At the recent CONEXPO-CON/AGG Show in Las Vegas, NRMCA Senior Vice President, Local Paving, Jon Hansen and Vice President, Local Paving, Phil Kresge presented "Concrete Overlay of Existing Asphalt Paving." Hansen opened with an overview of the history of concrete overlays and identified the different types of overlays and their appropriate applications. He also introduced the Guide to Concrete Overlays of Existing Asphalt Parking Lots publication, made possible through the joint efforts of the National Concrete Pavement Technology Center and the RMC Research & Education Foundation. He highlighted several successful parking lot overlay projects as examples. Kresge followed, citing some recent overlay projects that featured Roller-Compacted Concrete (RCC).

The audience was comprised of a mix of engineers and contractors, and included one asphalt contractor who is interested in expanding his business to offer his customers concrete alternatives to conventional pavement repair/rehabilitation.

Media articles on Congress, transportation infrastructure, regulation, taxes and other subjects, each of which relate to the ready mixed concrete industry, are updated each week by NRMCA's Government Affairs staff. To access the most recent compilation of articles for March 6 - 10, 2017, please click here.

This year we received 60 entries to our fourth NRMCA Kids Art Contest, sponsored by the Truck Mixer Manufacturers Bureau. Entries were judged only against others in their grade category on originality, effort, creativity, composition and interpretation of the theme. This year’s theme was: "Build with Strength – Building to Withstand the Test of Time." We are pleased to announce the following winners:

1st: Oliver Lootens, sponsored by Duane Chadez, Chadez Concrete, Marsing, ID

1st: Tucker Lootens, sponsored by Duane Chadez, Chadez Concrete, Marsing, ID

2nd: Elliott Kupietz, sponsored by Mark Kupietz, CalPortland, Winlock, WA

3rd: Austin Tibb, sponsored by Lenny Price, CalPortland, Rancho Mission Viejo, CA

1st: Javier Ortiz, sponsored by Raymond Balli, Right Away Ready Mix, Pleasanton, CA

2nd: Daniel Robles, sponsored by Cezar Robles, Central Concrete, San Jose, CA

3rd: Mariaelena Molina, sponsored by Miguel Amaya, Right Away Ready Mix, Brentwood, CA

1st: Summer McCollum, sponsored by Becky McCollum, Chaney Enterprises, Chesapeake Beach, MD

2nd: Bella McCollum, sponsored by Becky McCollum, Chaney Enterprises, Chesapeake Beach, MD

3rd: Cameron Boyd, sponsored by Rob Boyd, Delta Industries, Tylertown, MA

1st: Tae-Kyung Kim, sponsored by Yao-Jae Kim, Texas State CIM faculty/NRMCA member, Austin, TX

2nd: Nathanael Kupietz, sponsored by Mark Kupietz, CalPortland, Winlock, WA

3rd: Alexis Young, sponsored by Sheilah Young, Right Away Redy Mix, Oakland, CA

Congratulations again to all our entrants!

Over the past week, the Timber Innovation Act was reintroduced in both the House and the Senate by Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-WA) and Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), respectively. The bills – H.R. 1380 in the House and S. 538 in the Senate – were not introduced as the "Timber Innovation Act" this year, but misleadingly titled bills to "clarify research and development for wood products, and for other purposes." However, the intent of the bills remains the same – placing wood in the tall building market for buildings 85 feet and above. NRMCA’s Government Affairs team will again work to oppose these bills.

Last year, NRMCA successfully led the Stop the Timber Innovation Act Coalition, stalling the momentum of the TIA and preventing it from being passed. This year, the TIA threat is two-fold: not only does the standalone bill need to be stopped, but it also needs to be kept from the Farm Bill reauthorization that will take place in 2018. NRMCA will work with our coalition partners and will keep you informed throughout the 115th Congress. NRMCA has already sent a letter to each Member of Congress and his or her chief of staff and legislative director welcoming them to the 115th Congress. The letter served as an introduction to our association, the ready mixed concrete industry and the services we can provide on advocacy, policy, education and technical matters. We also invited them to join you on a ready mixed concrete plant tour when they are on recess. In the letter, we also expressed our opposition to the Timber Innovation Act.

 

During NRMCA's Annual Convention held earlier this month in Las Vegas, the Government Affairs department recognized the contributions of two outstanding Members of Congress, awarding Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) and Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL) with the inaugural NRMCA Congressional Concrete Champion Awards for their support of the ready mixed concrete industry. Rep. Hunter was honored as a champion for the ready mixed concrete industry, in particular for leading our Hours of Service 30-minute break rule and logbook exemption victories contained within passage of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act in 2015. He dropped by the Government Affairs Committee meeting and gave an update on what’s going on in Washington from his perspective as a confidante of President Donald Trump and a member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart was honored with the Congressional Concrete Champion award for championing our resiliency and building codes efforts. Rep. Diaz-Balart is a strong advocate for our industry as he serves as a primary chair of our Congressional Resilient Construction Caucus. he also spoke with NRMCA's newly installed Board of Directors, praising the ready mix industry's efforts to build stronger, more resilient structures in the face of natural disasters that he and his constituents see regularly in his Congressional District.

