Governor Rick Scott has announced five appointments—one new member, four incumbents, all for terms running through June 2018—to the Florida Concrete Masonry Education Council (FCMEC), an organization authorized by Sunshine State lawmakers and funded by a voluntary check-off program among major and independent block producers.
U.S. Concrete Inc. has closed on the U.S. Virgin Islands’ principal ready mixed and aggregate source, Heavy Materials, LLC, plus the assets of peer operator Spartan Concrete Products, LLC. Their combined operations create a stronger vertically integrated platform to serve an extensive base of customers throughout the Virgin Islands and neighboring Caribbean islands.
Rural and suburban residential and commercial development, especially in close proximity to highways, will sustain demand for outdoor noise barriers in the U.S., where annual growth through 2019 is forecast to rise 3.7 percent, to 9.5 million square feet. Outdoor Noise Barriers, a five-year outlook from Cleveland market researcher The Freedonia Group, finds highways accounting for the vast majority of installations, and concrete structures holding a commanding 92 percent share against plastic, metal and wood product alternatives.
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While most craftsmen who restore vintage concrete mixers might loan their eye-catching iron works for the right promotion or event, Dean Leaman of Texas-based Allied Concrete Materials is dispatching his prized vehicle for good—to Las Vegas, where it will be a centerpiece of the Concrete Industry Management Auction and the keys are handed to the highest bidder.
Continental Tire North America is marking the centennial anniversary of its truck and automotive market brand General Tire with a themed black & white banner borrowing from a vintage magazine ad’s colored drawing. With the backdrop of the Hoover Dam, whose early 1930s construction saw placement of 3 million yards, the campaign centerpiece is a reminder of the load limits ready mixed producers faced in the pre-war era—tires, wheels, engines, chassis, drums and all.
The American Wood Council (AWC) has requested that the International Code Council establish the Ad Hoc Committee on Tall Wood Buildings, which would investigate the feasibility of cross laminated timber and structural composite lumber for construction exceeding current International Building Code height limitations.
Read MoreSolidia Technologies was showcased as a visionary leader advancing sustainable solutions for industry during the annual Cement Industry Suppliers’ Forum (CSIF), a United Kingdom gathering of frontrunners in the sector. The company’s presentation included results of multiple tests of Solidia Cement-based concrete that demonstrated the performance, properties and added value associated with the technology, including its impact on reducing the carbon footprint across the supply chain and in finished slabs or structures.
Read MoreVulcan Materials Co. is the first ready mixed producer to license technology in which industrial process-sourced carbon dioxide is injected into fresh concrete mixes, thereby offsetting water requirements; forming additional limestone in the matrix; and, sequestering the greenhouse gas in a hardened slab or structure.
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Officials from ASTM International, the International Code Council’s ICC Evaluation Service subsidiary and Michigan-based NSF International have announced the first Program Operator Consortium, serving as an expert resource for creating product category rules (PCR), reviewing life cycle assessment (LCA) reports, plus verifying and publishing environmental product declarations (EPD).
Read MoreSources: National Ready Mixed Concrete Association, Silver Spring, Md.; CP staff
The FAST (Fixing America’s Surface Transportation) Act signed into law earlier this month contains language for which NRMCA has lobbied on behalf of ready mixed concrete producers. Government Affairs staff helped secure within the five-year funding program three important provisions affecting the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Hours of Service (HOS) regulations:
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