Michigan Home Harnesses the Power of Wind

The latest home certified LEED-Platinum by the U.S. Green Building Council used insulating concrete forms (ICFs) and wind to achieve a high energy efficiency rating.

Located in Onekama, Mich., the home takes advantage of its location in the state's highest wind-zone area and incorporates a wind generator.  An ICF flooring system was ideal for its radiant heat system.

Additionally, the concrete features recycled products.  It is made with 30 percent fly ash replacement.   The project also made a commitment to recycle as much construction waste as possible.

Other sustainable attributes of the home are stained concrete, a passive solar home design, solar hot water heaters, soy-based spray foam insulation in the roof, solar-reflective shingles, siding that incorporated fly ash, and bamboo flooring,  It earned the Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association’s “Exemplary Project” award and an ENERGY STAR rating of 5+ stars.

The home was built by Hybrid Homes, LLC and designed by Image Design, LLC.  The ICFs were installed by R-Value Concrete Structures, LLC.

ACI Wraps Up Spring Convention

With 19 staff members or consultants serving on more than 80 ACI committees, or subcommittees, PCA represented a broad range of cement-industry interests at the American Concrete Institute’s Spring Convention, held March 30-April 3 in Los Angeles, Calif.

In addition to committee work, technical presentations also raised the cement-industry’s profile:

• PCA’s Donn Thompson presented two technical sessions related to residential construction: “NAHB’s Green Building Standard” and “Sustainability Benefits of ICFs.”
• PCA's Steve Kosmatka presented “PCA Sulfate Research: A Historical Review.”
• CTLGroup chair and former president/CEO Tony Fiorato presented “Test Methods for Water-Soluble Sulfate in Soils.”
• Tom Tietz, California Nevada Cement Association, presented “Climate Change Challenges and Opportunities for the California Cement Industry.”

In other convention news and events:

• PCA’s Michelle Wilson was awarded the ACI Young Member Award for Professional Achievement. (See below.)
• The California Nevada Cement Association received the ACI Distinguished Achievement Award.
• W. Gene Corley, CTLGroup, was presented with a 50-year membership citation.
• PCA’s Mahmoud  Kamara is the new chair of ACI Committee 421, Design of Reinforced Concrete Slabs.

ACI’s Fall 2008 Convention is scheduled for November 2-6, 2008, St. Louis, Mo.
Contact Steve Szoke or Steve Kosmatka

Wilson receives ACI Award

The American Concrete Institute (ACI) honored Michelle Wilson, PCA’s  manager of  education and product development,  with its ACI Young Member Award for Professional Achievement.  ACI presented the award at its spring convention last week.

ACI recognized Wilson "for contributions to the continuing education of professors through her organization and facilitation of faculty workshops and for her service in providing presentations and developing technical publications in support of the concrete industry."

Wilson conducts numerous workshops and presentations around North America on concrete materials, construction, inspection, troubleshooting, and repair, including seminars at World of Concrete and CONEXPO- CON/AGG.  Additionally, she is chair of ACI Committee 301D, Lightweight and Massive Concrete, and serves on ACI Committees 201, Durability of Concrete; 301, Specifications for Concrete; and 311, Inspection of Concrete.
Contact Michelle Wilson

Fire-Resistance Ratings Refined for
Concrete and Masonry

Meeting at the ACI spring convention last week, the ACI 216 Committee on Fire Resistance and Fire Protection of Structures (a joint committee of ACI and The Masonry Society) is working on a new edition of the ACI 216R Guide for Determining the Fire Endurance of Concrete Elements.  The emphasis of the guide is on concrete slabs and beams. 

The committee is now working on a commentary to the standard, ACI 216.1 Code Requirements for Determining Fire Resistance of Concrete and Masonry Construction Assemblies. This will result in increased substantiation for use of prescriptive and analytical methods for determining the fire-resistance ratings of concrete and masonry assemblies, a relatively easy and affordable approach for designing for fire protection.

Future work will begin to develop information on the properties of concrete and masonry at elevated temperatures and fire exposures for use in fire performance models and performance-based design.
Contact Steve Szoke

ACI Considers Standard on Thermal Properties

Meeting at the ACI spring convention last week, ACI Committee 122 Thermal Properties and Performance of Concrete and Masonry Systems is in the process of revising the Guide to Thermal Properties of Concrete and Masonry Systems. The revisions are anticipated to present the information in a more concise user-friendly format. 

The committee is considering the development of a standard for developing the values for thermal properties of concrete and masonry for use in design standards, codes, and models, such as the American Society of Heating, Air-Conditioning and Refrigerating Engineers (ASHRAE) standards 90.1 Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings, 90.2 Energy-Efficient Design of Low-Rise Residential Buildings, and International Code Council (ICC) International Energy Conservation Code.
Contact Steve Szoke

CAC Releases 2008 Sustainability Report

The 2008 Sustainability Report is now available from the Cement Association of Canada (CAC).  The report documents the Canadian gray cement manufacturing industry's progress in improving its environmental, social, and economic performance. In addition, it provides an indication of some of the directions the industry is pursuing to further reduce its environmental impact.

The report is part of the industry's commitment to publicly convey progress in implementing the World Business Council for Sustainable Development Cement Sustainability Initiative.
View the report at www.cement.ca

Energy Efficiency Tops Sustainable Attributes

According to a recent PCA survey of design professionals, energy efficiency ranked as the most important quality for a sustainable building material. Do you agree?

>Yes: 71 percent

>No: 29 percent

Notable Comments:
"While energy efficiency is important, overall life cycle efficiency, cost, durability, constructability are more or equally important."

"It can be as energy efficient as all get-out, but if it only lasts 10 years, what good is it? Durability is very important."

"Since we spend 90% of our time indoors, maintaining proper indoor environments for inhabitants is most important (ventilation, lighting,comfort, etc.)."

"Considering the amount of embodied energy required for concrete/masonry products (and not to mention the use of non-renewable resources), it's hardly sustainable."