contractors

  • Safety at Speed: Modern Grids Demand a Different Approach

    At 4:30 a.m., before the sun is up, a lineworker steps onto a site that did not exist six months ago. By mid-morning, crews from three different contractors will be working in parallel: civil teams finishing trenching, electricians pulling cable, another crew preparing for energization. The schedule is tight. The handoffs are constant. On paper, […]

  • New Labor Regulations Could Have Implications for Renewables Developers

    Developers of renewable energy projects generally haven’t concerned themselves with the Davis-Bacon Act, the Great Depression-era federal law that mandates the paying of prevailing wages to laborers on public works projects. However, if the Department of Labor (DOL) gets its way, that might soon change. On August 23, 2023, DOL published new Davis-Bacon and Related Acts regulations that contain […]

  • Working with EPC Contractors: Guidance for Utilities Embarking on Solar Development

    Engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractors deliver many benefits to power projects. Besides the experience they bring that can help keep schedules on track, they often have longstanding

  • Marnie Surfaceblow: When Exploring Unknown Territory, Bring a Guide [FICTION]

    New technology requires new ways of thinking, especially because safety is paramount. This is even more true for any situation where an established industry experience base is lacking. “Did you have a good

  • Optimism Abounds as Infrastructure Projects Fuel Growth

    Soon after COVID-19 first broke into the public consciousness in early 2020, panic filled the streets. I’ll be honest, I was nervous. The U.S. stock market plummeted roughly 35% over the course of about a

  • Cultivating a Safety Culture Amid Constant Change

    Developing a power plant safety culture takes time and constant effort, but the payoff is priceless, safety leaders at three major power companies said during a morning session at the Experience POWER virtual event on Sept. 30.  Jeffrey Mullins, safety and health consultant for the 2.6-GW coal-fired Gavin Power Plant owned by Lightstone Generation, kicked […]

  • COVID-19 Threatens Outages Scheduled at 97% of U.S. Nuclear Sites in 2020

    Challenged by the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. nuclear industry has asked the Trump administration to ensure nuclear workers, suppliers, and vendors will have access to nuclear plants and personal protective equipment (PPE) during the 2020 spring and fall refueling outage seasons and beyond. All but two of the nation’s nuclear sites had scheduled planned outages  […]