Concrete Homes Newsletter
Concrete Home > Concrete Homes Newsletter > 2007 > March/April

March/April 2007

• Positive Reviews at the International Builders' Show
• PCA Grateful for Industry Volunteers
• DIY Promotion Zone to Assist Promoters, Builders
• CFA Basement of the Year Is Largest Winner Ever
• ICFA Announces Tagline Contest
• Upcoming Events
• Tools of Our Trade
  -DVD022

Positive Reviews at the International Builders' Show

Portland Cement Association (PCA) was involved in many different aspects of the National Association of Home Builders’ annual International Builders’ Show, and in each situation, the outcome was viewed as positive.

The New American Home® (TNAH) 2007 reflects two trends in homebuilding— urban settings and energy efficiency. And, for the fourth consecutive year, concrete wall systems contributed to its success.

The New American Home's concrete attributes like fiber-cement siding and precast concrete planters contribute to is beauty.	Stucco and fiber-cement siding provides superior protection from termites and fire.

The home, the official showcase of the annual Builders' Show held in Orlando, Florida, utilizes insulated, precast concrete sandwich walls. The 3-story, "urban loft" home features 4,707 square feet of living area plus a 576-square-foot suite above the detached garage. It is expected to earn EPA’s ENERGY STAR rating and use nearly 73% less energy for heating and cooling than a comparable wood-framed home.

The precast concrete wall systems provide the home other environmental and comfort benefits. The home is resistant to fires, wind, hurricanes, floods, and other natural disasters. Additionally, because the walls were produced in a factory setting, there was very little construction waste. Precast concrete homes also offer superior soundproof qualities and can be assembled with minimal disturbance to the community, factors important for TNAH 2007, which was located in a neighborhood close to downtown Orlando.

The wall system was not the only sustainable building contribution cement-based products made to TNAH 2007. The home boasts a green roof, supported by precast hollow-core concrete panels. Durable, insect-resistant fiber-cement siding covers the exterior as does pollution-fighting “TX Aria” cement-based stucco. This photocatalytic cement reduces atmospheric pollutants such as nitric oxides, carbon monoxide and sulfur monoxide—all commonly created by car exhaust emissions.

Concrete pavers decorate the poolside.	Concrete walls create a unique area when acid stained or left bare to highlight art.

Jim Niehoff, Residential Promotion Manager of the Portland Cement Association said, “People shared very favorable comments about the concrete products used in the home.”

PCA and the Precast-Prestressed Concrete Institute (PCI) played a major role in TNAH 2007, coordinating product donations and providing technical expertise.

For the 19th consecutive year, PCA hosted the Concrete Pavilion at the Builders’ Show. The Pavilion raises concrete's presence and profile by consolidating concrete products in one area. This year, 32 Pavilion partners joined PCA for nearly 13,000 square feet of exhibit space showcasing concrete wall systems, paving products, cast stone, and other concrete products geared for residential construction. Attendance at the show topped 104,000.

PCA's booth anchors the Concrete Pavilion and serves as a general resource center and guide to concrete exhibitors. This year, the booth featured an easy-to-use touch screen kiosk that demonstrated how concrete walls save energy over conventional wood framing. Users selected a house type (size, style, and number of stories), wall system (ICF, masonry, AAC, removable form or precast), and area of the country. A results screen displayed typical savings in electrical and natural gas costs and size requirements for heating and cooling equipment.

Highlights of this year's Concrete Pavilion included a full-size safe room in the Royal Concrete Concepts booth, periodic demonstrations in the Quikrete booth, an autograph session with NFL Hall of Fame linebacker Dick Butkus in the Lonestar Stone booth and an open bar in the Suncoast Post Tension booth.

Ed Sullivan, PCA chief economist, presented his 2007 residential cement outlook at a press conference at the 2007 International Builders’ Show on February 7 in Orlando.

According to his report, the current slump in residential construction is expected to extend through 2007 and will exert a drag on 2007 cement consumption. Although a sales recovery in the residential market is expected this summer, starts are forecast to decline nearly 18% in 2007.

Sullivan reported that there will be great disparity region to region for recovery. Boom/bust areas such as California, Nevada, Arizona, and Florida will endure later start declines and a slower recovery, as will economically depressed markets such as Michigan. “Normal markets” such as the Plains states will see shallower declines and may recover by the third quarter of the year.

Media in attendance at the press conference included representatives from the Wall Street Journal, Orlando Sentinel, and Builder magazine.

