What goes through your mind when you get an invitation to bid on an out-of-state project? What if it is one of the largest projects your company has ever done? “We went from excitement, to worry and then back to excitement. We were proud and determined, full of optimism, and then became concerned. All that and more…just within the first fifteen minutes!” says Mark Letourneau, President and Director of Operations of the Letourneau Products Manufacturing Corporation, a second generation land clearing contractor based in Freetown, Massachusetts.

Mark went on to explain that this project was part of the Millennium Pipeline: a 182 mile, 30” diameter underground pipe that transports natural gas from Canada into New York and New Jersey. “We were invited by U.S. Pipeline, Inc., based out of Houston, Texas to bid on the first stage, clearing and grubbing, so that U.S. Pipeline crews could do their job.”

Of course the question begs to be asked - Your company is based in the New England area, how did you get an invitation to bid on a project of this scale so far from home? Mark explains that Letourneau Products has done many clearing and grubbing projects for other pipeline companies, and had established a reputation for delivering quality work on time and on budget. He comments, “I suppose the lesson to be learned is that there is no such thing as a small job; you’re building a name for yourself regardless of the size of what you’re working on so you better pay attention to what you are doing at all times! Just being part of the group invited to bid made us feel proud!”

From the time they were invited to bid, things started moving pretty fast for Letourneau Products. “In February we heard that we were awarded the project. In March we were finding places for our crew to live and renting equipment!” What happened in between? “We believe that planning is pretty much always what makes the difference between success and failure, but for a job as complex and challenging as this one, planning was even more important!” Mark answers.

According to Mark, he and his partners, his brother Gary and cousin Bob Letourneau, are used to working as a team, “We each focus on doing what we do best and we also know how to collaborate.” The family as a group devised the process. “We put our heads together to consider what each step would require and the best way to handle it,” explains Mark. Then they turned to Milton CAT who provided the right tools for them to accomplish their plan.

Why Milton CAT? Mark’s answer is that, “They are the only ones who can support this type of job with the combination of forestry and excavation equipment, the service and parts back-up, and the options from CAT Financial.” Mark also goes on to add that turning to Milton CAT was a natural move as they have supported the Letourneau family since Pamphile and Real Letourneau founded the company 50 years ago. “There is something to be said when you can count on the type of relationship with a company that will help and support you in accomplishing such an important job.”

Of course, purchasing the equipment doesn’t always make sense, and that’s again where the Letourneaus appreciated the different options they had to choose from – “It’s one of the most overused expressions, but honestly, being able to partner with your supplier makes a huge difference. You realize they are in business to make money just like you are, but they are also trying to do what’s best for you.” Buying, leasing and renting options were considered, and for each machine the decision was carefully discussed.

Approximately 80% of the equipment Letourneau bought or rented was CAT; and even though some of their equipment came from other manufacturers, they were able to finance almost everything they needed through CAT Financial.

The order of events

The Millennium Pipeline will primarily follow existing utility easements, in many areas simply replacing older Columbia Gas pipelines to help deliver much needed new supplies of natural gas to New York and the Northeastern United States.

According to the Letourneaus, the overall pipeline installation sequence goes like this. After the clearing and grubbing team removes brush, trees and stumps, erosion control devices are installed. The right-of-way (R.O.W.) is graded, and then topsoil is separated from subsoil. Blasting rock as needed comes next, and excavators do the trenching.

The pipe, delivered to the R.O.W. in segments, is welded together, tested and then placed in the trench. The trench is backfilled, topsoil is replaced, any debris is removed and then the R.O.W is re-graded and seeded. After the pipeline is pressure-tested, gas begins to flow.

Before any part of the installation process can begin, however, required permits and approvals needed to be secured. Millennium Pipeline received a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Permits and approvals were also received from the US Army Corps. of Engineers, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, US Fish and Wildlife and New York State Historic Preservation Office. The New York Public Service Commission provides pipeline safety oversight under authority from the US Department of Transportation, Office of Pipeline Safety.

Given the rough terrain, the fact that they are working under power lines and how close the machines are to each other, safety is a number one priority for the Letourneau crew. “We have daily tailgate safety meetings and a weekly safety meeting with the contractor as well as a comprehensive health and safety program in place, that’s how serious we are about the safety of our employees and of those with whom they come into contact. During our daily tailgate safety meetings, we cover which areas of our operation we need to pay special attention to that day, and where everyone will be working, in case someone needs help,” states Bob Letourneau.

