ICRI Board Member Election Results

Here are the results of the ICRI board elections:

President: Jeff Konkle (MAK Construction Products Group)
Past-President: Marie Fallon (AR Chambers)
Vice President: Michael Payne (Building Envelope Consultants and Scientists)
Treasurer: Patrick Allen (Atlantic Engineering Services)
Secretary: Phillip Elgin (WJE)
Director: Blake Carroll (Carl Walker)
Director: Evan Rowles (Atlantic Engineering Services)
Director: Christopher Smith (Mariani & Richards)
Director: Frank Treu (AR Chambers)

There are a lot of familiar faces, with the exception of Mike Payne.

Mike is the lead engineer and manager of the Pittsburgh office of Building Envelope Consultants and Scientists, LLC (BECS), a specialized structural engineering and consulting firm focused on the building envelope and associated building systems. He has provided assessment, design, inspection, testing, and client consultation for a wide variety of new and existing project work including restoration of facades, masonry and stone, roofing and waterproofing, balconies and plazas, structural systems, parking structures and others. Mike moved back to the Pittsburgh region in 2020 after spending much of the previous decade in the Washington DC market where he served on the Board of Directors for the Baltimore/Washington Chapter of ICRI producing the chapter’s quarterly technical publication, The Aggregate. He hopes to bring a unique perspective from his DC-based experience as he takes a leading role on the board of the ICRI Pittsburgh chapter.

ICRI Board of Directors Newsletter - An End to 2020

An Expression of Gratitude for 2020

We are rounding the corner to a new year and hopefully a new dawn in the repair industry. It has been a very challenging year for everyone and the ICRI Pittsburgh was no different. We started off the year in a great direction with the annual Freeze Thaw Ball seeing record attendance and new member participation. We followed that up in March with one of our best attended events ever: Facade Inspection which featured code officials from the city of Pittsburgh, our own Phil Elgin of WJE and Kelly Morris of Prosoco’s Anchoring Group. All that came to a screeching halt. The ICRI Pittsburgh Board of Directors struggled to find meaningful content to product. We were mindful of Zoom Meeting Fatigue so we were very sparse in our selection of topics. The one video meeting we did produce was well attended. We were able to partner with the local Construction Specification Institute and have Casey Weisdock of the International Masonry Institute give an informative talk about Concrete and Masonry Coatings.

ICRI Pittsburgh President Jeff Konkle attended the ICRI Virtual Chapter Roundtable on 12/09 and many of the other chapters across the nation echoed the same challenges. So we’re not alone.

We know that it’s been a tough year. Unfortunately, it may still be a while be a while before we are able to have in-person events. The ICRI Board of Directors would like to thank you for your continued support. As you’ll see below, we have some great training opportunities, exciting initiatives, and lofty goals set for 2021.

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Do You Like Free Money?

Who doesn’t? As an expression of thanks to the members who have stuck with us through the year, the ICRI Pittsburgh will be putting money back into the pockets of our members for completing the ICRI’s Concrete Surface Repair Technician (CSRT) training. With this online program, you will gain essential information and training from your home or office.   Participants will learn about inspection and tests types of concrete deterioration, repair materials and methods, and the requirements for a quality concrete repair. Members who complete the program successfully will get a $100 reimbursement check sent to them directly from the ICRI.

We expect that the winter months could be slower than usual. So why not take advantage of the downtime and sharpen up your skills (or get some of those new employees trained) all at a huge discount?

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ICRI Pittsburgh Provides Support for PA Adoption of ACI 562

You may remember several months ago, ICRI had a joint meeting with the local ACI chapter regarding the ACI 562 - Code Requirements for Assessment, Repair, and Rehabilitation of Existing Concrete Structures. ICRI National has asked the local chapter to support code adoption in PA with a letter signed by the board of directors. If you are unfamiliar, ACI 562 complements the PA UCC by providing specific direction on how to design concrete repairs and how to handle the unique construction problems associated with repair. This standard helps the designer assess the existing structure in accordance with the IEBC. The proposed language is permissive, allowing other methods to be used to comply with the intent of the building code.

The ICRI Pittsburgh Board of Directors recently penned a letter to the PA Department of Labor & Industry, supporting the proposed changes.

If you’re not up to snuff on the ACI 562 code, then you can learn more about with this short video.

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Chapter Goals for 2021

The board voted on our chapter goals for 2021. As you’ll see, we’d like to expand our reach into other areas of concrete repair including masonry, DOT work, and the architecture/engineering community.

• Launch CSRT Training Initiative. Goal would be to have 10 members complete training.

• Increase membership by 10% by EOY 2021.

• Hold a joint meeting with another organization. (CSI, ACI, IMI, SEI, etc).

• Hold one event focused on attracting the masonry community.

• Hold one event focused on the DOT community.

• Hold one event focused on attracting the design community.

