EcoHouse Goes Platinum

The EcoHouse in Pasadena, Calif., is expected to become the first concrete LEED Platinum home in the United States. the house is built primarily of concrete structural insulated panels utilizing a combination of foam insulation and shotcrete technology and made of 60 percent recycled material.

The wall system offers reduced construction time, insulation far superior to wood-framed homes, and a high sound buffer between floors and rooms.

Additional materials and systems utilized throughout the Pasadena EcoHouse include passive and active solar components, which will be integrated throughout, and energy-efficient systems and appliances.

House Releases Details of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

On Thursday, the House Leadership provided the first details of the proposed American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).  The House Appropriations and Ways and Means Committees unveiled an $825 billion economic stimulus package that includes $550 billion in spending and $275 billion in tax cuts to individuals and businesses over two years.

Click here to view or download a one-page breakdown of major infrastructure elements from the House Appropriations Committee review.

Click here to view or download a press summary released by the committee.

The House Appropriations Committee, chaired by Representative Obey (D-WI), will mark up the draft bill next Wednesday, January 21.
Contact: John Sullivan

Restructured Buildings Group Combines
Low-Rise and Residential Construction

PCA has expanded the scope of what was formerly its residential department to encompass low-rise commercial buildings (generally four stories or less), as well as single-family and multi-family residential dwellings.  The department, headed by Jim Niehoff, will now be known as “Low-Rise Buildings.”

Staff changes include:

Jamie Farny fills the new position of market manager for commercial buildings, and will have the responsibility of promoting concrete products and applications into the low-rise commercial market.

Mike Collignon is now market manager of residential construction

Don Thompson is now manager, building technologies and sustainable codes.
Contact Jim Niehoff

One in Three Homeowners View Concrete as the Most Environmentally Friendly Material

Thirty percent of recently surveyed homeowners believe concrete to be the most environmentally friendly material, compared to wood or steel, according to a recent market research survey by PCA.

In addition, current homeowners rate durability, energy efficiency, low maintenance, and mold resistance as the most important characteristics they would consider when buying a newly constructed home—all attributes of homes with concrete wall systems.

According to the survey 75 percent of homeowners were aware of concrete homes, even though an almost equal amount (76 percent) currently live in wood frame structures, followed by 16 percent who live in concrete block or masonry homes.  However, the future likelihood of homeowners building with wood has decreased for the first time since 1998, with 54 percent reporting they would build wood compared to 63 percent in 2005, the last time the group was surveyed. 

Still Time to Register for Kiln Process Course

The next session of PCA’s Kiln Process course is February 10-13, 2009. Kiln Process is a four-day, comprehensive program focusing on the decision-making and processing in cement plant operations. The fundamental physical properties and processes that contribute to the production of clinker are presented by expert speakers throughout the industry.
More info or to register

Tool Calculates Proper HVAC Equipment to Maximize Energy Efficiency

Newly updated software published by PCA allows builders to estimate heating and cooling system capacities for energy-efficient single-family concrete homes and take advantage of these savings.

Developed as part of a HUD-sponsored project, the software calculates the system capacities based on the house dimensions, construction materials, air infiltration, location (U.S. Mexico, and Canada) and thermostat set point.

To account for the thermal mass imparted by concrete walls, this software uses hourly weather data for a typical year.
Current widely used HVAC-sizing methods do not account for the thermal mass, high levels of insulation, and/or low air infiltration of the insulated concrete walls.

This omission, and the fact that many builders and HVAC contractors’ size HVAC equipment based on a “rule-of-thumb” developed for wood-framed homes that equate equipment size with square footage of living space, results an the installation of an inefficient HVAC system that is typically oversized.

The PCA software uses energy modeling software that is more representative of actual conditions in which the HVAC system will be operating.
Available at www.cement.org/bookstore
Contact Donn Thompson

Essroc Logansport Plant Gains International Environmental Approval

Essroc's plant in Logansport, Ind., recently earned a world-class certificate to show that their Environmental Management System (EMS) has officially achieved ISO 14001 standards.

An EMS is the system operated by an organization to manage its activities and services to ensure compliance with its environmental policy, including continual improvement. The important certification came from Lloyd’s Register Quality Assurance, an accredited member of the Lloyd’s Register Group in the UK.

“For Logansport plant this is the crowning of our long tradition of respecting the environment," said plant manager Mike McHugh. "We  have always appreciated the trust from our neighboring community, our customers, and our suppliers. With this recognition now we can show that their trust was well placed. I am proud of the great job done by my team.”

Logansport joins other Essroc cement plants holding ISO 14001 certificates: Speed, also located in Indiana, and Bessemer and Nazareth, both located in Pennsylvania. With time the company expects to progressively certify all its other production facilities.