Buy America-compliant steel fibers suit UHPC mixes

CFS 300-Series carbon steel fibers are designed exclusively for use in ultra-high performance concrete applications, including transportation infrastructure. Fabricated in respective 13-, 19.5- and 25-mm lengths, the 0.3-mm diameter CFS 313-1, 319-1 and 325-1 Type I fibers meet the Federal Highway Administration Buy America requirements for federally funded projects.  Steel fibers control cracking by meeting micro cracks where they originate,…

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Concrete A I(nnovation)

Concrete mix technology is demanding and, all too often, thankless. We ask our people to guarantee the structural integrity of the design and minimize costs despite the host of bad things that can happen with mix components and transit. When things go right, our folks are invisible. Yet when things go wrong, they are the first to bear the brunt…

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Federal Highway Administration marks bridge safety, inspection milestone

The Federal Highway Administration recently observed the 50th anniversary of its National Bridge Inspection Standards (NBIS), the basis for the federal program that helps to protect nearly 620,000 structures across the country. The NBIS requires regular and thorough highway bridge inspections to detect potential structural problems early and ensure maintenance efforts are being carried out.  State departments of transportation inspect…

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ORGANIZATIONS – FEBRUARY 2019

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Milwaukee-based Scott Campbell, Ph.D., P.E. is the newest National Ready Mixed Concrete Association Building Promotion team member. As senior vice president of Structures and Codes, he will join colleagues in advancing industry interests through model codes and technical standards, and support state and local advocacy efforts. He will work closely with engineers and architects, code advocates, and legislative specialists to offer technically correct code-related solutions that maintain public safety and increase building resilience. Campbell holds Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in civil engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley. He moves to NRMCA from Portland Cement Association, where he served as director of Code Technology.

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FHWA revisits Buy America provisions for rebar tie wire, lifting devices

In a mid-October Federal Register notice, the Federal Highway Administration indicated a possible one-year Buy America Act provision waiver for tie wire spools used in rebar-tying guns, and the potential for similar action on precast concrete lifting devices. The agency will weigh public comment on three points:

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White House guidance stands to hamper transportation project permits

The American Road & Transportation Builders Association has asked the Federal Highway Administration to withdraw a proposal to measure greenhouse gas emissions from new transportation projects. The agency action is part of larger performance measures required under the 2012 Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) surface transportation reauthorization law, and follows the White House’s early-August release of “Final Guidance on Considering Climate Change in Environmental Reviews” for federal agencies.

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Command Center concrete maturity, temperature monitoring system

Pavement engineer Transtec Group has released Command Center 2.0, citing updated desktop and mobile software, improved readers for data collection, and a more durable, highly visible sensor cable than the predecessor model. Practitioners use the device to track maturity, strength, and internal temperature of fresh, in-place concrete. New CC 2.0 software increases efficiency to meet required specifications for maturity monitoring, thermal control plans, hot and cold weather concreting, precast production and mass placements.

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NPCA flags precasters on reversal of steel products’ Buy America exemption

Sources: National Precast Concrete Association, Carmel, Ind.; CP staff

Citing a late-December U.S. District Court decision vacating Federal Highway Administration Buy America exemptions for miscellaneous steel components, NPCA is urging members who fabricate precast structures for federally funded projects to evaluate use of tie wire, lifting devices and any other elements from foreign sources, and assume requests for documentation that all structure components are domestic.

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FMCSA shifts on electronic logs, FHWA hears Concrete Bridge Council

From the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association … To provide federal, state and local motor carrier enforcement officials uniform information regarding computer software and devices heavy duty truck drivers use in recordkeeping, Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administration has issued guidance indicating it will accept electronically generated hours of service record of duty status logs with electronic signatures.

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Top ASTM Honor To NRMCA’s Lobo

ASTM International

In addition to centennial observances in Toronto, ASTM Committee C09 recognized NRMCA Senior Vice President of Engineering Colin Lobo with the Award of Merit and ASTM Fellow title. As the Society’s highest individual recognition, the award is based on nominations from peers citing candidates’ service on a range of levels. The committee underscores Lobo’s “outstanding contributions to technology transfer, specifications for concrete materials, test methods for fresh and hardened concrete, evaluation of data, and assessment of laboratories.”

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