The semi-annual meeting of the National Concrete Consortium (NCC) was held April 21-23, 2015 in Reno, Nevada, USA. NCC continues to be an outstanding forum for concrete technology transfer. The meeting was attended by 145 practitioners from across the nation, representing industry, academia, the FHWA, 27 of the 30 pooled fund member-state departments of transportation, and the Illinois Tollway. Presentations were delivered by experts from agencies, universities, and industry on a variety of technical topics. Highlights include:
- One integral part of the meeting was highlighting state practices on a particular subject. The theme for this meeting was curing—including materials, testing and practices. NCC Chairperson Maria Masten, Concrete Engineer-Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) presented a summary of DOT responses to the survey. Each individual DOT response can be found on the NCC website, as well as the summary presentation.
- The FHWA is initiating two significant programs in the areas of performance engineered mixtures (PEMs) and concrete recycling. Gina Ahlstrom, ISCP Member, Senior Pavement Engineer-FHWA, gave an introduction of both programs followed by detailed technical presentations.
- Internally cured concrete continues to be a subject of interest as promising results are being obtained when using the technology for bridge deck concrete.
- An update on fly ash quality and supply was presented by Tom Adam, President of ACAA, and Ben Franklin, Headwaters.
- Dr. Jason Weiss, ISCP Member, Purdue University, and Tim Cost, ISCP Member, Holcim, from the Cement Task Force gave presentations on the promising research and project experience using Supplementary Cementing Materials (SCMs) in concrete mixtures.
- Tom Burnham, ISCP Member, MnDOT and Dr. Mark Snyder, ISCP Honorary Member, Engineering Consultant, gave an update on the Dowel Bar Task Force.
- Dale Harrington, ISCP Member, Snyder-Associates, National CP Tech Center, shared an update on training opportunities for concrete overlays and pavement preservation.
- Dr. Tom Van Dam, ISCP Member, NCE-Reno, Nevada and Dr. Tyler Ley, CE-Oklahoma State, co-presented on the relative effects of curling and warping, their causes, and how they can be controlled.
- Tour: A recently constructed roadway—including several bridges: Attendees had the opportunity to learn about the challenges of providing infrastructure on a heavy traffic route in the Northwest.
- Site visit: A working cement plant—a first for many.
- Feedback was requested from many attendees to provide more opportunities for informal discussion—clearly a critical part of the value of the meeting.
The fall meeting of the National Concrete Consortium is being planned for September 15-17, 2015 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA.
For details of the meeting highlights above, please click here:
For the meeting agenda, highlights, business meeting minutes and ALL PRESENTATIONS, please click here.
