Minneapolis-based marketing communications agency and market development consultancy CLUTCH has appointed Sean Rustad as vice president, Building Materials and Construction. He arrives with 20-plus years’ industry experience, immediately transitioning from his post as vice president of Sales and Marketing for Lee Building Products, Bowling Green, Ky. concrete block and hardscapes operator. A northern Minnesota native, Rustad also served on the Board of the Concrete Masonry Checkoff, a growth partner of CLUTCH.
“We’re in the knowledge business, and we’ve been very fortunate to attract and retain high-level talent,” says CLUTCH Founder and CEO Troy Schroeder. “We hire people with different perspectives who’ve worked on both sides of the table, and we lead with category experience whenever possible. Sean fits the bill. His keen insight and industry expertise will be a great asset to our growing business in the building materials and construction space.”
“I come from the manufacturing side of the business, and my overall passion and background has always been in the marketing, sales and consulting disciplines,” adds Rustad. “With CLUTCH, I’m very excited about still participating in the industry but helping regional- and national-based companies gain market share and grow revenues through a different platform.”
The Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute named annual award recipients during its 2025 convention, held in Indianapolis alongside Precast Show activities. Retired Tindall Corp. CEO Gregory Force received the Medal of Honor, PCI’s top award. The Institute credits his leadership in the industry across four decades. He joined South Carolina-based Tindall in 1988 as sales engineer, proceeding through the ranks to engineering manager, vice president and general manager, president and chief operating officer positions, leading into his chief executive appointment. Force was elected PCI chair in 2012 and PCI Foundation chair for a 2021-23 term, the latter capping 12 years on the Board of Trustees.
PCI presented the Mario J. Bertolini Leadership and Innovation Award to EnCon United CEO Jim Sorensen, who served as 2010 board chair and PCI Foundation Board of Trustees treasurer for multiple terms. He and colleagues assembled Colorado-based EnCon United over the past 30 years, acquiring legacy PCI operators from Georgia to the West Coast.
John Myers received the PCI Educator of the Year Award. He is a Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering professor at Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, and Missouri Center for Transportation Innovation director. Myers has been involved with PCI since 1997 and is currently Journal Awards Committee chair and Student Education Committee member.
Marshall University Engineering and Computer Sciences Professor Wael Zatar earned the PCI Distinguished Educator Award. He is credited with developing comprehensive engineering courses on precast concrete, including ones on prestressed and reinforced concrete design and transportation sustainability.
Seven producer or professional members were honored as PCI Fellows: Sameh Badie, George Washington University professor of structural engineering; Bohdan Kusznir, Precast Services principal and CEO; Gary Lentz, Metromont Corp. senior structural engineer; Mark McKeny, Dura-Stress director of Business Development; Nancy Peterson, EnCon Design project design coordinator; Bruce Russell, Oklahoma State University professor of civil and environmental engineering; and, Roksana “Roxy” Taghizadeh, AG&E Associates principal.
Separately, PCI has named Natalie Martin as director of Membership and Business Development. She will implement a membership growth and retention strategy; manage producer, professional and associate engagement; serve as the staff liaison for several committees to help build a strong membership culture within PCI; and, promote sponsorship opportunities. Martin most recently served as regional sales manager at WMC, a steel wire manufacturer based in The Woodlands, Texas. She previously held sales positions with Cresset Chemical Co. and Stalite Lightweight Aggregate. She is a graduate of the Concrete Industry Management program at Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro.
The Society of Fire Protection Engineers has named National Ready Mixed Concrete Association Senior Vice President, Codes and Standards Shamim Rashid-Sumar, PE, FSFPE, as president-elect. A fire protection engineer with over two decades of experience in the profession, she works with national model building codes and standards organizations on behalf of NRMCA, advocating for resilient and sustainable construction, and provides technical support regarding codes, standards and regulations to policymakers at the national, state and local levels.
Rashid-Shumar has been an active supporter of SFPE throughout her career, including establishing the Society’s United Arab Emirates Chapter, where she was president, and serving for five years as a director. She will begin her term as president in January 2026. Established in 1950, SFPE is the world’s leading professional society representing those practicing in the field of fire protection and fire safety engineering. It has over 5,000 members and 120-plus professional or student chapters worldwide. SFPE serves members and the profession through quality education, FPE Handbook development, engineering standards and guidelines, research, conferences and publications, plus outreach and advocacy efforts.
The Texas State University CIM Patrons Board Foundation has elected new board leadership for the 2025-2027 term. Knife River Corp. Central Region Executive Vice President Rob Van Til and Heidelberg Materials South Texas Concrete Vice President and General Manager Stephen Wild have been named chairman and vice chairman, respectively. Van Til brings a wealth of construction materials industry experience, having held senior leadership positions at multiple national materials suppliers, while also founding and leading River Aggregates LLC from 2010-2020. Wild brings more than 30 years of industry experience spanning leadership roles in Florida, Nevada and Texas operations. For the past 12 years, he has been a key leader in the Texas market, serving in various executive positions. He is also active in the NRMCA and Texas Aggregates & Concrete Association.
Texas State University CIM Program Director and Professor Dr. Ryan Penlerick credits outgoing chairman and vice chairman, Holcim Texas and Oklahoma Region General Manager Griffin Taylor and CWT Construction’s Andrew Mouser for their CIM Patrons Board contributions, adding, “Their efforts have been instrumental in growing our program and strengthening partnerships within the industry. As we look ahead, we are excited about the vision and leadership that Rob Van Til and Steve Wild bring. Their experience and commitment to the industry will undoubtedly help us continue to build on our success and expand opportunities for CIM students.”
