Friday, September 30, 2011
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Monday, September 26, 2011
Sunday, September 25, 2011
HB 2608 Government Operations Extension/Flood Relief
House Bill 2608 is a bill to continue government operations and fund emergency relief aid, including the damage associated with Hurricane Irene.This bill is going through the same challenge as recent bills., the struggle between deficit spending or trying to balance new spending by eliminating other programs.
The current bill seeks to reduce a loan program through the Department of Energy that assisted automakers in producing vehicles with greater gas mileages. There will still need to be some deficit spending, but some of the costs were offset.
The bill was originally voted down in the house allegedly by Tea Party leaning members seeking more cuts. The bill was reconsidered a couple of days later after discussion within the party and passed.
The approved House version was sent to the Senate, but was then voted down in that body. A lot of the discussion was about the 40,000 or so jobs created for each $1 billion in investment.
We need to decide for ourselves whether we are serious about lowering the deficit. The jobs per billion figure can be used for any sector, but we need to decide if we are going to add jobs simply by paying for them. In the auto industry it would seem to be the marketplace that is driving automobile companies to increase gas mileage. In most industries, it would seem that market-driven changes are simply the cost of doing business.
If we are serious about lowering the deficit, but understand that emergency aid for hurricanes, tornadoes and floods, needs to be passed in a timely manner, this seems like a reasonable compromise. Now that the Senate has rejected the proposal they will need to generate a new proposal for consideration.
The bill was originally voted down in the house allegedly by Tea Party leaning members seeking more cuts. The bill was reconsidered a couple of days later after discussion within the party and passed.
The approved House version was sent to the Senate, but was then voted down in that body. A lot of the discussion was about the 40,000 or so jobs created for each $1 billion in investment.
We need to decide for ourselves whether we are serious about lowering the deficit. The jobs per billion figure can be used for any sector, but we need to decide if we are going to add jobs simply by paying for them. In the auto industry it would seem to be the marketplace that is driving automobile companies to increase gas mileage. In most industries, it would seem that market-driven changes are simply the cost of doing business.
If we are serious about lowering the deficit, but understand that emergency aid for hurricanes, tornadoes and floods, needs to be passed in a timely manner, this seems like a reasonable compromise. Now that the Senate has rejected the proposal they will need to generate a new proposal for consideration.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Friday, September 16, 2011
Busy Day in Washington
On Thursday I had scheduled the remaining three appointments with the New Hampshire congressional delegation. The morning began with a visit with a staff member from Jeanne Shaheen's office. I had a pre-existing relationship with one of Senator Shaheen's staff, so I had set the appointment with him. The meeting was largely about the reauthorization of the FAA and Surface Transportation Acts and extensions. The timing was fortuitous as the Senate was voting on the extension that day. Senator Shaheen has been a great supporter of Infrastructure needs so I am sure my visit only reinforced views already shared by the Senator.
After the ten o'clock meeting, I had some time before my next meeting with Congressman Guinta's staff. I passed the time in the Air and Space Museum. Pictured below is Charles Lindbergh's 
"Spirit of St. Louis". The Museum is a mix of older aircraft and space craft. On a warm day that was threatening rain it was a nice respite in between meetings. After a tour of the museum it was on to the National Mall for lunch before crossing over to the House Office Buildings.
"Spirit of St. Louis". The Museum is a mix of older aircraft and space craft. On a warm day that was threatening rain it was a nice respite in between meetings. After a tour of the museum it was on to the National Mall for lunch before crossing over to the House Office Buildings. Congressman Guinta is a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee which is obviously a critical appointment for the attention to New Hampshire's Infrastructure needs. I met with the Congressman's Legislative Assistant assigned to Transportation issues. For each discussion the issues presented were very similar, but the discussions that unfold are often tailored to the interests of the delegate.
For these meetings, there is a need for efficiency in discussing one's concerns, which is especially true when there is an audience with a Senator or Congressman. Echoing through the halls of the House and Senate Office Buildings are a series of bells with a code that I haven't fully deciphered. These are calls to vote or warnings of the time until the next vote. When visiting, it is critical to express your concerns efficiently saving extended details or less important issues for later in the discussion in case the appointment has to be cut short. Often meetings cut short are continued with a staff member, but even their time can be limited.
When looking at the face of the Capital, with the Washington Monument directly behind it and chambered wings on each side, the House Chamber is on the left side and the Senate Chamber is on the right. Moving further to the left away from the Capital are the House Office Buildings. Moving to the right away from the Capital are the Senate Office Buildings. The office buildings have underground connections to the respective chambers.
