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Concrete Homes Newsletter
Concrete Home > Concrete
Homes Newsletter > 2009 > March/April
March/April 2009
ICF Builder Awards Expand in 2008
PCA Appoints New Market Manager for Low-Rise Commercial Buildings
Jamie Farny is PCA’s new Market Manager, Low-Rise Commercial Buildings. The low-rise group, part of the Market Development Department at PCA, promotes the use of concrete products for low-rise, non-engineered buildings.
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Farny is responsible for promoting concrete for commercial buildings. Products include cast-in-place, precast, tilt-up, ICF, and masonry. He develops the promotional strategy and implements programs for low-rise buildings, and also is involved in promoting plaster and architectural and decorative concrete.
He is a member of several industry groups with promotional or technical objectives, including NAHB’s Commercial Builders Council; TCA’s Board of Directors; ASTM committees on plastering, mortars, and masonry units; and ACI’s plastering and decorative concrete committees.
In his previous role at PCA, Farny focused on technical aspects of concrete and masonry construction and materials. Before joining PCA, Farny worked as a construction inspector testing concrete, soil, asphalt, and other construction materials. He holds a B.S. degree in Civil Engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology.
Concrete Pavilion Finds Quality Leads at International Builders' Show
PCA hosted the 21st Concrete Pavilion at the International Builders' Show, January 20-23 in Las Vegas. While attendance was markedly down from past shows, there was a bright spot. "There seems to be an inverse relationship between quantity and quality at this show," said Mike Collignon, market manager for residential. "The quantity was much lower than I estimated, but the quality was higher than I anticipated, too."
The Pavilion provided a one-stop-shop for show attendees to learn more about the benefits of residential concrete products. Located on the main aisle of the North Hall, the 24 Pavilion Partners enjoyed a prime spot for foot traffic. "I had more than a few attendees voice their appreciation for having a central area for the concrete industry," Collignon said. "I've already had three companies contact me about joining the 2010 Concrete Pavilion," he added.
Most of the Pavilion Partners commented on the reduced attendance, and several echoed the sentiment on quality. Some Partners saw a substantial increase in international activity. SureCrete Design Products and Somero Enterprises, both first-time Partners, stated that the Builders' Show gave them exposure to a completely new audience when compared to World of Concrete.
The PCA booth featured a pervious concrete display that allowed attendees to get a first-hand look at this environmentally innovative product. "Attendees were very enthusiastic about pervious, and their knowledge base varied from experienced to introductory," said Kelly McGinnis, coordinator of sustainable development.
In addition to the pervious display, there was an easy-to-use touch screen kiosk that demonstrated how concrete walls save energy over conventional wood framing. Users selected a house type, concrete wall system, and area of the country. The results screen showed typical savings in electricity and natural gas usage, and also provided heating and cooling requirements. Donn Thompson, manager of building technologies and sustainable codes, commented that "the calculated energy savings are just a part of the story. When you tell people about the upfront equipment cost savings and the reduced insurance premiums, they start to realize the full value of an insulated concrete home."
Ed Sullivan, chief economist, presented his economic forecast to show attendees during the afternoon of the opening day. A small crowd gathered to hear Sullivan's take on what effects a stimulus package, the credit markets and an infrastructure bill will have on the American economy. This presentation followed an early morning press conference that included, among others, reporters from Builder, Wall Street Journal, Las Vegas Review-Journal and Professional Builder.
For more information about the 2009 show, or to learn more about how to be a part of the 2010 Concrete Pavilion, please contact Mike Collignon by email at mcollignon@cement.org or by phone at (847) 972-9068.
Volunteers Help Out at 2009 Concrete Pavilion
Associations depend on member involvement for success. PCA would like to thank the following member and state association employees for volunteering to help staff the PCA booth at the 2009 Builders’ Show. Through their presence, PCA is able to offer show attendees face-to-face dialogue with regional contacts. Many times, these contacts turn into working relationships that can help the industry on local, regional, and even national levels.
Thank you for your time and your service, as both are truly appreciated.
NAHB Releases Green Building Standard
The National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB) and the International Code Council (ICC) jointly announced the recent release of the ICC 700-2008 National Green Building Standard™ for all residential construction work including single-family homes, apartments and condos, land development and remodeling and renovation. It is the first and only green building rating system approved by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).
