Minutes of Maryland/DC Damage Prevention Meeting
March 24, 2009
Miss Utility Call Center
Hanover, MD  21076

I. Call To Order and Introduction:

Wayne Gilmer (Utiliquest) called the regular monthly meeting to order at 9:40 am.

Introductions were made.

The minutes of February 24, 2009 were approved.

II. Safety Item:

Wayne Gilmer’s monthly safety topic covered poison ivy/poison oak.

III. Dig Smart/Locator Achievement Awards:

Mark Hamrick (Verizon) stated that invitations were emailed out and everyone should RSVP to Dora Parks at dora@missutility.net.

Dora Parks solicited the MD/DC Subscribers & Damage Prevention Committees for door prizes. She also stated that Miss Utility of Delmarva is having their first ever locator achievement awards night on April 23, 2009 at Dover Downs Hotel & Casino.

LOCATOR ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS PRODUCTION SCHEDULE:       
    
MARCH

      24th – Meeting to finalize event logistics

APRIL

      7th – Meeting at venue to discuss final event logistics/run through
      16th – Event to be held at Harper’s Choice in Columbia, MD

IV. Damage Prevention Presentations:

Wayne Gilmer gave a brief update on the damage prevention presentation he gave for ABC Metro Washington DC chapter on March 19, 2009.

He also gave additional updates on the following presentations:

• City of Rockville on March 20, 2009 conducted by Wayne Gilmer, Greg Johnson (PEPCO), Kevin Woolbright (WSSC), Mike Boin (Verizon) and Matt Ruddo

• Shirley Contracting on February 25, 2009 conducted by Wayne Gilmer, Greg Johnson and Jack Sullivan (BGE)

Wayne Gilmer referenced the following upcoming damage prevention presentations:

Allegany County Government at Allegany Community College on March 25, 2009

Midasco, Inc. at 7121 Dorsey Rd. in Jessup, MD on March 26, 2009

Chapel Valley Landscaping at 3275 Jennings Chapel Rd. in Woodbine, MD on March 31, 2009

V. 2009 Greater Chesapeake Damage Prevention Training Conference (GCDPTC):

Matt Ruddo gave an update on the GCDPTC that will be held at the Clarion Fontainebleau Hotel on October 21-23, 2009:

•  400+ individuals responded to the survey and half would likely attend the conference.
• Significant amount positive feedback was given on the breakout sessions selected for the conference.
• Jeff Wiese of PHMSA, Khrsyanne Kerr of CGA and the Mayor of Ocean City are just a few of the speakers this year.
• Registration begins April 1st at http://www.missutility.net/2009Conference/registration.asp.

Wayne Gilmer gave a brief update on the sponsorship opportunities. Please visit http://www.missutility.net/2009Conference/sponsors.asp for more details.

 VI. Trade Shows & Safety Events:

Nick Kelly (MGH) thanked everyone for filling in the remaining shifts for the DC Home Garden & Flower Show at the DC Convention Center.

There was a general discussion about having volunteer’s contact information in case there are issues the day of a show.  

Trade show coordinator contact is Nick Kelly of MGH and he can be reached at nkelly@mghus.com or 410-504-8338.

VII. Title XII Steering Committee:

Tom Baldwin stated the steering committee would continue reviewing the Law and the enforcement model would be discussed a week or two after the 2009 MD General Assembly Session adjournment. He reiterated the enforcement model would entail a stakeholder advisory board instead of it being administered by the MDPSC.

There was a lengthy discussion about how the penalties were going to be handled by the stakeholder advisory board. A few indicated education would be given in lieu of fine for first time offenders.

X. MD/DC Subscribers Committee Meeting:

Tom Baldwin covered a few of the highlights that were discussed at the March 18, 2009 MD/DC Subscribers Meeting:

• Miss Utility was able to leverage more radio spots due to the downturn in the economy
• April is National Safe Digging Month which is being sponsored by CGA
• 98 Rock’s “My Front Yard Sucks” promotion will be held in April or May this year
• Diamond Dig events will be held at the Bowie Baysox and Frederick Keys stadiums
• Call Center reports: ITIC %, ADC Map usage, advertising expenses, etc.

XI. FTTP/FIOS Progress Report:

Mark Hamrick (Verizon) provided the following FTTP trench footage projections:

Mark commented that Verizon’s current damage ratio is 0.65 damages per 10,000 trench feet. He also stated that the damage ratio was .14 through the first three weeks of March.

Open Discussion:

There was a lengthy discussion about an issue that Dennis Lescalleet (Pleasants Construction) brought before the group. He referenced an acre in a third jobsite in Landover Hills, MD that had 83 tickets called in between October 5, 2007 and March 10, 2009. He expressed concerns that the ticket statuses were not the same after each update ticket. Several suggested that he speak with his site foreman/supervisor to see if a marking agreement was agreed to by his company and the locator(s). Several commented that they would speak with Dennis after the meeting.

Kenneth Smith (Baltimore City DPW) stated that he would like to have a damage prevention presentation for their water and wastewater excavators.

