Minutes of Maryland/DC Damage Prevention
Meeting
April 25, 2006
Miss Utility Call Center
Hanover, MD 21076
I. Call To Order and Introduction:
Matt Ruddo (Miss Utility Center) called the regular monthly
meeting to order at 9:30 am.
Introductions were made.
The minutes of March 28, 2006 were approved.
II. New Business:
Matt Ruddo stated that the Suburban Home and Garden
Show at the Show Place Arena was well attended. He said
that he met Orlando Boone of WSSC at the Miss Utility
on Saturday April 1st because we had run out of promotional
items. Matt suggested that it would be a good idea to
exhibit at the Show again.
Tom Baldwin (BGE) stated that the Harford Home and Garden
Show at Ripken Stadium was poorly attended because of
rain. He said most of the booths were outside of the
concourse and he thought we may want to consider attending
the fall show in September versus doing the spring show
in April.
Tom Baldwin said that the Chesapeake Region Conference
on Safety Health and the Environment was poorly attended
as well. Matt Ruddo stated that it might have been a
poor attendance because there is the 1st Annual Mid-Atlantic
Construction Safety Conference being held on May 4th
at the Greenbelt Marriott. Matt passed around information
on the Conference.
Dora Parks gave a brief update on the Dig Smart and
Locator Achievement Awards Night. She said that Earl
Lewis of the Maryland Department of Transportation was
the keynote speaker and that he did an excellent job.
She also shared an email she received from Joseph Canova & Sons
after the Awards Night. She said they were celebrating
their fifty-five year anniversary of being in business
and thanked everyone for a wonderful night. Tom Baldwin
thanked Dora Parks for all her efforts being the Dig
Smart and Locator Achievement Awards Committee Chairperson.
Tom Baldwin stated that BGE had received a few FTTP
tickets in Baltimore County and asked if they had started
the FTTP project in the County. Bill Taylor (Verizon)
stated that it was an isolated incident and that they
are only in Anne Arundel, Howard, Montgomery and Prince
George’s Counties.
Christy Stinebaugh (Verizon) read a message from Nelson
Sneed of Verizon thanking those that participated in
the Verizon FTTP Damage Prevention Symposium held on
April 12th and 19th at BGE’s Pumphrey Gas
Training Facility in Woodlawn, MD. Bill Taylor stated
that he got a lot of positive feedback from the Symposium.
Christy Stinebaugh gave the FTTP footage projections
for May, June and July:
May:
Montgomery County - 70,000
Prince George’s County - 325,000
Anne Arundel County - 275,000
Howard County - 280,000
June:
Montgomery County - 20,000
Prince George’s County - 325,000
Anne Arundel County - 275,000
Howard County - 280,000
July:
Montgomery County - 50,000
Prince George’s County - 325,000
Anne Arundel County - 250,000
Howard County - 275,000
There was a general discussion about the use of paint
and the challenges of removing it in residential areas.
Several commented that there may be issues with some
of the paint manufactures mixing enamel paint in with
the water based kind. Tom Baldwin stated that it is a
nationwide issue and that some states are looking at
anti graffiti laws.
Bob Norman (Utiliquest) expressed concerns with the
time locators have to status tickets that are being done
after 5:00 pm on ITIC. Matt Ruddo stated that those tickets
are automatically defaulted to the next business day
and that all locators are given two full business days
to status the after hours ITIC tickets.
Bob Norman & Kelly Hardy from Utiliquest raised
concerns with the “Work To Begin Date and Time” field
on Insufficient and Short Notice tickets because they
reflect a less than forty-eight hour completion time
within their system. Matt Ruddo stated that Insufficient
and Short Notices tickets are not guaranteed and that
the locators have forty-eight hours to status the tickets
versus the four hour and 24 hour times on those tickets.
Matt stated that No Reponses tickets don’t go out
prior to two full business days on Insufficient and Short
Notice tickets.
Dennis Lescalleet (Pleasants Construction) requested
that their tickets read Pleasants Construction versus
Pleasnats Excavating. Matt Ruddo stated that he would
make sure that their caller id number file is updated
with the correct information. Dora Parks also said that
the Update tickets will need to be done as brand new
tickets so that Pleasants Construction appears on their
locate request tickets.
Dennis also expressed concerns that he didn’t
receive any information about the Dig Smart and Locator
Achievement Awards Night. Tom Baldwin stated that the
Dig Smart entries were mailed to the top 100 callers
of the Center as well as the various contractor associations
in Maryland and the District of Columbia. Matt Ruddo
stated that Pleasants Construction is a high volume user
and that the information was mailed to the person that
processes the tickets.
There was a lengthy discussion about water and sewer
laterals not being located by the County DPW’s
and municipalities. Vic Giordani (NTI) stated that he
knows this issue has been raised in the past and it continues
to have a negative impact on their production goals.
Tom Baldwin stated that OSH standards recommend you dig
prudently whenever an excavator knows there’s clear
evidence of unmarked facilities. Several stated it is
a national issue and that legislative changes are needed
to get utility owners to mark the water and sewer laterals.
John Payne (Southern Maryland Cable) asked the locating
companies in attendance if they do private locates. A
couple had stated that they don’t because of the
need to keep up with the normal workload.
Vic Giodani asked who governed the Miss Utility Law.
Zenon Sushko (MDPSC) said that it falls under the Maryland
legislature. Zenon did state that the PSC only oversees
the Call Center operation and that enforcement is left
up to the utility owners.
There was a brief discussion about Miss Utility Law
changes for 2007. Zenon Sushko said that Dick Schafer
(MDPSC) has met with various stakeholder groups, but
wasn’t sure what the next step was going to be.
Zenon did say that the PSC will support Law changes only
if consensus is reached by all stakeholder groups.
Upcoming Damage Prevention Presentations:
- April 29th Locus Land Farms 1500 Buck Lane Upper
Marlboro, MD 20772 at 7:30AM. There will be approximately
20 people in attendance.
- May 10th City of Frederick 111 Airport Drive Frederick,
MD at 7:30AM. Approximately 15 people will be attendance.
- June 20th Corman Construction at the Holiday Inn
- 15101 Sweitzer Lane, Laurel, MD 20707 at 3:30PM.
Approximately 120 people will be in attendance.
Upcoming Trade shows:
- June
- 25th-28th Maryland Municipal League Convention at the
Roland Powell Convention Center in Ocean City, MD
- August
- 16th-19th Maryland Association of Counties Summer Conference
at the Roland Powell Convention Center in Ocean City,
MD
Upcoming Meetings:
The next Maryland/DC Damage Prevention meeting
is scheduled for May 23, 2006 at the Miss Utility Center. Coffee
and donuts will be served at 9:00 am. The meeting
will begin at 9:30 am.
The Maryland/DC Subscribers meeting will
be held May 17, 2006 at the Miss Utility Center. Coffee
and donuts will be served at 8:30 am, and the meeting
will begin at 9:00 am.
There being no further business to be brought before
the committee, the meeting was adjourned at 10:35 am.
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