A publication of the Concrete Foundations Association
Have you ever wanted to tour a cement, a forms, and an expanded polystyrene manufacturing plants; as well as a quarry and state-of-the-art concrete homes? If so, the opportunity awaits you. The Concrete Home Building Council, a council within the Building Systems Council of the National Association of Home Builders, has chosen residential concrete systems […]
The Concrete Homes Council (CHC) exhibited at the National Association for Home Builder’s International Builders Show held in Orlando, Florida, January 13-16, 2005. With 104, 922 attendees and more than 880, 000 net square fee of exhibits, it was the largest Builders Show yet and the world’s largest residential construction expo for the their consecutive […]
By Wendy Shannon, Shannon & Company I’ve traveled many times to the Florida Keys for rest and relaxation, but this time I was flying in to meet with the developer and the design architect of SeaSide Key West, a highend residential project constructed entirely of concrete. Towards the end of the 90-minute direct flight from Atlanta […]
Doug Staebler, Custom Concrete Company, Inc., Westfield, IN In previous articles, we looked at the growing use of Subcontractor agreements by builders. In addition to the typical clauses dealing with schedules, work defects, payment provisions, and other construction related matters, most of these agreements contain extremely potent indemnification clauses, which impose nearly unlimited liability on […]
Celebrating the achievements of individuals with vision who helped to promote, expand and encourage to role of women in the construction industry. The National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) is accepting nominations for its 11th annual Crystal Vision and Crystal Achievement Awards. The Crystal Vision Awards Program recognizes individuals for their outstanding achievement in advancing the role […]
The Portland Cement Association recently published a tech brief, Technology Brief: Concrete Basements, to inform the building industry and consumers of the value in having a concrete basement. IS313-Concrete Basements describes why basements are built with concrete, what quality construction practices to look for, and the various types of cement based systems available to build with. […]
This past December, the rules for safety have changed significantly for all residential construction. The statement below summarizes the movement made to rescind a significant rule exception that exempted residential foundation contractors from fall protection requirements. We at CFA have just been alerted to this information and are researching it further to identify any further opportunities that may limit the exposure of our industry to this change […]
Daniel “Gene” Gore age 51 of Bellevue, Ohio, passed away Tuesday, December 07, 2010. He was born September 3, 1959 in Bellevue the son of Billy & Darlene (Ridings) Gore. Gene was the owner of Solid Foundations in Bellevue. He was a member of Providence Baptist Church where he was a Sunday school teacher and headed up the buildings and grounds committee, a member of the […]
Cell phones have become an integral part of society… There are over 200 million cell phone users (that’s two out of every three people in the United States). When I sold the family rep agency in 2000, I decided to use my cell phone as my primary business phone number. With as much traveling as I’ve done since, it […]
by Robert Evans Wilson, Jr. The other day on the radio I heard these lyrics from the Shinedown song, If You Only Knew “It’s 4:03 and I can’t sleep… I toss and turn like the sea.” I thought, “Yeah, why is it always 4AM that I wake up when I’m worried about something?” The singer of this top 10 pop rock song […]
By Don Yaeger “You’ll be amazed by what you can achieve when you surround yourselves with those headed in the same direction.” Association leaders and corporate executives have long recognized that great lessons – lessons in leadership, team building, handling adversity, and managing success – can be learned from their peers in the world of sports. This explains why some of the most sought after […]
by Mike Foti A crowded marketplace. Hyper-competition. Trying to do more with less. The competitive treadmill has not just been taken up one notch, it’s been cranked up to full-blast! How do you not only survive, but more importantly, thrive in this environment? What are the winners doing to get results in this “full-blast” world? Recently, before a speaking engagement I delivered to a group of fast-growing companies I […]
“There is a disease – an enemy – that is eating away at your knowledge, wisdom and professionalism each and every day. This disease – known as commoditization – reduces your offerings to the lowest common denominator, the competitive bid. A stinking price.” F. Scott Addis Here I sit in front of a blazing fire relaxing after a wonderful Christmas weekend spent with family and […]
Leading North American building products manufacturer, CertainTeed Corporation, has received an evaluation report from ICC Evaluation Services, Inc. (ICC-ES), confirming that T-Roc(TM) Thermal Laminate Foundation Insulation System is building code compliant. T-Roc enables building professionals to bypass several costly, time-intensive tasks involved with turning foundations into finished walls in a livable basement space. Through the analysis of T-Roc, including testing, […]
Poured wall and aluminum forms pioneer Marion Myers passed away July 5th, 2010. Marion was 89 and had lived in Middletown, Ohio. He served as a pilot in the U.S. Army Corps during WWII. He established Myers Construction Company and ran a successful business for twenty years. In 1970 he bought the first aluminum forms in the state of Ohio. After his retirement he moved to […]
And “there was a man named Jabez…” In 1916 Anheuser Busch produced over more than one million barrels of beer. Production was up and the market bursting. But storm clouds were on the horizon. The Temperance movement was gaining political clout; World War I brought rationing and anti-German sentiment, which sent production downward drastically. By 1919, sales had dropped to 218,000 barrels. Then came prohibition. Events […]
Parrish Assumes Presidency CFA has announced the newest terms for its Board of Directors as well as a new President to direct its next two-year period. During the CFA Annual Convention, held earlier this year at Chateau on the Lake in Branson, Missouri, the attending members elected Van Smith of Smith Brothers Concrete in Alden, New York to a one-year term to replace Jim Rowe […]
The CFA Board of Directors voted at the summer board meeting to take the next step in the CFA self-insurance program. Business may be slow but if you are doing business, you are still buying insurance. The CFA program will be modeled after the highly successful CSDA (Concrete Sawing and Drilling Association) insurance captive. That program, which suffered a setback […]