 |
||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||
|
Association & Industry News
The estimated ready mixed concrete produced in December 2018 is 22.7 million cubic yards, 1.1% lower than that in December 2017. The estimated production in the U.S. for 2018 is 359 million cubic yards, 2.3% higher than that in 2017. Ready mixed concrete production is estimated from cement shipments reported by the U.S. Geological Survey. More detail is available to NRMCA members, including production by state in 2018, here. The Federal Highway Administration and the South Carolina Department of Transportation have scheduled an open house on Thursday, April 18, featuring the latest technologies in the concrete materials and paving arena. The FHWA’s Mobile Concrete Trailer (MCT) introduces agency and industry personnel to the state-of-the-art concrete technology in materials selection, mixture design, field and laboratory testing, and pavement evaluation. The MCT is visiting South Carolina to introduce new test methods related to the Performance Engineered Mixtures (PEM) initiative and other innovative tests related to concrete materials and construction relevant to field performance. Examples of equipment that would be demonstrated/showcased: • Super Air Meter (SAM) - Cutting edge technology to measure air void characteristics of concrete • Surface Resistivity - Rapid measurement to indicate permeability of concrete • Box Test - Measurement of workability for paving concrete • V-Kelly - Measurement of workability for paving concrete • Phoenix – Simplified water cementitious ratio determination in the field • MIRA - Nondestructive device for identifying construction related abnormalities and steel location • MIT Scan T3 - Nondestructive device for measuring pavement thickness • Calorimeter – Simple test to determine consistency of cementitious sources/contents during production The open house will be at the Blythe construction concrete plant at Exit 83 on Southbound I-85 (last exit in Spartanburg - opposite side of the truck stop). For more information, contact Shane Parris, P.E., South Carolina DOT, ParrisSL@scdot.org; Cole Harrison, P.E., KCI, at 864-680-3666 or David Schuster, P.E., Blythe-Zachry JV, 704-778-2855. 
The NCC E-News is issued by the National Concrete Pavement Technology Center. The following are covered in more details with links to research and other reports: • The March 2019 MAP Brief, “Fiber-Reinforced Concrete (FRC) for Pavement Overlays,” summarizes the value of using FRC for concrete overlays and provides methods for determining the appropriate fiber reinforcement performance values to be specified for a project. • The CP Tech Center recently published Technology Transfer of Concrete Pavement Technologies, which summarizes the accomplishments of the Cooperative Agreement between the FHWA and the CP Tech Center over the last five years. • NCHRP Synthesis 524 documents transportation agency requirements for the quality of aggregates for various pavement types. • A tech brief written by the FWHA with support from the Illinois Tollway describes a recently implemented method for rapid overnight full-depth repairs of continuously reinforced concrete (CRC) pavements using precast concrete panels. • A study by the University of Minnesota - Duluth characterized the post-crack flexural and joint performance of fiber-reinforced concrete (FRC) to develop a specification for the selection of structural fibers for concrete overlays and/or pavements. • A study by the Louisiana Transportation Research Center evaluated JPCP performance in relation to dowel bar alignment utilizing the new MIT-SCAN2-BT technology. • A project from the University of Nevada - Reno developed a bridge deck maintenance guide that focuses on weather conditions that are common in the desert southwest. Click here to access the newsletter. 
Business Advancement
NRMCA is offering its information-packed, one-day course, Handling Concrete Specifications, Low Strength Problems and Mixture Submittals, intended for concrete producers, contractors, engineers and testing labs on Wednesday, May 1, in Charlotte, NC, in association with the Carolinas Ready Mixed Concrete Association. This one-day course will discuss the latest changes to the code and specification requirements (ACI 318, 301, ASTM C94) governing ready mixed concrete along with many other topics, including:
Course instructors are Luke Snell, P.E., FACI, FASCE, Western Technologies and Karthik Obla, Ph.D., P.E., vice president, technical services, at NRMCA. Producers, contractors, engineers and testing labs will find the discussions on investigating low strength problems and specifications very helpful to address issues that impact partnering, project cost and schedule. Upon successful completion of the course, attendees will earn 8 professional development hours, a certificate of completion and credits toward NRMCA’s STEPS program. Click here for more information, registration options and staff contact. May 1, Charlotte, NC May 14 - 16, Portland, OR November 11 - 15, Baltimore December 10 – 13, Orlando, FL Engineering
The Spring 2019 National Concrete Consortium held in Lakewood, CO, from April 1 - 4 attracted a historically high 210 professionals from the industry, 32 state highway departments and NRMCA staff that included Don Clem, Colin Lobo and Karthik Obla. The event featured discussions on the implementation of Performance Engineered Mixtures (PEM) tests such as resistivity, SAM and formation factor. Karthik Obla presented on the “Role of Minimum Cement Contents in Concrete Specifications and Mixture Proportioning.” There were also presentations on mass concrete, mobile-mixer and fiber-reinforced concrete for use in overlays and bridges. (Click here for more details on the program and presentations.) The event concluded with a tour of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation laboratories which conduct unique tests such as cathodic protection, adiabatic calorimetry, shear, creep and strength tests on a 5 million lb. machine. Its services are available for use by outside groups. The tour featured breaking a 2 feet diameter by 4 feet high concrete cylinder (click here to view a video). For more information, contact Karthik Obla at kobla@nrmca.org. 
Calendar
*Please note that e-mail and direct links to each event listed below can be accessed from NRMCA's Web site. April 16, Denver *Sold Out April 23 – 26, Portland, OR April 30, Salt Lake City |
||||||||||||
|
