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Association & Industry News
NRMCA and the Build With Strength initiative have joined a global consortium of ready mixed concrete and cement trade associations and organizations in committing to a net-zero carbon emission industry by 2050. The announcement was made last week as part of the Global Cement and Concrete Association’s (GCCA) 2050 Cement & Concrete Industry Roadmap for Net Zero online event. The October 12 event officially launched Concrete Future, a collective commitment and roadmap toward achieving a decarbonized industry and net-zero concrete for the world. “NRMCA stands with the GCCA and our sister association in the United States, the Portland Cement Association (PCA), in its effort to reach net-zero by 2050. We have a responsibility as an industry to address our impact on the environment and this type of collaboration with key stakeholders and policymakers brings us even closer to achieving our goals,” said President Mike Philipps. “We have a long way to go but believe that this road map creates a sense of commitment and transparency to deliver innovation around reducing carbon impacts of concrete for the betterment of society at large. We have a real opportunity to make a global impact and look forward to continued collaboration with industry leaders on environmental issues.” More information on the road maps can be found for GCCA here and for PCA here. You can also read the full press release on NRMCA's website. For more information, contact Gregg Lewis at glewis@nrmca.org. The estimated ready mixed concrete produced in July 2021 is 35.4 million cubic yards, 2.3% lower than that in July 2020. The estimated production in the U.S. through July is 221 million cubic yards, approximately 4% higher than that during the same period in 2020. Ready mixed concrete production is estimated from cement shipments reported by the U.S. Geological Survey. More detail for NRMCA members is available here under “Production Statistics.” The MIT Concrete Sustainability Hub (CSHub) will hold a webinar titled Solving Climate Change and Social Inequities with Statistical Physics Tools on Thursday, October 28, at 1 p.m. Eastern time. The webinar explains how statistical physics tools can help predict and mitigate increasingly devastating natural hazards, such as floods, fires, hurricanes and earthquakes. The statistical physics approach developed at the CSHub is computationally efficient and broadly applicable. It can capture unanticipated wind load magnifications across regions, rapidly generate urban flood maps, and predict how structural and non-structural members contribute to the overall hazard resilience of structures. Crucially, it can also bridge these many scales to capture inequities in resilience across hazard-prone areas. The webinar will be presented by CSHub Faculty Director Dr. Franz-Josef Ulm. Click here to register and here to learn more about CSHub's series of public webinars. The MIT CSHub is funded in cooperation with the RMC Research & Education Foundation and the Portland Cement Association.
“The proceeds from the 2022 CIM Auction enable the CIM National Steering Committee (NSC) to support the current CIM programs at Middle Tennessee State University, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Texas State University, California State University – Chico, South Dakota State University and the Executive MBA program as well as to help fund scholarships,” said Ben Robuck, chairman of the CIM Auction Committee. Once again, CIM Auction organizers are hoping for another record event in 2022. According to CIM Marketing Committee Chairman Brian Gallagher, the 2021 auction, while not a record-breaker, raised an impressive $1.150 million in gross revenue. “The annual CIM Auction is a critical funding mechanism for CIM,” said Gallagher. Previous auction items have included concrete mixer trucks, cement, skid steers, concrete saws, drills, mixers, vibrators, scaffolding, safety equipment, screeds, fiber transport systems, dust collectors, NDT equipment, decorative concrete tools, water meters, pumps, generators, training sessions, reference books, advertisements, laptop computers, mobile computers, sports memorabilia, sports travel packages, golf packages and vacation travel packages. Those interested in making a donation should contact CIM Auction Committee Chairman Ben Robuck at ben.robuck@cemex.com or 404-456-6867 or download the donation package here. 
Buildings
Last week, NRMCA Vice President of Sustainability Tien Peng presented Concrete Carbon Solutions at the 2021 Northwest Green Building Slam + Summit where architects and sustainability industry professionals attended the annual conference held virtually this year. The Northwest market is deeply rooted in sustainability, Peng reports. The 2021 Washington state legislature passed a capital budget with a proviso that directs state projects to consider the use of Environmental Product Declarations to account and reduce carbon dioxide emission of materials used in its projects. Fortunately, concrete industry members have been active in shaping the new regulation, ensuring concrete is the material of choice for green construction when considering the full lifecycle perspective. Build With Strength is a coalition led by NRMCA that promotes concrete building systems through communications, project promotion, education and advocacy, and can help leverage new carbon standards to help place more concrete. To learn more about these programs or for more information on how local resilience policies can help you, contact Tien Peng at tpeng@nrmca.org or 206-913-8535.
For more information, contact Derek Torres at dtorres@nrmca.org or 973-876-0938. The responsible sourcing of construction materials is an increasing priority in high-profile construction projects and in public procurement. The Concrete Sustainability Council (CSC) is the only industry-specific system that certifies the sustainability performance of concrete plants and their supply chains. On Tuesday, October 26, at noon Eastern time NRMCA will host a webinar titled Responsible Sourcing with Concrete Sustainability to discuss the CSC which aims to improve transparency of the concrete sector, highlight the essential role of concrete as a sustainable construction material and be recognized in green construction standards. If you would like to elevate your sustainability brand beyond EPDs and compete against other industry supply chain certifications, this webinar will explain why it matters and the information needed for your next steps. In 2021, NRMCA became the Regional System Operator for the Concrete Sustainability Council (CSC) supply chain certification system. By adding the CSC program as an adjacent program to the environmental product declaration (EPD) program, NRMCA strives to add value to members in a growing world of business and sustainability transparency. As part of the Build With Strength campaign, NRMCA promotes Strength Through Transparency for member and industry competitiveness in the green construction marketplace and the trends toward product and company transparency. Click here to register. For more information, contact James Bogdan at jbogdan@nrmca.org or 412-420-4138.