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Call for Nominees for Board of Directors Positions

We will have two board of director positions becoming available in January of 2021. Please email Jeff Konkle with any nominees who would be a good fit. Before you get all scared off, the board meets once a month for about 1 hour so it is not a huge time commitment. It’s a great way to network and build your resume. We are looking for people who can bring some new ideas and initiatives to the Chapter.

ICRI Pittsburgh Offers Steep Training Discount For Members in January!

Concrete repair can be complicated. Sometimes it can make you feel dumber than a box of rocks (or coarse aggregates as we call them). Get smart about concrete surface repair with the ICRI’s Concrete Surface Repair Technician (CSRT) training. ICRI Pittsburgh is running a special promotion in January to help with the cost.

What Is It?

CSRT Education course provides fundamental knowledge and best practices in concrete surface repair. With this online program, you will gain essential information and training from your home or office. Participants will learn about inspection and tests types of concrete deterioration, repair materials and methods, and the requirements for a quality concrete surface repair. Participants who successfully complete and pass all five online training modules and exams, will receive a Certificate of Achievement from ICRI.

NOTE: This is the first step toward receiving a bona fide CSRT Certification, which requires a live video or in person test. Online training can then be applied to take the actual exam at a later date.

Course Content:

Module 1: Deterioration of Reinforced Concrete

Module 2: Quality Requirements

Module 3: Repair Methods and Materials

Module 4: Pre-placement Inspection

Module 5: Post-placement Inspection

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Time Commitment:

The entire course load takes roughly 8 hours. Training is self-paced and can be broken up over several days.

Eligibility:

These discounts are available to the first 50 ICRI Pittsburgh members to register. There is a limit to 4 people per company. You must sign up in the month of January in order to receive the discount and tuition reimbursement.

Discount:

 When registering, members will use discount code “CSRTSTEEL21” during checkout. This will give you a $50.00 discount.

Tuition Reimbursement:

 Once you’ve successfully completed the training, ICRI Pittsburgh will issue a $100.00 reimbursement check to you. Training must be completed by March 31st 2021 to receive the credit.

New Members!

We want new members in the ICRI Pittsburgh! If you join, you can immediately receive all the benefits associated with membership, including the great discount on this training!

Email Jeff Konkle (jeffk@mak-cpg.com) with any additional questions. 

Event Recap: Masonry Facade Seminar

The Pittsburgh ICRI was thrilled at the turnout for our Masonry Facade Seminar! We had over 50 people in attendance to hear presentations on Pittsburgh’s Facade Inspection Ordinance. Phil Elgin (Associate Principal - Wiss, Janney, Eltsner Associates, INC.) and Dave Green (Assistant Director - Pittsburgh Department of Permitting, Licensing and Inspection) field questions from our diverse membership base. Kelly Morris from Prosoco’s Masonry Anchoring Group also spoke about helical anchoring specifically for masonry facades.

Freeze Thaw Ball Re-cap

What an event! We had one of the best turnouts in years at the Kickback cafe!

ICRI's First AIA Webinar

ICRI Pittsburgh hosted a 'group broadcast' of the recent AIA Webinar on Concrete Specifications. The event was held at Penn Brewery in Pittsburgh Northside. The group enjoyed different flights of craft brewed beer while earning professional development credits.

Smithfield-Liberty Helix Ramp Recognized by ICRI National

Local ICRI Members Atlantic Engineering Services, Pittsburgh Parking Authority, Carl Walker Construction and BASF were recognized by the ICRI for their work on the Smithfield-Liberty Garage. The project won an Award of Excellence in the Longevity Category and was a finalist for the 2018 Project of the Year!

Originally constructed in 1964, the helix ramp of the Smithfield-Liberty parking garage in downtown Pittsburgh, PA is six levels of post-tensioned concrete slab with a perimeter knee wall cantilevered from a conventionally reinforced concrete cylinder. In late 1996, an evaluation of the helix ramp was undertaken to establish the cause of the observed distress in the structure. The cause of the deterioration was a mixture of high chloride levels, failing old patches, and improper coverage at the knee walls. Repairs consisted of hydro-demolition and replacement of the top 2.5-3” to remove the chloride soaked concrete and supplemental post-tensioning cables with a high-quality, 6000 PSI shrinkage compensated concrete repair material.

The rehabilitation of the Smithfiled-Liberty Parking Garage was completed in 1997 and over 20 years later, the structure exhibits no additional deterioration. No structural repairs or rehabilitation have been required since the work was completed.

Read Member Jill Adkins' Article in the Concrete Repair Bulletin

ICRI Pittsburgh’s own Jill Adkins was just published in the most recent issue of the Concrete Repair Bulletin. The article is titled Designing with Titanium for Strengthening Concrete Bridges.

Congrats JIll!

Click here to read the article!