MILLER Newsletter 2015 Final with cream Small

IDENTIFY, AIM, EXECUTE
DRIVEN TO BE THE BEST
Miller Maintenance - AMCs Ontario
Miller Maintenance Northern is entering into the 5th year of AMC 2009-05 and
continues to expand its role in highway maintenance and construction within
the Northeast region. MMN has undertaken a variety of projects under its
umbrella during the last year, utilizing the skills of our patrol staff, paint crew,
modular bridge crew, and electrical division.
This season, the role of the patrols was extended from maintenance to construction
as the Matheson patrol undertook all culvert and ditching operations
within the In-Scope capital program as well as the emergency reconstruction of Hwy 101. The crew took these new challenges in
stride and were able to handle everything that was thrown at them to ensure work was done with the highest quality and profitability.
The modular bridge crew took on a variety of projects
in addition to their work performing repairs
on bridges throughout the district. 3 large structural
culvert bracing projects were undertaken this
season, each with a different set of designs and
challenges associated with them, and the crew was
able to adapt and manage each one while maintaining
efficiency and cost effectiveness.
The paint crew had another successful year, expanding
their role from projects primarily in Northeastern
Ontario to perform work on the Niagara
and Durham maintenance contracts. With the
coordination between the new paint crews from
Thunder Bay and Owen Sound, we were able to
meet the needs of all maintenance contracts while
still executing paint contracts on multiple construction
projects as well. This season marks the
last for crew Supervisor Martin Jarvis. His guidance,
knowledge, and positive attitude will definitely
be missed, and we wish him well in all his future
endeavors!
The electrical division had another successful season, working on lighting and electrical projects ranging from highways to hydroelectric
installations. Work this season took the crew from Marmora to Hearst and all points in between, performing work for the
Ministry as well as multiple private companies and municipalities.
MMN continues to reinforce our ties with Miller Paving through joint ventures which draw upon our strengths. MMN secured
paving operations through the AMC contract for South Porcupine, Hwy 572, and Hwy 67. MMN continues to provide competitive
pricing to MPN for capital construction programs, and MPN continues to deliver high quality services in the execution of the In-
Scope capital program.
Owen Sound Highway Maintenance
This year Owen Sound Highway Maintenance is working
with the MTO on the following test projects:
Pre-Treated Salt Test
We will be comparing pre-treated (blue) salt, onboard
pre-wetting (wetting the salt just before applying) and
the traditional dry salt.
Currently pre-wet salt can be placed at reduced application
rates based on snowfall and pavement temperature.
We will be using similar reduced rates for pre-treated salt.
Dry salt will be applied at the rate of 130 kg/km. Each
route will be monitored closely and a report will be made
on the results.
The project plan is to reduce application rates of the
pre-treated and pre-wetted salt incrementally on a storm
by storm basis. Rates of 120, 100 and 90 kg/km may be
used based on the performance at each specific rate. The performance of these will be compared to the dry salt application at the
long standing 130 kg/km.
This trial could lead to savings in equipment and material costs going forward.
Miller Maintenance - AMCs Ontario
Road Condition Monitoring
The second project involves OSHM working with the MTO along with our GPS service provider DM&T.
We will be fitting six (6) plows and a patrol truck with cameras. The patrol truck will also be equipped with a mobile weather monitoring
device (MRWIS). The information will be fed into a private portal accessible to select people for the purpose of the trial.
The cameras will allow the patroller to see what the plow driver is seeing, effectively being in two (or six) places at once. In addition
the mobile weather station will allow maintenance coordinators to see the factors determining patroller decisions in regards
to winter maintenance. This will be a useful training tool and will be very helpful in post storm reviews.
This trial will show the merits and infrastructure
needed to develop a public website with real
time information of road and weather conditions
along with the location of snow removal
and spreading equipment. The potential to
replace verbal road reports which are made five
(5) or more times per day for each area in the
contract.
82 MILLER / McASPHALT NEWSLETTER 2015 EDITION
MILLER / McASPHALT NEWSLETTER 2015 EDITION
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