University of Maine Engineers Unveil Concrete 'Bridge in a Backpack'

The University of Maine's Advanced Engineered Composite Center recently showcased two new bridge-building technologies that officials said will make bridges quicker and cheaper to build and more durable.

The first technology—known as the "Bridge in a Backpack" - was recently used to rebuild the Neal Bridge in Pittsfield, Maine. Tubes, which can fit into a medium-sized duffle bag, are inflated, shaped and hardened with a resin. The lightweight tubes can then be moved into place by hand before being filled with concrete.

Local lawmakers lauded the technology for its durability and time-savings.

Once the arches were in place, it took about one hour to fill all 23 with concrete. The tubes, which are twice the strength of steel once hardened, serve three purposes. They act as a form for the concrete, reinforce the concrete so no rebar is needed and protect the concrete from the elements. While the arches for the Neal Bridge were pre-fabricated at the AEWC and then trucked to the construction site, it is expected in the future the tubes will arrive at the sites rolled up and will be inflated and hardened there.

CalPortland’s Colton Plant Honored with
Third Consecutive ENERGY STAR® Award

U.S Environmental Protection Agency honored CalPortland’s Colton, Calif., plant with its ENERGY STAR® award for 2008 in recognition for its outstanding contributions to Leadership in Energy Management.

This is the third consecutive ENERGY STAR Award received by the Colton Plant. To qualify for the award a cement plant must receive a minimum score of 75 of a possible 100 on the Energy Performance Indicator (EPI) and show continual compliance with other environmental regulations. The Colton plant's score for 2008 was a perfect 100.

The plant has implemented several new energy initiatives:

> A plant-wide energy assessment identified $2.4 million of energy savings opportunities that are being implemented.
> The plant has completed a high efficiency lighting retrofit program in their offices, warehouses, and shop areas. 
> The plant has an aggressive motor management program that installs premium efficiency motors and variable speed drives to reduce equipment energy consumption.
> The Colton Plant has significantly reduced compressed air usage by optimizing compressor operations, reducing air demand and pressures and eliminating leaks.
> Several energy efficiency capital projects are underway including the installation of a high efficiency milling system and the construction of a new efficient shipping terminal.
> Colton operates two waste-heat boilers that take hot gases from the kiln process and generate 4 megawatts of electricity.

Paving Committee, Regional Execs
Conduct Paving Summit

Last week members of the PCA Paving Committee met with PCA regional promotion group executives  in Chicago to evaluate current opportunities for paving markets.  With infrastructure stimulus dollars headed to states, a priority will be to target the shovel-ready projects with a high potential for concrete.  Each of the regions has identified its top twenty projects.  The goal is to promote as many concrete-based projects as possible. 

Attendees also discussed strategies involving a new integrated paving market development plan. Past concrete paving promotion efforts have been segmented among various regional and national groups. The new program builds upon those efforts and relationships and creates a more cohesive, inclusive approach. 

As the umbrella organization for this effort, PCA has expanded its focus from roller-compacted concrete pavement and soil-cement applications such as full-depth reclamation to all concrete pavement options, including conventional concrete pavements.  An alignment process is underway with the American Concrete Pavement Association.

Communications Program Targets Paving

PCA continued to build on its communications program to promote new opportunities in concrete paving with a media training and message development session in Chicago.

The media training concluded with hometown radio spots recorded by RPG execs and Paving Committee members in attendance, which will be distributed to area stations in the coming weeks. A companion press release will also be distributed to newspapers and area business press.

The recent passage of the economic stimulus bill and its emphasis on improving the nation’s infrastructure present new opportunities for concrete paving. Asphalt paving costs have increased 23.1% in the last year. Departments of transportation have the unique opportunity to build with high-quality materials at a lower price.

Coupled with these factors is the significant impact infrastructure investment can have on job growth and the nation’s recovery from the current economic recession.  For every 10 construction jobs created by a project, the community gains 17 additional jobs that stay in the region. In addition, these types of improvements create lasting public works assets rather than short-term fixes.
Contact Patti Flesher

Tennessee Plans Ten Concrete Bridges with Stimulus Funds

Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen announced last week that 10 local bridges will be the first projects in Tennessee to be funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The 10 bridge replacement projects are scheduled for a construction letting on March 20, which means work could be underway on the projects by the end of March.

The projects will include the removal of existing structures for replacement with prestressed and reinforced concrete structures. Total cost for all the bridges is estimated at $7.95 million.

TDOT and the Department of Economic and Community Development estimate some 24,000 jobs could be created through the ARRA infrastructure funding for Tennessee.
Contact Susan Lane

Canadian Cement Use Down Slightly in 2008

Canadian portland cement consumption declined 2.3 percent in 2008 according to year-end figures released last month by PCA.  Canadian cement use totaled 9.4 million metric tons for the year, down from 2007 consumption of 9.6 million tons. The use of SCMs was up 14.1 percent.

Reflecting declining construction in the U.S., cement exports from Canada fell 23.7 percent, from 5.5 million tons in 2007 to 4.2 million tons in 2008.

Only two regions recorded increases in consumption. Atlantic Provinces was up 13.1 percent, and Quebec rose 1.6 percent.
Ontario (-1.8 percent), Prairie Provinces (-6.3 percent), and British Columbia (-7.4 percent) logged declines.
Contact Dave Czechowski

PCA Hosts Architecture Docents

PCA and CTLGroup co-hosted a docent-enrichment event for the Chicago Architecture Foundation (CAF) on March 7.

PCA’s Director of Engineered Buildings Larry Novak presented information on the specific design of Burj Dubai highlighting that the building is a solid continuous center concrete core from the foundation to the top of the building, wind loads, earthquake prevention, and fire prevention.  Novak’s presentation included a discussion of the height and building of skyscrapers for the last hundred years and a demonstration on “breaking concrete” and concrete construction.

Steve Kosmatka, PCA’s vice president of research and technical services, provided specific details on concrete composition, and shared a sample of the publications PCA authors and develops.

PCA’s program, “From Gray Powder to the Burj Dubai” also included a tour and narrative of the CTLGroup.  The attendees toured the freeze/thaw lab, the microscopy lab, the structures laboratory, and CTLGroup’s compression testing equipment.

CAF’s volunteer docents conduct tours and interpret the buildings in Chicago's downtown and surrounding neighborhoods on CAF tours.  In addition to completing a five-month education course on Chicago’s buildings, the docents attend programs throughout the year to add to this knowledge.
Contact Laura Nedli