This helps the Senators and Representatives move very efficiently when a vote is called. Unfortunately when those of us not elected have a slate of appointments this may mean walking rapidly through the front of the Capital plaza between the respective offices.
The last meeting of the day was Senator Ayotte. The meeting started with one of her legislative assistant, but the Senator was able to join us shortly into the discussion. I had not had the pleasure of meeting the Senator. I was left very impressed with her knowledge of the issues facing New Hampshire and her commitment to responsibly addressing our State's infrastructure needs. She is committed to a long term infrastructure bill, but is concerned that it should be adequately funded.
There was also a lot of discussion about the prescriptive nature of many of the infrastructure funding programs. New Hampshire has been blessed with very competent Commissioners and State employees who have taken their jobs of allocating resources very seriously and make good decisions on the projects to advance. By re-visiting some of the prescriptive spending requirements, the hope would be that each State would have move flexibility in where federal funds were spent and in which programs.
New Hampshire has a fine group of congressional delegates who were very generous with their time and discussing their opinions on the issues facing our State. They have also been very responsive to the needs of the State in the aftermath of Hurricane Irene. A visit in Washington is a great way to better understand the impressive schedules that each maintain.
Friday morning with my visits on Capital Hill concluded and a business breakfast concluded, I spent a few hours in the Washington zoo. One of the amazing things about Washington is that admittance to the many museums, monuments, and
other facilities are all free.
As you find your voice and establish a relationship with your congressional delegation, take advantage of this amazing destination to visit the many destinations in the Capital. Also take advantage of the time each delegate spends in our own State at their many offices and at meetings in many of the towns.
This helps the Senators and Representatives move very efficiently when a vote is called. Unfortunately when those of us not elected have a slate of appointments this may mean walking rapidly through the front of the Capital plaza between the respective offices.
The last meeting of the day was Senator Ayotte. The meeting started with one of her legislative assistant, but the Senator was able to join us shortly into the discussion. I had not had the pleasure of meeting the Senator. I was left very impressed with her knowledge of the issues facing New Hampshire and her commitment to responsibly addressing our State's infrastructure needs. She is committed to a long term infrastructure bill, but is concerned that it should be adequately funded.
There was also a lot of discussion about the prescriptive nature of many of the infrastructure funding programs. New Hampshire has been blessed with very competent Commissioners and State employees who have taken their jobs of allocating resources very seriously and make good decisions on the projects to advance. By re-visiting some of the prescriptive spending requirements, the hope would be that each State would have move flexibility in where federal funds were spent and in which programs.
New Hampshire has a fine group of congressional delegates who were very generous with their time and discussing their opinions on the issues facing our State. They have also been very responsive to the needs of the State in the aftermath of Hurricane Irene. A visit in Washington is a great way to better understand the impressive schedules that each maintain.
other facilities are all free.
As you find your voice and establish a relationship with your congressional delegation, take advantage of this amazing destination to visit the many destinations in the Capital. Also take advantage of the time each delegate spends in our own State at their many offices and at meetings in many of the towns.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Finding Your Voice in Washington
Combining a pleasure trip to Washington, DC with visiting our congressional delegation and their representatives is a great way for engineers to find their voices. Congressman Bass and his staff were very generous with their time. Taking time out of his busy schedule to discuss the Surface Transportation Bill, the Jobs bill, the FAA Reauthorization and some important upcoming legislation on dam safety.Congressman Bass has recently spent time touring parts of northern New Hampshire hardest hit by Hurricane Irene. The House of Representatives have also recently passed extension bills for the FAA and Surface Transportation Bills providing more time to work out the funding on longer term programs. These extensions are now moving to the Senate for approval, hopefully in the next week or so.
The Capital, Washington Monument, World War II Memorial, and the Lincoln Monument line up to provide a line to navigate by that is generally recognizable throughout the City.
The Lincoln Memorial is also one of the most recognizable monuments in the City. Normally a reflecting pool guides the way between the Memorial and the World War II Memorial, but Tony Puntin's company has it ripped up right now. While we were there they were filming a television pilot on the steps of the Memorial. This is one of the largest draws of school children with the steps full for much of the day. After a long walk we were especially happy to see a refreshment stand. The other two monuments along this azimuth are the World War II Monument and the Capital. Both are
iconic symbols of our Country, but my photography did not match their magnificence.Every trip to Washington needs to include a photo of the White House. One of the items that interests the engineer in me is the continuous line of ballasters, stone walls, fences, and steel plates at driveways that rise and fall with the assistance with compressed air or hydraulics. These continuous barrier protect each major structure throughout the City. These fixtures that blend well into the scenery have purposes well beyond keeping cars from parking on the lawn.
