SUMMARY OF QUESTIONS AND RESPONSES (cont.)

ERDC TN-DOER-T4

December 2001

was Can a contractor meet target goals based on both mass removal and concentration? He answered

it "absolutely yes" and alluded to being better able to do so with the completion of each new project.

But, in terms of the physical plan of excavating to a certain depth, he emphasized the need to deal

with the residual question and the origin of the final layer of material.

Session Moderator: Does dredge operator performance play a significant role in meeting perform-

ance criteria for environmental dredging projects? If so, is special operator training required for

these types of projects?

Panel Response: The panel unanimously answered yes for obvious reasons. One, it is critical to

use competent people because your project result is only as good as your weakest laborer. As an

example of one dredging contractor's commitment to using qualified operators on the Fox River

job, the RFP for the job specifically stated that during the qualifying interview they would also

interview the dredge operator. One of the four vendors did not agree to this requirement and was

unable to provide a creditable dredge operator. So, this contractor was excluded from bidding on

the project for that reason even though the firm furnished an attractive bid package.

Session Moderator: Along the lines of answering that question, is some special training needed

for sensitive type dredging projects? For example, is operator certification desired and are there

places for this type of training? Are there schools or other means of dredge operator training?

Panel Response: The response was that in addition to having trained operators, there was a need

to demonstrate the means to train the dredge operators. One panel member stated that they were

doing over one billion dollars worth of dredging around the world. So, they maintained facilities

and simulators to train their operators to accomplish exactly what was needed and expected of them

based on what they envisioned would be encountered on a particular project. He stated that "you

must put the operators in conditions that are similar to those anticipated and see how they perform.

Then you pick the best qualified from that group to report to the jobsite." All of the panel members

concluded that training is extremely important and should not be underestimated.

Session Moderator: So you actually prequalify the operators before they go on the jobsite? Can

they also do some OJT, on-the-job training? How about new operators and what type of supervision

do they receive? Are they being mentored while on the job?

Panel Response: The key response was that there would not be any OJT on a sensitive project and

especially not on an environmental dredging project.

Session Moderator: I guess maybe that this is a lesson learned, isn't it? We need to define (specify)

in our dredging contracts the level of operator training needed for environmental dredging projects.

Panel Response: A comment was made to the effect that dredging contractors are not going to

put a brother-in-law who operates a backhoe part time out there on the dredge.

One panel member added that during the operator interviews, each operator was questioned

extensively. He was asked questions such as "How are you going to deal with a certain situation?"

Although each operator gave different answers, it was evident from the answers how much