The Concrete Promotional Group Inc., Lenexa, Kan., has named Kristen Freeman as office and membership coordinator, a position dovetailing her part-time role as American Concrete Institute Kansas Chapter executive director. She will oversee a variety of CPG functions, including accounts payable and receivable, member communications, managing the activities calendar, event planning, assisting new members, and fostering engagement with all members. As membership continues climbing, CPG is committed to leveraging growth to enhance producer and associate value and improve follow-up efforts.
Richard Szecsy, PhD, PE, CEO of Texas-based Big Town Concrete, has begun a three-year term on the 25-member ASTM International board of directors. A 30-year concrete industry veteran, he has been active in the American Concrete Institute, American Society of Civil Engineers, and NRMCA, and currently chairs the Texas Aggregates and Concrete Association.
Szecsy has also chaired ASTM Committee C09 on Concrete and Concrete Aggregates since 2021 and served in the same capacity on its two largest subcommittees. He has also been part of ASTM Committee on Technical Committee Operations (COTCO) and Nominating Committee. A prolific speaker and academic collaborator in the concrete field, he has earned the C09 Award of Appreciation (2014, 2016), COTCO Service Award (2016), and the ASTM D18 Technical Editor’s Award (2019). Szecsy holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in civil engineering from Texas A&M University; a Ph.D. in civil engineering from the University of Illinois; and, an MBA in management from Our Lady of the Lake University.
The Charles Pankow Foundation in Haymarket, Va., recently announced the launch of the Resilient Design Coalition, organized to advance best practices in structural engineering and, most immediately, focus on further developing building code provisions for resilient seismic design. Coalition members especially target 2026 Building Seismic Safety Council (BSSC) NEHRP Provisions and ASCE 7-28, Minimum Design Loads and Associated Criteria for Buildings and Other Structures updates. BSSC has made significant progress through its 25-member Functional Recovery Task Committee and associated working groups, involving upward of 100 stakeholders. Through extensive collaborative effort, they have produced a complete working voluntary appendix proposed for the 2026 NEHRP Provisions. It provides a full resilient design for functional recovery framework, but only includes initial resilient design requirements for a subset of structural systems.
The BSSC Provisions Update Committee is balloting initial resilient design provisions as a voluntary appendix, creating a unique one-year window of opportunity to further expand the provisions. During this critical period, Pankow Foundation officials note, stakeholders have the chance to expand the scope of covered structural systems, making proposed provisions more comprehensive for code implementation and usable in resilient design. Additional information on the Coalition and code provisions can be obtained from Curt Haselton, 530/514-8980 or [email protected].
The Associated Builders and Contractors 2025 Top Performers list recognizes members’ outstanding achievements in safety, quality, inclusion, project excellence and special designations ranked by number of hours worked. The No. 1 Top Performer by work hours is Turner Industries Group LLC, Baton Rouge, La., followed by BL Harbert International, Birmingham, Ala.; plus, Brown & Root Industrial Services, Performance Contractors and MMR Constructors Inc., all of Baton Rouge, La.
“Competition is a healthy constant in the ever-evolving world of construction, and these companies believe fair and open competition based on merit fosters innovation, increases value and delivers results for the betterment of the individual, the industry and the nation,” says ABC CEO Michael Bellaman. “Top Performers are the competitive all-stars of construction, with commonalities like ABC’s STEP Safety Management System and Accredited Quality Contractor credential, upskilling and education programs, leadership development, and technology implementation. Congratulations to these outstanding contractors for competing on a fair and level playing field, building the nation’s most enduring, innovative, high-quality construction projects, and for attracting and retaining the best talent, based on merit.”
Top Performers candidates must achieve Gold or higher status in the STEP Safety Management System, which helps the best-performing contractors achieve incident rates nearly six times safer than the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics industry average. The majority of the honorees also must earn the Accredited Quality Contractor credential, which recognizes excellence in quality, safety performance, talent management, craft and management education, plus community relations. Through robust programs like STEP and AQC, ABC Top Performers demonstrate their capacity to sustain and grow their businesses, financially and economically; offer market-competitive compensation, benefit and retirement packages; commit to industry-leading safety metrics, plus workforce development, education and creating career opportunities; develop opportunities for their employees to achieve their career dreams; and, cultivate committed leadership.
Leading fencing installer and distributor Fenceworks, a Riverside, Calif. portfolio company of Westport, Conn. investor Gemspring Capital, has acquired Kansas Fencing Inc. Founded in 2003 and based in Topeka, the company has built a reputation as a premier commercial fencing installer across northeastern Kansas.
“Partnering with Kansas Fencing strengthens Fenceworks’ position as a multi-state leader in fence installation while expanding our commercial fencing capabilities,” says Fenceworks CEO Jason Ostrander. “Kansas Fencing’s talented management team and long-standing customer relationships make it a natural fit for our growing platform.”
“Over the past 20 years, Kansas Fencing has grown from a startup into a major player with projects nationwide. Joining forces with Fenceworks allows us to build on that momentum, leveraging their expertise while maintaining our commitment to quality as we continue serving our local communities,” adds former Kansas Fencing owner Dirk Henderson.