The National Ready Mixed Concrete Association has named 21 rising stars from producer and associate member companies for the 2020 Developing Industry Leaders program: Master Builders Solutions’ Mason Booth and Matthew Wilson; Aggregate Industries’ Jenay Brown, Dan Corneau and Matthew Riggi; Titan America’s Marty Elkes, Jr. and David Novitzki (S&W Ready Mix Concrete) and Justin Walker (Roanoke Cement); Euclid Chemical’s Jason Jimenez; Irving Materials’ Andrew Mercker, Tyler Stanley and Kyle Norwood; Oremus Material’s Alireza Nili; Dickinson Ready Mix’s Ben Olin; U.S. Concrete’s Francis Pico-Llerena and Luis Soto-Rivas; Coast 2 Coast’s Micah Red Elk; CalPortland’s William Regis; Bayou Concrete’s Leighton Reynolds; Preferred Materials’ Frank Russo-Alesi; and, Maschmeyer Concrete’s Michael Tucker.
The NRMCA Workforce Development Committee sponsors Developing Industry Leaders to foster future executive-level talent. Participants gain insight into critical factors at national and strategic levels, working with peers from across the country in diverse, four- to five-member teams. Program alumni and senior NRMCA staff mentor each year’s cohort.
Effective August 1, members of the former American Concrete Pavement Association Utah Chapter are invited to join the newly formed Utah Ready Mixed Concrete Association Concrete Paving Committee, through which producers and contractors will leverage resources of the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association Pave Ahead initiative.
The committee will promote concrete pavement for highways, roads, municipal streets and parking lots with NRMCA and Portland Cement Association assistance. Once-separate URMCA and ACPA Utah Chapter efforts will be strengthened to give more focused and unified support to the Utah Department of Transportation plus state or local Associated Builders & Contractors and Associated General Contractors affiliates. The Pave Ahead approach parallels URMCA’s embrace of the NRMCA-backed Build with Strength coalition.
“Joint promotional efforts will amplify our message of the importance of Pave Ahead and Build with Strength as we build—horizontally and vertically—for Utah’s future,” says Concrete Paving Committee Chair Cody Preston (Geneva Rock Products). “Likewise, we have begun planning for our Annual Concrete Pavement Workshop which will be held in January 2021. Our combined efforts will ensure another educational, engaging and motivating workshop.”
“Utah, already ranked #1 in terms of states with the best infrastructure, will surely benefit from the consolidated efforts of the Concrete Paving Committee,” adds URMCA Chair Scott Reynolds (Altaview Concrete). “That Utah leads the nation in both building and growth and that we lead the country when it comes to the least amount of damage to interstates and bridges, are a few of the reasons why it is such a great place to live.”
The California Construction and Industrial Materials Association, representing concrete, aggregate and asphalt interests in (state capital) Sacramento, has named Robert Dugan to succeed Gary Hambly, who served as president and chief executive officer since 2007. Dugan was most recently Associated General Contractors of California vice president of Advocacy and Public Affairs, and had also served as Granite Construction director of Government Affairs.
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The Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute headquarters has been relocated from downtown Chicago to an office building on the northwest side. The new location’s proximity to O’Hare International Airport will be more convenient for PCI members, officers and other visitors. All current staff telephone numbers and email addresses remain unchanged. The new address is 8770 W. Bryn Mawr Ave., Suite 1150, Chicago, IL 60631.
Separately, PCI has appointed Jared Brewe, PhD, P.E., S.E., as vice president, Technical Services. He arrives from a senior project manager post at the Chicago office of consulting engineer Simpson, Gumpertz & Heger, and previously served at CTLGroup in Skokie, Ill. His experience includes designing innovative solutions for complex structures; investigating the effect of deterioration, distress, or design and construction errors on the expected performance of structures; developing strategies to rehabilitate and strengthen existing structures; and, evaluating the cause of structural failures. Brewe also chaired the PCI Industry Handbook Committee, concurrent with participation in PCI, American Concrete Institute and American Society of Civil Engineers committees. He earned bachelor’s, master’s, and a PhD in Civil Engineering from Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla.
The American Concrete Institute’s newest certification program is Nondestructive Testing Specialist – Concrete Strength, joining a lineup of concrete inspection offerings. The program was developed under the guidance of ACI Committee 228 Nondestructive Testing, which identified the need to qualify practitioners performing or responsible for six test methods used in evaluating the in-place strength of hardened concrete: pulse velocity; penetration resistance; rebound hammer; cylinder compressive strength; pullout strength; and, estimating strength by the maturity method.
“We are working with sponsoring groups and chapters to implement this program in their communities, as we are eager to help those individuals looking to expand their concrete inspection expertise,” says ACI Certification Program Development Manager Michael Morrison. “We are also looking into ways to offer expanded training opportunities to prepare for the examination, including online learning courses.”
In lieu of a customary in-person gathering, the ACI Foundation Strategic Development Council will stage its Technology Forum 48 through August 25 and 27 webinars, each featuring four 30-minute presentations. The Forum will be presented free of charge, but separate registration is required for each presentation; participants will have the option of requesting a PDH certificate for self-reported credit. Registration, agenda and additional SDC Technology Forum 48 details can be obtained at www.ConcreteSDC.org.