PCA residential director Mike Weber, Executive Director of the Insulating Concrete Form Association (ICFA) Joe Lyman, and ICFA Chairman Kent Stumpe greeted Secretary Alphonso Jackson from the Department of Housing and Urban Development during his tour of the 2007 International Builders' Show held in Orlando, Florida, earlier this month.

Joe Lyman shakes hands with Secretary Alphonso Jackson	(L-R): Joe Lyman, Kent Stumpe and Mike Weber discuss the partnership of HUD and the concrete housing industry with Secretary Alphonso Jackson

HUD’s Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing (PATH) sponsored the NextGen House, and Jackson was on hand to address builders attending the show. PCA and ICFA have worked in partnership with PATH for many years to increase the awareness and market penetration of industry innovations such as insulating concrete forms and other concrete wall systems and cement-based residential products.

Lyman believes ICFA's partnership with HUD is essential to advancing the use of ICFs in the future. He says, "The track record for working with HUD in the past has been solid. HUD was a key partner in developing the prescriptive method for ICFs and fighting for its acceptance in the model building code. Also, HUD's PATH program has helped the ICF industry penetrate additional housing markets through its promotion of ICF construction." He adds, "We hope to build on these successes and achieve even greater results in the future."

PCA Grateful for Industry Volunteers

Every year, executive directors of the regional shipper groups and PCA member employees lend a hand at the PCA Builders’ Show booth. With their assistance, we’re able to handle inquiries from around the country. Many times, these contacts form working relationships that can help the industry on a local, regional and national level. These volunteers are invaluable to us, and we’d like to extend a big “Thank You” to all who helped this year.

This year, contacts for every region, along with state and provincial contacts, received exposure in the PCA booth via a comprehensive residential contact document. This handout was distributed to approximately 125 show attendees.

DIY Promotion Zone to Assist Promoters, Builders

PCA announces the debut of a unique web-based advertising and marketing tool for residential concrete promoters—local and national trade groups, material suppliers, builders, and contractors.

Users can customize a library of templates to create print ads, brochures, event postcards, and e-mail blasts for use in promoting residential concrete products to both consumer and non-consumer audiences. Choose from a library of photos on the site, or upload your own images and logos for the promotional pieces.

The goal is a one-stop, online resource for planning, creating, printing and distributing marketing communications materials. Such a system offers the flexibility to customize or self-brand materials without sacrificing the ability to maintain consistent, integrated, and professionally designed looks and messages. Web-based production tools also bring greater economy and efficiency to production by including fulfillment services such as e-mailing and mailing.

The Web site’s print vendors, Redleaf Digital and Johnson Press, can also act as a fulfillment source, shipping the completed items directly to the user or to a mailing list provided by the user. Redleaf’s rates are designed to be very competitive with rates charged by local printers. Users can also create a PDF file to take to a local printer.

There is no fee to register and begin using this dynamic new service. All fees are charged on a pay-as-you-go, project-by-project basis. During their first visit, users will be asked to register and provide a user name and password to be used on subsequent visits. Any products produced on the site can be saved, and then completed and submitted at a future date.

To visit this new promotion tool, please click here.

CFA Basement of the Year Is Largest Winner Ever

Whether custom or production—today’s homes are designed with many turns and offsets appearing more like an amalgamation of forms rather than the neat little boxes designed decades ago. Today’s consumers are demanding more than ever in their new home constructions, and housing plans have become increasingly more complex and detailed. The Concrete Foundations Association (CFA)—a North American network dedicated to improving the residential concrete industry by building better businesses and improving codes and standards—2007 Basement of the Year competition salutes some of this year’s most challenging home projects and their cast-in-place concrete foundations.

This year’s competition was the largest in CFA history with 13 entries from across the country, and it is the first time multiple categories were made available for submission. Contractors cast votes for Basement of the Year in the CFA booth at the 2007 World of Concrete trade show in Las Vegas, as well as online. The formal award presentation will be made at the Awards Banquet Luncheon during the CFA’s Annual Summer Convention, Aug. 8–11 at the Stoweflake Resort in Stowe, Vermont.

Votes were cast by fellow concrete contractors based on their rating of how difficult the projects were to estimate and construct, as well as the potential to make money. Project submissions included information such as materials quantities, difficult features, technology used and problems that were overcome. This year, contractors also displayed some of the most intriguing photography the competition has seen to date.