After easements were negotiated on the affected properties, surveyors marked the right-of-way for the clearing crew to start their work. Mark goes on to say, “Besides health and safety, two of U.S. Pipeline’s main concerns were staying on the R.O.W. and being protective of the wetlands and water bodies.” Staying within the R.O.W. was not always an easy requirement to meet, given the rough terrain and the high number of unpredicted and surprising environmental issues.

Now we’re talking!

The clearing work was divided into five spreads, and Letourneau Products won the bid to implement spreads one and two. “We were in charge of clearing the land from Corning to Binghamton, and then from Binghamton to Hancock,” explains Mark. Mark also went on to state that although the two spreads were separate jobs, they looked at it as one large project with everyone giving 100% to make both spreads run smoothly and supplying whatever support was needed for both, often sending equipment and/or personnel between the two spreads.

Being the first crew on the site means you have to deal with some serious pressure. “Nobody else can get started on their job until and unless we have finished our portion,” explains Bob Letourneau, “some days you can literally feel the movement of the D-8’s and 345’s of the grading crew right on your heels.” According to Mark, the ideal cushion to be left between completion of the land clearing and the moment the grading equipment gets to the site is one week, but it often got down to a much smaller buffer, sometimes hours!

There were other challenges. “In theory, the fact that the terrain was not all virgin land, since the pipeline runs parallel to an old gas line and under existing power lines, should have made things easier. In fact, that added a problem,” explains Bob, who points up and says, “There goes the power to the city of New York! It gets pretty tight here, but if one of our machines knocks down the line, we’re going to have some serious issues!”  

Mark Letourneau says that as tough as the terrain is, and he actually describes it as “brutal,” they were prepared for it. One example is the ATV in the back of his pickup truck – “I cannot drive the truck up and down the line, it wouldn’t last a week!” says Mark, who tells that the people in the region joke about the fact that “they grow rocks” in this area of New York.

How about the timeframe? The schedule is extremely challenging, as Bob puts it – “There are approximately 50 U.S. Pipeline machines right behind us; if you so much as burp, you bring everyone to a stop.” But they still managed to meet the timetable, in the worst case getting down to an uncomfortable close time gap but staying within the parameters.

Maintaining uptime is a major concern for the clearing company. “As you can imagine, we have absolutely no room for error. We cannot be down. Period.” Bob Letourneau is very clear here. That’s an ambitious goal though, and it can only become a reality if you can count on dedicated service. What’s the Letourneau’s assessment of the support they received? With the number of machines, the steep and rough terrain, and the project time frame, they have referred to CAT’s involvement in this project as “the Super Bowl of service”. Milton CAT set the groundwork long before the work started by scheduling coordination meetings with the Letourneaus. The fact that there was a Milton CAT service technician on site full-time speaks volumes about the demands of the project. The Letourneau team had Joe Perry, a Milton CAT technician out of the Binghamton location, on their payroll, and they certainly kept him busy.

Mark Letourneau compares a service department with the Emergency Room at your area hospital. “You’d rather not know, first hand, that your local hospital has an excellent Emergency Room, but if you do need them, it sure makes a difference that they are first rate. The same is true with a service department.”

The President of Letourneau Products and his partners agree, “We did have some new machine break-in issues, but Milton CAT was always there, working all night sometimes so that a machine we needed the next morning would be ready – whatever it took.” Gary Letourneau is blunt, “Even though CAT is the best, it can be fallible, but the Milton CAT service department picks up from there and they make up whatever the difference is.”

Lessons learned?

This is how the Letourneau partners summarize their experience: Plan, plan, plan. Patience is crucial and needs to be balanced with risk-taking! And another important lesson learned – it all comes back to people.

In Mark Letorneau’s words, “From the owner to the individual employees on both spreads, U.S. Pipeline was a first class company to work for,” and he continues, “And, the support of the people at Continental Biomass Industries, Inc., Morbark of New England, TimberPro, Milton CAT and CAT Financial was crucial; but our biggest appreciation goes to our own employees; they gave their all – the old ones who spent a long time away from their homes and families, and the new ones, who’ve proven themselves to be key members of the team.”