ASTM International Committees C1 on Cement, C7 on Lime, C12 on Mortars and Grouts for Unit Masonry and C15 on Manufactured Masonry Units are reviewing candidate presentations and papers for the 2022 Masonry Symposium: Advancing Masonry Technology. The mid-June event will be held in conjunction with the committees’ standards development meetings at the Hyatt Regency Seattle. Organizers aim to gather and disseminate the latest information on all aspects of the innovations in masonry materials, design, specifications, construction, maintenance, and rehabilitation. Content will emphasize the application of ASTM standards to those areas, and their coordination with building codes, project specifications, and international standards.
Papers and presentations are sought on anchors and ties; ASTM standards; building codes, portland, blended, hydraulic or masonry cements; detailing, durability and material testing; and, sustainability. To participate in the symposium, authors must submit a 200- to 300-word preliminary abstract using the online submittal form no later than December 20, 2020. The abstract must include a clear definition of the object and approach, point out material that is new, present sufficient details, and be original. — www.astm.org/C12SympCFPJune2022
The American Society of Concrete Contractors’ 2020 Annual Conference will be replaced with a virtual conference the same week, September 21-25. The program will feature seminars, roundtable (breakout) sessions on a variety of timely topics, a sponsor show case, plus safety achievement and decorative concrete project award receptions.
Speakers will include 2020 American Concrete Institute President Jeffrey Coleman; ASCC Technical Director Bruce Suprenant and Decorative Concrete Specialist Chris Sullivan; Beton Consulting Engineers’ Kevin MacDonald; Webcor Builders’ Chris Plue; and, Safety Performance Solutions’ Sherry Perdue. Philip Donovan of Little Diversified Architectural Consulting will speak on “A Net Zero Reality: Lessons Learned From Designing Zero-Energy Schools.” Roundtable discussions will cover Covid-19 safety practices; the new ACI specification for polished concrete; workforce development; laser scanning; enhancing productivity; moving from hardhats to helmets; understanding specifications; onboarding new hires; and, utilizing the pre-construction checklists for slabs to be polished. — ASCC, St. Louis, 866/788-2722; www.ascconline.org
The Construction Industry Round Table, a business trade association comprising approximately 125 chief executives of domestic or global design and construction firms, has elected Wassim Selman, PhD, PE as chairman for a one-year term. He succeeds Paul Franzen, president of Barnard Construction. Dr. Selman was elected by proxy vote after CIRT’s Spring Conference was cancelled due to the pandemic. He has led the Arcadis North America Infrastructure business since 2011.
The Global Cement and Concrete Association, London, has appointed Dinah McLeod as chief executive, succeeding Benjamin Sporton. She most recently served as a director of “The B Team,” a standard-setting non-profit initiative chartered to improve business practices to enhance the well-being of people and the planet. She has previously held senior sustainability roles with the Overseas Development Institute, the United Kingdom’s largest development research institute, and in the private sector with British Telecom, Novartis and Allianz. A dual British-Canadian national, McLeod holds a master’s degree in public administration from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School as well as a bachelor’s from Columbia University.
“This appointment comes at an important time as our sector looks to build on strong commitments to sustainability and accelerate efforts in the area of climate action,” says GCCA President and CRH Plc Chief Executive Albert Manifold. “Dinah’s impressive background and international experience in sustainability and corporate social responsibility will be an important asset to the GCCA in our work to position concrete as the sustainable building material of choice now and in the future.”
“Concrete has a critical role to play in shaping a more sustainable world and GCCA is leading the way in ensuring that role is understood and valued by society,” adds McLeod. “I look forward to helping drive advances in sustainable construction and to further enhancing the industry’s contribution to social, economic and environmental goals.”
Virginia-based Groundworks Companies, the nation’s largest privately owned foundation services company, has closed on Foundation Systems of Michigan, its 16th acquisition in four years. The transaction is the latest step in Groundworks’ mission to create the first national brand to provide concrete lifting, foundation or crawl space repair and basement waterproofing with a footprint that now spans 24 states, 2,000 employees, and just under $500 million in annual revenue.
“Foundation Systems of Michigan is unparalleled in the state of Michigan for its brand, quality service, and history of protecting consumers’ homes. Our partnership with Bob Genord, his family, and the over 200 employees of FSM continues a transformational evolution for our industry,” says Groundworks CEO Matt Malone. “With this acquisition, we add a brand and a team that is one of the best in the entire Midwest, and we enter a mission-critical market essential for our goal of becoming the first and only national player in foundation services.”
Like Groundworks’ other brands, FSM will retain its identity to preserve the consumer recognition and goodwill established during its 12 years in business while also gaining a national warranty that transfers when a home is sold. Groundworks plans significant capital investments that will drive FSM geographic expansion throughout Michigan as well as into northwest Ohio and northeast Indiana; enhance employee training and development; and, provide new consumer technologies and back-office support.
FSM is the largest foundation services company in both Michigan and the Midwest as well as one of the country’s fastest-growing with two new offices and an average 20 percent annual growth rate in the last five years. This acquisition follows the June 2020 addition of Alabama-based AFS Foundation & Waterproofing Specialists to the Groundworks brand family, adding two of the largest firms in the sector in just five weeks. Groundworks began acquiring peer companies in May 2016 to bring the fragmented foundation services industry under a single national umbrella to benefit consumers and tradespeople alike. Earlier this year, the company partnered with the Cortec Group, a multi-billion-dollar private equity firm, to accelerate the acquisition process as well as Groundworks’ organic expansion.