According to Ed Sauter, executive director of CFA, the Basement of the Year competition enables foundation contractors to display the wide range of projects that are being completed today. “The technological advancements that have been made in the poured wall industry allow contractors to complete complex projects more efficiently, which helps ensure homeowners’ dreams are realized,” said Sauter. “Each year, the projects submitted to this competition get more complicated and demonstrate the diversity afforded through poured wall foundations.”

Pritt Residence—Category: Single Family >5,000 square feet

The structure achieving the highest ranking and selected “most visually intimidating” by more than 50 percent of voters, is a 50,000-square-foot, two-story basement near the ocean in Corona Del Mar, California. This project was submitted by Ekedal Masonry and Concrete, Inc., of Newport Beach, the foundation contractor on the project. Caissons had to be used in rock because of geological conditions and lengthy shoring specifications. The cast-in-place walls had many angles with very intricate tops. A tunnel that led from the house to the ocean spawned additional challenges, which created a great deal of coordination. In addition to the tunnel, the house features several unique elements that required Ekedal Masonry and Concrete, Inc., to create chases out of concrete for the waterslide, pool and many block-outs. This home, currently the most expensive home on the market in the United States, is listed at $75 million and has a more than 4,000-square-foot mechanical room as well as a bowling alley below the pool.

Because of the significant exposure and total size of the job, precision was essential. Products for the job were fabricated elsewhere, and materials came from all over the world, so there was no room for error. A full-time CAD operator was on site every day and actually printed out radiuses on paper that were glued down to plywood for templates. Ekedal’s plan detailer spent two months on shop drawings for this job. The Pritt Residence used 3,879 yards of concrete and 215 tons of steel in the walls. The job spanned 780 linear feet, with wall heights ranging from 4 to 45 feet tall. Wall thicknesses ranged from 8 inches to 36 inches.

“Even though projects like this are common to our company, we had to be aware that this home is surrounded by $20 million homes and was very high profile,” said Ryan Ekedal, Vice President of Ekedal Masonry and Concrete, Inc. “We had to take extra precautions on everything from monitoring ground vibrations and shoring walls to overall liability concerns. We knew that, because this job was receiving major exposure, we were under the microscope and everyone had to give an added 100 percent to the work and concentration they were already applying to the project.”

286 Foxcliff North—Category: Single Family > 5,000 square feet

The project receiving the second highest vote total this year is Lot 286 Foxcliff North in Martinsville, Indiana. Custom Concrete in Westfield constructed this 15,500-square-foot basement. With wall heights ranging from 3 to 15 feet, the project features a total of 20 angled corners. The footings were 3 and 2 feet wide by 12 inches in depth with two rows of #6 continuous rebar. Located on a challenging site, the project was on the top of a steep hill with limited access. The large atrium was filled with gravel by conveyor trucks that had to maneuver around the site as best as possible. This took 2,000 tons of gravel. Back piers were a challenge to reach, and the concrete pump contractors assisted with extra hoses and manpower to complete the pour. Varying wall heights presented a unique challenge, and crews had to be extra cautious to ensure that the correct forms were on site at the appropriate times. Lot 286 Foxcliff North foundation was 953 linear feet and includes 270 cubic yards of concrete for the walls, 100 cubic yards of concrete for footings that contain 2,000 linear feet of rebar. The job included a reinforced safe room, and an aquatic center, within the basement area.

“This was one of the most challenging jobs our firm has tackled,” said Brian Kincaid, Field Representative Manager at Custom Concrete. “The different size and heights of the walls, complexity of the footings and job access made this a very unique project. Our on-site CAD people were a huge asset for this project.”

Prescott Residence—Category: Single Family > 5,000 square feet

The third place finisher, the Prescott Residence in West Bend, Wisconsin, was submitted by the foundation contractor Coello & Associates, Inc. of Waukesha. The foundation wall for the 16,000-square-foot home was 10 feet high and included two faces of steel rebar on the entire foundation. With more than 9,000 linear feet of steel rebar in the wall and multiple brick ledge heights, a great amount of time and effort was required prior to pouring the wall. One of the greatest challenges in forming the wall was a double ellipse on the rear of the house. Squaring up this portion of the foundation was extremely complex because of its odd shape, 10-foot height, and the location of two ellipses back-to-back.

Poor soil conditions at the site made the footing design extremely complex. The footings were 18 inches thick and ranged from 20 to 42 inches wide. The entire foundation sat on almost 700 yards of slurry mix, which required Coello & Associates to drill each pin into the ground to hold the forms correctly. The reinforcement in the footings included rebar in both directions and L-shaped steel bars. Part of the foundation was also poured on pilings.

