Breaking Ground - A CheckProof Podcast

NSSGA's Michele Stanley on infrastructure policy, permitting reform, workforce development, and why aggregates deserve a seat at every table.

Chapters:

0:00 2 billion tons a year

0:43 Welcome & guest intro

2:32 What NSSGA does

5:39 Hill Day and why it matters

10:34 The Surface Transportation Bill

13:42 The Highway Trust Fund

17:23 Permitting reform

21:32 Workforce crisis

33:26 Sustainability and reclamation

37:44 Safety culture

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Paul Nicholls, CEO and co-founder of Recycle It Global joins Breaking Ground to speak about what circularity actually looks like on the ground - from processing complex waste streams into certified aggregate, to building a UK consolidation platform one acquisition at a time.

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Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/breaking-ground-a-checkproof-podcast/id1822236486

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Step inside on of the world's biggest construction materials shows.

CheckProof's team reports from the ground and covers the coolest machines, noteworthy stage speakers and the favorite moment of the week.

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Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/breaking-ground-a-checkproof-podcast/id1822236486

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In this episode, Guy Woodford shares an editor’s view of what’s changing across aggregates and construction materials - from electrification and automation to AI and circularity.

Chapters:

1️⃣ 0:00 — Electric Fleets & The Road Ahead

2️⃣ 2:30 — A $400 Billion Industry

3️⃣ 3:02 — Digitalisation, Mining & Tech Transfer

4️⃣ 4:06 — Inside China’s “Green Quarry”

5️⃣ 9:31 — Green Products as a Commercial Lever

6️⃣ 13:02 — Why Digital Adoption Spreads (FOMO Effect)

7️⃣ 20:01 — The Workforce of Tomorrow

8️⃣ 27:15 — Five Years From Now

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4lELHDWupmmPCUDhRBuUpT?si=ZcFCiFvbQm6wau8xabyqhA&nd=1&dlsi=76a3723e36a148ad

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INFORM's Justin Newell speaks of the importance of Hybrid AI - Ethical AI complemented by human expertise which will ensure safer, more resilient critical operations.

⏱ CHAPTERS:

0:00 - AI That Actually Moves the Needle

2:04 - The Truth About “New” AI

8:09 - “The Robots Are Coming”… Are They?

10:23 - AI in Aggregates: 300 Trucks/Day?!

17:04 - Hybrid AI: Humans + Machines

23:12 - Process AI Is the Next Wave

28:10 - Lessons From Airports + Ports

31:22 - The AI Playbook for Leaders

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Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/breaking-ground-a-checkproof-podcast/id1822236486

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Tom O'Boyle, Project and Engineering Manager at Heidelberg Materials, shares insights on using data to find hidden downtime, fostering team collaboration, and the importance of design in reliability.

⏱ CHAPTERS:

01:49 - Reliable Plant Is Safe

04:18 - Reliability Starts at Design

08:28 - Balancing Production and Maintenance

20:42 - Fundamentals of Maintenance Engineering

32:05 - Avoid Project Scope Drift

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Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/breaking-ground-a-checkproof-podcast/id1822236486

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Futurist Ant Morse discusses the fundamental change driven by Generative AI. The major near-term prediction is AI assistants. These systems, using glass technology, will boost safety, accessibility, and predictive maintenance in heavy industry.

⏱ CHAPTERS:

01:00 - Intro: From Art History to Mining

02:52 - People Over Compliance

04:05 - OSHA/MSHA: The Training Scope

05:43 - The Danger of Complacency

08:25 - Cultivating Team Vulnerability

10:00 - Lessons from a Catastrophic Crane Failure

12:10 - New Crane Policy: Third-Party Checks

14:43 - Using Cameras and Sensors (AI)

17:16 - Data Analytics: The Wednesday Spike

20:56 - Real-Time Photo Documentation

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4lELHDWupmmPCUDhRBuUpT?si=ZcFCiFvbQm6wau8xabyqhA&nd=1&dlsi=76a3723e36a148ad

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/breaking-ground-a-checkproof-podcast/id1822236486

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In this episode of Breaking Ground, Katie Woodhall, Safety Director at The Beaver Companies, shares how real-world experience and leadership on the ground shape stronger safety cultures. She reflects on how an older company incident redefined the organization’s approach to safety and offers practical insights on keeping teams accountable, aware, and engaged every day. She also shares one of her most practical tips on getting to the root cause of an incident.

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4lELHDWupmmPCUDhRBuUpT?si=ZcFCiFvbQm6wau8xabyqhA&nd=1&dlsi=76a3723e36a148ad

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/breaking-ground-a-checkproof-podcast/id1822236486

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Tim Copping, Head of Operational Technology at Breeden Group, joins us to discuss how technology is reshaping operations in the construction materials industry. We cover the role of AI in delivering staff safety gains, why digital projects must be sustained and evolve with the business, and why retiring outdated solutions should be seen as progress rather than failure. Tim also shares the one task he would most like to automate, and it’s likely one you will relate to.

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4lELHDWupmmPCUDhRBuUpT?si=ZcFCiFvbQm6wau8xabyqhA&nd=1&dlsi=76a3723e36a148ad

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/breaking-ground-a-checkproof-podcast/id1822236486

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Mårten Sohlman, Managing Director of SBMI, joins us for a conversation about the role of Sweden’s Aggregates Producers Association for the aggregates industry. We discuss SBMI’s work in policy and advocacy, the push for circular materials, the updated Climate Roadmap, and why it’s crucial to raise public and political awareness of the industry’s value.

Chapters:

00:20 – Intro

01:13 – SBMI's core mission

01:52 – The role of aggregates in society

04:14 – The climate roadmap

06:36 – Circular economy

10:37 – SBMI & regulatory advocacy

13:15 – Waste classification

14:23 – The cement crisis

17:12 – Attracting the new workforce

20:08 – SBMI's code of conduct

21:30 – Raising the industry's profile

24:19 – Closing question

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4lELHDWupmmPCUDhRBuUpT?si=ZcFCiFvbQm6wau8xabyqhA&nd=1&dlsi=76a3723e36a148ad

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/breaking-ground-a-checkproof-podcast/id1822236486

Visit our website: checkproof.com

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.