Westchase II Taps Demand for Green Office Space

Granite Properties is tapping into commercial demand for LEED-certified office space with Westchase II, now nearing completion in the Westchase District of Houston, Texas.

It's the first new Class A office building for Westchase in more than six years and an addition to Granite's existing complex.

The 14-story, 336,000-square-foot, $38-million speculative high-rise office building will also include an 8-story, 1000-car parking garage. The LEED-certified building is constructed of cast-in-place-concrete pan and joist framing. The parking structure is precast concrete.

Green features include insulated dual-pane glass, self-contained HVAC with more zones per floor, and a stormwater collection system under the parking garage that removes pollutants before entering the city’s water system.

The building completion is planned for May of 2008. Contractor is Hoar Construction, LLC; architect is Kirksey Architecture.
Contact Amy Trygestad

Reminder: Spring Board and Committee Meetings

The registration deadline for PCA's spring committee and Board meetings is April 18; hotel regenerations are due April 7.

The PCA meetings will be held on April 28-30, 2008, at the Chicago Marriott O’Hare. Most committees of PCA's Research and Technical Council and Market Promotion Council will meet, as well as committees of the Cement Association of Canada.

In addition, the Boards of PCA, CLTGroup, and the Cement Association of Canada; the Educational Foundation; the Legal Counsels Committee, and the Government Affairs Council will hold meetings.

It's the first time the Board of Directors has met in conjunction with the committee meetings.

Presentations include the announcements of the 2008 Environment and Energy Award winners and the Promotion Progress Awards.
Register for the meeting online
Contact Michelle Nyquist

Nominees Announced
for Promotion Progress Awards

A total of 23 people have been nominated for the 2008 Promotion Progress Awards. The program honors the achievements of PCA members in promoting cement and concrete in construction markets plus activities in standards development, education, and public affairs.

New this year is the Distinguished Partner Awards, which recognizes national and regional allies and promotion partners.

Winners will be announced at an awards dinner held in conjunction with PCA's spring committee meetings, April 29, 2008.

Nominees are listed below. Click on a name to read the full nomination entry.

Nominees for Promotion Progress Awards

Danny Alford, Lafarge
Allan Anderson, Buzzi Unicem
David Collins, Holcim (US), Inc.
Ed Cooper, Ash Grove Cement Company
Michael Fletcher, Essex Cement
Frank Lennox, Buzzi Unicem.
Kirk McDonald, California Portland Cement Company
Scott Palmer, Salt River Materials
Nicholas J. Popoff, St. Marys Cement Inc.
Lynn Rasco, Cemex, Inc.
Jim Render, Essroc
Dan Richwine, Texas Industries, Inc
Sean Varner, Lafarge
Roger Vaughn, Holcim (US), Inc.
Bruce Walker, Lafarge

Nominees for Distinguished Partner Award

Brian Bock, Dukane Precast
Vince Davis , American Red Cross of Greater Chicago
Frank Koszeliski, Gallup Sand & Gravel
Jonathan Kuell, Northern New England Concrete Promotion Association
Andrew E. Marks, Puget Sound Concrete Specification Council
Patrick Murphy, American Polysteel LLC
Brad Reed, City of Lubbock, Texas
Chuck Vance, IBHS Fortified for Safer Living Program

Report on Code Hearings Available

The cement industry scored several victories at the first round of code change hearings for the 2007/2008 International Code Council (ICC) code change cycle. The hearings were held February 18-29, Palm Springs, Calif.

The PCA Codes and Standards staff took both a leadership role and sometimes a technical support role, including behind the scenes work, to garner support for outcomes that are positive for the cement-based product industries.

This was the first round of hearings in this cycle. Public comments are due by June 5, 2008, and the final action hearings are scheduled for September 14-23 in Minneapolis, Minn.

If you are interested in obtaining a copy of the report on the hearings, contact Anna Trzeciak (atrzeciak@cement.org; 847-972-9024).

