• In Memoriam, Karl Schlecht

    Wednesday, October 16, 2024

    The Concrete Foundation Association and the entire concrete industry regrets to inform you of the passing of Putzmeister founder and visionary, Karl Schlecht. Putzmeister has asked us to share this tribute and obituary. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Schlecht family and Karl’s worldwide network of friends and co-workers. With deep sorrow and great […]

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  • 50th Anniversary Celebration Begins

    Wednesday, October 16, 2024

    The Concrete Foundations Association will reach its 50th year of supporting the cast-in-place concrete contractor in the Spring of 2025. A yearlong effort will celebrate the significance of fifty years of enduring challenging economic cycles, an evolving marketplace, and a host of labor, legal, code, safety, and technology influences. The year of celebration was kicked […]

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  • CFA Establishes Preferred Supplier Program

    Wednesday, October 16, 2024

    Membership networks generally have a variety of participation and recognition levels based on the interests of individuals and organizations and the services and resources provided. Tiered membership levels, labeled as “sustaining” or given common titles (i.e., gold, silver, diamond, and platinum) typically follow a pay-to-be-recognized system. Instead, during the fiscal year 2023–24, CFA’s Board of […]

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  • Best Practice Groups Continue Making A Difference

    Wednesday, October 16, 2024

    One of the significant considerations for members of the Association is how the CFA impacts their business. Keeping in mind that first and foremost the CFA is a network of organizations run by like-minded and passionate leaders, networking remains the most valuable benefit. With this in mind, Best Practice Groups (BPGs) were initiated a couple […]

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  • Caught-In-Action

    Wednesday, October 16, 2024

    Attention to detail This is a trait every employer hopes to inculcate in the workforce they send outward to jobs.  It is the mark that often establishes the strata in the marketplace, elevating the most professional teams. Although never surprised when this is identified, the leadership at Beaver Concrete Construction is proud of the individual […]

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Feature

Dec
14

Dependant Foundations: Moving On Up

Byline: Talia J. Nelson, Marketing & Member Services You may have seen the name Mark Markovich beside “Treasurer” on the list of Concrete Foundations Association’s Board of Directors, but that is not the only organization in which Markovich actively participates. Markovich has been president of Dependant Foundations in Brighton, Michigan for the past 20 years. Dependant […]

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Dec
14

Menke Brothers Construction Company:

Talia J. Nelson, Marketing & Member Services The Concrete Foundations Association was beginning just about the time that another organization was forming. Menke Brothers Construction Company in Fort Jennings, Ohio began with only seven employees. Just as the association has grown, so has the staff at Menke Brothers. They employ 45 and provide a variety of […]

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Oct
20

CFA Honors Brad Barnes with MVP Award

Brad Barnes, PE received the first ever CFA MVP Award at ACI’s Northeast Ohio Chapter monthly meeting on Thursday, November 11, 2004. Barnes, the ACI Chapter Director, was chosen for his time and effort put into the CFA Cold Weather Research Program. Jim Baty, CFA Technical Director, gave a brief presentation on the significance of […]

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Oct
10

MTSU Unveils Degree in Con crete Construction

By Ed Sauter, Executice Director Where does one go to learn how to run a concrete construction business? Not the nuts and bolts of building a footing or wall, those are still best taught on-the-job. I’m talking about finance, estimating, managing personnel, marketing; the things that can make or break a business even if you […]

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Oct
10

Don’t Get Caught in the Middle

Bob Milford, Drewry Simmons Vornehm, LLP Concrete Facts recently featured several articles regarding subcontractor agreements. In one of these articles, Doug Staebler of Custom Concrete Company, Inc. pointed out that both the large national builders and the smaller local builders are insisting on the use of subcontractor agreements. Builders utilize these agreements to shift as much […]

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Oct
10

Subcontractor Agreements – The Indemnification Clause

Doug Staebler, Custom Concrete Company, Inc., Westfield, IN You have just landed that big customer you’ve been working on for two years. Prices and scope of work have been agreed to and everyone is ready to begin. There is one last detail to take care of, the Subcontractor Agreement. At this point in the game, the […]

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Magazine Issues

Jan
30

EPA Proposes Rule Imposing Stricter Stormwater Standards on Construction and Development Activities

On November 28, 2008, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed a rule under the Clean Water Act entitled “Effluent Limitations Guidelines and Standards for the Construction and Development Point Source Category.” The proposed non-numeric effluent limitations guidelines (ELGs) would require contractors, developers, and others conducting land-disturbing activities to implement specific minimum best management practices (BMPs) for erosion control, sediment control, and pollution prevention. Certain sites could be required to implement stormwater treatment […]

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Jan
30

You Need To Be A Member — Let’s Help Each Other!