Following the stringent process ANSI requires, NAHB and ICC gathered a fully inclusive and representative consensus committee composed of builders, architects, product manufacturers, regulators and environmental experts. Cement industry expertise was directly involved in deliberations at both the full committee and task group levels to help ensure the inclusion of innovative cement and concrete homebuilding technologies in the Standard. As a result, the Standard outlines more than 30 separate green building practices where cementitious products can help a residential project qualify for points toward certification.
The Standard is available through the NAHB’s Builder Books site: http://store.builderbooks.com/. The low-rise buildings department at PCA is currently reviewing the final document. Our next newsletter will describe available information tools to explain how concrete will help homebuilders comply with the requirements of the new ANSI program.
North Central College Campus: New Track Building Goes the Extra Mile and Medals
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In early 2009, budgets are tight everywhere you look. Like everyone else, colleges are getting squeezed for funding. Yet that doesn’t mean their need for additional dormitory or recreational space goes away. What it does mean is that college administrators and other building owners are even more critical of assessing new projects to make sure they’re getting the most value for their investment. Circumstances such as the credit crunch can actually improve new projects, whether that’s increased design creativity or efficiency of construction or building operations. That’s what happened at North Central College (NCC) in suburban Naperville, Illinois. When NCC was faced with a choice between building more student housing or a new track facility, they decided to build them both under one roof.
The new structure, the first of its kind, is commonly known as the NCC Res/Rec Center and it serves double-duty; it’s a residence hall and recreation center in one. The building’s design offers all the latest features of concrete construction, and the layout means that students can leave their dorms and get to the track without a trip outside. The residence portion contains over 200 dorm rooms—designed as either single or double occupancy—housing 265 students initially, with an increase up to 365 possible. The recreation area has a 200-m indoor track, exercise equipment, and multipurpose courts. At 198,000 sq ft, this is a large building. Yet neighbors won’t have a “big box” outside their front doors because the dorm wraps around the track building to give it traditional low-rise residential appeal. The large precast concrete panels—some 50 ft tall—were made to resemble hand-laid clay masonry with stone details at window headers and building corners. Two masonry paints will complete the look: a base coat for the “joints” and “stones” and a cover coat for the “brick.”
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Exterior appearances aside, the real beauty is the highly engineered concrete sandwich panels, which provide rugged, durable surfaces for both walls and floors inside and out. Exterior walls are fire resistant and can withstand an F5 tornado (intensity rating termed “incredible” with winds from 261 – 318 mph). A 2-1/2 in. concrete face on either side is held together with regularly spaced steel trusses. Following a two-step casting process, the resulting 3-in. void between panels is injected with a bio-based insulating foam (polyisocyanurate from soybean or castor oil). This gives the panels superior energy efficiency; finished walls are rated at about R 19. And the exposed concrete provides thermal mass inside, and mass walls are great for soundproofing. Next-door neighbors may like it warmer or cooler, louder or quieter than each other, but the insulated concrete panels means they can both have it just the way they like it.
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Although the production process of the panels is highly automated, workers do make final adjustments so that tight quality control is achieved for thickness and other dimensions. This allows panels to be erected quickly at the site with only a minimum of field adjustments. Solid, high-quality concrete construction built with an efficient use of labor makes for cost effective structures.
The construction process and building operation both contribute to high performance. At the project site itself, Dukane committed to diverting at least 75% of construction waste through recycling. In the factory, the concrete mix incorporates 60% slag aggregate. Fly ash replaces 30% of the cement. Overall, the precast panels are made with about 40% recycled materials. Panels are energy efficient, locally produced (in this case, just a few miles away), and contain a good portion of recycled materials. On the NCC Res/Rec Center, at least 20% of all the manufactured products are being made regionally—within 500 miles. The slag aggregate results in lower density concrete, 125 pcf rather than 150 pcf. That small reduction in weight could save shipping costs, as an extra panel can be placed on a truck without violating street or road weight limits. That’s not an issue on this project, but may be a factor for others where transportation distances are greater. Designers could also check for savings on foundations, which would be subjected to smaller loads.
