NRMCA e-news
Early bird registration is open for NRMCA’s ConcreteWorks 2017, scheduled for October 1-3 at the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center in Grapevine, TX (metropolitan Dallas). Register between now and Tuesday, July 4, and you’ll be entered into a contest to win a FREE suite upgrade* at the resort. NRMCA has contracted a block of rooms at a discounted rate of $209/night plus taxes and a $20/night resort fee. The resort fee will cover several in-room amenities. Hotel reservations can be made by calling the Gaylord Texan directly at 877-491-5138 and asking for the "NRMCA’s ConcreteWorks 2017" rate or we encourage you to make your hotel reservations online. The hotel reservations cut-off date is Wednesday, September 6, or when the block sells out, whichever occurs first.
 
*Suite upgrade is for a Junior Suite available from September 28 through October 3 on a room reserved in the NRMCA block at the group rate. Registrations must be received by Tuesday, July 4, 2017 to be eligible. For more information, please contact Senior Director of Meetings Jessica Walgenbach at jwalgenbach@nrmca.org. Click here to access registration, the resort's online reservations' link, the exhibitor prospectus and more.
 
Schwing America, Inc. Fritz-Pak Corporation
Pavement
The Kentucky Concrete Association (KCA) recently hosted three concrete overlay seminars throughout the state, reports NRMCA Senior Director, Local Paving Amanda Hult who spoke at each of them. The seminars were organized by KCA’s Regional Concrete Education Councils along with the Northern, Bluegrass and Kentuckiana Concrete Education Councils. Hult educated the attendees on the design of bonded concrete overlays of asphalt parking lots using the National Concrete Pavement Technology Center's Guide to Concrete Overlays of Asphalt Parking Lots along with NRMCA's Design Assistance Program. The seminars were well attended by architects, engineers, city officials and industry representatives. Hult encouraged the designers who attended the seminar to provide a well-designed concrete section on plans in order to introduce competition on a project.

"The key to this is to make sure that the concrete section is a well-designed section so we are able to properly compare initial costs, apples to apples, " Hult stated.
 
For more information, contact Amanda Hult at ahult@nrmca.org.
 
Due to scheduling conflicts, the upcoming NRMCA Pervious Concrete Promotion Subcommittee conference call has been rescheduled to Tuesday, June 27, at 2 p.m. Eastern time, reports NRMCA Vice President, Local Paving, Phil Kresge. The call was originally to be held June 20. Please make a note of the change.
 
The call-in number is 866-670-0780 and the conference code is 9101734. Topics of discussion will include progress on Pervious In Practice Publication #3 - Pervious Concrete Testing, recently published research results from Dr. Liv Haselbach, pervious contractor certification updates and future plans for Pervious University.
 
For more information, contact Phil Kresge at pkresge@nrmca.org.
 
Association & Industry News
NRMCA is looking for good men and women to serve on the Association's Board of Directors. While serving on the Board requires both commitment and energy, it is a rewarding opportunity to give back to the industry. NRMCA represents a broad range of ready mixed concrete companies across the United States and its success is a direct result of the skills and expertise of the professional staff working in conjunction with Board members. Nominees must be committed to promoting NRMCA programs and working in the best interest of its membership and the industry at large. The Board provides strategic direction, fiduciary oversight and governance of the organization’s operations.

Nominees are vetted by the Nominating Committee which consists of the current chairman, the immediate past chairman and past chairmen of the Board for the previous seven years who are still in active in the industry. The selected slate of nominees is then presented to and elected by the general membership and will begin serving three-year terms immediately following the 2018 annual convention. Nominees should have the following attributes:
  • Current NRMCA producer member in good standing;
  • Hold key decision making responsibility within his or her company;
  • Inherent leadership, management and interpersonal skills;
  • Ability to participate in and sustain collaborative group efforts;
  • Commitment to attend and participate in two Board meetings each year and fulfill the duties and responsibilities as referenced in the Board Job Description; 
  • Serve on NRMCA committee(s) of his or her choice;
  • Annually support the association's Political Action Committee (CONCRETEPAC) and the RMC Research & Education Foundation;
  • Attend and participate in promotion programs in his or her region; and
  • Actively recruit new members and help to retain existing members.
Any NRMCA member can submit a nomination and individuals are also free to nominate themselves. Click here for a list of current NRMCA Board members along with the year that his or her term expires. Please note that members who have served three-year terms and are going off the Board in 2018 are not eligible for re-election until 2019. The exception to this is Board Members who are filling an unexpired vacant seat. Those individuals are marked with an asterisk. Help build NRMCA’s future by nominating a strong industry leader today! Nominations are due by Friday, July 14.

