Jim Klinger, Concrete Construction Specialist, The Voice Newsletter July/August 2021 Call it coincidence. I had a chance to commiserate with an old construction colleague over this past holiday weekend. Both of us had set foot on our first concrete construction jobsite during the second week of July, 1979 at the same small, mid-rise apartment project  just outside Bethesda...

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ST. LOUIS, MO June 10 – Volunteers from the Decorative Concrete Council (DCC) and the Manufacturers’ Advisory Council (MAC) of the American Society of Concrete Contractors (ASCC) traveled to Detroit, MI March 11-12 to complete a community project for the Durfee Innovation Society. Paul Albanelli, Albanelli Cement Contractors, Livonia, MI was the project manager for the installation ...

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Employee Independent Action - What Is It? Joe Whiteman, director of safety services A great question was raised during last month’s Safety Roundtable on Root Cause Analysis. “What do you do after you have performed a root cause analysis and identified the cause was an employee knowing better, but simply choosing to cut a corner or do the wrong thing”? The follow up question w...

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Jim Klinger, Concrete Construction Specialist, The Voice Newsletter June 2021 About a month ago I purchased one of those so-called “Ebikes” from our local big-box store. This particular model features 14-inch wheels and fold-down handlebars. A rechargeable battery-powered motor can be used to supplement the traditional foot pedals. Gears, shock absorbers and a comfortable seat were ...

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Jim Klinger, Concrete Construction Specialist, The Voice Newsletter, May 2021 Here at your ASCC Technical Division, much of our work product is created in response to concrete construction substrate acceptance issues disclosed by members via hotline calls or prompted by Email Forum posts. Sometimes, for example, a concrete floor slab substrate has been deemed unacceptable by a follow-on...

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Be Prepared As Summer Months Approach - Complying With COVID-19 May Increase Chances of Heat Related Illness Joe Whiteman, director of safety services  5-2021 Listening to ASCC members share lessons and resources during the monthly COVID-19 roundtable, I am constantly amazed and reassured that we as an association and an industry have navigated the exposure and health related challenges w...

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Jim Klinger, Concrete Construction Specialist, The Voice Newsletter, April 2021 Full disclosure: This writer’s first experience with shotcrete was in 1987; when the general level of industry understanding of structural shotcrete was evolving, shotcrete wall reinforcement was typically limited to a maximum #5 bar size, and only a minimal use of reinforcing steel contact lap splices was all...

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The American Society of Concrete Contractors (ASCC), St. Louis, MO, has announced that the ASCC Education, Research & Development Foundation has published “Guide to the Design and Construction of Concrete Toppings for Buildings.” The authors are Scott M. Tarr, PE, FACI; Ronald L. Kozikowski, PE; and Matthew J. Sheehan, PE. Tarr and Kozikowski are president and vice president, respe...

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Safety is Not Proprietary Joe Whiteman, director of safety services  4-2021 Trade secrets, industry connections and “secret sauce” all have their place and should be guarded well to help you maintain your edge. One of the areas where we should not play our cards close to our chest, however, is safety. Safety applies to everyone, in every facet and level within your organizatio...

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