NRMCA e-news

NRMCA Senior Director, National Resources, Phil Kresge recently spoke at the Mid-Atlantic Concrete and Construction Forum, hosted by the New Jersey Concrete and Aggregates Association, in Atlantic City, NJ. The topic of his presentation was NRMCA’s Design Assistance Program (DAP). Kresge set the stage by identifying the need for the concrete industry to focus on pavement promotion. He followed with an explanation of the current state of the industry with regard to the design community’s acceptance, or lack thereof, of concrete pavement. He further explained that DAP is meant to provide assistance to designers who may not be familiar with ACI 330 and proper concrete parking lot design. He also gave examples of NRMCA’s success at converting projects using DAP.

Attendees included ready mix company owners and sales personnel, as well as representatives from cement, admixture and aggregate suppliers.

The recently-launched program aimed at selling concrete parking lots made a stop last week in Phoenix, reports NRMCA Vice President, National Resources, Jon Hansen. Seven employees of NRMCA Producer member Drake Materials dedicated an evening and the following day to arm themselves with a customized pricing database, prospecting tools and templates, and a complete knowledge of parking lot design for both new and concrete overlays of existing asphalt parking lots. A portion of the class time was spent on national clients and how to approach their local projects. Another segment included ways to find local projects and then identify the material influencers and key decision makers on those projects, Hansen said.

The Boot Camp was conducted by Hansen and Phil Kresge, NRMCA senior director, national resources.

The Producer Price Index (PPI) is a weighted index of prices measured at the wholesale, or producer, level. A monthly release from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the PPI shows trends within the wholesale markets, manufacturing industries and commodities markets. The BLS recently introduced new regional details for ready mixed concrete that can be found here, reports NRMCA’s Senior Director, National Resources, Doug O’Neill.

"The Bureau has broken down numbers for the Northeast, Midwest, South and Western regions of the U.S., which becomes a more accurate tool when attempting to interpret regional economic indicators," he noted. An index is a tool that simplifies the measurement of movements in a numerical series. Movements are measured with respect to a base period, when the index is set to 100. Currently, some PPIs have an index base set at 1982 = 100, while the remainder have an index base that corresponds with the month prior to the month that the index was introduced. BLS measures price change in relation to that figure. An index level of 110, for example, means there has been a 10% increase in prices since the base period; similarly, an index level of 90 indicates a 10% decrease in prices.

NRMCA Producer member Chaney Enterprises of Gambrills, MD, was recently recognized by the Maryland Chapter of the American Concrete Institute for its whitetopping project of Interchange I-595 & US 301 in Bowie, MD. Heavy traffic had caused significant damage to the asphalt roadway. More than 100,000 vehicles use the interchange daily and many of those are large, heavy vehicles. The damaged roadway was causing a safety hazard for drivers, as they entered or exited the ramps, uneven pavement and serious rutting caused drivers to struggle with keeping their vehicles safely on the ramps. Chaney Enterprises will accept its award under the Rehabilitation category on May 22 in Baltimore at the Annual ACI Excellence in Concrete Awards banquet in Baltimore. Click here to read more about the project.

The Walk for Sustainability is set for Thursday, May 15, in Cambridge, MA, in conjunction with the International Concrete Sustainability Conference and there is still time to register. Please join us for a Walk to help raise awareness of the Foundation's large body of sustainable development-focused research reports and to raise additional funds to help the Foundation continue this important work. The Walk will begin at 6:30 a.m. (registration begins at 6:00 a.m. with pre-walk coffee) and will conclude leaving enough time for participants to freshen up and take advantage of the continental breakfast before the MIT Showcase begins at 9 a.m. Registration is only $25 per walker and is tax deductible as a donation to the Foundation. Please visit the Walk registration page for more information and to register.

Is 6:30 just too darn early to get up for a Walk, even for a good cause? Then Sleep In for the Foundation! Please click here for more information.