For more information, contact Heather Houck at hhouck@nrmca.org.
 
WAM USA, Inc. CarbonCure Technologies Inc.
Government Affairs
What’s better than one day on the Hill? Two days on the Hill! Next month, NRMCA Government Affairs Department will host two DC Days: Tuesday, July 11 and Wednesday, July 19. NRMCA’s DC Days is an opportunity for you to come to your nation’s capital to meet with your elected representatives and their staffs to discuss important issues impacting the ready mixed concrete industry. Choose the date that works best for your schedule and we will do the rest.

July’s DC Days will focus on building the membership of NRMCA’s two Congressional caucuses - the Ready Mixed Concrete Congressional Caucus and the Resilient Construction Congressional Caucus - both of which serve to advance the interests of the ready mix concrete industry. In addition, we will advocate for provisions of the National Flood Insurance Program reauthorization bill and continue to support the development of a $1 trillion infrastructure package.

If you are interested in attending, please e-mail Andrew Tyrrell at atyrrell@nrmca.org or Cara Gavagan at cgavagan@nrmca.org. We look forward to seeing you in Washington, DC.
 
BASF Construction Chemicals True Dispatch
OES
It’s the time of the year for producers to share information regarding their mixer driver workforce. Click here to begin the 2017 NRMCA Mixer Driver Recruitment & Retention Survey. Please note that:

• Responses are kept anonymous;
• Survey deadline is Friday, June 30; and 
• The report will be released this fall at ConcreteWorks. Data is reported in a national summary, then further disseminated by region, size of company and type of market.
 
Past results represented at least 25% of the entire mixer driver workforce. To remain as statistically valid, please help us reach and even exceed that percentage this year with your company’s participation.

For more information, contact Eileen Dickson at edickson@nrmca.org.
 
Last Thursday, NRMCA Vice President of Compliance and Regulatory Affairs Kevin Walgenbach addressed the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) about the onslaught of regulations promulgated over the last eight years that are burdensome to the ready mixed concrete industry. The SBA held a Regional Regulatory Roundtable to "hear directly from small businesses about what regulations concern them the most" and  which "should be considered for reform or elimination."

Specifically, Walgenbach relayed arguments on four of the most burdensome regulations facing the ready mixed concrete industry: the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs) Rule, the Environmental Protection Agency’s Phase 2-GHGs and Efficiency Standards for Heavy-Duty Trucks Rule, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Silica Rule and FMCSA’s Sleep Apnea Proposal. Walgenbach also touched on the issues of equitable enforcement and the need for greater input from industry stakeholders.
 
For more information, contact Kevin Walgenbach at kwalgenbach@nrmca.org.
 
McNeilus Truck & Manufacturing, Inc. The Euclid Chemical Company
Late last week, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced it was considering rescinding the controversial rule known as the "Persuader" rule. Finalized in March 2016, the final rule has been on a  nationwide hold due to a permanent injunction placed on the rule by a federal judge in Texas last November. The persuader rule, which NRMCA ardently opposed, would limit employers’ ability to seek and retain legal counsel for purposes of consulting on employee union organizing drives. The rule also would have required employers and legal counsel to disclose certain financial and other unnecessary private company information. This development, welcome news for the industry, was in large part, made possible through the work of the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace or CDW (of which NRMCA is an active member).

The proposal will accept public and stakeholder comments on the suggested withdrawal until Friday, August 11. NRMCA will submit comments in favor of rescinding the rule.
 
Click here to review the withdraw proposal and here to review the Persuader Rule. For more information, contact Kevin Walgenbach at kwalgenbach@nrmca.org.
 