I would like to make a case for CFA membership. Whether you are a current member and thinking about dropping your membership, a past member or thinking about becoming a member; if you are a poured wall contractor CFA is a valuable resource. With the worst economy that most of us will likely ever face, CFA is a resource that can help us survive in […]

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Jan
30

WE MADE IT THROUGH 2008… NOW ON TO 2009

We made it through 2008. Not unscathed by any means – membership and dues are both off by nearly 30% from 2007 – but we are here to begin 2009. Survival is the good news. The bad news is that 2009 promises more of the same, at least if you believe practically every economist and analyst in the business. At CFA, we are […]

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Jan
27

CFA INAUGURAL CERTIFICATION EVENT SHOWS STRONG FUTURE

The first qualification exam for the CFA Cast-In-Place Concrete Foundation Contractor Certification Program was recently completed by CFA at the Summer Convention in Arizona. Exams were administered on Wednesday, August 2, 2008 and Saturday, August 5, 2008. They were preceded by a review seminar. Interested companies sent 21 persons to sit for the 2-hour exam. “The response to this initial […]

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Jan
27

BASEMENT OF THE YEAR

For the last few years we have asked our members to enter a basement project that offered challenges of any kind in the ‘Basement of the Year’ award competition. (A reminder to all CFA members — you can submit ANY basement you have done regardless of the level of difficulty you experienced). We want to thank the CFA […]

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Jan
27

Ready For Round Two!

Dear CFA Member, Over the past year, our Management Committee has been working hard to develop the content for a new series of information products that deliver tips and tricks we all use for the management of our businesses. Attend one CFA event and the first thing you realize is how much collective business expertise exists between the companies of this Association, […]

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Jan
27

Basement of the Year WINNERS

The home for the new millennium—it continues to astound in complexity and size. Even more impressive is the increasing requirements for concrete work generating complex foundation support for these homes as well as becoming integral to the finished appearance. The Concrete Foundations Association (CFA) – a North American network dedicated to improving the residential concrete industry by building better businesses and improving codes and standards – […]

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Jan
27

Banding Together

According to the IRS, the official definition of an association is: In general, an association is a group of persons banded together for a specific purpose. That leaves a lot of room for interpretation, since associations are formed for an enormous variety of purposes. They also engage in a wide range of initiatives and activities from improving networking […]

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Jan
27

Surviving A Down Economy

The residential housing market is in the midst of the worst economic slump that most of us have the capacity to remember. Some CFA members (as well as many others in the industry) have closed their doors. Nearly everyone has cut back operations severely in hopes that will be enough. Ways of coping with the current downturn are as varied as our members themselves. At the […]

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Jan
27

DURAND FORMS NAMES NEW VP

The Board of Directors of Durand Forms has appointed Mark Markovich as Vice President / General Manager effective April 1, 2008. Mark Markovich has previously owned Dependant Foundations, Inc. in Brighton, MI and has been using the Durand Forming System for over 25 years. In that period of time, Mark helped pioneer the change in poured foundations from wood […]

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Jan
27

Recapping the CFA Convention 2008 What Defines Success?

The 2008 Summer Convention has come and gone and with all the concern building up to this event for the industry, the economy and the ability to make such a business decision weighing; ask anyone in attendance and they’ll say the CFA hit a home run. We don’t need to convince you of the scenery or the quality of the hotel that was chosen […]

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Jan
27

CFA LOSES A PARTNER AND FRIEND

Kim Robert Steveley, 71, former Business Manager and partner with Ed Sauter, died Saturday, July 26, 2008, following a long illness. Surviving, in addition to his wife, Julia, are two sons, Marc Steveley of Austin, Texas, and David Steveley of Fort Collins, Colo.; a daughter, Tracy Cullinan of Worthington, Minn.; a brother, Kip Steveley of Rochester Hills, Mich.; and two grandchildren, […]

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