NRMCA is now accepting applications for the popular 2014 Excellence in Quality Award. A company must be a NRMCA producer member in good standing to participate. Companies can enter as a company or a division. Applicants are asked to respond to a multiple-choice type application form that generates their score, which will be evaluated by judges. Companies or divisions that achieve a score of 75% or greater will be recognized at NRMCA's ConcreteWorks Conference & Expo, scheduled from September 21 to 23 in Indianapolis.

There are several advantages to participating in this award program:

1. It provides recognition to the companies that maintain high quality standards.

2. The award criteria can serve as an excellent quality improvement tool for companies.

3. Companies have used the award criteria for conducting internal quality audits.

As part of the ANSI-approved standardization procedure, the American Concrete Institute (ACI) has posted the reorganized ACI 318-14 for public review. The public review period will be open until Tuesday, June 17; comments received will be addressed by ACI Committee 318 before this version of the Code is finalized sometime this summer. It is anticipated that the International Code Council will adopt by reference ACI 318 in the next version of the International Building Code. That decision will be made this fall by ICC. The pertinent sections of the reorganized Code related to concrete materials and associated requirements are addressed in Chapters 19 and 26.

Due to the volume of comments received, all comments must be submitted via the Comment Form to be considered by the committee. The draft standard will become an official ACI standard after the discussion period closes and the committee responds to the discussion received.

ASTM is offering a Webinar on "Understanding ASTM C94 for Ready Mixed Concrete" on Thursday, May 8, at 1 p.m. Eastern time. The duration is 1 hour and there is no charge. The Webinar will be presented by Colin Lobo, NRMCA senior vice president of engineering. The Webinar precedes the release of 2nd edition of ASTM Manual 49 User’s Guide to ASTM Specification C94 on Ready-Mixed Concrete. The book will be available later this month from ASTM International and NRMCA. NRMCA members will be afforded a discounted price for this publication.

NRMCA's free Green-Star Auditor Webinar is scheduled for Friday, May 16, from 2 - 3 p.m. Eastern time. This is a required Webinar to be an Accredited Green-Star Auditor. This Webinar explains the educational and work experience needed to be an Accredited Green-Star Auditor and along with the continuing educational requirements to keep the certification. The Accredited Green-Star Auditor certification is valid for three years at which time the auditor must reapply. A few handy templates are covered to assist the company in starting Green-Star. At the conclusion of the Webinar, the attendee will understand the requirements to be an accredited Green-Star Auditor and the expectations that accompany certification. This course earns 1 credit hour toward a CCPf certification.

NRMCA’s Commitment To Environmental Excellence Awards competition offers producers national recognition for outstanding contributions to protecting the environment and maintaining sound management practice in their operations. The program salutes companies that have not only met, but surpassed governmental compliance measures and demonstrated a commitment to environmental excellence through plant and staff investment. Any NRMCA member company producing ready mixed concrete from a fixed plant location in the U.S., its territories or Canada is eligible to enter. Awards will be determined upon individual plant merits; companies may choose to enter plants from any or all of the five production volume categories.

Click here for more information, download the 2014 Environmental Excellence Awards entry form or staff contact. Entries and photos must be received by e-mail to Gary Mullings at gmullings@nrmca.org by Thursday, July 31.

Green building construction, in particular LEED-certified buildings, continues to expand at accelerated rates in all parts of the U.S. To help track this growth, the US Green Building Council (USGBC) recently launched a new section of its Web site that allows users to enter a state and view details about LEED project registration and certification along with other details about LEED certification in that state. Click here to track your state. 

The USGBC also launched a new Web site called The Green Building Information Gateway or GBIG for short. This Web site allows users to type in an address, Zip code or city and return all the green buildings listed. Many of the projects listed are LEED-certified buildings, but others are identified as green using other benchmarks such as Energy Star. Visit www.gbig.org to find green projects in your area.

