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Association & Industry News
NRMCA is looking for good men and women to serve on the 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 our success is a direct result of the skills and expertise of our professional staff working in conjunction with our Board of Directors. Director 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 of the Board, the immediate past chairman of the Board, and past chairmen of the Board for the previous seven years who are still in an active capacity in the industry. The selected slate of nominees is then presented to and elected by the general membership and will serve a three-year term that begins immediately following the annual convention in 2021. The deadline for submissions is Friday, July 24. Please click on links below for more information or contact NRMCA's Heather Houck at hhouck@nrmca.org.
Please also consider submitting entries to NRMCA's 90th Anniversary photo contest; entries are being accepted through July 17. 
Buildings
In March, NRMCA Senior Director, Building Innovations (Mid-Atlantic Region) Frank Gordon, received a request from a large, international architecture/engineering firm to provide contact information for Insulated Concrete Forms (ICF) installers with hotel/hospitality experience. It also requested the installers be able to either work or be based in either the Midwest or Southeast. The request was being driven by the firm's clients who were considering building ICF hospitality projects in those regions. The next step was soliciting the help of major manufacturers in the ICF industry, Gordon said. Several major ICF manufacturers (that are members of NRMCA’s industry partner, the Insulating Concrete Forms Manufacturers Association), were contacted and asked to provide installer contact information that met the request. "Many manufacturers have installers that have been successful and 'product-loyal' in their markets," Gordon noted. "The challenge has always been to identify these companies since many manufacturers consider these installers to be 'brand-partners.' This has been an understandable growing pain of this industry, but it was clearly communicated to the manufacturers that industrywide knowledge of these installers (being provided to potential clientele) helps our industry grow and allows them to expand their market influence." The overall goal is to provide NRMCA members and their client base with credible data on potential installers. The process will be organic in nature and will require the continued cooperation of the ICF manufacturers, ICF installers and their specific alliances/associations. NRMCA looks forward to strengthening those relationships as we grow this information into a value-added tool our members can leverage toward a more competitive force for concrete. If you are an ICF manufacturer or installer and wish to have your information considered for inclusion, please contact your regional NRMCA Build With Strength director or contact Frank Gordon at fgordon@nrmca.org or 865-719-2861.
There have been two updates to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) in the last week, reports NRMCA Government Affairs staff.
NRMCA has advocated for additional reforms to the PPP program, including clarification on tax deductible expenses, certainty on forgiveness eligibility and opening the program to 501(c)6 organizations. For more information, contact Andrew Tyrrell at atyrrell@nrmca.org. 
Government Affairs
Last week, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 2, the Moving America Forward Act, which includes a $494 billion reauthorization of the nation’s surface transportation programs, as well as $1 trillion in additional spending, including investments in housing, schools, healthcare infrastructure, clean energy and water, and drinking water. The INVEST Act, marked up by House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in late June, formed the basis for the legislation. Republican leaders decried the starkly partisan process and policies of the reauthorization, pointing out that they were not invited to participate in the formulation of the legislation and were only briefed on it after Democratic staff had briefed external stakeholders. Unfortunately, many of the policies included in H.R. 2 are harmful to the ready mixed concrete industry, including a delay of the recent Hours of Service rule from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, an increase in minimum truck insurance coverage and other harmful policies like mandatory underride protection and sleep apnea testing. NRMCA strongly supports reauthorizing the nation’s surface transportation programs and applauds the significant increase in funding levels. NRMCA urges Congress to craft a long-term, bipartisan surface reauthorization before the program expires on September 30. H.R. 2 will not be considered by the Senate, though the Senate has passed its own surface transportation reauthorization out of committee and may bring it to the floor. If it is passed, the House and Senate may go to conference on the two bills. For more information, contact Andrew Tyrrell at atyrrell@nrmca.org. Democratic staff on the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis released their much anticipated final report. The report is a culmination of a series of hearings held by the Select Committee in 2019. The Select Committee was established by Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) at the beginning of the 116th Congress after pressure from vocal freshman progressives in her caucus. The establishment of the Select Committee created disagreements within the House Democratic Caucus over whether a Select Committee or standing committees of jurisdiction – primarily Energy and Commerce Committee – should take the lead on the issue. As a result, the Select Committee lacked powers to issue subpoenas and to introduce legislation. Consequently, the final report, written by Democratic staff on the Select Committee, includes policy recommendations but no legislative language. You can view the final report here, a summary here and one-pagers on specific issues here. Republican Members of the Select Committee are expected to release their report in the next few months. For more information, contact Andrew Tyrrell at atyrrell@nrmca.org.