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The building contains many exciting energy features from top to bottom and in between. The roof will be a white membrane to reduce heat island effect. Down below, geothermal loops will capture the earth’s heat and bring it inside. Before being deposited into sewers, waste water will transfer its warmth to incoming water lines, lessening the energy required to heat clean water. Inside, the plumbing fixtures are low-flow and there’s no irrigation system, so the building’s total water use is reduced compared to conventional construction. Each room has its own thermostat and lighting controls for comfort and efficiency and all windows are energy efficient. As a result, the envelope is tight (has low air infiltration). Radiant heating, high velocity air conditioning, and heat recovery ventilators (HRVs) improve energy efficiency so that the structure is 40%- 50% more energy efficient than standard wood construction. The building is rated at Energy Star 5+ level. Other green features related to the building are aimed at reducing traffic, like a car- and bike-sharing program. This all adds up to a guaranteed LEED™ Silver rating for NCC Res/Rec, with a potential for Gold when all the numbers are finalized.
Brian Bock of Dukane Precast, the manufacturer of the panels, notes that using the same basic sandwich panel configuration for both walls and floors requires extensive preplanning. Their plant has perfected techniques for many of the hidden aspects of the panels. Whereas wall panels have embeds for electrical outlets and cable, floor panels contain tubing for radiant heating. Radiant heating is among the most efficient and comfortable heating systems for occupants. All panels are built to tight tolerances, including their thickness, which results in labor and material cost savings. The walls, which are finished quite smooth, receive only a coat of paint as the finish treatment; there’s no drywall or other VOC materials. Floors are also finished smooth and flat and to strict thickness tolerances, ready to be covered by tile or carpet, though they could probably serve quite well if they were simply stained.
This NCC Res/Rec Center is a great example of total precast concrete construction for low-rise buildings to make attractive, safe, energy efficient living and recreational space. All the benefits you’d want for your kids, yourself, and your parents, from dorms to multi-family housing like condos and assisted living facilities. People feel good while living there, and they feel good about living there, knowing that their home has a low environmental impact. Precast concrete construction for comfortable and sustainable living.
Ask The Expert
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Q: Can Concrete Homes be built in locations that are prone to earthquakes?
A: Add resistance to seismic activity to the long list of benefits when building homes with concrete. When an earthquake occurs, the rolling motion of the earth creates excessive forces that act side to side on a structure. A home’s having adequate strength to resist this push and pull is the key to successful seismic performance.
Reinforced concrete walls are a composite system; concrete resists the compression or pushing forces, and reinforcing steel resists the tensile or pulling forces. This combination provides all three of the most important earthquake resistance properties: stiffness, strength, and ductility. Studies have shown even lightly reinforced concrete shear walls have more than six times the racking load resistance of framed wall construction.
The key to successful seismic performance in reinforced concrete is following good design practice. Fortunately for the homebuilder, PCA publication EB560: PCA 100-2007, Prescriptive Design of Exterior Concrete Walls for One- and Two-Family Dwellings provides step-by-step structural design tools to assist with the design of one- and two-story concrete homes in all but the most severe earthquake region, Seismic Zone E. The builder can follow the design tables and diagrams to finalize the allowable dimensions, shape, and height of the home; determine wall thicknesses, rebar size and spacing; and select floor and roof connections.
Follow this link to order a copy of EB560 and soon you’ll be designing sturdy, strong, earthquake-resistant concrete homes.
Share your own Concrete Homes technical questions by forwarding them in an email to: concretehomes@cement.org. We will respond by email and may even publish your question in our next Concrete Homes Newsletter.
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Exterior concrete wall systems provide Energy Star® home builders with a faster, less complicated means of building high performance houses compared to conventional frame assemblies. This Tech Brief (No. 21) is designed in a single page format and written in a non-technical style intended to inform the building industry and consumers about the ways concrete home building technologies can more easily meet the exterior envelope requirements of the US Environmental Protection Agency Energy Star® program. The combination of continuous insulation and solid concrete create tighter, better performing exterior wall assemblies with fewer parts and pieces, and less coordination.
BESTSELLER! Portland Cement Plaster/Stucco Manual
This how-to guide and technical manual contains everything you need to know about plastering and stucco. This Fifth Edition, illustrated with numerous color photos, contains essential information on materials, bases, mixes, hand and machine applications, and curing. Includes a glossary of plastering terms, a tool list, a troubleshooting guide, and a guide specification. Featuring the latest ASTM and CSA standards, this is an excellent resource for architects, engineers, specifiers, inspectors, contractors, plasterers, and apprentices.
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