RCC Upgrades Tested by Severe Floods

Earthen dams upgraded with roller-compacted concrete (RCC) emergency spillways have withstood the record flooding in the southeast, even when overtopped.

Last week Georgia received 14 inches of rain, of which more than eight inches fell in one 24-hour period.  The flood was widespread and tragic, with seven residents losing their lives in Douglas, Carroll, and Gwinnett counties.

As severe as the flooding was, the successful performance of four embankment dams on the Yellow River may have reduced even greater flooding and subsequent damage.

From 2004-2007, the Natural Resources Conservation Service and Gwinnett County upgraded four embankment dams (Y-14, Y-15, Y-16, Y-17) which were built in the early 1960s.  The county has been experiencing fast growth and the earthen embankments which were originally built to protect rural pasture and farmland are now protecting residential and commercial developments.

To provide overtopping protection and increase the dams' spillway capacity, the majority of the downstream portions of the dams were armored with RCC.  For aesthetical purposes, the RCC at three of the four dams was covered with soil and planted to blend with the surroundings.

Initial reports after last week’s flood are that although embankments experienced damage to the cosmetic soil cover, the spillways handled the flood waters very well and performed exactly as design intended.
Contact Fares Abdo

Engineering News-Record Features PCA High Performance Building Requirements

After an initial article reporting the availability of PCA’s High Performance Building Requirements for Sustainability in the September 2 issue of Engineering New- Record (ENR), the publication followed that article up with “Concrete Advocate Answers a Long Line of Critics” on September 23 that allowed PCA Codes and Standards to respond to claims in the initial article that the requirements were “biased” towards concrete and cement products.

As mentioned in the article PCA’s believes that “high-performance buildings, as defined in a report to Congress prepared by the National Institute of Building Sciences, are more than just buildings with good energy performance.”  These buildings also place  “high emphasis on life safety, property protection, security, aesthetics and community issues.”

PCA developed the sample ordinance for use by state and local governments and federal agencies to implement sustainable or green building initiatives. The requirements are formatted as amendments to the 2009 International Building Code to facilitate adoption. In addition to energy efficiency and typical sustainability criteria, enhanced sustainability is accomplished with requirements for increased disaster resistance and improved durability.
Download the High Performance Building Requirements
Contact Steve Szoke

Ash Grove Celebrates 80 Years in Nebraska

Local and state leaders joined with representatives from Ash Grove Cement Company last week to celebrate 80 years of operation in Nebraska and for a ribbon cutting for the company’s newly constructed Louisville Office Building. 

Joining Ash Grove representatives at the event were several local elected leaders including Nebraska state Sen. Dave Pankonin, Louisville Mayor Alan Mueller, and Cass County Economic Council Executive Director John Yochum.

The event also marked the grand opening of Ash Grove’s newly constructed 14,000 square-foot office building, which was designed to meet the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Energy Star requirements.  The $3.6 million structure includes plant offices, an employee lunchroom, lockers, and a conference room.

Ash Grove Cement Company operates the only cement plant in Nebraska and distributes product throughout Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota, and Kansas.  Ash Grove’s Louisville plant provides 138 jobs and generates nearly 20 percent of the taxes supporting the Louisville School District.

2009 North American Cement Industry Annual Yearbook Now Available

PCA’s annual industry yearbook is considered by many as a starting place for the historical perspective on the U.S. and Canadian construction and cement industries. The Yearbook provides long-term historical data tables and graphs for indicators most relevant to the cement industry.

Sections include economic activity, cement consumption and supply, infrastructure, industry operating characteristics, Canada, and international. Detailed historical data for the past 20 years is provided on construction activity, company rankings, cement trade, and energy consumption.
Visit the PCA Bookstore to order
Contact Karen Arneson

Sustainability Workshop Offered by PCA/NECSA

The PCA Northeast Cement Shippers Association is sponsoring a one-day sustainability workshop on October 22 in Suffern, N.Y.

The seminar is presented in “train the trainer” format to prepare industry members to deliver a unified message on how cement-based products contribute to sustainability in the built environment.

Topics to be covered include how concrete products contributed to LEED points, strategies to promote concrete products to sustainable designers, and improving the industry image in the green building community.  Specific tracks related to the masonry and precast sectors are available.
To register visit www.necementshippers.com
Contact Heather Steffek

Biennial Plant Information Summary Now Available

Published every two years, PCA’s U.S. and Canadian Portland Cement Industry: Plant Information Summary provides comprehensive information on plant capacities and types of cement produced at each facility.  The Summary covers all U.S. and Canadian plants.  Plant locations, parent company listings, and company ranking tables are included.

The detailed data contains information on mills and kilns, fuel types used, including waste fuels. Tables rank capacity by state, company and plant.
Visit the PCA Bookstore to order
Contact Karen Arneson