A little over a year ago, I watched as a yellow John Deere 650G LGP dozer zoomed and pivoted, inches from my living room window, and demolished a decaying adjacent sunroom. Our talented excavator then dug a new foundation next to our home for what would become a walkout basement. My husband and I decided to remodel our modest ranch house, built into the hills of the northern Kettle Moraine area in Wisconsin, shortly before the pandemic shutdowns of March 2020. As you all know, the project that ensued inevitably provided us with comprehensive educations on the Murphy’s laws of construction supply chains and labor markets. Most fun, it bolstered my knowledge of construction equipment of all types—dozers, excavators and graders.
We paced the project out over the year, laying luxury vinyl plank flooring between managing our family’s organic mushroom farm. Aside from an outdoor composting wharf, the farm is an indoor operation. We own two skid steers, which possess a versatility and agility that most farm equipment cannot achieve, as well as heated cabs for those frigid outdoor composting days. Yale ERP forklift units, a state-of-the-art growing tray filler, and a specialized compost turner round out the farm’s equipment fleet.
Between work and housework, I jotted notes about our experience with remodeling and construction, fodder for what I thought would be a home design blog. In previous roles, I wrote blog posts about the possibility of automated forklifts changing the warehousing industry, protecting workers from the more dangerous parts of their jobs. A background in hard news, service journalism, marketing, creative writing and internal communications means I’m comfortable editing and writing longform features, short news, profiles of industry leaders, interviews, video, podcasts and even poetry.
In spring 2022, we moved back into our home after six months of the gut remodel process. AC Business Media began its search for a new Editor-in-Chief of Equipment Today around that time, and the post piqued my interest. Perhaps I had a use for the gray matter I accrued on dozers and graders after all.
Today, I am delighted to take on the role of Equipment Today Editor-in-Chief. Having written and edited everything from B2B magazines to personal essays to press releases in multiple markets, including media, manufacturing, supply chain and logistics, agriculture and food processing and automotive parts, I’m honored to serve the construction contractor industry through this industry-leading media brand.
Along with a new editor, you’ll find some additional changes in this issue of Equipment Today. A brilliant, subtle redesign standardizes the magazine’s format across the AC Business Media brands and emphasizes the content our readership wants. Scannable QR codes at the bottom of the Table of Contents page will lead you to Web Exclusive content on the ForConstructionPros.com site. The recent revamp of our Contractors’ Top New Products Award gives contractors a stronger voice to tout and shout out their preferred new equipment. The AC Business Media team’s fresh approach to change but deep affinity for print publications instantly made me feel at home, and we hope you’ll feel at home among these pages, too.
I’m looking forward to crafting features on the best equipment for the job, from building malls to highways to public libraries. What are your most urgent concerns regarding safety, compliance, security, and sustainability? Which are the most exciting areas of growth in your business? Are you interested in reading more about telematics or gaining knowledge on workforce development? Most importantly, how can I help you find the best equipment and resources for your operation? I look forward to speaking with connections in the industry, maintaining and strengthening the groundwork laid before me. Let’s build together.
