The National Ready Mixed Concrete Association (NRMCA) has elected the following slate of officers during its annual convention held earlier this month in Tampa, Fla. The Association’s new chairman is William Sandbrook of U.S. Concrete, Inc., Euless, Texas. Sandbrook succeeds Rodney Grogan of MMC Materials, Inc, Ridgeland, Miss. Elected vice chairman was John Carew, Carew Concrete & Supply Co., Appleton, Wis. and the secretary/treasurer is Abbott Lawrence, Martin Marietta, Lakewood, Colo.
Each of the three new officers has begun serving a one-year term which concludes at NRMCA’s 2020 convention. In addition to the Board election, the Association welcomed Michael Philipps as its new president, succeeding Robert Garbini who retired effective at the end of the convention.
In addition to the above, NRMCA presented the following awards during the convention:
William B. Allen Award – Allen Hamblen, CalPortland Company, Glendora, Calif.. Hamblen is president and chief executive officer of CalPortland Company and, prior to a 2006 consolidation, he was president and chief executive officer of Glacier Northwest. He has been working with CalPortland and its predecessors for over 30 years, served as chairman of NRMCA in 2015 and currently sits on the Board of Directors for NRMCA. He also recently served as chairman of the Portland Cement Association, and is a past president of the Washington Aggregates and Concrete Association. Hamblen received a bachelor’s degree and MBA from Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas.
The William B. Allen Award is given for a lifetime commitment and recognition of outstanding leadership to promote the success of the ready mixed concrete industry and to improve the financial health, performance and sustainability of the industry. The award is named after one of the ready mixed concrete industry’s most distinguished and accomplished figures, Bill Allen, who had more than 55 years of concrete and aggregates-related experience and had long been involved with many NRMCA activities and events.
Promoter of the Year – Pavement – Duane Coy, sales manager, Dolese Bros., Oklahoma City. Duane Coy has been active with NRMCA for several years. Since the launch of NRMCA’s Pave Ahead program, Coy has focused Dolese Bros.’ promotion efforts on local paving. He has hosted a Concrete Parking Lot Boot Camp for over 30 company employees and included one concrete contractor in April 2018. The following day, he hosted a one-day workshop for over 40 local contractors and specifiers. Additionally, while he had the NRMCA paving directors in town, Duane arranged for a meeting with the design department of the Chickasaw Nation – the largest landowner/developer in Oklahoma. As a result of these and other efforts, Coy and his group have submitted over 30 projects to NRMCA’s Design Assistance Program (DAP) for a combined potential of over 75,000 cubic yards. Additionally, five projects have been awarded.
Promoter of the Year – Buildings – Oliver Brooks, general manager, Martin Marietta’s Denver Metro Ready Mix. Since the NRMCA launched Build With Strength (BWS) in 2016, Brooks has led the development, launch and implementation of the statewide BWS campaign in Colorado through the Colorado Ready Mixed Concrete Association (CRMCA). As an early believer in the power of BWS, Brooks took a leadership volunteer role as part of CRMCA to oversee and manage the BWS program. As a result, the BWS brand has been established in Colorado, CRMCA has facilitated many referrals to the Design Assistance Program (DAP), and notable projects have been retained or converted to concrete. Working with NRMCA staff, CRMCA staff, and the chairs of CRMCA’s Regional Market Committees, he was instrumental in formally launching BWS across the state to all members.
Promoter of the Year – State Affiliate – Joel Waters, executive director, Mississippi Concrete Association (MCA). Waters has been tireless in his promotion of NRMCA’s Build With Strength and Pave Ahead campaigns. He has hosted 21 Lunch & Learns, utilizing the valuable talents of NRMCA experts to architectural firms, promoting ICF construction and to engineering firms and promoting proper jointing and parking lots. With Mr. Waters’ leadership, MCA established the MCA “Day of Concrete.” A total of 69 industry professionals attended the event, including 14 contractors, 14 engineers and one architect. Waters also established MCA’s “Train the Trainer” program, targeted at the sales and quality control personnel from the ready mixed concrete and sand and gravel members of MCA. The goal is to create a competitive setting for these people to turn in Design Assistance Program (DAP) to NRMCA BWS and convert more projects to concrete.
