Fall is here! If you’re like me, the fall season is just good for your soul. Whether it’s the first cool morning offering relief from a long hot summer or the anticipation of Friday Night Lights, there’s just a feeling of excitement during the month of September.

Speaking of Friday Night Lights, football is here! From Pee Wee to the NFL, coaches, players, support staff, and parents are all putting their best foot forward for a successful season. Much like our Highway Departments, a team of diverse skills and backgrounds unite with the goal for each member to complement the other ultimately forming a formidable team. Clear vision, effective communication, resiliency, positive attitude, and a strong desire for daily improvement are just a few of the intangibles needed for a strong football team. And as we all know, these are also characteristics of a strong team in the workplace.

As leaders of our respective departments, we no doubt strive every day to lead our teams with a strong vision, effective communication, resilient mindset, positive attitude, and a belief that we can always improve and refine any task that we undertake. But alas, no matter the leader, just as in football, “it's about the Jimmy’s and the Jo’s not so much the x’s and the o’s”. OK, so there is a little more of the X’s and O’s in our line of work, but our workforce will always be the backbone of our operation!

It's never been more of a challenge to maintain a strong and experienced workforce. Much like the NIL is to football, competition for our workforce has never been so aggressive and dynamic. Combine that with a declining interest in construction work and we all have more and more open positions within our departments.

As a reminder, NACE has updated their remittance address for membership and renewal payments. Please ensure all payments being made to the organization are sent to:

P.O. Box 426064, Washington, DC 20042-6064

Any other correspondence can be mailed to: 660 N. Capitol St, NW, Washington, DC 20001. If you have any questions on a pending invoice or pending payment, please contact Jen at jvoshell@countyengineers.org. Thank you for updating your records.

Thank you to Gallagher Asphalt

for hosting September's NACE Connect! If you missed it,

visit our NACE Connect Archives in the Content Hub to check it out.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS for the next NACE CONNECT

on e-Construction for County & Highway Projects

Thursday, October 19 at 2:00pm EST

Presented by:

e-Construction for County Road and Highway Projects

County and state departments of transportation are adopting e-construction software technology to improve the efficiency of the construction and documentation process.

It may be time to replace your paper records, manual processes, and other outdated project documentation methods with an online, fully managed subscription-based e-Construction solution.

What is e-Construction?

e-Construction is a paperless construction method for tracking and documenting road and highway construction projects by recording data online. e-Construction software is fully hosted and managed by the provider and maintains digital versions of diaries, quantity books, change orders, pay estimates, and other data related to a project. By eliminating paper-based documentation, e-Construction can significantly reduce the potential for errors associated with data transfer and transcription.

An e-Construction solution also offers real-time access to project data for all stakeholders, including project managers, engineers, contractors, and inspectors, improving communication, collaboration and facilitates decision-making.

Web-Based Materials Sampling and Testing

For agencies that operate their materials laboratories internally, web-based materials management offers all the advantages of a cloud-hosted solution described above and provides for the online management of various aspects, including samples, laboratories, equipment, employee certifications, test creation, and other materials management functions.

Learn more about e-Construction Solutions

We invite you to join Floyd Millet and Brent McKinley from ExeVision, for a 1-hour webinar on Thursday, October 19 at 2:00PM EST, as they discuss the benefits of e-Construction and online project documentation. During the session, they will offer an overview of the process and showcase essential aspects of construction project documentation and web-based materials sampling and testing.

If you are a corporate member interested in maximizing your benefits and would like to schedule a NACE Connect or Corporate Member Spotlight, please contact

Jen at jvoshell@countyengineers.org

​NACE 2024 in Palm Springs will be here before you know it!

Don't forget to mark your calendar with these important dates:

October 30 - Exhibitor Pre-Sale for Corporate Members & CEAC Affiliates

November 13 - Delegate and Exhibitor Registration Opens 

December 4 - Housing Opens at the Renaissance Palm Springs (HQ hotel) and Courtyard Marriott (overflow)

Important Scheduling Information for NACE 2024:

The NACE conference will have a different flow with the arrival day on Monday, April 15^th with the Welcome Reception on Monday evening at the Renaissance Pool Deck. State dinners will be held on Tuesday night. The banquet will be on Thursday night at the Renaissance. 

Due to Coachella Music Festival, there will not be hotel rooms available on Sunday night unless you are a NACE Board Member or EC Member. Golfers- please plan to arrive on Monday morning. The Golf Tournament will begin at 1:00pm on Monday. Golfers will not need to check in at registration prior to heading to the golf course due to the tight schedule. 

Attention Potential Exhibitors and Sponsors! 

The NACE Exhibitor and Sponsorship Prospectus will be published soon with new pricing and benefits for 2024. Traditional 10x10 booth spaces will be available in Palm Springs as well as several new Island booth options and premium spaces. 2023 NACE Corporate Members will have access to a two-week pre-sale period beginning on October 13. To check your corporate member status, please email JVoshell@countyengineers.org. 

National Pedestrian Safety Month

October 2023

National Center for Rural Road Safety (NHTSA) is strengthening its efforts to improve safety for pedestrians and other vulnerable road users by suggesting activities and providing sample social media posts and messages, free infographics and other resources. The personal, physical, and environmental benefits of walking can lead to healthier, quieter, cleaner, and safer streets. Walking can also improve local economies and enhance social and community engagement, which can lead to more vibrant, resilient, and livable spaces.

Unfortunately, in 2021 there were 7,388 pedestrians killed in traffic crashes, a 12.5- percent increase from the 6,565 pedestrian fatalities in 2020. This is the highest since 1981 when 7,837 pedestrians died in traffic crashes. In 2021 there were an estimated 60,577 pedestrians injured in traffic crashes, an 11-percent increase from 54,771 pedestrians injured in 2020. On average, a pedestrian was killed every 71 minutes and injured every 9 minutes in traffic crashes in 2021. Please use these materials to increase awareness about how we can combat pedestrian crashes in our communities.

For more information about this training, click here. 

Link: https://www.trafficsafetymarketing.gov/get-materials/pedestrian-safety/everyone-pedestrian

To learn more about programs with the National Center for Rural Road Safety, visit Home - National Center for Rural Road Safety (ruralsafetycenter.org)