The Equalizer
Sabine District Transportation Club
Member of Traffic Clubs International
Please keep our troops and their families in your thoughts and prayers.
Volume 09 Issue 09, September 2009 SDTC, PO Box 20103, Beaumont, TX 77720
October13, 2009
Fall Golf Outing - 1 pm Tee Time
Brentwood Country Club
The Rules:
Tee Time is 1pm
4-man scramble
Hamburger dinner following the outing at the Brentwood!
Great prizes! Great fun! Great food!
Any questions regarding this event, please feel free to contact our golf chairman, Bubba Metz at 299-0301
Reservation Form for Golf Outing and Dinner, October 13, 2009
Please make reservations for _________golfers at $65/golfer
includes green fees, cart rental, beverages (while on the course) and
dinner that evening following the outing.
Check is attached (___) Bill me (___) Will pay at the door (___)
Signed_________________________
Date _________________
Firm___________________________
Phone________________
Address_______________________
Clip and mail to SDTC, PO Box 20103, Beaumont, TX. 77720,
fax (409) 842-5154 or call Bubba Metz 299-0301 or Sherry Eckerle (409) 791-3259.
You can also e-mail your reservations to: Sherry.Eckerle@sbcglobal.net
No cancellations will be accepted after noon on Friday, October 9, 2009.
How’s our area doing? Just ask Jim Rich!
If you missed our September luncheon you missed a really great update on how our area is faring during the trying economic times for our country.
Jim had just returned for a vacation in Hawaii where they are 100% dependent on transportation. In October 2008 there were more jobs than skilled people. In October 2009 it looks a lot different some due to: Global recession, different agenda in Washington and the uncertainty in the future.
After Hurricane Ike, our local industries suffered. The cost to get Exxon Mobil back up and running is estimated at ½ billion dollars. Most of the manufacturing plants in our area are still spending large dollar amount to get back up and running. However, Jim stated that there is still over 200 million coming into our area from Ike.
Some of the projects that were started pre-Ike that are now back on track are: the 7 billion dollar expansion at Motiva, the 2 billion dollar expansion at Total and the Golden Pass LNG project. The Valero expansion project was postponed.
There is still a lot of confidence that the Eastman Chemical project will go forward, but they are unsure of an exact kick off date for this 1.6 billion dollar project. Between the Eastman Chemical project and their partners, there is an expectation of 2000 additional jobs to the area other than those that Eastman would provide.
As an area we need to focus on:
. Lamar University-new energy research
. Deepening the ship channel – in our history, every 50 years it is deepened to keep up with the demands of that industry & it is time to do it again to keep more ships coming to our area
. The Panama Canal project will open the gateway for more ships going to Asia which will impact our Gulf Coast Ports
. New Normal for Quality of life changes – more government will now be in our personal lives
Our area is the Energy capital and the World will always need energy.
Try out this web site for additional economic trends in the area:
Many thanks to Jim for bringing us up-to-date!
Web Site Update: To reach the web site from the Internet: http://www.txsdtc.org To retrieve the Equalizer from the server: http://www.txsdtc.org/equalizer/septembe2009/ or from the web side: txsdtc.org
If you do not have an e-mail address or simply wish to continue to have the Equalizer mailed to you, let our secretary know.
Be sure to visit our sponsors listed both in the Equalizer and on the Web Site…
Board Meeting Announcements:
There will not be a Board of Director’s meeting in October – see you in November!
Upcoming Events
October 13, 2009 golf outing at Brentwood Country Club
November 10, 2009 luncheon at the Cattle Company-guest speaker Deral Segler
December 8, 2009 Christmas Party at 6:00 pm Cattle Company
January 12, 2009 - luncheon at the Cattle Company – guest speaker
February 9, 2009- 6 pm BBQ at Rich Courville’s
TCI Annual Convention
Chattanooga, TN
September 17-19, 2009
C-Host: Chattanooga Transportation Club
& Northwest Georgia Transportation Club
Many great events are planned this year including a Golf Tournament and Scholarship Luau.
The cost of the convention is $350. You can register on line by clicking on the link from the TCI website or see your secretary for the convention brochure for more information.
Should you have any questions and would like to attend this conference, please contact Sherry Eckerle at (409) 791-3259.
TCI Website
Have you visited the TCI Website lately?
The web address is:
www.transportationclubs international.com
New traffic and criminal laws went into effect on September 1, 2009.
