!
Last year’s Water’s Off Project was extremely successful throughout Minnesota and expanded into the Rochester and Winona markets and this year we’ll be including St. Cloud and Dakota County. On April 14th over 200 union plumbers will volunteer their Saturday morning to help low-income seniors and disabled homeowners with minor plumbing problems and do inspections of their home’s plumbing system.
The union plumbing locals expect the same turnout, if not more, of volunteer plumbers. But there is an urgent need for MMCA contractors to once again provide trucks and equipment for volunteers to use.
Last year local media picked up on the event throughout the state. Metro television stations KARE-TV, KSMP (Fox), and Channel 29 all covered the Water’s Off story with a very positive spin. Rochester’s KTTC-TV and Mankato’s KEYC covered the event and also gave the union plumbing industry a good promotion. Winona also had four volunteers who helped out seven homes in their area. This is a great promotion for our industry and your individual company!

Health and Benefit Fair
MMCA will be participating in the Twin Cities Pipe Trades Association (TCPT) Health and Benefit Fair on Saturday, April 21 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Dunwoody College. The fair is being held to bring awareness to your family’s health and the benefits you have through TCPT.
There will be free testing for cholesterol, blood pressure, blood sugar, and body mass indexing. There will also be free information on drug/alcohol prevention and treatment, nutrition, financial issues, dental, your pension, and much more. Kids are welcome and there will be supervised activities for them.

Former LU #15 Business Manger Dies
William (Bill) J. Lichliter, former Business Manager for Minneapolis Plumbers Local #15, died on March 6, 2007. Lichliter, of New Brighton, was born February 16th, 1933 and passed away peacefully surrounded by his wife Helen and the rest of his loving family.

FlowSense Partners with Doody Mechanical
FlowSense Building Services Group (BSG) and Doody Mechanical have signed a Construction Partnership Program (CPP) facilitated by MEDA at their Minneapolis office. Under the CPP, FlowSense BSG and Doody Mechanical will jointly market its mechanical contracting capabilities and services to the local construction market, as well as pursuing federal and military projects nationwide.
“This partnership combines the strengths of FlowSense and Doody Mechanical to deliver best-in-class mechanical solutions,” said Paul Smallwood, president and owner of FlowSense. “Furthermore, by teaming with a leading contractor like Doody Mechanical, we bring together FlowSense’s ability to obtain sole source and set aside federal/military construction projects, integrated with Doody Mechanical’s expertise and considerable resources.”

Square D Recalls Safety Switches
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with Square D Company, recently announced a voluntary recall of General Duty Safety Switches due to a potential safety hazard. Electricity continues to flow through the switch even when it is in the “OFF” position, posing a risk to users of an electric shock. The recall affects General Duty 30 and 60 ampere, 240 volt, 1-phase and 3-phase NEMA 3R safety switches. The switches are typically used to control electricity flow to outdoor motorized units hardwired to outdoor air conditioning and heating equipment. For more information, please contact Square D at 877-202-9046 or visit www.us.squared.com.

Union Representation Falling
In the construction industry in 2006, unions represented 13.6% (1,146,000) of the total workforce (8,444,000), according to the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, down from 13.8% (1,111,000) of the total workforce of 8,053,000 in 2005. Construction remains among the more heavily unionized of private sector industries, along with mining, transportation and utilities. In the economy overall, union representation rates dipped to 13.1% in 2006, down from 13.7% in 2005. Union representation is at 8.1% of the private workforce, down from 8.5% in 2005.

Housing Permits Down
Housing starts in January 2007 were 1,408,000, down 14.3% from the previous month and down 37.8% from one year ago. Permits in January 2007 were 1,568,000, down 2.8% from December 2006 and down 28.6% from January 2006. Source: US Department of Commerce.

Minneapolis YWCA Power Girls Get a Tool Belt for t
On Saturday Feb. 3, 2007, 45 girls built a small game table and self-confidence at the 2007 Power Girls Conference. The annual event teaches girls about jobs in traditionally male trades. Under the supervision of skilled tradeswomen, participants utilized various tools and newfound skills to build their own chess table. Throughout the day, trade professionals encouraged the girls to try new things and open their eyes to new career options they might never have considered. The event was sponsored by Women in the Trades, YWCA of Minneapolis, Minnesota Mechanical Contractors Association, and Dunwoody College of Technology.