Robert A. Garbini Chairman’s Award – Scott Parson, CRH Americas Materials, Inc., Ogden, Utah. Mr. Parson has been involved with the Association dating to 2007 and has served at various times on multiple executive boards as well on the Audit & Finance Committee for the past four years. He is also a past chairman of the Board of Directors and has been heavily involved in the Government Affairs Committee and CONCRETEPAC activities as well. As NRMCA chairman in 2017, he took the initiative, along with Vision Strategic Planning Committee Chairwoman Boo Twohy, to restructure NRMCA’s committee structure so it better addressed the most important needs of membership and industry. As a result, NRMCA has seen membership participation increase in all the new/remaining committees over this past year.
Previously called the Chairman’s Award, this recognition was renamed for past President Robert Garbini who retired from NRMCA at the conclusion of the convention after 27 years of service to NRMCA and the ready mixed concrete industry.
State Association of the Year Award – Connecticut Ready Mixed Concrete Association (CRMCA) and Connecticut Concrete Promotion Council (CCPC). In the past year, a complete web and social media presence for CRMCA and CCPC was created, with two websites, two social media accounts, an electronic newsletter and the development of a database of construction media. One of these websites is designed specifically to address the driver shortage issues in the state by allowing prospective mixer drivers to apply for jobs. Another database of concrete and masonry contractors, architects, engineers, members and related individuals was created, and those individuals received 62 targeted e-mails, many of which were related to their second program, a statewide Build With Strength campaign. Modeled after NRMCA’s campaign, those e-mails were joined by social media posts, print campaigns, case studies and presentations.
CRMCA also took a leadership role in the Move CT Forward campaign, a coalition of construction and trade organizations, which launched a seven-figure advocacy campaign to press for a major state investment in transportation. The campaign was successful in accelerating the transfer of car sales tax revenue from the general fund to the transportation fund to avert the cancellation of $4.3 billion of transportation projects.
Richard D. Gaynor Award – Frank Kozeliski. Kozeliski is a long-time veteran in the concrete industry. He was the owner of Gallup Sand & Gravel in Gallup, N.M. The company has been a member of NRMCA since 1951; Kozeliski sold the company in 2007. Since then, he has continued his passion for concrete by educating, promoting and developing innovative concepts. He has been active in ACI, ASTM International, NRMCA, ASCE and World of Concrete. He is a member of Chi Epsilon, the National Civil Engineering Honor Society. He is a Fellow and honorary member of ACI and has served as the chair of ACI Committee 211. He is the recipient of ACI’s Delmar L. Bloem Distinguished Service Award and the Henry C. Turner Medal. He has been an instructor for ACI and WOC seminars on street paving, concrete parking lots, insulated concrete forms, whitetopping and general concrete technology. Mr. Kozeliski is a past member of the NRMCA Board of Directors. He has been active on the Promotion and RES committees.
The award is named after Richard D. Gaynor who retired as executive vice president of NRMCA and the National Aggregates Association in 1996 after more than 40 years of service with the associations. His knowledge, experience and attention to detail on technical issues related to concrete was well recognized. In 1997, the RES Committee established the award in his honor.
Joseph E. Carpenter Award – Denise Corrales. Corrales is the director of environmental for CEMEX’s eastern region which includes more than 100 ready mixed concrete plants and 25 block plants with operations in Florida and Georgia. She has been with CEMEX (and its predecessors) for more than 33 years. She has served two terms as vice chairman of the Safety, Environmental and Operations Committee’s Environmental Task Group and chairman of the task group as well. She has been a judge for NRMCA’s Driver of the Year contest and a longtime judge of NRMCA’s Environmental Excellence Award Program. Ms. Corrales also represented NRMCA as an industry expert in Washington, DC, at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The award is named in honor of Joseph E. Carpenter of Rinker Materials, West Palm Beach, Fla., who was instrumental in the formation and early operation of the NRMCA Committee on Maintenance.