Top architecture and engineering design firms are requesting and driving the transparency movement. Health Product Declarations (HPDs) and Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) are quickly becoming the norm, according to Green Wizard. It has published open letters from 26 different high profile design firms at www.greenwizard.com/transparency, essentially stating that they want to see HPDs and EPDs before they consider specifying a product for their projects. In effect, most of these companies will soon require EPDs and HPDs and many will favor companies that have them, regardless of whether they are working on a LEED project.

Along with industry allies, NRMCA successfully defended its position on many proposals affecting concrete interests at the International Green Construction Code (IgCC) Committee Action Hearings held last week in Memphis. The IgCC is an overlay code that works with other building codes to provide an approach to reduce the impacts of building construction on the natural environment and promote conservation from many perspectives. The results of the code development cycle will be the publication of the 2015 IgCC model code.

Tien Peng of NRMCA participated in the hearings and delivered testimony on issues affecting the concrete industry. Some positive results include:

• Successfully opposing proprietary interests to remove Solar Reflectance (SR) as a measure to mitigate Urban Heat Island effects;

• Partially successful in opposing proprietary interests limiting Life Cycle Assessment tools and eliminating operational energy analysis; and

• Partially successful in supporting concrete interests in functional resilience, environmental product declarations and extended service life of buildings.

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 April 28 - May 2, please click here.

To kick off Building Safety Month, the Build Strong Coalition, of which NRMCA is a member, along with the Congressional Fire Services Institute, held its 2nd Annual National Thought Leaders Forum on Building Codes for a Stronger and Safer America. Last week's event featured Senator Mark Begich and Representatives Lou Barletta, Randy Neugebauer, Mario Diaz-Balart, Dennis Ross, Elizabeth Esty and Ed Perlmutter along with industry leaders who discussed ways to help educate and encourage a stronger built environment to help withstand severe storms and weather events across the country. Following the devastating loss of life and property from the tornadoes that ripped through the Midwest and South this past week, the timely event highlighted NRMCA’s work on H.R. 2241: the Disaster Savings and Resilient Construction Act of 2013, as well as several other bills designed to help incentivize stronger building codes.

Take action this month and encourage your member of Congress to support H.R. 2241: Disaster Savings and Resilient Construction Act of 2013. Click here to take action today.

Next week, May 12- 16, is Infrastructure Week 2014. Official events are being held all over Washington, DC, and the nation to help draw the attention of decision makers to the infrastructure needs of our country. The week is designed to explore emerging solutions, innovative approaches and best practices being developed nationwide to modernize aging infrastructure. Daily signature events will focus on major infrastructure challenges, including freight and goods movement, passenger transportation, and drinking water and wastewater treatment. The events will focus the consequences of inaction and the importance of interconnected infrastructure that provides a safe, secure and competitive climate for business operations nationwide. From highways to water to pipelines, our nation’s infrastructure is in need of reprioritization, refocus and repair.

To help drive home the message, NRMCA, as part of our work with the Highway Materials Group - the National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association, the National Asphalt Pavement Association, the American Concrete Pavement Association, the Portland Cement Association and the Concrete Steel Reinforcing Association - will issue a press release and participate in a one-week grassroots letter writing campaign. Check your in-boxes and alert your friends and family when the letter goes live on NRMCA's Web site on Monday, May 12.

If you have never used our grassroots Web site, visit today and check out our other action alerts on the NLRB and Department of Labor’s attempts to enact Card Check through regulation, Resilient Construction legislation, Sustainable Water Infrastructure legislation and WRDA. If you haven’t participated, it’s not too late. If you have already participated in these alerts, let your friends, family, and co-workers know about them. Write to Congress today!

