NRMCA e-news

Government Affairs

NRMCA Advocacy News Roundup Updated Through August 25

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 August 22-25, 2016, please click here.

If you would like to receive this weekly updated link in a separate e-mail, or if you have questions or comments about the roundup, contact NRMCA’s Jill Landry at jlandry@nrmca.org.

NRMCA to Lead Legislative Effort to Save Lives, Protect Property in Natural Disasters

NRMCA urges you to contact your U.S. House of Representative and tell him or her to cosponsor HR 3397, the Disaster Savings and Resilient Construction Act.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/nrc-nwl/articles/index-v3.asp?aid=397017&issueID=44471 to view the full article online.

Buildings

Georgia Community Bans Light-framed Combustible Construction

In a unanimous decision, the Sandy Springs (GA) City Council instituted a permanent ban on all light-framed combustible construction in order to preserve the safety of their constituents that inhabit and work in buildings above three stories and exceed 100,000 square feet. In the ordinance, the Council stated that it wished to institute a requirement for construction with enhanced quality materials that increase the durability and longevity of the buildings.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/nrc-nwl/articles/index-v3.asp?aid=396642&issueID=44471 to view the full article online.

ConcreteWorks Education: Changing the Legislative Landscape in Favor of Concrete Construction

Please join NRMCA's John Loyer, senior director of state and local government affairs and Tien Peng, vice president of sustainability, codes and standards, on Monday, September 19, from 3:15 to 4:15 p.m., in Nashville at ConcreteWorks for a session that will present the strategies and tactics you can take to introduce legislation and regulations at the state level that can favor concrete construction. It will present the tools and resources available from NRMCA, including lobbying advice, bill writing, outreach and coalition building. NRMCA has a library of model legislations to address fire safety, resilience and sustainability, each of which place concrete in a favorable position.

The session will also provide recommendations for defeating legislation that is detrimental to concrete at the state and local level and tie directly into NRMCA’s Build with Strength campaign that provides resources to help members and state affiliates advocate for resilient construction, including model legislation, talking points, public relations and other key strategies.

Click here to learn more and to register for ConcreteWorks. To learn more about how NRMCA can assist in state advocacy, please contact John Loyer at 703-675-7603 or jloyer@nrmca.org.

NRMCA North Carolina Producer Member Embraces Build with Strength

NRMCA Producer member Chandler Concrete of Wilmington, NC, recently held a sales meeting to engage its team on NRMCA's Build with Strength campaign.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/nrc-nwl/articles/index-v3.asp?aid=396651&issueID=44471 to view the full article online.

ConcreteWorks Education: Build with Strength: Delivering a Consistent Message about Concrete Buildings

Are you tired of the constant drumbeat of why wood is better than concrete? Then join NRMCA’s Lionel Lemay, senior vice president of structures and sustainability and Brett Ruffing, senior director, communications and public affairs, for the BuildwithStrength campaign, on Tuesday, September 20, from 10 to 11 a.m. in Nashville at ConcreteWorks for this deep dive into NRMCA’s Build with Strength initiative and learn how you can deliver a consistent message about concrete’s strength, durability, safety and long-term value. The session will provide you with an understanding of the needs of different decision maker groups and how to provide them with information they need to make concrete the material of choice for their next building project. It will look at the tools available to you such as the Concrete Design Center, education programs, fact sheets, case studies, videos and presentations and how to use them to your advantage.

Click here to learn more and register for ConcreteWorks. Click here to learn more about NRMCA’s building promotion program or contact Lionel Lemay at LLemay@nrmca.org or 847-918-7101.

ConcreteWorks Education: Position Your Company to Take Advantage of Green Building Movement

Please join NRMCA's James Bogdan, senior director of sustainability initiatives and Tien Peng, vice president of sustainability, codes and standards, on Monday, September 10, from 2 to 3 p.m. in Nashville at ConcreteWorks.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/nrc-nwl/articles/index-v3.asp?aid=396768&issueID=44471 to view the full article online.

PCA Report Addresses Carbon Claims by Wood Industry

The Portland Cement Association just published a research paper addressing the carbon footprint claims of the wood industry which has long held the environmental benefits of cutting down carbon-absorbing trees and building with carbon-sequestering wood products

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/nrc-nwl/articles/index-v3.asp?aid=396918&issueID=44471 to view the full article online.

OES

Federal Contractor "Blacklisting" Rule Has Been Finalized

The Department of Labor (DOL) and the Federal Acquisition Regulatory (FAR) Council, published guidance and a final rule, respectively, requiring all prospective federal government contractors and subcontractors to disclose labor law violations before a federal contract can be awarded.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/nrc-nwl/articles/index-v3.asp?aid=396973&issueID=44471 to view the full article online.

DOT Proposes Speed Limiters for Heavy-Duty Trucks

Late last week, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposed a joint rule to create a new federal motor vehicle safety standard (FMVSS) to require "all newly manufactured U.S. trucks, buses, and multipurpose passenger vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating more than 26,000 pounds," such as ready mixed concrete mixer trucks, to be equipped with speed limiting devices. While the agencies are proposing speed limiters on all new trucks, they have not proposed a specific speed the units should be programmed to. The agencies have, however, suggested maximum speeds of either 60, 65 or 68 miles per hour; although other speeds could be examined as well.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/nrc-nwl/articles/index-v3.asp?aid=396989&issueID=44471 to view the full article online.

DOT Medical Board Issues Sleep Apnea Screening Recommendations

Following a two-day session last week, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Medical Review Board issued recommendations after examining obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and its relation to commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers, such as ready mixed concrete mixer truck drivers. While the Medical Review Board doesn’t hold any regulatory power to mandate the recommendations, this is the latest development in the efforts by both FMCSA and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to craft new regulations for testing and treatment of OSA for CMV drivers and train conductors.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/nrc-nwl/articles/index-v3.asp?aid=396995&issueID=44471 to view the full article online.

Registration Continues for Fall, Winter OES Classes

To facilitate your planning processing, please note the following classes are open for registration.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/nrc-nwl/articles/index-v3.asp?aid=396723&issueID=44471 to view the full article online.

Engineering

Technical Reports on Pavements Now Available Online

The following are recently-posted technical reports on pavements:

Pavement Surface Characteristics Concrete New Construction at MnROAD evaluates various concrete textures on ride quality, friction, pavement noise, visual conditions and acoustic impedance over time.
Real-Time Smoothness Measurements for Portland Cement Concrete Pavements, MAP Brief August 2016, describes real-time smoothness systems and lessons learned on various projects.
Evaluation of Modified Concrete Mixture Proportions for the City of West Des Moines evaluates different concrete mixtures for resistance to premature joint deterioration with the application of deicing chemicals and to assesses innovative test methods for inclusion in future specificaitons.
Impact of Curling and Warping on Concrete Pavement reports on field investigations using a stationary light detection and ranging (LiDAR) device at six PCC pavement locations with different mixtures, environmental conditions and at various ages and provides recommendations to mitigate curling and warping deflections.

Calendar

A Look Ahead

*Please note that e-mail and direct links to each event listed below can be accessed from NRMCA's Web site.

September 18 - 20, Nashville, TN

NRMCA's ConcreteWorks 2016