SEO
In late March, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released guidance for covered entities in an effort to help address the COVID-19 pandemic by allowing certain limited flexibilities for environmental regulatory compliance and enforcement. Last week, EPA announced that this temporary regulatory enforcement and compliance flexibility will terminate on Monday, August 31. Click here to review the termination announcement and here to review the March 26 Enforcement Discretion notice. For more information, contact Kevin Walgenbach at kwalgenbach@nrmca.org. The NRMCA’s Annual Safety Award acknowledges the significant contribution that safety work practices gives to the growth and success of individual companies and the ready mixed concrete industry as a whole. The NRMCA Annual Safety Award is presented to an individual or company whose actions represent the very highest in the advancement of safety in the ready mixed concrete industry. The award program is generously sponsored by the Truck Mixer Manufacturers Bureau (TMMB). The deadline to submit nominations has been extended to Wednesday, July 15. The award may be presented to an individual whose single action or long-time commitment to safety and health in the ready mixed concrete industry exemplifies superior performance in the field of safety. Examples of the award winner could be a ready mixed concrete truck driver whose actions were lifesaving. Other examples could include plant managers, safety managers or company officials who have outstanding long-time dedication to safety and health in the ready mixed concrete industry. Other examples would be an individual’s involvement in community safety activities. This award may also recognize a corporation, coalition or organization that was unrelenting in its pursuit of safety for the industry. Nominees may have also created and implemented a life-saving and or injury-preventing safety solution. Examples of the award winner could be a ready mixed concrete producer company, a ready mixed concrete state association or an industry related equipment or material supplier. Criteria for selection of the individual or company may include evidence of the following:
Nominations shall be made by submitting a detailed explanation for why the individual or company should be considered for the award. The explanation should focus on highlighting the criteria listed above. Submissions should include necessary supporting documents, a high-resolution electronic image of the nominee (if an individual) or a high resolution company logo and any other relevant images. Entries must be e-mailed to gmullings@nrmca.org by July 15. Click here for more information on the award, the specific requirements for the nominating process and staff contact. 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. Any NRMCA member company 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 NRMCA‘s ConcreteWorks to be held online this September. Winners will also be featured in a 2020 edition of NRMCA’s Concrete InFocus magazine and leading industry trade publication Concrete Products magazine. Entries and photos must be e-mailed to gmullings@nrmca.org by Friday, July 24. Click here for more information, to download the entry form and staff contact. 
Calendar
*Please note that e-mail and direct links to each event listed below can be accessed from NRMCA's Web site. July 14 – 16, Nashville, TN – Sponsored by TCA July 15, Online Course July 22, Online Course July 29, Online Course August 5, Online Course August 12, Online Course August 19, Online Course August 26, Online Course September 2, Online Course September 9, Online Course September 25 – 29, Denver October 5 – 8, Online Course October 20 – 22, Mendota Heights, MN November 10 - 12, New Orleans November 17 – 19, Glendora, CA December 15, Charlotte, NC December 15 – 18, Phoenix 
NRMCA’s first online Plant Manager Certification Class was held for 46 attendees the last two weeks of June. Participants not only included many from the two cancelled classes due to the novel coronavirus pandemic but also new registrants. Attendees had to pass two exams to earn certification: tied with the highest score in the class were Mike Flanagan from Mercer-Fraser Co and William Hood from JG MacLellan Concrete. Others scoring A’s on both exams, in alphabetical order, were Alan Jones, Argos; Salvador Melendez, Martin Marietta; David Newland, Mercer-Fraser Co; Ben Olin, Dickinson Ready Mix; Kelly Thomas, Dickinson Ready Mix; Andrew Utley, Manatt’s; Benjamin Wallace, CEMEX and Randall Wallace, Howlin Concrete. The next, and last, class held this year is scheduled for December 15-18 in Phoenix. Registration is currently open. If an in-person class is still not feasible due to the coronavirus, it will be conducted online. Attendees will be notified as such. Click here for more information, registration options and staff contact. 
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Business Advancement
During July, NRMCA asks your company to fill out the annual Mixer Driver Recruitment & Retention Survey. With the largest participation rate of all NRMCA surveys, results represent approximately 30% of the driver pool. To keep such robust statistical reporting we need your input. If you are not an NRMCA Producer member, please forward the survey link to your clients. Please note the following:
Click here to access the survey. For more information, contact Eileen Dickson at edickson@nrmca.org. Engineering
Beginning this month, NRMCA is offering the nuts and bolts of concrete materials, mixtures and construction practices in its new Fundamentals of Concrete series. The series includes the materials used to make concrete, the standards they must meet, the way it’s made, delivered, placed and finished. If you are a design professional, contractor, concrete producer or supplier to the concrete industry, this course is a must. If you are new to concrete, this will be your crash course on your way toward becoming a concrete pro. If you’ve worked with concrete for a long time, this will be an excellent refresher on the latest methods, techniques and standards for concrete. The course is taught online, in three parts, made up of three sessions each for a total of nine information packed webinars. Sessions will be recorded for later viewing if you miss a session. Each part costs $150 for a total series cost of $450. Part 1: Essentials of Quality Concrete - Register Online Part 2: Forming, Handling, Placing and Finishing Concrete - Register Online Part 3: Concrete Standards, Requirements and Specifications - Register Online For more information, visit www.nrmca.org or contact Lionel Lemay at LLemay@nrmca.org. 
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