Late last month, President Obama’s administration released its first comprehensive road and transit proposal. The GROW AMERICA Act, or Generating Renewal, Opportunity, and Work with Accelerated Mobility, Efficiency, and Rebuilding of Infrastructure and Communities throughout America Tracking Act, is a $302 billion, four-year bill that includes $199 billion for highways and road safety and $72 billion for transit, which comes out to a 22% hike for road funding and a 70% boost on the transit side. Other pots of money include $19 billion dedicated to rail, a $10 billion multi-modal freight program, $5 billion for the TIGER grant program and $4 billion for TIFIA.

GROW AMERICA includes $87 billion to shore up the balances in the Highway Trust Fund from unspecified corporate tax reform, increases the penalty for automakers that don't quickly recall unsafe vehicles, cuts the project approval and permitting timelines and lets states toll existing Interstate lanes - if approved by DOT - to help pay for needed highway repairs. The openness to tolling on existing highways has received mixed reviews from stakeholders and so has the proposed shift from a user-funded, road-focused Highway Trust fund to a multi-modal Transportation Trust Fund. This has sparked concern among stakeholders for making more types of projects eligible that do not contribute to the solvency of the trust fund.

The bill has received little support outside the administration. While many organizations are happy that the administration has finally put out a proposal, almost nobody has endorsed it outright. Politico reported that Senate EPW member Jim Inhofe said, "the administration has had a surface transportation proposal before. It's never funded. It's never realistic. It's just something that sounds good to the general public and I anticipate that's exactly what they'll have this time." And that Rep. Peter DeFazio said, "The Obama administration puts out vague proposals on tax cuts that will create money for the trust fund. No one is talking reality here. ... I'm hopeful that they will come to their senses and kick the thing forward to next year - that's about the best we can do at this point."

The room block for the 2014 Transportation Construction Coalition, June 10-11, at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC, is only guaranteed through Friday, May 9. If you are planning to come, please make your reservation before the close of business on Friday. To make your hotel reservation, please contact the Mayflower Hotel by calling 1-800-468-3571 or 1-202-347-3000. Ask for the TCC Fly-In rate of $309 per night.

NRMCA’s next Plant Manager Certification class will be held August 12-15 in Silver Spring, MD (metro Washington, DC). The final class for the year will be held December 9-12 in Phoenix. This course establishes basic industry standards, measured through certification. Please note that batchmen are required by the Army Corps of Engineers to pass this class's exams for federally awarded projects BEFORE work commences.

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 them make sure that they are up to speed on product knowledge, plant safety, environmental regulations, plant operations and ready mixed concrete industry business principles. 

Each module of NRMCA's Certified Concrete Sales Professional (CCSP) series will be held in Silver Spring, MD (metro Washington, DC), beginning in October and ending in March 2015. A registration fee discount is extended for those who register for all four classes or for companies that send three or more people to one class. The schedule is as follows:

 

• Module 1: Concrete 101, October 7-10

• Module 2: Understand the Contractor's Business, December 16-18

• Module 3: RMC Business Knowledge, February 24-26, 2015

• Module 4: Professional Sales Skills and Promotion, March 31-April 2, 2015

 

Each class stands alone so it does NOT have to be taken consecutively or collectively. The well-respected, updated content is a valid way to refresh sales skills that emphasize the industry’s aggressive stance toward winning business. Additionally, these are the required courses in the STEPS® Sales and Promotion certification program, where those in the field earn the industry's most prestigious capstone certification, the CCPf.

 

The NRMCA May Internet Spotlight is the User’s Guide to ASTM Specification C94/C94M on Ready-Mixed Concrete 2nd Edition. This second edition includes 22 comprehensive chapters that explain every section of ASTM C 94/C94M, including background, scope, referenced documents, ordering information, materials, requirements for production, acceptance of concrete and much more. Authors: D. Gene Daniel and Colin L. Lobo. 160 Pages | Pub# 2PMNL49-14.

