Marketing

The Portland Cement Association has appointed Lawrence C. Novak as manager of buildings and special structures. He and his staff will consult with engineers, architects and contractors to directly promote the use of concrete and cement for buildings, stadiums, environmental and other structures throughout the United States.

Novak brings to PCA more than 20 years of experience as a structural engineer on some of the world’s most prominent buildings. Most recently as an associate partner with Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP, he served as the senior project engineer responsible for the structural design of the Burj Dubai Tower, the world’s tallest building.

It’s hard to sell much of anything in Michigan these days, let alone $500,000 homes, but green building with insulating concrete forms helped make it possible for one building group to have its best year ever in 2007.

Battle Creek-based Summit Investment Group recently had success with a development it called The Ridge at Cedar Creek, which featured energy-efficient homes in the half-million-dollar range.

Summit mainly uses Polysteel forms. Owner Daniel Kiefer says he prefers Polysteel forms – although he is willing to try others – because they come in bigger components and he likes how they are put together structurally.

While Michigan’s economy has been the worst in the nation for several years, Kiefer said quality building and competitive prices – helped by a recent reduction in the prices of green building supplies – have made it possible for Summit to buck the state’s economic trend.

“We are bucking it because we’re building in a price range that’s not nearly as economically labored as some others,” Kiefer said. “Our houses in this particular development start in a half-million range. We also do a lot of commercial construction, and I find that if we work hard and we’re a quality builder, and we associate with customers that are of the same mind – if you do a good product, there’s always a market for that. Even in the worst of times.”

The Portland Cement Association and the Cement Association of Canada are accepting nominations for the 2008 Promotion Progress Awards.

The awards honor the achievements of PCA members in advancing cement and concrete in construction markets plus involvement in standards development, education and public affairs.

The deadline for nominations has been extended to January 31, 2008. Promotions in 2006 and 2007 are eligible.

Sonoco has announced plans to market its concrete column forms in a retail-type environment through licensed distributors.

The company plans to create point-of-purchase displays for use in as many as 300 specialty distributor locations throughout the United States.

“This idea was a direct offshoot of a lot of the big box stores and Home Depots and Lowe’s increasing having quite a purchase display for regular customers,” said Mary Ruth Austin, an internal media specialist at Sonoco. “As other concrete stores and other home improvement stores are adopting that approach, the thinking was that this was a unique way to market this, and to help these folks as they turn what used to be a warehouse environment into a retail environment.”

Products included in the promotion are the Sonotube round, Sonotube Finish Free, Sonotube square, Sonotube Commercial and Sonotube TubeBase forms.

The displays feature textured vac-form 3-D column simulations, sectioned product samples and a raised letter logo panel on a 28-inch tube base and support tube. The 3-D simulations show contractors what finished columns will look like before they buy or pour anything. The displays also are designed so that the riser can be easily hung on walls for distributors that may not have the floor space for the entire unit.

“The thinking was that, for the contractors and the subs would be purchasing this, it would make the environment more welcoming and it would put our product out front, rather than people just saying, ‘Do you have any Sonoco forms?’”

The National Association of Home Builders is still accepting registrations for its upcoming Building Systems Council Showcase, which is being held in Hilton Head, South Carolina from October 28-31. The showcase features issues important to manufacturers, builders, dealers, suppliers and associates in the concrete, log, modular and panelized home building industries.

Showcase attendees can witness educational sessions, trade show exhibits, award ceremonies and network with others in the business.

To make an online reservation, go to www.hiltonheadmarriot.com.

A Portland Cement Association vice president is urging the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Engineers to pursue standards that will achieve a 30 percent improvement in energy-efficiency for buildings, and to find a cost-effective way to do.

Otherwise, there is fear the Department of Energy will become the standard enforcer.

“If you were going to throw cost out the window altogether, you could go to someone and say, ‘Let’s put in R30 insulation in all the walls of the building,’” said Steve Skalko, a PCA vice president and also a member of ASHRAE’s Standard Setting Project Committee. “It wouldn’t matter how much it would save in relation to how much it costs to do it. That’s the law of diminishing returns.”

Skalko says that federal agencies are dropping hints they may soon begin imposing far more challenging energy-efficiency requirements on new buildings.

“I get a sense that some of the things that are happening within federal agencies indicate they look to start cracking down on their federal requirements for buildings,” Skalko said. “The fear is that, if the ASHRAE standards don’t save 30 percent, the federal legislation will expect the Department of Energy to enact legislation that will achieve 30 percent, and the DOE would be under no obligation to look at it from a cost perspective. They would just get out the big stick and say, ‘This is the way it’s gonna be.’”

Hanley Wood has signed a letter of intent to purchase Mason Contractors Association of America’s (MCAA) Masonry Showcase.

"We are very excited about the opportunity to work with the leading masonry association," said Tom Cindric, Director of World of Masonry. "The masonry industry has been asking for one event and this combined event would make that request a reality."

The proposed transaction means that the MCAA will hold its annual convention concurrently with the World of Masonry, which will be held January 22-25, 2008 in Las Vegas. The World of Masonry is held each year within the World of Concrete, the commercial construction industry's largest annual international event.

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 their third annual auction, to be held at the World of Concrete on January 24, 2008.

The money raised from the CIM Auction, to be held at the Las Vegas Convention Center, will benefit the CIM National Steering Committee and support the CIM Programs at Middle Tennessee State University, Arizona State University, New Jersey Institute of Technology and the California State University–Chico.

Organizers hope the 2008 Auction is even bigger than the 2007 Auction, which raised approximately $500,000.

Among the items auctioned last year were a McNeilus/International concrete mixer truck, BASF admixtures, a Putzmeister portable grout and concrete pump, a Command Alkon batch control system, 10 Enviroguard mixer washout systems and many more.

Those interested in making a donation should contact Wally Johnson at 713.499.6229 or wjohnson@us-concrete.com; Janice Tucciarone at 216-839-7016 or janice.tucciarone@basf.com; or Brian Gallagher at 410-850-7000 or bgallagher@structural.net.