Upcoming Trade Shows:

The following tradeshows are schedule for 2009:

Show name:		Builder Mart
Date:		March 25, 2009
City, State:		Timonium,MD
Place:		Maryland State Fairgrounds
Website:		http://www.homebuilders.org/page/55597/
Show name:		Suburban Maryland Spring Home Show
Date:		April 3-5, 2009
City, State:		Landover, MD
Place:		Prince George Sports and Learning Complex
Website:		http://www.acshomeshow.com/HGExpo/PGS.html
Show name:		Maryland Municipal League
Date:		June 28-July 1, 2009
City, State:		Ocean City, MD
Place:		Ocean City Convention Center
Website:		http://www.mdmunicipal.org/cv09/cvgeneralinfo.cfm
Show name:		Maryland Association of Counties
Date:		August 12-15, 2009
City, State:		Ocean City, MD
Place:		Roland Powell Convention Center
Website:		http://www.mdcounties.org/events/default.cfm
Show name:		Chesapeake Safety Conference
Date:		N/A
City, State:
Place:
Website:
Show name:		Suburban Maryland Fall Home Show
Date:		September 11-13, 2009
City, State:		Germantown, MD
Place:		Discovery Sports Center at Maryland Soccerplex
Website:		http://www.acshomeshow.com/HGExpo/DSF.html
Show Name:		Harford Live!
Date:		September 26-27, 2009
City, State:		Aberdeen, MD
Place:		Ripken Stadium
Website:		http://www.harfordlive.com
Show Name:		Maryland Home & Garden Show
Date:		October 16-18, 2009
City, State:		Timonium, MD
Place:		Maryland State Fairgrounds
Website:		http://www.acshomeshow.com/HGExpo/HAF.html
Show Name:		Suburban Maryland Fall Home Show
Date:		October 30th-November 1, 2009
City, State:		Upper Marlboro, MD
Place:		The Show Place Arena
Website:		http://www.acshomeshow.com/HGExpo/HAF.html

Upcoming Meetings:

The next Maryland/DC Damage Prevention meeting is scheduled for April 28, 2009 at the Miss Utility Center.  Coffee and donuts will be served at 9:00 am.  The meeting will begin at 9:30 am.

The next Maryland/DC Subscribers meeting will be held June 3, 2009 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 brought before the committee, the meeting was adjourned at 11:00 am.

ITIC % Report for Maryland and Washington D.C.
Month		Call Center Tickets		ITIC Tickets		Percentage
Feb-08		51,004		36,810		72%
Mar-08		57,239		39,568		69%
Apr-08		63,265		42,709		68%
May-08		60,597		41,305		68%
Jun-08		61,717		42,510		69%
Jul-08		63,231		44,582		71%
Aug-08		58,606		40,823		70%
Sep-08		60,176		42,587		71%
Oct-08		63,374		44,378		70%
Nov-08		44,680		31,772		71%
Dec-08		48,953		36,569		75%
Jan-09		44,393		32,250		73%
Feb-09		44,597		33,304		75%

Attendee List
Name		Company		Phone		Email
Wayne Gilmer		Utiliquest		301-674-2769		walter.gilmer@utiliquest.com
Dora Parks		Miss Utility Center		410-782-2026		dora@missutility.net
Chuck Baker		Verizon		301-502-9340		Charles.b.baker.jr@verizon.com
Matt Ruddo		Miss Utility Center		410-712-0056		matt@missutility.net
Joe Shelton		B. Frank Joy LLC		240-417-0200		jshelton@bfjoy.com
Mark Hamrick		Verizon		410-610-1371		mark.a.hamrick@verizon.com
Joe Riley		Verizon		410-830-1953		Joseph.p1.riley@verizon.com
Greg Johnson		PEPCO		301-670-8735		gmjohnson@pepco.com
Mike Wills		Verizon		301-821-5647		Michael.a.wills@verizon.com
Joe Feronti		Utiliquest		301-343-8762		Joe.feronti@utiliquest.com
Jay Spence		Mirant Piney Point		301-751-6269		James.spence@mirant.com
Paul Elwood		Utiliquest		410-536-0070		Paul.elwood@utiliquest.com
Kevin Woolbright		WSSC		240-205-3684		kwoolbr@wsscwater.com
Tom Hastings		OCCLS Locating		410-712-0202		thastings@occls.com
Karen Watkins		SMECO		301-274-4350		Karen.watkins@smeco.coop
Rick Behrens		CableCom		410-354-5850
Cal Brooks		Howard County		410-313-4952		cbrooks@howardcomd.net
Tim Kempa		Comcast		410-371-3304		tim_kempa@cable.comcast.com
Dan Wiles		Utiliquest		410-536-0070		Dan.wiles@utiliquest.com
Sherell Stone		NPL Construction		410-355-1083		sstone@gonpl.com
Anthony Stevenson		Baltimore City DPW		410-978-5981		Anthony.stevenson@baltimorecity.gov
Kenneth Smith		Baltimore City DPW		410-733-3675		Kenneth.smith@baltimorecity.gov
Nick Kelly		MGH		410-504-8338		nkelly@mghus.com
Erik Phillips		Utiliquest		443-324-7835		Erik.phillips@utiliquest.com
Anthony Goodman		Washington Gas		03-750-4708		agoodman@washgas.com
Dennis Lescalleet		Pleasants Construction		301-428-0800		dlescalleet@pleasants.org