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Contractual Lien Waivers Become
Illegal in Tennessee
Construction contractors and subcontractors
no longer can be contractually required to relinquish their mechanic's lien rights.
After
American Subcontractors Association members in Tennessee called for reform, Gov.
Phil Bredesen (D) signed H.B. 743, amending Section 66-11-124 of the Tennessee
Code to state that "Any contract provision that purports to waive any right
of lien under this chapter is void and >> unenforceable as against the public
policy of this state."
"The importance of the legislation,"
said American Subcontractors Association of Middle Tennessee (ASMAT) Government
Relations Chairman Robert E. Lee, "is that, by state law, subcontractors
can't lose their rights to file mechanic's liens just by agreeing to take on work."
In
states that permit them, contractual lien waivers are contract provisions that
completely and permanently remove a contractor's or subcontractor's ability to
file a mechanic's lien, even if the client refuses to pay.
Where contractual
lien waivers are prohibited, contractors and subcontractors can still relinquish
their mechanic's lien rights, but not through a contract agreement.
AEM
elects new member The Association of Equipment Manufacturers recently
elected Cook Mayer Taylor of Memphis, Tenn., provider of industry financial services,
to membership in the international trade group.
AEM represents companies
that manufacture and market agriculture and construction-related equipment and
services.
Chattanooga Enterprise South Industrial Park
Certified in TVA Megasite Program
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) officials announced recently
that Enterprise South Industrial Park, a 1,600-acre-plus Chattanooga-Hamilton
County industrial site, is certified as a megasite, a large industrial property
suitable for major automotive manufacturing.
It is the first site in Tennessee
and the fourth in the Tennessee Valley to be certified as a megasite. Previously
certified sites include areas near Columbus, Miss.; Tupelo, Miss.; and Hopkinsville,
Ky.
The site is co-owned and co-developed by Hamilton County and Chattanooga
and is supported with marketing and infrastructure expertise from various partners
including state and federal officials, the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce
and TVA. The site was certified by McCallum Sweeney Consulting of Greenville,
S.C., an independent firm commissioned by TVA.
"Chattanooga's certified,
ready-for-development megasite gives the community and the Tennessee Valley a
huge advantage in recruiting new automotive manufacturing facilities and other
industries," said TVA Director Bill Baxter.
Working in partnership,
TVA's economic development staff, distributors of TVA power, and economic development
partners will market the site to automotive manufacturers seeking to locate facilities
in the Southeast.
TVA launched the megasite certification program in March
2004 in response to a growing need for large industrial properties appropriate
for automotive manufacturing facilities. TVA has learned that several major manufacturers
may locate additional automotive plants in the Southeast during the next decade.
Regional
heavy equipment theft discussed during Jackson summit The first in a series
of regional heavy equipment theft summits was held at the Mississippi Agriculture
and Forestry Museum in Jackson, Miss., in June.
The summit was hosted
by the Hinds County Sheriff's Office and the Commissioner of the Mississippi Department
of Agriculture & Commerce and sponsored by FBI-LEEDA and the National Equipment
Register (NER).
The free one-day regional summit included general sessions
on the equipment theft problem, equipment theft prevention and the latest in equipment
security technology.
Break-out classes provided law enforcement with instruction
in equipment identification techniques, including hands-on training, and equipment
owners with more in-depth theft prevention training.
New equipment security
technologies were demonstrated throughout the day.
Barnhart wins SC&RA award The Specialized Carriers & Rigging
Association (SC&RA) announced the winners of the Rigging Job of the Year Awards
during its Annual Conference in Phoenix, Ariz.
Barnhart of Memphis, Tenn.,
won in the category for jobs between $150,000 and $750,000. Barnhart's winning
entry involved the replacement of two lock gates for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
on the Black Warrior River in northern Alabama. The gates were 85 ft. tall, 65
ft. wide and 7 ft. thick, and weighed about 360 tons each.
The key to
the Barnhart solution was the 500-ton containerized hoist that traveled across
the lock on a wheeled trolley featuring a gripper system. The major structural
components consisted of two 8-ft.-deep, 150-ft. box girders placed atop runways
on either side of the lock, which also allowed for access to all of the hydraulic
components that are integral to the operation of the gates themselves.
In the end, the new system resembled a massive version of a bridge crane, which
enabled the gates to be handled in both the recessed and mitered positions.
Judges
assessed each entry based on safety (30 percent), innovation and ingenuity (30
percent), engineering and planning (30 percent) and limitations (10 percent).
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