The Concrete Producer articles from July 2004

The Concrete Producer archives from July 2004

Advocacy at its best.(Editorial)(Column)
July 1, 2004... I enjoy it when the Fourth of July falls on a Sunday. I can schedule a full weekend of pyrotechnics. Towns around Chicago schedule dusk celebrations to help boost tourism, combining fireworks with local food festivals. On Friday afternoon, I'll...

Mineta lauds quick construction.(News)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The U.S. Department of Transportation sang the praises of the latest concrete technologies at a construction site recently. "The display of components and materials that you are seeing today will revolutionize our ability to keep drivers moving...

Rough going.(News)(increased traffic wering down roads)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Increasing city traffic is putting significant wear and tear on the roads of the nation's biggest cities, says a report by The Road Information Program (TRIP), a non-profit Washington, D.C. research group. Travel on urban roads increased 35%...

Producers feel cement shortage.(News)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Some concrete producers were experiencing cement shortages by the middle of spring. Strong construction markets increased demand, according to PCA. March's seasonally adjusted construction rate of $944.1 billion set a record. The 1.5% increase...

Obit: Tommy Stephens.(News)(Brief Article)(Obituary)
July 1, 2004... Tommy Stephens, president and CEO of Stephens Mfg., died March 21 in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. His father, Bill Stephens, started the Tompkinsville, Ky., concrete plant manufacturer in 1957. Tommy Stephens took over the company after college,...

Upcoming conferences & events.(News)(Brief Article)(Calendar)
July 1, 2004... Conference on Earthquake Engineering The 13th World Conference on Earthquake Engineering will be held Aug. 1-6 at the Vancouver Convention & Exhibition Centre, Vancouver, British Columbia. The conference enables dialogue among the leading...

A new www.nrmca.org: the new Web site is still tweaked.(E-Concrete)
July 1, 2004... At first glance, there may not seem to be a lot in common in creating the perfect concrete mix design and the perfect Web site. Sure, you obviously want your customers to be happy with both. But on another level, a mix design and Web site are...

Tabletop accuracy: a device automatically measures the flow of SCC.(What's New)(self-consolidating concrete)(FORM+TEST Seidner)
July 1, 2004... For more than two years, members of ASTM C-9 have been working hard to develop drafting, testing, and approving protocols for measuring the workability characteristics of self-consolidating concrete (SCC). This has been a particularly difficult...

Quick-switch mixing: dress your chassis for the season.(Fleet Factors)(Equipements Lourds Papineau)
July 1, 2004... Fleet managers whose vehicles deliver product north of the Mason Dixon line understand the need to adapt to the current season's weather. This is even more important when business slows. It would be a major advantage to find a way to keep...

New truck line.(Fleet Factors)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Terex Advance Mixer introduced a new line of rear-discharge mixers at World of Concrete in February. The mixers are available in bridge and non-bridge formulas with 10-, 10.5-, and 11-yard capacities. The mixer originally was designed by...

Too little cover.(Problem Clinic)
July 1, 2004... Q. We are continually running up against structural engineers who push the limits of the cover for rebar and post-tensioning cables for suspended slabs in concrete structures. We normally never like to work with rebar cover less than 1/4 inch...

Beauty from a barrel: a new exhibition at the National Building Museum showcases concrete's contribution to architecture.
July 1, 2004... This was one of those jobs that didn't seem too hard at first glance. And fortunately from Jack Holley's perspective, it didn't require much travel. But as everyone knows, driving west to east through Washington, D.C., traffic can take as long...

Lighter and better: new technologies and products can lighten concrete.
July 1, 2004... Like the weight-conscience public, designers and architects are interested in innovative approaches and ingredients to help lighten concrete. Whether the goal is to provide more sustainable structures or longer, sleeker bridges, designers and...

No men at work: these robots build houses.
July 1, 2004... At first glance, it doesn't look like much. Just a concrete wall, 3 feet high and 5 feet long, sitting on the floor of a laboratory in Los Angeles. But this wall wasn't poured. It was "printed" by the machine next to it--a robot armed with a...

Color by the numbers: adding color management to a producer's quality control program.(Product Pulse)
July 1, 2004... Matching colors in concrete can be rough even for the best plant operators. Process improvements like powerful computer batching controls, accurate dispensing units, and high-quality coloring agents have aided producers in tightening coloring...

Fast, precise batching.(Products For The Producer)
July 1, 2004... SmartMix compact batch plants by Advanced Concrete Technologies Inc. provide speedy precision batching. The plants are delivered to your site pre-wired, pre-plumbed, and factory-tested. All it takes is four simple plug-ins, and the aggregate...

Control plastic shrinkage.(Products For The Producer)
July 1, 2004... Bon Tool Co.'s Anti-Crak fibers offer 3 to 4 times greater tensile strength than steel and 10 times greater elasticity than polypropylene. Adding the specially formulated fibers controls early plastic shrinkage and strengthens the concrete. The...

Increase strength, density.(Products For The Producer)
July 1, 2004... Acme-Hardesty Co. has released three new products to its line of admixtures for no-slump concrete applications. RTU is a full-strength, ready-to-use plasticizer formulated to increase strength and density in block and pavers. Hardscape is a...

Safe, non-skid step.(Products For The Producer)
July 1, 2004... The Chain Step is a lightweight, rugged step that fits over the tire of most full-size and heavy-duty trucks, SUVs, vans, and other vehicles. It has powder-coated steps, with yellow reflective tape for added safety. The non-skid industrial...

Conveyor clamps avoid corrosion.(Products For The Producer)
July 1, 2004... A new conveyor skirt rubber clamping system is being added to Flexco's Rockline family of belt conveyor accessories. Install the RMC1 skirt clamps by simply welding cylindrical steel mounting pins about 2 feet apart along the outer surface of...

Planning the perfect yard: learn from the leading architects and designers.(Bookshelf)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Summer not only is the peak season of the year for road and building construction. This also is the time of the year when weekend warriors and landscapers do their best to turn humdrum backyards into works of art. Block producers who...

Diy mixing.(In The Mix)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Earl McCaskill (left) of Knife River Corp., and Ron Howard, of Medford Ready Mix, both of Medford, Ore., mix their own batches of test concrete at Master Builders' Workability Control for Profit Improvement seminar. More than three dozen...

Easy riders.(In The Mix)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Alan Sparkman (left), Daniel Harris, and Tim Alley kicked off their Count on Concrete--Building Access for All Americans cross-country bike ride at Santa Monica Pier in California May 20. The trek concludes July 24 in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.,...

Precast goes "over there".(In The Mix)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Rockway Precast of North Las Vegas, Nev., manufactured and installed eight transportable precast concrete buildings at the U.S. Army's Korea Command. Four are used for hazardous materials storage and four for maintenance. Each is 12 feet x 20...

Bayshore CEO.(In The Mix)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... John Dobbs was recently named president and CEO of Bayshore Concrete Products Corp., Cape Charles, Va. He will be responsible for Bayshore's plants in Cape Charles and Chesapeake, Va., and Auburn, Maine. Bayshore manufactures a complete line of...