School Summit Series Holds Successful Event in Texas

The School Summit Series in Coppell, TX, held on May 7 - 8 at new Tremco University successfully convened K-12 school administrators, district officials and architects to explore high-performance construction for educational facilities, reports NRMCA Vice President, Building Innovations, Michael Wymant. The event focused on providing attendees with the knowledge and tools to create and maintain safe, resilient, sustainable and inspiring school environments.

The summit showcased success stories of concrete schools and public safety buildings, including achieving net-zero energy usage, disaster resilience, sustainability targets and cost-effective maintenance. Key presentations included:

• Marcy Tyler, director of building science, Tremco CPG Inc. who delivered the welcome and instructions, and spoke on Intentional Construction Innovation in the K-12 Space.
• Justin McElfresh, principal, Sherman Carter Barnhart (SCB), discussed Saving Teachers' Salaries with Better Building Design.
• Greg Wellman, CMTA engineering managing partner, Dallas Holland Heck Boomerang Design who presented High-Performance Energy Case Studies.
• Another highlight was NRMCA's Wymant who presented Concrete Innovations: Zero Energy and Carbon Reduction Without Extra Cost, demonstrating cost-effective strategies for sustainable school construction with ready mixed concrete and low carbon mixes.

The summit also featured a roundtable panel discussion titled Estimation, Installation, and Construction of Insulated Concrete Form Schools with panelists Cliff Holden from the Joshua Independent School District, Tony Magers from DMG Masonry, Brian Brannan from MidTex Masonry and Greg Mills from Shell Craft General Contractor.

Attendees participated in site visits to Crockett Middle School and Valley Ranch Elementary School in Irving, TX, to view ICF environments firsthand. The summit also included a dinner and a building enclosure challenge, fostering collaboration and networking. The School Summit Series provided valuable insights and facilitated connections among industry professionals, contributing to the advancement of high-performance K-12 school construction, Wymant said.

For more information, contact Michael Wymant at mwymant@nrmca.org.