Driver of the Year – David Buoncristiani of Central Concrete Supply, a US Concrete Company. Buoncristiani, whose home plant is the South San Francisco facility in San Francisco, was honored for his career achievements, outstanding safety record, professionalism, driving competency and customer service skills. On Buoncristiani’s application, Central Concrete Supply’s Operations Manager Joe Cerrito wrote, “while hauling over 15,000 cubic yards of concrete incident free in 2018, David navigated some of San Francisco’s most challenging roads and terrain with exceptional driving skill, intuition and attention to detail.” The judges were also impressed with his letters of recommendations which included one from contractor Steve Benesi of Malcolm Drilling Company who wrote, “As a superintendent, I have worked with and have met many concrete drivers and I would rank Dave in the top 1%. He is rock solid when it comes to anything related to concrete.”
The judges also selected three runners-up. Mike Salo from GCC Ready Mix in Aberdeen, S.D; Eddie Thompson of Chandler Concrete Company in Burlington, N.C and George Weaver of Wayne Concrete in Shinglehouse, Pa.
Concrete Cares Award – Casa Redimix Concrete and CEMEX USA. The Concrete Cares Award is sponsored by the Manufacturers, Products and Services Division to recognize outstanding contributions in community service by NRMCA Producer member companies.
Casa Redimix Concrete Corp., The Bronx, N.Y. Casa’s project scope is giving back to its local communities though monetary donations, aiding in research and treatment; physically, in feeding those in need; and mentally, bringing awareness and knowledge. Casa Redimix has purchased new mixer trucks that were dedicated to breast, prostate and children’s cancer awareness. It has also hosted an annual golf outing that has raised over $380,000. Casa Redimix has also been distributing 2,000 turkey dinners since 2008 to families in need. The local NYPD escorted a shuttle bus from its precinct to various shelters bringing these families in need to Casa Redimix.
CEMEX USA, Houston. CEMEX teamed with the League of American Bicyclists and local cycling organizations to create “Safer Roads Together” by promoting increased safety awareness through giving cyclists perspective on potential blind spots around trucks, encouraging safe riding and driving on the roads, as well as showcasing the latest safety features incorporated in CEMEX’s truck fleet. CEMEX participates in local events whereby participants receive safety kits that include bicycle headlights with bike mounts, LED reflector flashlights and bike water bottles. The Blount Avenue Office and Truck Maintenance Shop in Knoxville became the first in the CEMEX ready-mix division to achieve Conservation Certification from the Wildlife Habitat Council.
Children’s Art Contest – NRMCA received 55 entries to its sixth annual contest, again sponsored by the Truck Mixer Manufacturers Bureau. Entries were judged only against others in their grade category on originality, effort, creativity, composition and interpretation of the theme. This year’s theme was “Ready Mixed Concrete – Building America from the Ground Up.” The winners were:
Pre-K – K Winners:
1st: Ryder Stiers, sponsored by Steve Stiers, Central Concrete
2nd: Rafael Lopez III, sponsored by Rafael Lopez Jr., Central Concrete
3rd: James Balli, sponsored by Raymond Balli, Right Away Redy Mix
1-3 Grade Winners:
1st: Elena Chenous, sponsored by Andy Chenous, Bard Materials
2nd: Ben Elias Valenzuela, sponsored by Ben Valenzuela, Central Concrete
3rd: Belen Estrada, sponsored by Jose Estrada, Central Concrete
4-6 Grade Winners:
1st: Isela Cisneros, sponsored by Jose Estrada, Central Concrete
2nd: Camila Cisneros, sponsored by Jose Estrada, Central Concrete
3rd: Emma Gatsos, sponsored by Ramon Tarango, Right Away Redy Mix
7-12 Grade Winners:
1st: Elijah Ong, sponsored by Ed Ong, Central Concrete
2nd: Nicolas B. Kunesh, sponsored by Gary Kunesh, Central Concrete
3rd: Jocelyn Ramos, Raymond Balli, Right Away Redy Mix
Founded in 1930, the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association is the leading industry advocate. Our mission is to provide exceptional value for our members by responsibly representing and serving the entire ready mixed concrete industry through leadership, promotion, education and partnering to ensure ready mixed concrete is the building material of choice.
