Concrete company OK'd for growth
PATRICK McARDLE Herald Staff 

SHAFTSBURY — Industrial manufacturer William E. Dailey has gotten the green light to expand its pre-cast concrete manufacturing facility, but it's good news that calls for a bit of patience. Company officials say they plan to lay the foundation and install the floor for the expansion of their current plant by an area about equal to a football field, but they don't actually plan to construct it fully until the market demands it.
       "We want to be ready if the opportunity presents itself. We can't just grow for growth's sake," said plant manager Noble Levesque.  Dailey's, which does a great deal of its business manufacturing pre-cast concrete "building blocks" used in structures like parking lots, is celebrating its 80th anniversary this year. The company was acquired by Peckham Industries of White Plains, N.Y., four years ago.  Levesque said the current expansion plans were put into place about two years ago as the company planned for its long-term future.
        Dailey's operates from two sites in Shaftsbury, a short distance from each other, on Route 7A and on Airport Road. In one location, there is a plant that makes blacktop, another that makes concrete, a sand and gravel pit and a vehicle maintenance garage.  On the Airport Road site, the pre-cast concrete plant takes the raw materials generated from the other plant and assembles them into finished pieces.
       Levesque said that site is operating well, but it's just about reached its capacity. To manufacture some new piece needed for a different customer order, what's inside the plant will need to be rearranged.  "In some ways, it's nice to be dynamic and flexible, but that comes at a cost of energy and downtime," Levesque said.
       The pre-cast building Dailey's uses, which has grown piece by piece over the years, houses a U-shaped operation on about 22 acres of land.  Raw materials come in on the western side. Frames made of shaped and bended rebars, called sub-assemblies are made according to the customer's specification. They go around to the other side of the U where concrete is added and out a different door on the western side.
       Robert Yuremko, an assistant vice-president with Peckham, said pre-cast concrete is becoming increasingly popular as a building material with customers demanding larger and heavier pieces.  The permits granted to Dailey's in July by the town of Shaftsbury and just this week by the state Agency of Natural Resource's District 8 Environmental Commission's Act 250 process will allow the plant to expand when the time is right.     Levesque said the expansion will allow the company to increase its capacity, but it's important that at the same time, they increase their staff to find qualified workers who can properly take advantage of the space.  Another factor in expanding output at the plant is safety. Levesque said the recent attention to bridge failures has caused ripples throughout the country about infrastructure and Dailey's has a stake in making sure its pieces are reliable and durable.  Increasing the size of the building will be a fairly simple task after the floor and foundation are complete, most likely before winter begins, according to current plans. The building's end is capped by removable panels so Dailey's only needs to lengthen the walls - with pre-cast concrete material, of course - and re-hang the panels.
       The company employs about 120 people. It's not clear how many employee may be added due to the expansion because it's expected to happen in reaction to market forces.  While the expansion has already been permitted by the town, the state and the Department of Labor and Industry, Yuremko said they were still waiting on wastewater and well permits they would need before new people could be hired.
        Dailey's has recently completed projects for buildings in South Boston, Poughkeepsie, N.Y., and Danbury, Conn. It serves areas throughout the Northeastern United States.
Contact Patrick McArdle at patrick.mcardle@rutlandherald.com.
Copyright, 2007, Rutland Herald

Rutland Herald (VT) September 10, 2007
Concrete expansion includes new road
TOM MITCHELL Herald Staff
   
SHAFTSBURY — William E. Dailey Inc. has received a state permit to expand a pre-cast concrete manufacturing plant by 50,000 square feet - a plan that removes truck traffic from Airport Road. Dailey and parent company Peckham Industries Inc. will create additional product storage at its main plant on the south side of Airport Road, according to the permit.  As part of the project, the company will build a new road for trailer trucks going to the main plant on the south side of Airport Road, according to Warren Foster, coordinator for District 8 Environmental Commission.
       "Trucks carrying product are going to go around Airport Road, (on the new road)," he said.  The expansion will not cause excess congestion or unsafe highway conditions around the plant, members of the District 8 Commission concluded. Loaded trucks traveling away from the concrete panel plant will be able to leave the south facility through the main entrance, directly onto Route 7A, according to the permit. Outbound shipments start as early as 5:30 a.m.
       In another change to the road system, an existing road across Airport Road, one opposite the facility, is being widened to accommodate a gantry crane hauling pre-cast concrete panels, according to the commission's findings.When the gantry crane crosses, a flagman will warn traffic on the roadway, according to the permit.  The curb cut for the new road is at the west edge of the parcel, commissioners said, and should provide safer sightlines for the crossing of trailers loaded with pre-cast concrete. Sight distances at the entrance of the new road crossing Airport Road are 800 feet (east) and 411 feet (west) for passenger cars, and 1,000 feet (east) and 840 feet (west) for trucks.  These should be adequate for the posted 35-mph speed limit, which requires 772 feet (east) and 390 feet (west) for stopping sight distance, the commissioners said.
       Once the building addition is finished, the exterior will match the existing pre-cast concrete panels on the plant, commissioners said in their findings.  In view of the design detail, commissioners concluded that the project will not have an undue adverse effect on the scenic or natural beauty of the area.
       The manufacturer will be using pre-cast panels made at the plant to build the addition, Foster said.  "It's a case of a plant cloning itself," he said.
Contact Tom Mitchell at tom.mitchell@rutlandherald.com.
Copyright, 2007, Rutland Herald