Be a Concrete Thinker - Visit PCA at the AIA Show

Are you a "Concrete Thinker"? Visitors to PCA’s exhibiting space (booth 1475) at the annual American Institute of Architects show in Las Vegas, Nev. May 19-21, have the opportunity to be the subject of their own ad supporting sustainable development. Architects will be invited to take a picture while posing like Rodin’s “The Thinker” statue. The photos will be superimposed on a magazine-style ad with a personal quote from the architect and an attractive concrete building in the background.

PCA will also unveil the first stage of a new advertising campaign at the AIA show. Recognizing the architectural and design communities’ key role in sustainable development, the ad is a visible tool in the industry’s effort to educate architects on the benefits of expanding the use of concrete in sustainable design.

More about the AIA show
More on PCA's sustainable development initiatives

Concrete doesn't just make buildings sustainable—it makes buildings beautiful, memorable, and award winning. Decorative concrete applications bring all the benefits of regular concrete while adding aesthetic appeal. For example, exposed, textured concrete on the interior of a building can help earn a LEED Innovation Credit. Floors made with white cement look sparkling clean and increase reflectivity, reducing lighting costs and eliminating damage-prone floor coverings. Green roofs can be constructed with decorative concrete pavers that add style and substance. Concrete used in landscaping helps reduce the urban heat island effect. More.

Simplified Design Seminars Continue

PCA/ACI Simplified Design of Reinforced Concrete Buildings—This seminar focuses on design of concrete buildings of moderate size and height, in accordance with ACI 318-02, IBC 2003, and ASCE 7-02. The purpose of the seminar is to provide civil, architectural, and structural engineers with ways to simplify design procedures, thus reducing time required to analyze, proportion, and detail small to moderate size projects, while still complying with the ACI 318-02 Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete. Various design considerations that need to be addressed in the structural design and detailing of reinforced concrete buildings will be discussed including fire resistance economy, and forming techniques. Numerous design examples will be presented. More.

Upcoming dates and cities:

Is Fire Safety Being Compromised?

In many jurisdictions the passive fire protection requirements in building codes are being relaxed -- allowing increased trade-offs. New codes are allowing increased heights and areas between fire separations, longer egress routes, less fire protection for egress pathways and a greater dependency on sprinklers -- which may or may not work in the event of a fire. A recent article in the PCI Journal discusses the the issues related to fire protection of buildings. The article answers questions about active versus passive fire protection, sprinkler performance, public awareness of building safety, cost of redundant design and relaxation in provisions of various codes. Read article.

Recycled Aggregates Promote Sustainability

Construction materials are increasingly judged by their environmental characteristics. Concrete recycling gains importance because it protects natural resources and eliminates the need for disposal by using the readily available concrete as an aggregate source for new concrete pavement or pavement subbase layers. Concrete made with recycled concrete aggregate can be equal in performance to concrete with natural aggregates. More.

The LEED Green Building Rating System recognizes recycled concrete in its point system. In credit 4, Materials and Resources, using recycled aggregates instead of extracted aggregates would qualify as post-consumer. Credit can also be obtained for Construction Waste Management. More.

Software Sale Extended

pcaMats is a powerful productivity tool designed to help you accurately analyze reinforced concrete mat foundations, combined footings, or slabs on grade. You can utilize results output in both graphical and text formats, including the required area of reinforcing steel in the slab. Plus, this version features enhance modeling ability, improved graphic user interface screens, optimized performance, and the ability to model piles. More.

Purchase pcaMats by July 15, 2005 and save $300. (Promotion Code Mats300)

For more on pcaStructurePoint concrete software solutions, click here.

Seismic and Wind Design of Concrete Buildings

This publication is an essential resource to comprehend the basic considerations for the design of concrete buildings for earthquake and wind forces. It covers the seismic and wind design provisions of the 2003 International Building Code®. The publication discusses the response of concrete buildings to earthquake and wind forces. The six chapters and 578 pages provide step-by-step illustrated design and detailing examples with common layouts for office buildings, residential buildings, schools buildings, and parking structures. More.