The National Ready Mixed Concrete Association is recognizing 975 of the nearly 1,500 producer member plants entered into the 2019 Excellence in Safety Awards Program. The record number of plants spans Gold (918 recipients), Silver (five) and Bronze (52) categories defined by Occupational Safety and Health Administration and U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics incident rate (IR) thresholds.
Gold award recipients are plants reporting a rate of zero; Silver greater than zero but less than 1.95 (half the industry average IR); and, Bronze, greater than 1.95, less than 3.9 (industry average). The NRMCA Safety Task Group limits recognition to plants maintaining IR below the national average. Excellence in Safety is the group’s most popular awards program. Results reflect data producers submit to the combined Safety Contest and Safety Benchmarking Program, the latter a continuing source of best illness or injury prevention practices.
Separately, NRMCA Vice President, Fire Codes and Standards Shamim Rashid-Sumar has been appointed to a series of technical committees of the National Fire Protection Association, a Massachusetts-based organization devoted to minimizing personal, property and economic losses from fire, electrical and related hazards. She will serve as a principal member of technical committees focusing on building construction, fire protection features, residential occupancies, plus structures, construction and materials.
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The Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute has hired industry veteran Randy Wilson as its new director, Architectural Precast Systems. He will draw on precast concrete and construction experience to help PCI and its members work with the architectural community, educating designers and owners about precast concrete for building enclosures and other architectural components. Wilson notes that his immediate focus will include leading the effort to inform the design community about the advantages the new Architectural Plant Certification Program, launching in 2021; updating PCI’s architectural precast concrete manual; and, promoting the benefits of precast concrete solutions.
Wilson has been promoting, educating and marketing architectural precast concrete and thin masonry façade solutions to the architect and construction manager community throughout the United States and Canada for 30 years. He began his career in cost accounting and estimating at Thomas Concrete (now Coreslab Structures, OKLA) and spent 13 years in sales at Concrete Technology, Inc., now part of High Concrete Group. He was national sales manager for thin brick at Metrobrick; thin brick product manager for Meridian Brick; and, was principal of Select Thin Brick, a distributor. He has been a member of PCI’s Architectural Precast Committee since 1995 and was co-author of the “Architectural Precast Concrete, MNL-122 Third Edition.”
Due to safety and travel restrictions, the National Concrete Masonry Association is postponing its 2020 Midyear Meeting in Milwaukee until August 2021, but will leverage a user-friendly event platform to stage virtual general or networking sessions, forums and learning opportunities. Participants can customize their experience during the August 4-6 schedule to gain insight on the association; concrete block, segmental retaining wall and manufactured veneer stone; and, evolving business climate.
In addition to keynote and award presentations, online sessions will include the NCMA Town Hall Meeting; Market Segment and Family Business/Small Business Forums; and, Concrete Women Connect. Association members and staff are finalizing a complete schedule and will post updates at www.ncma.org/events/midyear. Midyear registration for members is waived; nonmembers can participate for a nominal $99 fee.
Citing concerns and uncertainties surrounding the pandemic, the Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute will delay this year’s Hardscape North America show, scheduled October 21-23 at the Kentucky Exposition Center, Louisville, until October 2021. Continuing an arrangement of recent years, 2021 Hardscape NA will co-locate with the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute-led GIE+EXPO, organizers of which recently affirmed commitment to staging a 2020 show.
“Because we cannot currently guarantee the experience our attendees and exhibitors have come to expect, our board has decided to postpone the in-person event for 2020 and set our sights on how we can best serve our audiences this year,” says ICPI Executive Director Charles McGrath. “We’ve already begun planning for an even bigger and greater HNA trade show and learning event alongside the GIE+EXPO in 2021.”
After a nearly four-month, pandemic-spurred hiatus, National Precast Concrete Association Plant Certification resumes this month, the Quality Assurance/Quality Control Committee modifying the program to allow for virtual and in-plant audits through the remainder of 2020. All annual renewal audits, regardless of method, will be unannounced and scored against the current NPCA Quality Control Manual for Plant Certification grading schedule.
The association will return to standard operating Plant Certification procedures unless otherwise recommended by the QA/QC Committee and approved by the NPCA Board. NPCA Chairman Jon Ohmes (Champion Precast) and QA/QC Committee Chairman Andrew Nashawaty (Scituate Concrete Products) outline program plans in a letter to all certified plants. Additional information can be obtained from NPCA Director of Quality Assurance Programs Phillip Cutler, 317/582-2420, [email protected], or by visiting www.precast.org/2020-plant-certification.