Holcim Participates in MIT
Climate Change Symposium

Patrick Dolberg, president and CEO of Holcim (US), recently discussed the company’s environmental initiatives and support for the future of sustainable design at a symposium organized by The Boston Society of Architects (BSA) and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

"Advancing technology and the adoption of newer architecture techniques for greener cities is paramount to sustaining our environment, not only for the city of Boston and the New England area, but for the planet," Dolberg said. "The more sustainable our designs and planning. the more sustainable our planet will be."

The symposium—Mass Impact: Cities & Climate Change—brought together leading U.S. and international urbanists to explore strategies employed by cities on the leading edge of sustainable urban design.

Mass Impact was sponsored by Holcim with additional support provided by the School of Architecture and Planning at MIT, City of Boston, Consulate General of Canada in Boston, the Environmental Protection Agency - New England Office, ArchitectureBoston, the Boston Foundation for Architecture, and others.

Reminder: Sustainable Leadership Award Nominations

PCA's first annual Sustainable Leadership Awards will honor government leaders who advance sustainable development in their communities through the use of concrete and cement-based products.

Four categories will be recognized. The Leadership in Sustainability Policy Award honors public officials who advance policies that promote the concept of sustainable development by advocating for and promoting the use of concrete and cement-based products in their communities.

Additionally, three award categories honor specific projects in three areas: Homes and Residential Building, Non-Residential Building and Infrastructure. These Awards honor public officials who utilize cement or cement-based products to achieve sustainable benefits for projects in each of these categories.

Nominations are due May 30, 2008.
For more information and to access the nomination form, visit: http://www.cement.org/SustainableLeadership

ACBM Faculty Workshop Scheduled

PCA and the Center for Advanced Cement-Based Materials (ACBM) will hold their next Undergraduate Faculty Enhancement Workshop on July 14-16, 2008, at the PCA headquarters in Skokie, Ill.  “Teaching the Materials Science, Engineering, and Field Aspects of Concrete” will address the issues of adding and expanding coverage of concrete materials properties in undergraduate and graduate courses and laboratories.

The workshop will serve as a forum to introduce the most current research in concrete materials properties. Participants will learn how to effectively facilitate teaching of concrete, see demonstrations, and hear explanations on student laboratory experiments, and exchange information on successful implementation of concrete-related subject matter into curricula.

Since its inception in 1992, the Faculty Enhancement Workshop series has brought together representatives from industry, research, and academia to provide innovative methods of teaching in laboratories and classrooms as well as to provide materials for teaching support.
More at www.cement.org

Smith Heads Washington Office

The CTLGroup has promoted Steven J. Smith, Ph.D., P.E., to principal engineer and group manager for its Washington, D.C. office. Dr. Smith is licensed in more than a dozen states and provides consultation to the construction industry across the country. His expertise includes forensic investigation and litigation support for construction failures, blast investigation, crane failures, post-failure site management, and field testing. Dr. Smith obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and his M.S. and B.S. from the Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C.

FDR Supplement Planned
PCA is preparing the 3rd annual “Road Recycled” advertising supplement.  Included in 11 McGraw Hill regional construction publications, the section will explore the successes of full-depth reclamation with portland cement and the smart economic and strategic since behind the process.

The supplement is scheduled for the November issue which will include distribution at Greenbuild 2008.  Additionally, a full PDF version, with ads, will be available on all the regional Web sites for one year.
To advertise, contact Joan Callahan at McGraw-Hill
For information on editorial, contact Bruce McIntosh at PCA

NRMCA Issues Sustainable
Development Promotion Brochure
The National Ready Mixed Concrete Association has published a 4-page promotion brochure outlining concrete's advantages in sustainable development and green building.. The goal is to inform specifiers, engineers, architects, contractors, and their clients about concrete's important contributions.
More at www.nrmca.org

E.J. "Al" Renier Dies at 87

E.J. “Al” Renier passed away on March 20 in Eden Prairie, Minn.

Renier retired from PCA in 1986 after serving the organization for 26 years in various regional and national positions, including the national director of highway reconstruction and senior regional paving engineer.

He was the recipient of many industry honors and published in excess of 20 technical papers on highway design and reconstruction.

Renier received his civil engineering degree from the University of Michigan.  He attained the rank of Lt. Colonel for his service during World War II and was honored with a Bronze Star.