Fall Technical Session Available Via Webcast
The Manufacturing Technical Committee will host its annual fall technical session in conjunction with the PCA Joint Fall Committee Meetings at Chicago's Intercontinental Hotel. Scheduled for Tuesday, September 12, from 9:30 a.m. to noon and from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., the session includes the following presentations:

• C. Thom Martin, "Avoiding Corrosion in Baghouses"
• Dr. Michael Silsbee, "The Use of Sludge Generated by the Neutralization of Acid Mine Drainage in the Cement Industry"
• Dr. Fred Lockwood and Tahir Abbas, "Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD): A Powerful Tool for the Cement Industry"
• Panel Discussion: "Operational Issues Related to the Use of Vertical Roller Mill in Finish Grinding" with Bruce Shafer, California Portland Cement, Jeff Bump, CEMEX, and Brach Harada and Mike Kenefick, Salt River Materials Group.

The fall technical session will also be Webcast live.
Contact Rick Bohan

Fellowship Recipients Honored at Committee Meetings
Six past recipients of grants for PCA's Education Foundation will present the results of their research in a fellowship session at PCA's Fall Committee Meetings. The six presentations on sponsored projects are scheduled for Monday, September 11, at 10:00 a.m:

• "Effect of Partial Layer Bonding on Design of Layered RCC Pavements," Cleveland State University, Blake Kreuer (student) and Norbert Delatte (professor)
• "Effect of Member Depth on the Shear Strength of Reinforced Concrete Flexural Members,"
  Purdue University, Lesley Sneed (student) and Julio A. Ramirez (professor)
• "Model Development for the Evaluation of Cost Effectiveness of Concrete Framing Systems for Low, Mid, and High-Rise Buildings," Lawrence Technological University, Kofi Ayensu (student) and Elin A. Jensen (professor)
• "Development of a New Rapid Test Method for Predicting Alkali-Silica Reactivity for Concrete and Aggregate," Texas A&M University, Chang-Seon Shon (student) and Dan Zollinger (professor)
• "Determination for the Effect of Ordinary Portland Cement Fineness on ASTM C 1260," Iowa State University, Fatih Bektas (student) and Kejin Wang and Halil Ceylan (professors)
• "The Development of Rapid Test Methods for Measuring the Transport Properties of Concrete," University of New Brunswick, David Smith (student) and Michael D. A. Thomas (professor)

Following the presentations, an Education Foundation Fellowship Awards Luncheon will recognize the six fellowships awarded in 2006.

• September 26—Spokane, Wash.
• September 27—Memphis, Tenn.
• September 28—Omaha, Neb.
• October 11—Pittsburgh, Pa.
• October 31—Los Angeles, Calif.
• November 28—Washington, D.C. (in conjunction with the Structural Engineers Building Conference & Expo)

Contact Amy Trygestad
More info or to register

Insulated Concrete Walls—Energy Efficiency Meets Sustainability: PCA’s Jim Niehoff gave a presentation on August 18 highlighting the energy efficiency and green building attributes of concrete wall systems to 65 architects and engineers at a symposium co-sponsored by the Southern California Gas Company and the Southern California Ready Mixed Concrete Association. The seminar provided an overview of insulated concrete wall systems as well as design considerations, construction processes, and how concrete systems can help earn points toward the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED rating system. The seminar was held at The Gas Company’s Energy Resource Center in Downey, Calif.
Contact Jim Niehoff

PCA, HUD Offer Stronger Alternatives for MS Residents: On August 1, Mike Collignon of the PCA residential department presented the durable benefits of concrete housing at a HUD-sponsored event in Biloxi, Miss. Examples of post-hurricane concrete construction, as well as concrete homes that survived Katrina, were cited in the presentation. The audience included local builders as well as representatives from community and faith-based building organizations seeking information on stronger, more durable building systems.
Contact Mike Collignon

LA Cathedral Center to Host Concrete Seminar: The Conference Center of the Los Angeles Cathedral will host “Emerging Trends in Concrete Construction” on October 28. Seminar topics include Seismic Design of ICF Structures, Precast Housing Solutions, Practical Implications of Tests at the Englekirk Center, and Contractors' Perspectives on Today's Concrete Construction. This event is a collaborative effort of PCA and its local affiliates as well as the Southern California Chapter of SEAOC. The cathedral recently received an award for being one of the top seismic projects of the 20th century.
Contact Attila Beres
Registration form (PDF)

Results From Last Week:
Cost Cited as Biggest Market Barrier
Question: What's the biggest barrier to greater market share for concrete construction?
Responses (percent):

• Higher initial cost of concrete construction: 53 (41.09%)
• Lack of qualified contractors and labor: 28 (21.71%)
• Better marketing and promotion by competing materials: 25 (19.38%)
• Inadequate government funding for infrastructure improvements: 11 (8.53%)
• Limited availability of materials: 12 (9.30%)

Notable comments:

"We let engineers and production people make marketing decisions and we won't devote the necessary funds to marketing and advertising our products. Since coming into this industry I have been amazed at what we call promotion and how much money is wasted in those efforts."

"Higher initial cost is a major impediment to adoption of concrete solutions. We can make the life-cycle cost case all we want, but if the customer is of a discount store mentality based on a day to day 'best price' consumer mentality, we will lose most of the time."

"It is much harder to knock down the market leader when the leader is well established, such as asphalt for paving or wood for homes. We have to work three times harder now to prove our product."

"Developers look to turn around buildings in 5 years or less. Showing owners the return on concrete construction goes a long way in promoting the industry!"

Take the current PCA Poll.