Concrete Products covers the issues that attract producers of ready mixed and manufactured concrete focusing on equipment and material technology, market development and management topics.
Issue link: http://concrete.epubxp.com/i/114208
CHAIRMAN'S REPORT WILLIAM CHILDS, IV, NRMCA way authorization enacted since 2005. Childs sees the highway bill as a move that helps keep the U.S. competitive as an economic global power. "Our manufactured products have to able to get to ports, airports or delivered to and from distribution facilities in a competitive manner, and the infrastructure is not allowing that to happen—it's in jeopardy," Childs said. There was a study done on the Woodrow Wilson Bridge in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C., that showed that the old bridge was responsible for $1.4 billion per year in wasted time due to gridlock; that's not a number that can just go away. That's just one situation in the nation. The area in and around the Washington Metro area was recently identified as the one with the most transportation gridlock in the United States. "It adds veracity to the fact that our infrastructure, in some cases, is not safe. We know that a percentage of bridges is not safe, highways are not safe, and a significant percentage of our highways that are not efficient. This needs to be corrected—safety being the primary concern. Without an efficient transportation system, the economy of the United States, which is already in a fragile state, will continue to erode its competitive position in the world economy. "One area where our industries really came together in the last two years was in our support for transportation and infrastructure funding. Organizations that represent our industry across North America, such as NRMCA, Portland Cement Association, National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association, American Concrete Paving Association, Associated Builders and Contractors, Associated General Contractors of America, and Associated Equipment Distributors, along with labor groups, all came together in support of highway funding legislation. We had three major rallies and some other events on the Mall in D.C. in support of it. Not only does funding take care of the transportation issues, but it helps with the unemployment levels, which have been at the highest in our industry since 1945. "We are the greatest creator of jobs in the country, and putting money in people's pockets builds spending confidence. It is our industry's belief that for every dollar spent in construction, $4.50 to $5.00 goes back into the general economy. The passing of MAP-21 was at least a start in getting this initiative under WWW.CONCRETEPRODUCTS.COM Fleet graphics show Chaney Enterprises' 50th anniversary observance (2012), value proposition in long service-life pavements, and affiliation with conservation groups including Ducks Unlimited. way toward putting our infrastructure back in a competitive position and our people working." GREEN SUPPORTS PROMOTION Bill Childs believes one of his most important responsibilities as NRMCA chairman is to collaborate with leaders of other concrete associations to come up with a list of key initiatives that need to be focused on, with the promotion and the industry's product and people. "We have the facts, we have the veracity, yet we have not been able to impact the marketplace and public thinking the way that we should be," he explains. "There are a lot of opportunities out there that we have not capitalized on as an industry. That will be a key issue as we go forward. "Another key area is the green component of our product. Unequivocally, we have the greenest building material available. We don't get the credit we should for that component of our product, and it's conformance to all the LEED initiatives and our willingness to work with the Architecture 2030 guidelines. We also want to form strong relationships with the other associations that represent the construction industry. One big initiative will be membership development. We have a significant percentage of the production of ready mixed concrete in North America as members—probably approaching 65 percent, but that leaves 35 percent that aren't, and we're going to MARCH 2013 | 27