Important Notice: This CalAPA "Member Alert" is an exclusive benefit of CalAPA membership and should not be shared outside a member company without prior permission from CalAPA.

SUMMARY:

The California Asphalt Pavement Association (CalAPA) is closely monitoring events related to the Coronavirus / COVID-19 virus outbreak to assess what impact it will have on association operations, as well as the industry as a whole. CalAPA is well positioned to continue operations uninterrupted and in recent years implemented remote-access, cloud-based computing solutions and virtual meeting and webinar technologies. Some in-person meetings and events, however, may be disrupted or delivered in alternate formats as events warrant. Members will be notified if it is necessary for these changes to be implemented.

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WHAT IS NEW:

IThe COVID-19 flu virus, commonly referred to as the novel coronavirus, originated in China late last year and has been spreading quickly to other countries, including the United States. California is one of the states impacted, and the governor has declared a state of emergency as state and local governments mobilize resources to understand the nature of the flu-like virus, how it is spread, and what health implications it will bring with it. Business operations have already been disrupted, with the hardest hit the travel industry, but other disruptions have been seen, or are anticipated in manufacturing, the service industry, the energy sector and elsewhere. The asphalt pavement industry broadly (asphalt producers, refiners, binder suppliers, paving contractors and others) are strongly encouraged to access the latest information from trusted public health sources to take measures to protect employees, customers, vendors and others. Suppliers of services should also be in close contact with prime contractors, as well as project owners, to anticipate any potential disruptions in the delivery of raw materials, supplies, services, and to understand what impact personnel disruptions may have on project scheduling and payments. Contract documents should also be reviewed to ensure clear understanding of language related to potential supply and scheduling disruptions. The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), to cite one example of a prominent project owner, has not released any official guidance specific to coronavirus to the construction industry. However, Ray Hopkins, Deputy Division Chief for Construction for the department, informed CalAPA that the department is in the process of ensuring that the payment process will be able to run from a remote workstation if it becomes necessary to have Caltrans employees work from home. “I do not anticipate any impact that would cause a disruption in payments,” he said. He also noted that in Section 1 of the Caltrans Standard Specifications, in the definition of a working day, includes language stating that an “unanticipated event not caused by either party, such as … Epidemic… Quarantine Restriction” qualifies as a non-working day.

IMPACT TO CALAPA:

The impacts so far range from very minor, such as the potential delay of an order of CalAPA lapel pins that were manufactured in China (the pins ultimately arrived as scheduled), to postponement of some CalAPA training classes and potential impacts to the association’s annual asphalt pavement conference April 15-17 in Anaheim. With regard to the conference, the association expects to proceed as planned with the conference in accordance with guidance from public health officials and the venue, and has posted the following statement on the event website:

" SAFETY & SECURITY: CalAPA continues to monitor events related to the COVID-19 virus outbreak, which is commonly called the novel coronavirus. The safety of attendees at CalAPA events is always the top priority, and the association will take precautionary steps in accordance with guidance from public health officials and the venue. Event registrants will be notified of any changes to the program or other essential information as soon as possible. Disneyland Resort has a world-class reputation for protecting the safety and security of guests at its parks and meeting facilities. Additional information from Disney can be found HERE."

OTHER CALAPA IMPACTS:

A CalAPA technical training class initially planned for April 8 in San Jose, hosted by the City of San Jose, has been postponed indefinitely when CalAPA was notified by the City that it was unable to host the class. Also, Caltrans today notified CalAPA that a scheduled “Hot Mix Asphalt I” class scheduled for March 21-24 on the campus of California State University, San Jose, has been canceled due to the facility not being available. The class is part of the Caltrans-industry Joint Training & Certification Program. State Sen. Jim Beall, D-San Jose, the chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee and author of SB1, was tentatively scheduled to visit the JTCP class for a feature in an upcoming issue of CalAPA’s magazine, California Asphalt , but that visit has been postponed. CalAPA will be conferring with Caltrans to determine how to address certification of technicians if Joint Training & Certification Classes are unable to resume soon.

ASSOCIATION CONTINGENCY PLANS:

CalAPA has contingency plans in place to continue operations uninterrupted. All staff have remote-access and tele-work capability, and information technology assets utilized by the association provide numerous ways for the association to deliver services. Most technical information assets are accessible via the CalAPA website, including past issues of the association magazine, weekly newsletter, and all technical presentations delivered at CalAPA conferences. If staff is not present in the office, the phone system forwards voice-mail messages electronically to cell phones. CalAPA already extensively utilizes the “GoToMeeting” and “GoToWebinar” platforms for meetings and other knowledge-transfer activities.

RESOURCES:

The State of California, Department of Public Health website devoted to providing updated coronavirus information in California is HERE .

A California Department of Health Poster on tips for California residents to help prevent the spread of the disease is HERE .

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention webpage with information coronavirus is HERE .

A March 2, 2020 CalAPA California Asphalt Insider newsletter article on crisis communications tips is HERE .

For more information on this “Member Alert,” contact CalAPA Executive Director Russell W. Snyder, CAE, at (916) 791-5044.

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