May 8, Free Webinar

Streets & Roads Team Building & Situation Analysis

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

May 12–15, Boston

International Concrete Sustainability Conference

E-mail: Lionel Lemay, 847-918-7101

 

May 16, Free Webinar

Green-Star Auditor Certification

Email: Karen Bean, 240-485-1168

 

May 19, Free Webinar

TRI Reporting: What A Ready Mixed Concrete Producer Should Know

Email: Karen Bean, 240-485-1168

 

May 21, Webinar

Personal Leadership and Coaching

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

May 22, Free Webinar

Drivers' Hours of Service in the RMC Industry Free Webinar

Email: Karen Bean, 240-485-1168

 

May 27, Webinar

Soils 101

Email: Amanda Hult, 303-953-2382

 

May 29, Free Webinar

Streets & Roads Promotion for DOTs, Counties & Municipalities

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

June 3-5, Silver Spring, MD

Concrete Durability Course

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

 

June 5, Free Webinar

Overlays for Streets & Local Roads

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

June 10, Free Webinar

Roller Compacted Concrete for Streets & Local Roads

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

June 11-12, Online Course

Designing Pervious Concrete Pavement for Municipal & Commercial Applications

Email: Amanda Hult, 303-953-2382

 

June 13, Free Webinar

Winning Initial Streets & Roads Projects in Counties & Municipalities

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

June 17, Webinar

Concrete Pavement Jointing Plans

Email: Amanda Hult, 303-953-2382

 

June 18, Free Webinar

Backing Accident Prevention Program

Email: Karen Bean, 240-485-1168

 

June 19, Free Webinar

Utilizing MIT Research Results

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

June 23-26, Online Course

Concrete's Role in Sustainable Development

Email: Tien Peng, 206-913-8535

 

June 26, Free Webinar

SLR Concrete Construction & Repair Basics

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

July 7-10, Online Course

Building Green with Concrete

Email: Tien Peng, 206-913-8535

 

July 8, Webinar

Understanding Asphalt

Email: Brian Killingsworth, 830-438-2690

 

July 11, Webinar

Designing Concrete Parking Lots the Right Way!

Email: Amy Miller, 904-264-8850

 

July 15, Free Webinar

Streets & Roads Elected Official Advocacy

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

July 29-30, Online Course

Designing Jointed Concrete Pavement for Streets and Parking Areas

Email: Amanda Hult, 303-953-2382

 

July 30, Free Webinar

Streets & Roads Promotion & Advocacy Overview

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

August 4-7, Online Course

Life Cycle Assessment of Concrete Structures

Email: Tien Peng, 206-913-8535

 

August 5, Free Webinar

Roller Compacted Concrete for Streets & Local Roads

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

August 12-15, Silver Spring, MD

Plant Manager Certification Course

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

 

August 14, Free Webinar

Streets & Roads Team Building & Situation Analysis

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

August 19, Webinar

Controlling Moisture in Concrete Slabs

Email: Amanda Hult, 303-953-2382

 

August 20, Webinar

Recruiting & Hiring Top Performing Ready Mix Sales Reps

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

August 21, Free Webinar

Streets & Roads Promotion for DOTs, Counties & Municipalities

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

September 10, Webinar

Re-Entrepreneuring: 7 Strategies for Rebuilding Your Business in the New Economy

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

September 12, Free Webinar

Winning Initial Streets & Roads Projects in Counties & Municipalities

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

September 12, Webinar

Designing Concrete Parking Lots the Right Way!

Email: Amy Miller, 904-264-8850

 

October 14, Free Webinar

Streets & Roads Elected Official Advocacy

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

November 7, Webinar

Designing Concrete Parking Lots the Right Way!

Email: Amy Miller, 904-264-8850

 

November 18-20, Silver Spring, MD

The Effective RMC Supervisor - Silver Spring, MD

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

November 19, Webinar

Sales Performance Assessments and Review for Ready Mix Sales Managers

Email: Shawnita Dickens, 888-84-NRMCA, x1154

 

December 3-5, Phoenix

Environmental Professional Certification Course

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

 

December 9-12, Phoenix

Plant Manager Certification Course

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