Taking stock of late-May events that drew 500-plus members to New Orleans and ushered a return of business activity at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, 2021 Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute Chairman Dennis Fink (Northeast Prestressed) observes, “It felt good to reunite with my PCI family and attend the PCI Convention and The Precast Show. We quickly put the last year in the rearview mirror and got back to running PCI business and programs. Staff did a remarkable job pulling everything together in spite of all the challenges.”
“We are very proud of the work of members and staff in putting on an event that exceeded all our expectations,” adds PCI CEO Bob Risser. “Along the way we learned how to use technology to host an entirely hybrid event with all committee meetings having both in-person and virtual attendance, giving unprecedented access to PCI members.”
The PCI Convention was staged in conjunction with The Precast Show and National Precast Concrete Association board and committee activities, fostering one of the first business-to-business gatherings of scale since the Covid-19 pandemic struck in February-March 2020.
Joining Fink as 2021 PCI officers are Vice Chair J. Matt DeVoss (Jackson Precast Inc.) and Secretary/Treasurer Matt Ballain (Coreslab Structures (INDIANAPOLIS)). Members also elected nine new directors: Dennis Cilley of American Steel & Precast Erectors; Daniel Eckenrode of PCI Gulf South; Lloyd Kennedy of Finfrock Industries; Brent Koch of Con-Fab California; Al Krick of Smith-Midland; Matt Mahonski of High Concrete Group; Jim Renda of Cresset Chemical Co.; Lenny Salvo of Coreslab Structures (ORLANDO); and Peter Simoneau of Dailey Precast.
The Institute also presented Edward Knowles, vice president of Walters & Wolf Precast, the Mario J. Bertolini Leadership and Innovation Award. An active PCI member since 1983, he has been heavily involved in developing and promoting glass fiber-reinforced concrete panels, and, through PCI committee participation, advanced precast concrete research.
Among the 2021 class of PCI Fellows are Todd Culp, general manager and vice president of Coreslab Structures (OMAHA), Nebraska; Mary Ann Griggas-Smith, director of Corporate Engineering at Tindall Corp., Spartanburg, S.C.; David Larsen, president of Unity Design, Buffalo Grove, Ill., Alexander Mihaylov, principal with Vector Structures, Auburn, Wash.; and, Chris Mosley, president of CEG Group, parent company of Consulting Engineers Group, Mt. Prospect, Ill.
As an annual gesture, PCI Cares supports a charity in the convention’s host city; a record $5,000 was raised for The Roots of Music this year. The charity empowers New Orleans youth through music education, academic support, and mentorship, while preserving and promoting the city’s unique musical and cultural heritage. During the PCI Membership Meeting and Awards Luncheon, High Concrete Group President and 2020 Chairman J. Seroky announced his company would match donations made to the group that day.
The 2022 PCI Convention at The Precast Show will take place March 1-5 in Kansas City, Mo. The National Concrete Masonry Association will co-locate its ICON Expo and annual convention activities with the PCI and NPCA gatherings.