“Extensive coordination and accurate scheduling were crucial to the success of this project,” said Nick Coello, Quality Control Manager of Coello & Associates. “Due to the large size of the home, detailed planning was required both internally and with our concrete supplier before the project began. The concrete was specially designed to ensure it would consolidate properly with all of the rebar.”

Briar Creek Golf Club—Category: Commercial/Multi-Family

A 10,700-square-foot basement for the Briar Creek Golf Club in Johns Island, South Carolina, was constructed by Sunburst Builders, LLC of Charleston. The project has a double matted #6 rebar encased in #4 stirrups, every 24 feet on center. The walls were 16 inches wide with two octagon-shaped decks and arches between columns. The golf club is in a storm surge zone and footings had to be 4 feet deep, which was below the water table. Because of the footing depth and rain, the project was constantly de-watered. Aluminum forms, wood forms and Styrofoam shapes were used to achieve the 24-inch by 16-inch columns. An arch was located between every column. The Briar Creek Golf Club foundation has 348 total linear feet and includes 188 cubic yards of concrete for the walls, 252 cubic yards of concrete for footings that contain 12,820 pounds of steel, with another 8,460 pounds of steel in the walls. This project detailed impressive above-grade forming for a colonnade structural perimeter.

“We were happy to be part of a team that is committed to structural integrity with the awareness of seismic conditions, hurricanes and storm surges,” said Bill Nelson, president of Sunburst Builders. “Crest Industries recognized our abilities to handle the project and the architect, Mark Finlay, presented us with a challenge that resulted in an award winning project.”

Koepke Residence—Category: Single Family 2,000 – 5,000 square feet

Finally, another project submitted by Coello & Associates, Inc. was a basement for a 4,500-square-foot home in Dundee, Wisconsin. This home was featured on the television show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Unlike most homes featured on the program, the Koepke residence had a full 8-foot high basement. The foundation needed to be constructed in 12 hours or less, which made the time constraints the most challenging aspect of the project. The standard 8-inch by 20-inch footings were poured with a concrete mix design that allowed Coello & Associates to begin setting the wall forms just shortly after the footings were poured. An engineer was selected to help determine what admixtures would create a concrete mix that would set quickly and reach 3,000 psi after just four hours and 8,000 psi at 28 days. The project required craftsmen to work through the night, so crews were divided into three groups with staggered arrival times. Coello & Associates was able to complete the job in a mere 10.5 hours and donated all labor and equipment for the Koepke family home.

“It took a great deal of careful planning and hard work, but it was definitely worth it,” said general manager, Michael Coello. It was a truly amazing experience for all of us.”

Thanks to the CFA for this article.

ICFA Announces Tagline Contest

In a move to better communicate its message to the ICF industry and public-at-large, the Insulating Concrete Form Association’s Promotion Committee has announced a contest to develop a phrase that will become ICFA's official tagline. A tagline, or branding slogan, is typically used in marketing materials and advertising. The idea behind a tagline is to create a memorable phrase that will sum up the tone and premise of a brand or product. Jim Niehoff, Chairman of ICFA's Promotion Committee, says, "With the impressive growth and maturation of the ICF industry over the last decade, it was felt that a phrase was needed to identify ICFA as the primary resource for those interested in the ICF industry."

All individuals active in the ICF industry are welcome to participate. The prize for the winning entry is a $250 Visa gift card and free registration to ICFA's Annual Meeting and Expo September 24–26, 2007 in St. Louis, Missouri.

To enter, please email your tagline, with all company contact information, to jlyman@forms.org. Deadline for submissions is June 1, 2007. The winning tagline will be unveiled with ICFA's new logo at the ICFA's Annual Meeting and Expo. For more information about ICFA, visit www.forms.org.

Thanks to the ICFA for this article.

Upcoming Events

• NAHB’s Introduction to ICF Construction for Builders seminar
  Wilmington, North Car., March 14, 2007 More
  
• NAHB’s ICF Installer Training seminar
  Wilmington, North Car., March 15, 2007 More
  
• Greater Kansas City Home Show
  Kansas City, Kan., March 22-25, 2007 More
  
• Western Massachusetts Home & Garden Show
  West Springfield, Mass., March 22-25, 2007 More
  
• NAHB's Green Building Conference
  St. Louis, Mo., March 25-27, 2007 More
  
• NAHB's Concrete Technology Tour
  Minneapolis, Minn., May 6-8, 2007 More
  

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