The Vietnam Memorial is one of the most powerful memorials. From the very lifelike trio of soldiers at one monument and the better known wall memorial. As telling as the numerous panels of fallen soldiers, the many artifacts left at the wall also tells a story.
At the base of the wall was a collection of war time pictures, medals, flowers, and artifacts of all descriptions denoting the relationship to the names on the wall with those still here.
Washington is an international city where a walk along a sidewalk is a multi-cultural experience. In just a couple of days I have met tourists from dozens of countries many speaking equally well English and their native language. The closer you walk to the capital the more the discussions revolve around the events passing in the Senate Chambers. With a mixture of young and old, well dressed in sensible shoes. There is definitely a home court advantage that make the City their home, but there is also a place for the many visitors whether they are tourists, seasonal visitors, or even the occasional engineer.
This experience was further brought home to me the
next morning in a taxi cab driving into the City. The cab driver who to me looked closer to fifty confessed his real age as eighty-two. He had been a captain in the Ethiopian army during the Korean conflict and was awarded American citizenship following his deployment. Another monument to be experienced is the King Memorial with its massive blocks of carved stone with views to the Jefferson and Washington Monuments. Each monument has features that take some time to absorb.
The FDR Memorial also had a lot to absorb. Bronze statues, stone walls and waterfalls tell the story of the president and the challenges facing our nation during the depression. As our country struggles in our own economic challenges, this monument reminds us that these are challenges have been overcome in the past and will again be overcome in the coming years. Tomorrow will return to a schedule of meetings with congressional staff. ASCE national staff has also been an amazing resource and sounding board on the impending bills and the potential ramifications.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Sunday, September 11, 2011
There is already a Jobs Bill Pending!
In the aftermath of the President's announcement of the proposed Jobs Bill, I fear that what appears to be a temporary fix will erode the political will for a real long-term jobs program. The program I am talking about is the long-term reauthorization of the Surface Transportation Bill.
ASCE has been calling for a six-year $500 billion dollar program. To date the Senate has proposed a two-year $109 billion dollar program which has been criticized for exceeding available highway funding by $12 billion dollars. The House has proposed a six-year $235 billion dollar program which matches available highway funding, but results in a 35% reduction from current funding levels.
The Jobs bill is packaged as a $447 billion dollar package. The details are still coming out, but the make up of the bill appears to include $15 billion dollars in housing expenditures, $70 billion dollars in general infrastructure expenditures, $175 billion dollars in employee payroll tax reductions (which will be reduced revenue into social security), $10 billion dollars in employer payroll tax reductions, $62 billion dollars in unemployment insurance extensions, $35 billion dollars in aid to States to prevent teacher layoffs and $25 billion dollars in school infrastructure reconstruction and updates.
I suggest an alternative approach to a jobs bill. The Senate version of the Surface Transportation Reauthorization bill is a two-year $109 billion dollar program that is underfunded by approximately $12 billion dollars. Through the jobs bill, $70 billion dollars of general infrastructure funding has been found. Combining this new found money with the Surface Transportation Bill, let's proposing a fully-funded Surface Transportation Bill.
I can never determine which math makes sense. I appologize in advance if I am being too simplistic, but would appreciate anyone who will clarify this for me. IF the Senate bill is underfunded by $12 billion dollars then the additional $70 billion dollars from the jobs bill should cover the $12 billion dollar short fall for six years. IF the House bill of $235 Billion dollars is a 35% reduction of the current program, simple math would conclude a cost of $317 billion dollars would match existing levels over six years. Adding the $70 billion dollars to the house program would seem to amount to only a 4% reduction from current levels over the six year duration.
If you want to create jobs sending money to states to temporarily postpone teacher layoffs, to extend unemployment benefits, or even to provide payroll tax holidays will not create jobs. These may be necessary, but should not be part of a "Jobs Creation Bill" or a "Stimulus Package". New jobs are created by long-term sustainable programs like the Surface Transportation Bill has been and can continue to be when fully funded dedicated to the maintenance and reconstruction of our infrastructure.Critics could say that these programs have not been successful in the last three years. I would counter that Infrastructure Bills such as the FAA Reauthorization that has been extended now twenty-one times in increments of three to six months should not be characterized as a long term fiunding solution. For each extension aviation clients delayed projects and resulted in impacts to both the consulting and construction communities.
