Earlier this month, NRMCA participated in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers’ (ASME) subcommittee meeting in San Antonio, TX, to discuss potential revisions to the 2014 B30.27 standard covering safety while working around concrete pumps. In early 2014 ASME finalized and published a new concrete pumping safety standard aimed at increasing safety at job sites and reassigning responsibility/liability for different concrete pumping operations. Of concern to the ready mixed concrete industry are four provisions that erroneously place new responsibilities on concrete mixer truck drivers. These objections to the new standard were addressed at the subcommittee meeting. The specific provisions in question, B30.27-3.1.3.4.2(a) through (d), relate to air and foreign material entering a concrete pump’s hopper, emergency stop control and the rate of concrete being delivered into the hopper. (Click here to obtain a copy of the standard.)    

The revision schedule for the B30.27 standard, unfortunately, is every five years so any potential changes will not be made until 2019 at the earliest. However, to that end NRMCA has been invited to continue to attend the committee meetings and become a member of the subcommittee. NRMCA is committed to establishing and continuing a working relationship with ASME to advance safety around concrete pumps. The next committee meeting is tentatively scheduled for early Fall 2015.