SEO
Earlier this week, NRMCA’s Safety, Environmental and Operations (SEO) Department staff met with members of the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to relay the industry’s concerns with the impending Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) that will mandate employers with 100 or more employees to require their employees get vaccinated or be subject to regular testing. While few details are known about what will be required, as the ETS text is not yet public, what is known only begs more questions. The impending ETS from OSHA is at the direction of President Biden who directed OSHA to implement the ETS back in September. Late last week, OSHA sent its suggested text for an ETS to OMB for review. This is generally the final stop before a rule is finalized. Given the short turnaround timeframe President Biden has given OSHA to finalize the mandate, it is anticipated that a final rule could be issued in the coming days. In remarks to OMB, NRMCA highlighted the industry’s concerns that were communicated with both OSHA and the Department of Labor through a letter sent last month from NRMCA President Mike Philipps. Those same points, including the industry’s concerns about the ETS process, justification, clarity, lack of stakeholder comment availability, and especially the potential impact such a mandate could have on the industry’s driver pool, were all stressed in the meeting. NRMCA continues to advocate on this issue for beneficial industry outcomes and will continue to relay any developments as they arise. For more information, contact Kevin Walgenbach at kwalgenbach@nrmca.org. NRMCA will offer the Plant Manager Certification class in person from December 7-10 in Orlando at the Florida Concrete & Product Association’s facility. The class is 60% full; plenty of seats are available, but based on trends it will sell out. Do not delay registering. With over 90% of a producer’s expenses tied to materials management, operations and production at the plant level, it is essential that every concrete plant manager understands the essential aspects of product knowledge, safety, environmental compliance and operations as tied to profit and loss as well as supervisory principles. A plant manager is the heart of the ready mixed concrete production facility. Every plant has one and duties differ only slightly from plant to plant. This challenging, ready mixed concrete-specific course is the only one that helps them walk the walk. The three-day curriculum and the two certification exams on Day 4 are designed to not only reinforce these specific skill levels, but also incorporate many job requirement skills found in specifications for Army Corps of Engineers’ projects as well as state and local DOTs. Additionally, the first 2022 course - February 8-11 in Phoenix - is now open for registration. Click here for more information and registration links for both courses. Registration is still open for this year’s in-person Environmental Certification Course being held in Orlando, FL, November 30 - December 2. Course attendees will be educated on industry-specific environmental issues that affect ready mixed concrete production, including the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, Discharge Permits, Stormwater Management, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, Solids Management, Hazardous Materials, Dust Control, Recycling, Spill Prevention Plans, Air Quality Management, Noise Management, Environmental Auditing and much more. 
Calendar
Please note that e-mail and direct links to each event listed below can be accessed from NRMCA's Web site. October 26, Free Online Webinar November 5 - 15, Online Course November 9 - 11, Dallas *Sold Out November 10, Mesa, AZ November 17, Virtual Conference November 30 - December 2, Orlando, FL December 7 - 10, Orlando, FL December 7 - 9, Dallas December 15, Virtual Conference 
Pavement
NRMCA Senior Director, Building Innovations, Patrick Matsche and his colleague Don Clem, NRMCA vice president, local paving, recently presented Top 10 Ways to Reduce Carbon in Concrete for the Structural Engineers Association of Utah. There were about 34 engineers attending the virtual monthly educational meeting. The presentation was initiated by Brad Stevenson, executive director of the Utah Ready Mixed Concrete Association. For more information, contact Patrick Matsche at pmatsche@nrmca.org. 
Business Advancement
Understanding the Concrete Contractor’s Business Model, (CCSP II) will now be taught virtually from Monday, December 6, through Thursday, December 9; the exam will be online on Friday, December 10. The end-of-year timing allows your sales staff gear up for 2022. The content provides an overview of how contractors plan, bid and implement homebuilding, commercial and government construction projects. It includes the tools ready mixed concrete sales reps need to bid an order, including a window into contractors’ project management systems and scheduling; how to use construction documents, blueprints and estimating, as well as other construction math equations and formulas exercises. For those working toward their NRMCA STEPS® CCPf certification in Sales and Marketing Track, this is a required class. For others working toward CCPf certification in other STEPS® tracks, the class is the qualifying prerequisite or an elective. Click here for more information, registration options and staff contact. 2022 February 15 - 17, Dallas February 15 - 17, Online Course April 5 - 7, Dallas September 29 - October 3, Aurora, CO 
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The Concrete Industry Management (CIM) program – a business intensive program that awards students with a four-year bachelor of science degree in Concrete Industry Management – is seeking donations for its 2022 auction to be held Wednesday, January 19, 2022, at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The silent auction will be held from 11 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. and the live auction begins at 1 p.m.
The East Valley (AZ) Institute of Technology, the Insulating Concrete Forms Manufacturers Association (ICFMA) and the Arizona Rock Products Association will host an insulated concrete forms (ICF) installation training event on Wednesday, November 10. The purpose of the training is to enhance the construction infrastructure to build with ICFs. ICFs are quickly becoming the method of choice for all forms of construction due to speed and safe construction, operation maintenance and energy savings, resilience, sound control and building insurance discounts. These benefits are creating ICF project demand; this training is delivering a knowledgeable contractor workforce that can augment a portfolio of construction services. Architects, engineers, concrete contractors and ready mix producers are also welcome to attend.
