It is with great sadness that we inform you of the passing of long-time CRA member Tom Wittmer on March 19, 2020. Tom was the owner of Lewis Rents. As of now no service is planned, but there will be a Celebration of Life service after the coronavirus problems cease. We will let you know when we have more information. Tom will be missed.

 

 

 

CRA’ s Service Valued Provider EPIC is providing content regarding COVID-19 that is updated every few days at epicbrokers.com/coronavirus. This content is free and accessible to everyone. EPIC has deliverables and communication pieces that employers can provide for their employees, including downloadable posters, flyers and self-mailers, all of which can be personalized with a rental company’s logo. There are also a lot of useful articles on the site, which are constantly updated and current.

This information is provided by Kevin Gern, ARA Director of Safety, to serve as guidance in response to questions about risk reduction for exposure to COVID-19. Understandably, this process is not 100% protection as that can only be achieved by 100% avoidance of the virus. In our daily lives and businesses, it would be very difficult to avoid contact with others or with items that others have touched, potentially leaving traces of the virus behind ready to be picked up by the next person that comes in contact with it. This discussion came up as members of ARA were questioning how they should reduce risk or exposure to themselves and their employees when customers return rented equipment or call for tents to be removed from sites. For the explanation of how we can reduce risk in layers, Kevin uses the example of a tent that has been rented to a medical testing facility that is doing drive through COVID-19 testing.

Is being hit by a car while crossing the street to buy cigarettes covered by workers' compensation? Yes, if the injured worker/pedestrian was on a break. When a woman met her mother in another area to obtain some feminine hygiene products from her and was injured getting there, was that a workers' compensation injury? Yes again. The reason these instances were covered under workers' compensation is because they fall under the doctrine of personal comfort. Ordinarily an injury must occur in the course of employment and be related to the job (arise out of the performance of one’s duties). But there is an exception. An employee is allowed to attend to their own “personal comfort” when on a break or to use the restroom. “Employees who, within the time and space limits of their employment, engage in acts which minister to personal comfort do not thereby leave the course of employment, unless the … method chosen is so unusual and unreasonable that the conduct cannot be considered an incident of the employment. – Larsen’s Workers Compensation Law (chapter 21, section 5-5).

CRA Members receive exceptional pricing on diesel and gas with Robinson Oil’s wholesale pricing. The retail versus their CTTA wholesale pricing offers current savings from $.25 to $.60 per gallon off of posted retail throughout California and the five western states. Additionally, Robinson offers $.02 to $.06 per gallon discount depending on your volume. Contact at dbiggers@roccf.com or (916) 626-2210.

The Makinex 23kW 480V Portable Generator has been named the “Most Innovative Product of 2020” by Hanley Wood. The MIP award is part of the annual World of Concrete trade show in Las Vegas, Nevada. The 23kW Generator was chosen as the top product within the category of general construction tools and equipment! Makinex’s newest generator, the dual-phase 23kW 480V, brings the most power yet to their portable generator range. The unique alternator configuration which the generator has powers 120V and 480V simultaneously with no loss on either circuit. It can take 23kW from the 3 phase and 3kW from the single-phase at the same time without affecting each other (no power or frequency dips). The power is generated in a single alternator but from separate auxiliary copper windings. The generator is only 36”x25”x36”, making it the smallest dual-phase 23kw 480V generator on the market!

MBW Inc. is pleased to announce the appointment of Danny Zientek as its newest Regional Sales Manager. Danny’s territory covers the Northeast including Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut and New York. He also covers Minnesota, North Dakota and Arizona. Danny comes to MBW with a strong background in outside sales to the mining industry and is comfortable working on equipment. Danny’s time in the U.S. Army has proven that he can take ownership of his responsibilities and get the job done. He will be working directly with the following manufacturers rep groups; CPS, AMVAL, East Coast Sales and Meridian Sales. MBW believes that Danny’s experience has proven to be especially well-suited for the company’s culture and will provide excellent professionalism to MBW’s strong customer base.

All the lenders listed in the attached file (click on "Learn more...") have signed agreements with the U.S. Small Business Administration and are able to make SBA guaranteed loans. The lenders listed have made SBA loans to businesses in the counties of Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, Glenn, El Dorado, Lassen, Modoc, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Sutter, Tehema, Trinity, Yolo, and Yuba during SBA's 2018/2019 fiscal year.

 

Thank you to everyone who took time to participate in our surveys. CRA uses the information we gather to better serve you. If you have an idea for a survey for CRA members, please send your request to CRA at Info@CalRental.org. This month, we asked members about the impact COVID-19 has had on their businesses.

Patricia Sarris from A Party Center in San Rafael, CA is the winner of the April Survey Raffle. Congratulations, Patricia!