I believe that if the Jobs bill is passed it will erode all political will for the reauthorization of the Surface Transportation Bill and likely the Reauthorization of the FAA Bill. These programs when reauthorized for multiple years will have a true impact on the creation of new jobs.
Please join me in getting this message out to Congress. There are elements of the Jobs bill that should be considered on their own merits, but we need to first prioritize the reauthorization of these other infrastructure bills.
ASCE has been calling for a six-year $500 billion dollar program. To date the Senate has proposed a two-year $109 billion dollar program which has been criticized for exceeding available highway funding by $12 billion dollars. The House has proposed a six-year $235 billion dollar program which matches available highway funding, but results in a 35% reduction from current funding levels.
The Jobs bill is packaged as a $447 billion dollar package. The details are still coming out, but the make up of the bill appears to include $15 billion dollars in housing expenditures, $70 billion dollars in general infrastructure expenditures, $175 billion dollars in employee payroll tax reductions (which will be reduced revenue into social security), $10 billion dollars in employer payroll tax reductions, $62 billion dollars in unemployment insurance extensions, $35 billion dollars in aid to States to prevent teacher layoffs and $25 billion dollars in school infrastructure reconstruction and updates.
I suggest an alternative approach to a jobs bill. The Senate version of the Surface Transportation Reauthorization bill is a two-year $109 billion dollar program that is underfunded by approximately $12 billion dollars. Through the jobs bill, $70 billion dollars of general infrastructure funding has been found. Combining this new found money with the Surface Transportation Bill, let's proposing a fully-funded Surface Transportation Bill.
I can never determine which math makes sense. I appologize in advance if I am being too simplistic, but would appreciate anyone who will clarify this for me. IF the Senate bill is underfunded by $12 billion dollars then the additional $70 billion dollars from the jobs bill should cover the $12 billion dollar short fall for six years. IF the House bill of $235 Billion dollars is a 35% reduction of the current program, simple math would conclude a cost of $317 billion dollars would match existing levels over six years. Adding the $70 billion dollars to the house program would seem to amount to only a 4% reduction from current levels over the six year duration.
If you want to create jobs sending money to states to temporarily postpone teacher layoffs, to extend unemployment benefits, or even to provide payroll tax holidays will not create jobs. These may be necessary, but should not be part of a "Jobs Creation Bill" or a "Stimulus Package". New jobs are created by long-term sustainable programs like the Surface Transportation Bill has been and can continue to be when fully funded dedicated to the maintenance and reconstruction of our infrastructure.Critics could say that these programs have not been successful in the last three years. I would counter that Infrastructure Bills such as the FAA Reauthorization that has been extended now twenty-one times in increments of three to six months should not be characterized as a long term fiunding solution. For each extension aviation clients delayed projects and resulted in impacts to both the consulting and construction communities.
I believe that if the Jobs bill is passed it will erode all political will for the reauthorization of the Surface Transportation Bill and likely the Reauthorization of the FAA Bill. These programs when reauthorized for multiple years will have a true impact on the creation of new jobs.
Please join me in getting this message out to Congress. There are elements of the Jobs bill that should be considered on their own merits, but we need to first prioritize the reauthorization of these other infrastructure bills.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
United States Global Competitiveness
Ever wonder where that statistic comes from when a newspaper article states that the United States infrastructure has dropped to 16th in the world? These statistics come out of the Global Competitiveness Report produced each year by the World Economic Forum. The World Economic Forum has recently published its Global Competitiveness Report for 2011-2012. In the July 20, 2011 blog "Why so much discussion about the debt ceiling?" there was a discussion of the report and the differences between pre-recession rankings in 2007 and the rankings in the 2010 report. The previous blog is located in the July entries. The complete 2011-2012 report can be viewed at:
Directly quoting from the 2011-2012 report, their assessment of the United is as follows:
"The United States continues the decline that began three years ago, falling one more position to 5th place. While many structural features continue to make its economy extremely productive, a number of escalating weaknesses have lowered the US ranking in recent years. US companies are highly sophisticated and innovative, supported by an excellent university system that collaborates admirably with the business sector in R&D. Combined with flexible labor markets and the scale opportunities afforded by the sheer size of its domestic economy—the largest in the world by far—these qualities continue to make the United States very competitive. On the other hand, there are some weaknesses in particular areas that have deepened since past assessments. The business community continues to be critical toward public and private institutions (39th).
