Page 3 - Arkansas 811

Publisher’s Perspective
The 811 Magazine in Arkansas provides stakeholders with a unique opportunity to share their perspectives on a statewide and/or a regional stage. We not only welcome your ideas and articles, but we encourage you to share them with us and other damage prevention professionals interested in keeping Arkansas a safer place to live and work. You can do that through this publication.
We’ve worked in many states across the country since 2007 and we’ve
learned that it is not necessary to reinvent the wheel when it comes to
creating safer working environments. These kinds of environments
are much more than just an enforcement document. Time will tell if
the document works but first and foremost, public safety and the protection of underground utilities is about mutual trust and respect. Learning to respect yellow paint or red paint becomes easier when we learn to respect all paint.
We believe that working together is made possible by a desire to understand the other person’s perspective and being willing to discuss differences honestly and with mutual respect for those differences. While we all have a common goal of working safely there are specific issues that must be considered before we can arrive at common solutions. The municipalities will have different perspectives than the excavators working in their cities. The contract locators will have perspectives that do not align with the utility’s standard operating procedures.
However, the diversity of needs and ideas should make a stronger partnership rather than create an atmosphere of division. We must be willing to work together to achieve the higher and common goal of damage prevention.
If you have a story you want to share, just give us a call. This publication is committed to keeping all stakeholders informed about the impending directives on the national, regional and local levels.
If you want to become part of the 811 Magazine family, call me at 501-269-1000, or go to www. arkansas.811magazines.com and click on subscriptions. All magazines are mailed quarterly at no cost to U.S. addresses only. Let’s get stronger together!
Remember, call 811 before you dig and then dig safely!
Roger Cox President ACTS Now, Inc.
2024, Issue 1
Arkansas 811 Magazine • 1