 

NRMCA’s Government Affairs team has a high-impact legislative agenda for the 115th Congress and is grateful for ready mixed concrete champions like Rep. Hunter and Rep. Diaz-Balart, but we continually need our association member companies to be involved in the political process.

 

On Tuesday, March 14, the Maryland State House Environment and Transportation Committee heard testimony on House Bill 1311 introduced by Delegate Cory McCray of Baltimore City, seeking to establish and adopt statewide building code regulations related to fire safety features for lightweight combustible wood construction in low- to mid-rise residential buildings throughout the state. At the same time, Build With Strength launched ads throughout the region in print, radio and online, calling on Maryland’s legislators to pass their respective bills and to raise awareness about the dangers of wood-frame construction. While the General Assembly considers HB 1311, the Maryland State Senate is considering its own piece of legislation on the issue, Senate Bill 722 introduced by State Senator Joan Carter Conway of Baltimore City.

Since December 2016, 15 local fire-related deaths have already been recorded. In response, members of the Build With Strength Coalition: firefighters, the Red Cross, the insurance industry, resilience advocates, engineers, architects and academics are imploring lawmakers to rectify this gap in public safety. 

Through the Build with Strength initiative, NRMCA has resources to help members and state affiliates advocate for resilient and safer construction, including model legislation, talking points, public relations and other key strategies.

 

Last week, the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) office of Inspector General (IG) released a long-awaited study examining potential benefits from the 2013 hours of service (HOS) 34-hour restart changes. Specifically, effective July 1, 2013, the 34-hour restart provision needed to include two night periods between the hours of 1 and 5 a.m. The trucking industry as a whole, including NRMCA, opposed this provision, asserting that it was too burdensome, unnecessary and unproven. To this end, industry banded together to convince Congress to intervene. In late 2014, Congress and the president suspended the new 34-hour restart requirements and commissioned a study to examine whether there was any real benefit to adding the new provisions. While fleshed out over a few subsequent bills, it was mandated that should the study determine that there wasn’t any benefit, DOT would be obligated to vacate the added provisions.

The IG’s report submitted to Congress last week stated that after thoroughly examining the 34-hour restart provisions, the study "did not explicitly identify a net benefit from the use of the two suspended provisions of the restart rule on driver operations, safety, fatigue, and health." Following the report, the agency responsible for enforcing HOS rules, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), announced it will no longer enforce the 2013 restart provisions and the pre-July 1, 2013 34-hour restart provision will remain in effect.

NRMCA welcomes this development; the July 1, 2013 restart provision was an unnecessary, overly burdensome requirement on the ready mixed concrete industry. NRMCA looks forward to continuing to work with FMCSA to further remedy erroneous HOS rules. 

• Click here for clarification on the current HOS rules.
• Click here to read the full final report.
• Click here to read the DOT research brief.
• Click here to read the IG’s report to Congress.
• Click here to read the IG’s letter to Congress. 

Registration continues for NRMCA's Plant Manager Class taking place April 25-28 in Seattle. Plant managers serve a vital function, with responsibilities that affect issues from regulatory compliance to product quality, safety and profitability. NRMCA’s certification program helps you make sure that they are up to speed on product knowledge, plant safety, environmental regulations, plant operations and ready mixed concrete industry business principles. This course establishes basic industry standards, measured through certification. Please note that batchmen are required to pass exams by the Army Corps of Engineers for federally awarded projects BEFORE work commences.

 

NRMCA's Sales Skills, CCSP IV, is scheduled for March 21-23, in Silver Spring, MD (metropolitan Washington, DC). This innovative three-day course provides a sales framework and toolkit that can immediately adapt to your organization’s strategies to drive revenue. Master the most up-to-date, industry-related, sales fundamentals through ready mix-specific simulations, role plays and case study analyses that include the challenges of selling concrete's sustainability attributes as well as applying tools for pervious and parking lot sales. Get results now: This course is recommended for professionals of all levels, so whether you deal with internal or external customers, these skills will make an immediate impact on your work:

• Volume and Value: Sell both for short and long term results;

• Secrets to Good Relationships: Solve problems and win loyalty;

• Who Calls the Shots?: Find and communicate with decision-makers;

• Role-playing is Serious Business: Learn how practice makes perfect; and

• Close Calls: Overcome obstacles and close the sale.

March 20, Roseville, MN

Concrete Value and Innovations

Email: Margaret Mills, 651-423-4737

 

March 20 - 22, Atlanta

NRMCA Safety Course

Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152

March 21 - 23, Silver Spring, MD

CCSP Module IV: Professional Sales Skills

Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152

 

April 25 - 28, Seattle

Plant Manager Certification Course

Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152