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GROUNDBREAKING NEWS
JCB Embarks on Coast-to-
Coast Fundraising Road Trip
There’s nothing like hitting the open road, especially
when it’s for a good cause. JCB, one of the world’s largest
manufacturers of construction equipment, and its 3CX
backhoe loader have embarked on a 26-day, coast-tocoast
fundraising road trip to help rebuild Haiti. JCB
hopes the “Backhoe Across America” cross-country campaign
will both remind Americans that Haiti’s long road
to recovery is only just beginning and encourage them
to show their continued support — either by visiting one
of the 11 featured route stops or by visiting the JCB for
Haiti Web site (www.jcbforhaiti.com) to make a donation.
JCB aims to help raise $1 million for the American Red
Cross Haiti Relief and Development Fund.
No Ordinary Road Trip
The JCB 3CX backhoe loader began its coast-to-coast
trek from the beach at Tybee Island, Ga., on March 26.
Throughout the trip, the backhoe traveled more than
3,000 miles across the United States, making fundraising
pit stops at JCB dealerships in nine cities along the
way before reaching its final destination — the beach at
California’s Santa Monica Pier — on April 20.
“Haiti’s road to recovery will be long and difficult,”
said John Patterson, Chairman and CEO of JCB Inc.
“On behalf of everyone at JCB, we hope that the miles
traveled and donations secured during Backhoe Across
America will help ease the burden of the journey that
lies ahead for this devastated nation.”
With the Backhoe Across America campaign, JCB will
put one of the world’s greatest earthmovers to the test
to see just how far a bucketful of charity can go
to help the Haitian people rebuild.
No Ordinary Driver
JCB veteran employee Neil Smith is the man behind
the wheel as the backhoe makes its way across America.
When Smith was growing up in Rocester, England, he
walked by JCB’s world headquarters on his way to school
each and every day. Not surprisingly, Smith dreamed of
operating JCB’s signature bright yellow machines — but
he had no way of knowing that the family-owned manufacturer
would play a major role in his life for many
years to come.
Now in his 37th year with JCB, Smith is operating the
3CX machine and traveling at speeds up to 30 mph on secondary
roads, which, by law, must be used throughout the
trek due to the backhoe’s maximum speed limitations.
Wells Fargo Construction: Is the Industry Turning a Corner?
12 Utility Contractor | May 2010
Times are tough, but they’ve been
tougher. According to the latest Wells
Fargo Construction Quarterly newsletter,
the construction industry might
be turning a corner.
“In January, we released the results of
our annual Construction Industry Survey
and its Optimism Quotient [OQ],”
John Crum, National Sales Manager
for Wells Fargo Construction wrote in
his opening letter. “After coming off
a record low OQ of 38 in 2009, the
measurement bounced back to a 66
for 2010. While sentiment may not be
considered overly optimistic, it is definitely
up from last year. More executives
than in 2009 said they plan on acquiring
new and/or used equipment.”
Equipment values are also starting
to stabilize. As construction activity
peaked in 2006, equipment manufacturers
produced large quantities of
machines to meet demand.
Domestic activity then trailed off,
but international demand propped up
prices. When global construction activity
dried up, demand for new and used
machines fell and equipment values
slid along with it. Recently, Wells Fargo
Construction has seen a stabilization of
equipment values, according to Crum.
A turnaround might be afoot, but numbers
of new pieces sold will remain at
low levels through this year.
And while construction spending
is holding, it’s doing so by a string.
Wells Fargo Construction research
shows that overall residential spending
appears to have bottomed out
and should grow, albeit at a moderate
pace. However, non-residential
construction activity is down almost
50 percent from 2008 through 2009
and Wells Fargo Construction expects
another slight drop in 2010. Highway
spending is likely to remain flat in
2010, but may be helped by the recently
passed bill that extends funding
for the Nation’s surface transportation
system until the end of the year, the
newsletter reported.