In particular, its trust in politicians is not strong (50th), it remains concerned about the government’s ability to maintain arms-length relationships with the private sector (50th), and it considers that the government spends its resources relatively wastefully (66th). In comparison with last year, policy making is assessed as less transparent (50th) and regulation as more burdensome (58th). A lack of macroeconomic stability continues to be the United States’ greatest area of weakness (90th). Over the past decade, the country has been running
repeated fiscal deficits, leading to burgeoning levels of public indebtedness that are likely to weigh heavily on the country’s future growth. On a more positive note, after having declined for two years in a row, measures of financial market development are showing a hesitant recovery, improving from 31st last year to 22nd overall this year in that pillar."
Changes between 2007(pre-recession), 2010, and 2011.
Overall Competitiveness 2007-1st 2010-4th 2011-5th
1. Trust in institutions 2007-25th 2010-40th 2011-39th
2. Infrastructure 2007-7th 2010-15th 2011-16th
3. Macroeconomics 2007-66th 2010-87th 2011-90th
4. Health and Primary Education 2007-34th 2010-42nd 2011 42nd
5. Higher Education and Training 2007-5th 2010-9th 2011-13th
6. Goods Market Efficiency 2007-8th 2010-26th 2011-24th
7. Labor Market efficiency 2007-1st 2010-4th 2011-4th
8. Financial Market Development 2007-9th 2010-31st 2011-22nd
9. Technological Readiness 2007-11th 2010-17th 2011-20th
10. Market Size 2007-1st 2010-1st 2011-1st
11. Business Sophistication 2007-4th 2010-8th 2011-10th
12. Technical Innovation 2007-1st 2010-1st 2011-5th
Friday, September 9, 2011
A New Jobs Bill? How about simply funding the Surface Transportation and Aviation Bills!
It seems frustrating that new bills are continuously being created to fuel jobs creation and getting the economy restarted while older infrastructure funding programs fail to get passed because there isn't sufficient funding. Each of these new package seem to imply that they are public works packages, looking back to the days of Roosevelt, to get people back to work. In reality the stimulus or jobs bills are so watered down that only very small percentages of the funding ever make it to infrastructure projects.
The stimulus package was a success as far as the 5-8% of the funds that actually made it to infrastructure projects. I wish I could quote the exact figure, but the bill is so convoluted, I am not sure anyone knows. The timetables on the infrastructure work was so aggressive that only a few select types of projects could be ready to bid in time. I would credit the stimulus bill for jump starting many state design-build programs as that was one of the mechanisms that proved successful to allocate larger sums of money to construction projects in the short timeline. For many states the stimulus package provided a lot of paving, bridge membrane replacement, and culvert projects, but the time lines made replacement of critical bridges virtually impossible unless the design work had been previously started or if the project was advertised using the design-build methodology.
It has been very hard to hear some say the stimulus was a failed public works bill. I think engineers held up our end of the bargain, but the bill redirected too much of the funding to non-infrastructure related causes. As far as job creation, providing a short term windfall does not encourage the addition of jobs. This may save some jobs for the duration of the stimulus, but employers can not hire staff only to fire them only a few months later. More companies simply increased overtime during the key months of the stimulus. While on the subject, extending funding bills such as the Aviation Reauthorization on 3 to 6 month increments also does not go a long way to job creation. These incremental extensions again encourage short periods of overtime without new jobs being added.
The new jobs bill looks like another short term spending plan that will soon lead us right back to where we were before in began. The toughest part is that our aviation and surface transportation reauthorization bills will continue on short term extensions at best or may even lapse while congress debates the new jobs bill. A better plan is to reject the jobs bill and provide fully-funded Surface Transportation and Aviation bills. Provide multi-year bills that will allow states to implement strategic reconstruction plans for our infrastructure. This would include some short-term projects to stimulate the construction industry and some long-term projects to stabilize both engineering programs and future construction. It is longer term bills that allow companies to add staff instead of simply abusing existing staff like we have done for the short-term durations provided by these band-aid style bills.
The stimulus package was a success as far as the 5-8% of the funds that actually made it to infrastructure projects. I wish I could quote the exact figure, but the bill is so convoluted, I am not sure anyone knows. The timetables on the infrastructure work was so aggressive that only a few select types of projects could be ready to bid in time. I would credit the stimulus bill for jump starting many state design-build programs as that was one of the mechanisms that proved successful to allocate larger sums of money to construction projects in the short timeline. For many states the stimulus package provided a lot of paving, bridge membrane replacement, and culvert projects, but the time lines made replacement of critical bridges virtually impossible unless the design work had been previously started or if the project was advertised using the design-build methodology.
