SGH Center earns top ISO accreditation for concrete testing procedures

The Simpson Gumpertz & Heger (SGH) Applied Science & Research Center has received ISO/IEC17025 accreditation from the American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA) for key concrete testing methods. The accreditation (Certificate Number: 6551.01) entailed a stringent evaluation process with A2LA professionals observing and auditing the Waltham, Mass. facility in 2022. It affirms SGH’s commitment to quality and positions the construction…

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Forney interfaces cloud-enabled Vault platform with AASHTOWare Project

Sources: Forney LP, Pittsburgh, Pa.; CP staff Construction materials testing equipment and technology provider Forney is preparing release of a ForneyVault-AASHTOWare Project Construction & Materials interface to state departments of transportation. Linking its signature platform and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials software suite, the company notes, “Drives increased transparency, productivity and efficiency—especially pertinent for DOT labs…

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State DOT officials, allies charter certification-driven FRP Institute

A new research and certification group will help advance composite reinforcement for heavy/civil concrete in North America and beyond. Incorporated last month, the FRP Institute for Civil Infrastructure will serve as the focal point for research, testing, material certification and education surrounding fiber reinforced polymers, according to President and CEO Richard Krolewski.  A veteran of the National Precast Concrete Association,…

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DOT Advisory Board guides FRP reinforcement certification

Sources: Regulatory Resources LLC, Westfield, Ind.; CP staff Engineering and construction consultancy Regulatory Resources, along with the DOT Advisory Board it administers, have created an auditing program to certify the quality of structural concrete-grade fiber reinforced polymers (FRPs). Scheduled for early-2022 release, their FRP Quality Control Manual will serve as a guidance document for an auditing program currently under American…

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Transportation groups see nearly one-third drop in state DOT budgets

Sources: Highway Materials Group, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, Washington, D.C.

The 11-member Highway Materials Group has requested that U.S. House and Senate leadership consider granting immediate use of nearly $50 billion in flexible federal funding to offset revenue shortfalls constraining state department of transportation budgets.

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ASTM C27 aligns new precast standard with AASHTO LRFD specs

Sources: ASTM International, West Conshohocken, Pa.; CP staff

ASTM Committee C27 on Precast Concrete Products is set to publish a standard (C1889) for designing drainage and utility infrastructure. The document essentially codifies requirements for precast structures from American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials load and resistance factor design (LRFD) specifications, and also addresses soil, hydrostatic, surcharge plus other loads.

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Precast producers equal to FHWA, AASHTO safety hardware criteria

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The National Precast Concrete Association reminds producers of barrier and temporary work zone devices of a year-end deadline for having such products tested according to criteria the Federal Highway Administration and American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials established in a 2016 agreement. New requirements cover a) bridge rails, transitions, all other longitudinal barriers, including portable models installed permanently; and, b) portable barriers and other temporary work zone devices.

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Past IowaDOT, AASHTO chief Trombino to head FHWA

Sources: White House Briefing Room; McClure Engineering Co., Clive, Iowa; CP staff

President Donald Trump will nominate Paul Trombino III, P.E., to be administrator of the Federal Highway Administration. He is set to transition to the agency from Iowa-based McClure Engineering Co., a nine-office transportation and environmental firm for which he has served as president since January 2017.

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Performance underpins AASHTO provisional standard for pavement mixtures

Sources: National Ready Mixed Concrete Association, Silver Spring, Md.; American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, Washington, D.C.; CP staff

Iowa State University-hosted National Concrete Pavement Technology Center and research partners have secured AASHTO Subcommittee on Materials approval of “Performance Engineered Mixtures for Concrete Pavements,” a provisional standard offering alternatives to prescriptive specifications. Transportation agencies and industry stakeholders will join a five-year Federal Highway Administration pooled-fund program to implement concepts in the standard.

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ORGANIZATIONS – August 2015

The Construction Materials group of RJ Lee Group in Monroeville, Pa., has been accredited by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials for demonstrated testing proficiency. Accredited laboratories must have a quality management system that meets AASHTO criteria and guidelines for “establishing and implementing a quality management system for use by a construction materials laboratory.”

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