The Pennsylvania Aggregates and Concrete Association has announced new Board, Associate Board and Young Leaders Development Group officers and directors, all for two-year terms. During a late-2020 virtual meeting, Bob Housel of Masters RMC Inc. was elected chairman, Jeff Detwiler of New Enterprise Stone and Lime Co. vice chairman, and Jamie Stilley of Amerikohl Aggregates Inc. secretary/treasurer.
Housel began his career in 1990 at Masters Concrete, a third-generation family-owned company started in 1932 by his grandfather, Richard Masters. He currently serves as the president of both Masters RMC and Red Oak Sand and Gravel. “Bob is a passionate and experienced voice in our industry,” says PACA President Peter Vlahos. “I look forward to the guidance and expertise he will provide to the organization.”
The following individuals were elected to the Associate Board of Directors: Adele Abrams of Law Office of Adele Abrams PC; Nathan Moore of Continental Placer Inc.; and, Scott Blauch of R/W Connection Inc. New Young Leaders Development Group officers are Chair Brianne Hastings of Civil and Environmental Consultants Inc., and Vice Chair Dan Ridenour of Union Quarries.
National Ready Mixed Concrete Association Vice President, Fire Codes and Standards Shamim Rashid-Sumar begins a three-year term this month as director of the Society of Fire Protection Engineers, which represents 4,000-plus members and has more than 100 chapters. Based in New York and a registered professional engineer in Delaware, Rashid-Sumar joined NRMCA in 2019 and works with national model building codes and standards organizations to advocate for non-combustible construction. She provides technical support regarding codes, standards, regulations and legislation at the national, state and local levels, and currently serves on the ACI 216 Technical Committee on Fire Resistance and Fire Protection of Structures; ASTM Committee E05 on Fire Standards; and, NFPA Technical committees on Building Construction, Fire Protection Features, Residential Occupancies, and Structures, Construction and Materials.
The Portland Cement Association honors four members and six sites in its 2020 Safety Innovation Awards program, recognizing accident prevention and team member protection throughout cement production. By category, winners are Distribution, Buzzi Unicem USA Inc., Joliet, Ill., barge entry ladder reducing fall hazards; General Facility, Ash Grove Cement Co., Durkee, Ore., upgraded Cart for Burner Pipes; Milling/Grinding (tie) Monarch Cement Co., Humboldt, Kan., roller mill noise reduction; Milling/Grinding (tie), Buzzi Unicem / Signal Mountain Cement Co., Chattanooga, Tenn., finish mill access platform; Pyroprocessing, GCC of America, Pueblo, Colo., semi-automated clinker feeding system; and, Quarry, Ash Grove Cement Co., Louisville, Neb., dump box hardened material extraction tool.
“Our industry prioritizes the safety of its employees above all else,” says PCA CEO Michael Ireland. “We are proud of our members’ efforts to pursue excellence in safety innovation for their company and their colleagues.”
The Concrete Reinforcing Steel Institute announces the election of 2021 officers: Chairman Donald Barney of Nucor Corp., Vice Chairman Jeff Estep of Farwest Steel Reinforcing Co.; Secretary/Treasurer Brad Cottrell, Commercial Metals Co.; and, Past Chairman Tim Thomas, American Steel Fabricators. The group has also named new board members for three-year terms: Bill Couturier of Barton Malow Co.; Dean Peery of Gerdau; and, Adam Simmet of Simcote, Inc. Named for their second three-year terms on the CRSI Board are Kevin Cornell of Salit Specialty Rebar; Rob Faircloth of Contractors Materials Company; and, Bethany Hennings of Cascade Steel Rolling Mills.
The ACI Foundation has established the S.P. Shah Fellowship, open to Ph.D. student applicants in mid-2021 for the 2022-2023 awards cycle. It follows a recent $50,000 donation from Surendra Shah., Ph.D., Hon. MACI, who serves as Northwestern University Walter P. Murphy Emeritus Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and University of Texas Presidential Distinguished Professor, and is director of the University of Texas, Arlington Center of Advanced Construction Materials.
Professor Shah has been active in concrete technology research. His current work deals with using nano technology to enhance performance at macro scale. He was the founding director of the Nation Science Foundation-funded Center of Advanced Cement Based Materials. Based at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., the interdisciplinary center includes Universities of Illinois and Michigan, Purdue University, and National Institute of Standards and Technology.
A campaign led by American Concrete Institute Past President and University of Illinois Civil Engineering Professor David Lange aims to raise an additional $25,000 from the concrete community to fully fund the S.P. Shah Fellowship through 2027. Details on applying for the inaugural grant will be announced mid-year.
Convening in Scottsdale, Ariz. for its annual Leadership Institute, the Associated Builders and Contractors elected Steve Klessig of Keller Inc., Kaukauna, Wis. to serve as 2021 national chair; Stephanie Schmidt, president of Poole Anderson Construction, State College, Pa. as chair-elect; Milton Graugnard, executive vice president of Cajun Industries LLC, Baton Rouge, La. as secretary; and, Larry May of Carr, Riggs & Ingram, Jackson, Miss. as treasurer.
“The Executive Committee is committed to ABC’s value proposition to help our members develop people, win work and deliver that work safely, ethically and profitably for the betterment of the communities in which they work,” says ABC President Michael Bellaman. “It is an honor to continue to collaborate with Steve, Stephanie, Milton and our 2021 Executive Committee to champion the merit shop philosophy and fair and open competition, as well as create the conditions for those who work in the construction industry to achieve.”
The American Society of Civil Engineers has named Martin Fertal, P.E. as chief operating officer, responsible for coordinating the annual operations plan and budget and providing a strong day-to-day leadership presence. A civil engineer and management executive with 30-plus years’ organizational and operational leadership experience, Fertal arrives at Reston, Va. headquarters with expertise in strategic planning, business and staff development, process improvement and IT program management. He transitions to ASCE from the Logistics Management Institute, where he served as principal for Program and Implementation Management. Fertal will oversee areas of internal operations that include Membership, Marketing and Sales, Continuing Education, Publications and Communications, as well as the operational areas of Finance, Customer Service and Human Resources.
Construction certification specialist NCCER is set to release new versions of its Core: Introduction to Basic Construction Skills and Concrete Construction Levels 1 – 2 programs this year. Written in conjunction with national subject matter expert committees, these curricula offer the standardized training and portable credentials recognized across the industry.
The updated Core: Introduction to Basic Construction Skills has a new module highlighting the successful career pathways in construction. The revised edition features new and more rigorous performance tests, as well as a number of enhancements to the NCCERConnect online version of the curriculum. The revision of Concrete Construction gives trainees the full scope of tasks on a job site and offers the latest insights in finishing or repair practice, plus slab or structure properties.
NCCER develops and distributes its curricula in partnership with the world’s learning company, Pearson, and ensures that it complies with the Department of Labor’s Office of Apprenticeship requirements for time-based training. Individuals who successfully complete training programs through an NCCER Accredited Training Sponsor will earn industry-recognized credentials through the NCCER Registry System. — www.nccer.org