It has been very hard to hear some say the stimulus was a failed public works bill. I think engineers held up our end of the bargain, but the bill redirected too much of the funding to non-infrastructure related causes. As far as job creation, providing a short term windfall does not encourage the addition of jobs. This may save some jobs for the duration of the stimulus, but employers can not hire staff only to fire them only a few months later. More companies simply increased overtime during the key months of the stimulus. While on the subject, extending funding bills such as the Aviation Reauthorization on 3 to 6 month increments also does not go a long way to job creation. These incremental extensions again encourage short periods of overtime without new jobs being added.
The new jobs bill looks like another short term spending plan that will soon lead us right back to where we were before in began. The toughest part is that our aviation and surface transportation reauthorization bills will continue on short term extensions at best or may even lapse while congress debates the new jobs bill. A better plan is to reject the jobs bill and provide fully-funded Surface Transportation and Aviation bills. Provide multi-year bills that will allow states to implement strategic reconstruction plans for our infrastructure. This would include some short-term projects to stimulate the construction industry and some long-term projects to stabilize both engineering programs and future construction. It is longer term bills that allow companies to add staff instead of simply abusing existing staff like we have done for the short-term durations provided by these band-aid style bills.
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Vermont's floods draw attention to the security of covered bridges - SentinelSource.com: Editorial
Vermont's floods draw attention to the security of covered bridges - SentinelSource.com: Editorial: On Nov. 2, 1927 a cold front arriving from the Great Lakes
collided with a low pressure system that had worked its way up the
East Coast to du…
collided with a low pressure system that had worked its way up the
East Coast to du…
Monday, September 5, 2011
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Vermont Infrastructure impacts from Irene
For anyone interested in the devistation from Irene in Vermont see the website below. Remember that from about twleve hours before the storm actually hit the eye of the hurricane was targeted for Concord, NH. Around that time it took a sharp turn to the west. From the graphic, the storm traveled up the mountainous chain in the center of Vermont until it veered back east accounting for some damage near St Johnsbury and accounting for the damage in northern New Hampshire.
http://crisislanding.appspot.com/?crisis=2011_flooding_vermont
Many engineers through term contracts have been called into Vermont to help assess the damage caused by the recent storms. There are 11 communities that are still cut from surface transportation with more than 40 bridges either requiring replacement or that sustained sufficient damage to be unusable without repair. Vermont is still in the assessment stage and are currently working to determine the extent of the damag
http://crisislanding.appspot.com/?crisis=2011_flooding_vermont
Many engineers through term contracts have been called into Vermont to help assess the damage caused by the recent storms. There are 11 communities that are still cut from surface transportation with more than 40 bridges either requiring replacement or that sustained sufficient damage to be unusable without repair. Vermont is still in the assessment stage and are currently working to determine the extent of the damag
Saturday, September 3, 2011
Friday, September 2, 2011
Thursday, September 1, 2011
GPS Users Need to Better Understand this Threat
I will admit I need to better understand the ramifications of this FCC action, but I thought it better to get others also reviewing the matter as well. My understanding is that the FCC has given conditional approval for the deployment of a new integrated wireless broadband and satellite network that uses frequencies near those of most GPS units. The concern is that the interference from use of these frequencies will have significant impacts on the current GPS systems.
In addition to hikers, this could also potentially impact boats, aircraft, GPS controlled agricultural equipment and GPS controlled construction equipment. I learned of these concerns through a construction periodical, but there was no mention on how this would affect GPS units for automobiles.
Anyone with more information please add comments even/especially if I have some facts wrong! See link below to the Coalition to Save Our GPS white papers on the subject. I can not confirm the accuracy of the reports linked below, but it was referenced in the article published in the National Utility Contractors Association (NUCA) publication "Utility Contractor".
Coalition to Save Our GPS whitepapers
In addition to hikers, this could also potentially impact boats, aircraft, GPS controlled agricultural equipment and GPS controlled construction equipment. I learned of these concerns through a construction periodical, but there was no mention on how this would affect GPS units for automobiles.
Anyone with more information please add comments even/especially if I have some facts wrong! See link below to the Coalition to Save Our GPS white papers on the subject. I can not confirm the accuracy of the reports linked below, but it was referenced in the article published in the National Utility Contractors Association (NUCA) publication "Utility Contractor".
Coalition to Save Our GPS whitepapers
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