This year’s NRMCA National Mixer Driver Championship will take place on Sunday, October 1, during NRMCA’s ConcreteWorks being held at the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center in Grapevine, TX. The registration form for drivers looking to participate in NRMCA’s National Mixer Driver Championship 2017 is now available. Please note that the registration form and payment for entering drivers into the championship are due Friday, August 18.

Click here to access the registration form, driver schedule and other important information about the championship and ConcreteWorks 2017. For more information, contact Gary Mullings at gmullings@nrmca.org.
 
MAPEI Xypex Chemical Corp
Calendar
*Please note that e-mail and direct links to each event listed below can be accessed from NRMCA's Web site.

June 23, Free Webinar
Drivers’ Hours of Service – What’s New for 2017?
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152
 
July 12, Salt Lake City
Regional ConcreteWorks, Rocky Mountain Region
Email: Tamara Waugh, 240.485.1132
 
September 18 - 20, Salt Lake City
Concrete Durability Course
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152
 
October 10 – 13, Silver Spring, MD
CCSP Module I: Concrete 101
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152
 
October 17 – 19, Denver
Safety Certification Course
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152
 
November 6 – 10, Silver Spring, MD
Annual Technical Short Course
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152
 
November 2, Salt Lake City
Handling Concrete Specifications
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152
 
November 28 – 30, Orlando, FL
Environmental Certification Course
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152
 
December 5 – 7, Silver Spring, MD
CCSP Module II: Customer Business Knowledge
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152
 
December 12 – 15, Orlando, FL
Plant Manager Certification Course
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152
 
2018
 
January 9 – 11, Orlando, FL
Dispatcher Training Forum
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152
 
January 16 – 19, Silver Spring, MD
CCSP Module III: General Business Knowledge
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152

January 16 – 19, Minneapolis
Plant Manager Certification Course
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152

January 23 – 25, Orlando, FL
RMC Effective Supervisor Course
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152

February 20 – 23, Albuquerque, NM
Plant Manager Certification Course
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152

March 27 – 30, Louisville, KY
Plant Manager Certification Course
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152
 
March 27 – 29, Silver Spring, MD
CCSP Module IV: Professional Sales Skills
Email: Jessica Walgenbach, 888-84-NRMCA, x1152
 
Is your company represented at this year’s National Mixer Driver Championship? This year’s program brings an enhanced sponsorship program. With the continued growth of the championship program, the sponsorship opportunities for members and non-members have been expanded, so please review these new sponsorship program opportunities. NRMCA encourages you to circulate these opportunities within your company and to any outside vendors you deem appropriate.

Enhanced sponsorship opportunities include full course naming rights, first place trophy naming rights, breakfast of champions, championship lunch, course challenges and many more.
 
Click here to review this year’s sponsorship program. For more information, contact Jacques Jenkins, Gary Mullings or Kevin Walgenbach.
 
The 2017 Mixer Truck Rollover Survey is designed to collect data on actual rollovers of ready mixed concrete trucks in calendar year 2017. The electronic form referenced below uses check and dropdown boxes for ease of completion and data compilation. The data collected is for rollovers that occur in calendar year 2017; no personal or company names are required to complete the form.
 
Click here to download the form. When completed, please return the form to NRMCA's Gary Mullings at gmullings@nrmca.org. Questions regarding the program or form should also be directed to Gary Mullings.
 
NRMCA’s Commitment to Environmental Excellence Awards competition offers producers national recognition for outstanding contributions to protecting the environment and maintaining sound management practice in their operations. The program salutes companies that have not only met, but surpassed governmental compliance measures and demonstrated a commitment to environmental excellence through plant and staff investment. NRMCA member companies producing ready mixed concrete from a fixed plant location in the U.S., its territories or Canada is eligible to enter. Awards will be determined upon individual plant merits. Winning entrants will be honored at the Awards Luncheon at NRMCA‘s ConcreteWorks this October in Dallas and also be featured in a 2017 edition of NRMCA’s Concrete InFocus magazine as well as Concrete Products magazine.
 
Entries and photos must be e-mailed to Gary Mullings at gmullings@nrmca.org by Friday, July 28. Click here for more information, staff contact and to download the entry form.
 
Ryder Fuel Services Mack Trucks, Inc.