These new changes include:
Seatbelt requirements Driving with suspended license
Child passenger safety seats Driving without insurance
Wireless communication device Concealed handgun
DWI with child passenger Driving skills exam
New Texas resident requirements Motorcycle operator training course
Helmet exemption sticker-insurance requirement
You need to be knowledgeable in the changes and the effect they have on our businesses and well as personally. This is your chance to hear it from an expert!
Cowboy’s new stadium – talk of the season!
The Facts:
� The Cowboys Stadium site covers 73 total acres; the overall site encompasses 140 total
acres
� The stadium is 3 million square feet containing 104 cubic feet of volume
� Stadium length – 900 feet from one end zone retractable wall to the opposite end zone
retractable wall
Exterior Façade:
� Canted 800-foot glass wall exterior
− slopes at 14-degree angle
− 86-foot-high glazing (glass) system
• Lens (clerestory)
− 33 feet at highest point with overall length of 904 feet
• Arches soar 292 feet above playing field
− Each boxed arch is 17 feet wide and 35 feet deep
− Each arch weighs 3,255 tons
− Each arch spans quarter-mile in length
−Top of steel at the highpoint of the main arched trusses is 292 feet above the playing
field.
• Retractable end zone doors
− The 180-foot-wide by 120-foot-high operable glass doors, located at each end of the
stadium, are the largest operable glass doors in the world
− Five 38-foot panels take 18 minutes to open or close
• Roof and Roof Structure
− At 660,800 square feet, the stadium’s roof is one of the largest domed sports
structures in the world
− Soaring 292 feet above the playing field, the two monumental arches support the
retractable roof – the world’s longest single-span roof structure
− Encompasses 104 million cubic feet of volume
− Opening 410 feet long by 256 feet wide encompassing 105,000 square feet
− Each panel weighs 1.68 million pounds
− The travel distance of each panel is 215 feet
− Consists of 14,100 tons of structural steel (which is equivalent to the weight of 92
Boeing 777s)
−Opens or closes in 12 minutes
−Materials:
− non-operable pieces - steel with PVC membrane
− operable pieces – Teflon coated fiberglass fabric
− The arch truss is fabricated from special high-strength grade 65 steel imported from
Luxembourg
− The structural steel’s wide flange sizes are up to W14x730 (14 inches in depth and
730 lbs. per foot)- the heaviest shape rolled in the world
− Number of bolts in arch spans: 50,000
− Total length of welding in arch spans: 165,000 feet
− Gallons of primer paint: 2,000
− Gallons of finish paint: 2,000
− The final keystone piece of the arch truss planar section is 56 feet long and weighs
110,000 pounds
Center-Hung Video Board Fact Sheet
� Produced by Mitsubishi Electric Diamond Vision™, each of the four sides of the
center-hung LED display is the world’s largest: 72’ high by 160’ wide equaling
11,520 square feet per side or 23,040 square feet of sideline displays. It would
take 4,920 52” flat panel TVs to equal the size.
� Each side consists of the first true 1080 HD display in an NFL stadium- 1080 true
pixels in height at 20mm spacing and capable of displaying HDTV at 1920 x 1080
[16:9] resolution.
� Each display contains over 10.5 million Light Emitting Diodes’ (LED’s) using
Mitsubishi’s 10mm quad pixel pattern technology. The LED’s are contained
within 5,168 individual lighting units or panels per side or 10,336 total. The video
board uses 30 million light bulbs.
� The video board weighs 1.2 million pounds and the video screens span 25,670
square feet. The overall weight of the video board structure is more than 3.5
percent of the total roof weight.
� To hold the video board in place, a 72-foot tall steel structure was created that
contains a 10-level network of catwalks. Three-inch diameter steel cables grip
each end of the video board and are tethered to the stadium’s large steel box truss
arches. The center-hung structure is also designed to support a 90,000 pound
basketball arena style scoreboard hung from below when needed for other
events.
� The only access to the video board is via one of two motorized platforms. The
motorized platforms stop at Levels 1 through 9. Level 10 is the top of the
scoreboard and holds the backlit Cowboys star. These platforms move at a rate
of 30 feet per minute. They are operated from the field when there is nobody in
the board. They are also operable from within the cages themselves when
getting down from the board.
� Mitsubishi Diamond Vision™ also supplied four, 280 square-foot screens on the
lower concourse; an upper level fascia (ribbon) display measuring four feet high
by nearly 2,000 linear feet; and two Dallas Cowboys Ring of Honor displays
totaling more than 2,900 square feet. In addition, Mitsubishi provided a fully
integrated scoring system, content management and playback system, game
timers, delay of game clocks, locker room clocks and ticket window displays.