Remaining Resilient

A visit with the 2025 Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute Chair Carlos Cerna of Manco Structures in Schertz, Texas has devoted nearly 50 years to precast, prestressed concrete, during which he has consistently served as an active member of PCI and its regional partner, PCMA. At the passing of the gavel during the 2025 PCI Convention in February, he remarked, “The precast,…

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Organizations – April 2025

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…

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NPCA, PCI and ICPI-NCMA gear up for The Precast Show

Sources: National Precast Concrete Association, Carmel, Ind.; CP staff The Precast Show 2023 runs February 23-25 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center in Ohio’s capital city. As the largest precast-specific trade gathering in North America, it draws  producers from across the manufactured-concrete spectrum, plus allied equipment and machinery manufacturers, material suppliers, and service providers.

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Caltrans adds PCI course requirement for engineers

Sources: Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute, Chicago; CP staff California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) engineers are now required to complete Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute education courses as part of their training. The top U.S. agency of its kind, Caltrans manages more than 50,000 miles of highways, while California ranks second among states for total bridge inventory. “These courses, some of which were sponsored…

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PCI recognizes International Women’s Day

Source: Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute, Chicago The Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute joined other organizations around the world in recognizing March 8 as International Women’s Day. The event is aimed at increasing awareness about issues impacting women’s equality; calling out inequality while working to forge positive action; recognizing where important gains are being made; and, celebrating women’s accomplishments. 

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Missouri KC, N. Arizona, Lehigh teams top PCI Big Beam Competition

Sources: Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute, Chicago; CP staff University of Missouri Kansas City, Team 2 took the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute 2021 Engineering Student Design Competition, also known as the Big Beam Competition. Students Jose Luis Ramirez and Juan Carlos Plasencia Chinchay prevailed with guidance from Civil Engineering Professor Thiagarajan Ganesh and Terry Fleck of Coreslab Structures (Kansas).

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Lawmakers reintroduce Disasters Savings and Resilient Construction Act

The National Ready Mixed Concrete Association is part of a broad coalition of building and construction materials associations, civil engineering and environmental advocacy interests, codes and standards organizations, and insurance underwriters that are supporting the reintroduction of legislation aimed at securing a tax credit to foster the construction of resilient residential and commercial buildings. The Disasters Savings and Resilient Construction…

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Strescore guides Notre Dame teams to PCI Big Beam victory

Two University of Notre Dame student teams took first and second place in the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute 2020 Engineering Student Design Competition. Now in its 20th year and also known as Big Beam, the national competition educates college students in an applied learning environment—imparting structural engineering skills they can use throughout their careers in precast concrete production and practice.

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