GOMACO World Index --- GOMACO World 36.2 - July 2008

 

Page 7

 

All American Canal

The new, concrete-lined All-American Canal will carry water more efficiently to California’s Imperial Valley region.

A Successful Completion to the Canal Project –

Coffman Specialties finished the slipform paving portion of the All-American Canal in April 2008. The company could finally add another distinction to their work resume... canal paving.

“Of course, there is a sense of relief now that the slipforming is all done, but there is also a sense of accomplishment, and that’s a good thing,” Jim Coffman said. “A big success of these types of stories is that the industry worked together to accomplish something that an owner needed. There hasn’t been major canal paving, to a large degree, in the United States in the last 20 years. This project created a need and the industry worked together to supply an end product that was very well suited for what the owner wanted. That’s what it’s supposed to be about.”

“This was a partnership between Coffman Specialties and GOMACO in every sense of the word,” Homan said. “They had expertise and we had expertise. We could sit down together, bounce ideas off each other and work together to develop this equipment. My hat is off to Coffman and his crew. They utilized the equipment to the max and slipped a good, quality product.”

The hundreds of hours spent in meetings, teleconferences, design and fabrication, testing and assembly paid off. The canal lining and the equipment used to accomplish the task was a success. In fact it was so successful, that Coffman Specialties is already bidding on another canal project in Southern California. It has different specifications than the All-American, but their equipment was built to be versatile, and they should have no problems accommodating it to the new set of requirements.

“We’re looking forward to the next one,” Jim Coffman said. “I would say that my expectations for this equipment were surpassed.

“GOMACO has grown to a point where they can take on a project like this. They have the expertise, as well as the manpower. It just shows the growth of the company and the tremendous capacity the company has. We had to design, we, meaning the people at GOMACO and Coffman Specialties, a machine that would work. And it did. It worked because of the tremendous commitment that GOMACO made to it, and the commitment their people made to it, particularly Jim Homan. They put their heart and soul into it, especially Jim, and that’s what made the thing a success.”

 

 

All American Canal

Old next to the new... The new concrete lined section of the All-American Canal runs along side of the existing canal before the water is diverted into the newly lined canal.

 

All American Canal

Coffman Specialties had approximately 50 workers involved with the canal project on any given day. The paving crew working with the GOMACO equipment achieved some outstanding production and quality figures. They took a moment to celebrate and pose for a photo after finishing the paving of Reach Two at the end of February 2008.

 

 

 

 

GOMACO World Index

 

The All-American Canal In GOMACO World Vol. 36, No. 2
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