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any NUCA members would knowRon from his work with the NUCADamage Prevention and ClaimsAvoidance program, which reversed21 and substantially reduced 42claims out of 101 that Ron handledin 2008 — a $500,000-plus savingsto the industry in 2008 alone. Before Ron was kickingclaims and taking names, he faced the hardship that manyindustry professionals have experienced.Ron started as a trainer and claims manager for a contractlocating company. After several years, he took a position developingclaims processes for utility companies. In both positionsRon saw a lack of communication between all partiesthat lead to utility damages. He started PMI in 2003 withthe idea of providing damage prevention services, includingprivate line locating and vacuum excavation services,to the local contracting and utility industries. PMI aimedto help bridge that gap and assist contractors in damageprevention. Many of his clients had old claims, so Ron usedknowledge gained from the previous positions to help levelthe playing field and resolve the claims.“We began with three employees and the first hurdle wasconvincing potential clients that we could make a differenceand justify our costs,” Ron recalls. “We were fortunate that afew companies took a chance on us, and we started to grow.We worked on a major project in late 2007 and early 2008 thatintroduced us to TWS Technical Services.”The two companies worked well together on a major projectin late 2007 and early 2008. PMI was performing all of theProperly locating utilitylines is the first step inavoiding future claims. Rontrains contractors to look beyondthe surface and properlymap jobsite infrastructure.Class is in session.Ron conducts adamage preventiontraining seminar.July 2009 | Utility Contractor 15