Separately, NPCA has rolled out for members in good standing a new logo, themed Precast Proud. NPCA retains ownership of all right, title and interest in and to the Mark and has the right to terminate any member’s use of the Mark at any time immediately upon notice. Moreover, the logo cannot be stenciled on any product, or stenciled or printed on any packaging, but is available for use without disclaimers on apparel, advertising material, stationery and business cards. Logo files can be obtained from NPCA’s Deborah Templeton, [email protected].
Due to local, state, and federal regulations, and to protect participant health and safety, the American Concrete Institute has announced a transition of the Concrete Convention, October 25-29 in Raleigh, N.C., from an in-person to 100 percent virtual event staged over similar dates.
Participants will collaborate on advancing concrete codes, specifications, and practices during hundreds of committee meetings. Technical and educational sessions will provide the latest concrete research, case studies, best practices, and the opportunity to earn Professional Development Hours. Top projects in the ACI Excellence in Concrete Construction Awards will be announced, and several virtual networking and special events will take place—building on the convention’s tradition as the world’s gathering place for advancing concrete. Additional convention details are being finalized and will be announced as they are confirmed. Registration has opened at www.ACIConvention.org, with new rates adjusted to reflect the change from the original live event format.
“The ACI Virtual Concrete Convention will enable the critical work of the Institute to continue moving forward,” says ACI Executive Vice President Ronald Burg, PE. “Additionally, this format provides the opportunity for much greater participation from students, professionals, and our global colleagues who may not have been planning to attend in person.”
Skokie, Ill.-based CTLGroup has appointed Tom Palansky as vice president of Business Development. He arrives with 30-plus years’ experience in sales, marketing, client development, operations, and project management, and will lead client retention initiatives while driving new client acquisitions. Palansky has been an active member of the American Council of Engineering Companies, Design Build Institute of America, Illinois Society of Professional Engineers, the Chemical Industry Council of Illinois,
The Concrete Reinforcing Steel Institute has named Matthew Shergalis, PE, as Northeast Region manager. He brings a decade of engineering and architect/engineer/contractor marketing experience, with a strong emphasis on business development. Based in Indianapolis, he will be responsible for promoting reinforced concrete primarily in the Northeast states. Shergalis previously served as a structural engineer at TLF Engineers; regional director of the National Steel Bridge Alliance, where he was responsible for the execution of market strategy across 15 Great Lakes and Northeast states; and, as a principal at the Infrastructure Advisory Group, assisting organizations in strategic marketing campaigns for new products plus targeted messaging to customer identified needs.
The AED Foundation has developed a plan to stimulate growth in the industry and address the equipment technician shortage. Goals, targets or benchmarks within the Vision 2024 plan include support or attainment of 100 accredited college programs; 50 recognized high school programs; 10,000 skilled technicians entering the workforce; 500 certified managers; 10,000 tests administered; and, 5,000 certified technicians.
Vision 2024 is a call to action for high school students and established industry technicians alike to develop skills through AEDF recognized programs and certifications. With an increase in highly skilled employees entering the industry, equipment dealerships will be able to hire top applicants that require less training and add profitability and customer satisfaction to AED members. A $300,000 grant from the Caterpillar Foundation will aid in Vision 2024’s development by providing scholarships for students attending AEDF recognized high schools who are moving on to an AEDF accredited college. — AED Foundation, Schaumburg, Ill.; www.aednet.org
The National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association has named Kerry Lynch as press secretary and director of Communications. She arrives with a wealth of experience in supporting policy issues through strategic communications initiatives, and most recently served as the director of Public Affairs for Michael Torrey Associates, where she executed communications strategies for clients across various sectors.
The Concrete Sawing & Drilling Association has announced new officers: President Matthew Finnigan, National Concrete Cutting, Milton, Wash.; Vice President Mike Orzechowski, Diteq Corp., Lenexa, Kan.; and, Secretary/Treasurer Kellie Kimball, Holes Inc., Houston. Jack Sondergar of Central Concrete Cutting, Edgar, Wis. is past president; Erin O’Brien is executive director, a post she assumed in January.