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Director’s Corner
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It’s been four months since I moved to the Gulf region and after a lot of work on the part of many people, I am happy to say that the wheels are turning for PCI Gulf South! The initial setting up of the website, the creation of regional literature, the reaching out to universities, conducting a few lunch & learns and participation at the ASCE show have put PCI Gulf South on the map. With each contact we make, more and more people are being introduced to the industry and our association. The interest is growing! I am happy to report that I was recently able to share the merits of precast with a group of engineering students at the University of Mississippi in Oxford. I am hopeful that this was the first in what will be many visits in our continuing relationship to share the “ power of precast” with students and future decision makers in our industry. I am also excited to share that we may be hosting our first PCI studio in the Gulf region. All these connections and budding relationships have helped me gain valuable insight into the region and the work that lies ahead. It’s been a great start and highly motivating.
As the holiday season approaches, I wish you and your families a safe and joyous season.
Dan
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We would like to extend a warm welcome to our two newest Associate Members, US Formliner and Haarup North America. US Formliner provides more than 300 concrete formliner patterns to the precast/prestressed industry.
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Haarup North America provides quality mixer equipment systems, plants and retrofits to the concrete industry.
Welcome aboard!
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The 2016 Annual Meeting for the Mississippi Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) was held October 17-19 at the IP Casino in Biloxi, MS. A crowd of about 100 students, professors and engineering professionals were addressed by Mayor Gillich of Biloxi, Mayor Hewes of Gulfport and Congressman Steven Palazzo of the 4th Congressional District. Attendees also heard from university professors such as Isaac Howard PhD. from Mississippi State University and Eric Steward PhD. from the University of South Alabama.
PCI Gulf South was an exhibitor at the event. It was exciting to share our product with visitors interested in learning more about precast. These events give PCI Gulf South an excellent opportunity to showcase the value and diversity of the precast industry.
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WARNING: SILICA EXPOSURE
As many of you know, OSHA regulations regarding silica exposures have changed recently and it has left many wondering how and what it means to the precast industry. When the new regulations were announced, PCI immediately set to work engaging experts in the silica regulation arena to offer training and guidance on how to meet the new standards.
PCI is helping their members prepare for these new regulations. PCI conducted a workshop last month in Nashville, TN to educate and help precast producers through the new regulations. If you were unable to make the Nashville meeting, the event was recorded and is available to PCI members along with hand out materials free of charge. For non-PCI members, the information will be available in the PCI bookstore.
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Congratulations
go out to Atlantic Metrocast for winning an award for Safety in the 10-49 employee category for Zero Days Away and Restricted Time (DART), Total Case incidence, and Lost Workdays Incidence during 2015.
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We
would also like to congratulate Gate Precast. Their St. George Catholic Church in Baton Rouge, LA received honorable mention for the Sidney Freedman Craftsmanship award.
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On November 2, 2016, I had the opportunity to speak with students at the University of Mississippi in Oxford, MS. Dr. Chris Mullen of the Department of Civil Engineering was gracious enough to allow me to talk to students about the practical application of precast/prestressed products and how they may be used in a building design. Beyond the standard uses for precast (bridges and parking garages), I stressed the ability of precast to be used as a structural unit and it’s versatility with other systems like steel. While speaking to juniors in the Structural Analysis class and seniors in the Civil Engineering Design class, I was encouraged by the interest I saw regarding our industry and products. As most of these students are quickly approaching graduation, the information I presented will likely be something they will encounter in the very near future.
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As a part of my visit, I was invited to tour the Nano Infrastructure Research Lab. The research and development within this lab was impressive to say the least. Some of the materials being developed are literally of the “ space aged” technology type.
During my visit, I mentioned to Dr. Mullen that I look at PCI Gulf South involvement with the university as an ongoing relationship. This initial contact was the first step toward that goal. I’m looking forward to many more trips to Oxford and the beautiful campus.
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I truly believe that every building material has a place in the construction industry but when one material tries to become the “everything” for all projects, I think you’re looking for trouble. I was reminded of that as I watched recent news of a hotel in Phoenix, AZ that was under construction go up in flames and literally burn to the ground. As you can see by the attached pictures, there wasn’t much left of the wood hotel except for a few steel columns and a CMU stair tower. Wood, it is said, is a cheap and fast type of construction. However, what price do you put on comfort and safety? The wood industry has done a very good job at lobbying and persuading code makers to use their products along with sprinklers and use them in places they should not be used ( i.e. multi-family housing units, multi-story office units and hotels).
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As some of you know, I’ve been very vocal about the use of wood in hotels and multi -residential units. Wood has a place, but not here. It will take only one catastrophic fire for lawyers to have a field day with litigations, thus setting the construction industry back years with code changes and relevant design changes. Unfortunately, by then it will be too late for anyone who lost their life in such a catastrophe. If we can save one life or one family by convincing a builder or owner to use our product then I feel we have done our job with regard to responsible practices. Precast has a central role in multi-residential and multi-story construction and now is the time to push it. The inherent passive fire suppressant characteristics along with other concrete materials can provide a safe and durable structure. Precast can isolate a fire in one area and not effect the other parts of the structure.
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It will only be a matter of time until we hear the news of another wood structure burning to the ground. Let’s take a proactive approach by educating owners and designers on the attributes of precast. Our very lives could depend on it.
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Thomas Edison held 49 concrete patents and experimented with precast concrete houses filled with concrete furniture, pianos and refrigerators.
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If you would like a printable copy of our newsletter please click on the above link.
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PCI Regional Directors Workshop
Nov. 13th-16th
Chicago, IL
PCI Gulf South Winter Meeting
December 6-8 2016
Beau Rivage, Biloxi, MS
Marketing Council Meeting
January 23-24, 2017
Atlanta, GA
PCI Convention
Feb 28-March 4th 2017
Cleveland, OH
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If you would like to be part of our newsletter emailing list or to schedule a Lunch & Learn please contact:
Dan Eckenrode Executive Director,
pcigulfsouth1@att.net
228-239-3409
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