MANUFACTURERS – NOVEMBER 2017

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Charah LLC has opened a fly ash storage terminal in Kelim, Colo., north of Denver, in partnership with Great Western Railway of Colorado operator and rail-to-truck transloading services provider OmniTRAX. Geared to Rocky Mountain States concrete producers, the facility joins the Charah MultiSource Class C and Class F fly ash distribution network, whose recent expansion has also seen new terminals in California, the Midwest, New England and the South.

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Pavetech sets 2018 School for Advanced Segmental Paving schedule

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With support from tool and handling equipment specialist Pave Tech, the School for Advanced Segmental Paving (SASP) in Franklin, Wis., seeks to fill a hardscape industry educational void. Students learn labor efficiencies and communication skills to share with other hardscape professionals. SASP offers instruction for various experience levels, specialty knowledge training, and seminars. Segmental paving industry standards are followed and the training is developed by experienced contractors. Two fundamentals courses are offered in the first quarter of 2018:

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Report measures precast/prestressed plants’ carbon, energy, water metrics

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Through eight quarters of North American Precast Concrete Sustainable Plant Program (NAPCSPP) data reporting, Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute producers are establishing representative baselines in carbon dioxide emissions and resource consumption. A joint initiative for PCI, Canadian Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute, and National Precast Concrete Association members, NAPCSPP is geared to benchmarking the precast industry’s impact on the environment and creating a culture of sustainability. Participating PCI plants report results on a quarterly basis.

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ORGANIZATIONS – NOVEMBER 2017

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Ashley Smith, president and chief operating officer of Virginia’s Smith-Midland Corp., has been appointed 2017-18 National Precast Concrete Association chairman—a post his father and company co-founder, Rodney Smith, held in 1980. Ashley Smith has been involved with NPCA on various product committees and task forces throughout his career and served on the board since 2011. His one-year term began last month at NPCA’s 52nd Annual Convention in Atlanta. Smith-Midland was founded in 1960 and has been an NPCA member since 1971.

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PRODUCERS – NOVEMBER 2017

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Denver-based Summit Materials, Inc. has begun a search for a successor to Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Douglas Rauh, who will leave the aggregate and ready mixed producer at year end. In the interim, Executive Vice Presidents Damian Murphy (East Segment), Shane Evans (West Segment) and Tom Beck (Cement Segment) will report directly to Summit CEO Tom Hill.

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Quality control trumps tradition in Amerimix “Ditch the Sand Pile” campaign

An educational effort by Amerimix, the bagged product brand in Oldcastle Architectural’s Echelon Masonry portfolio, encourages block and brick building professionals to “Ditch the Sand Pile” and embrace pre-blended mortar, which can be mixed 50 percent faster and provide economic and time advantages on the jobsite compared to field mixing. The latter method requires cement and lime to be mixed with sand (usually in a pile), while eyeballing the right material combination, avoiding clumps or having the fine aggregate compromised by weather or environmental factors.

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Robust wall system defends against hurricanes, tornados

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Gulf Shores, Ala.-based Defender Technologies, LLC has introduced a patented building system that can withstand winds as high as 200 mph, minimizing damage from hurricanes and tornados. PermaStrong utilizes pre-fabricated fiber cement wall forms, rebar and a concrete fill assembly, providing superior structural strength, faster construction, and reduced labor costs.

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Processor allocates air-entraining Vinsol resin for admixture accounts

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A convergence of routine market and rare natural forces could compel concrete producers using Vinsol resin-based admixtures to convert their mix designs to ones bearing alternative products meeting ASTM C260, Standard Specification for Air-Entraining Admixtures for Concrete requirements. Through much of 2018, producers will likely confront tight supplies of Vinsol-type air-entraining admixtures as the resin’s sole supplier addresses capacity and inventory challenges.

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