The National Concrete Pavement Technology Center (CP Tech Center) held the National Concrete Consortium (NC2) and the Technology Transfer Concrete Consortium (TTCC) 2018 Fall National Concrete Consortium (NC2) September 18-20 in Saratoga Springs, New York. Steve Tritsch, with some help from Gordon Smith, Peter Taylor, and Hamed Sadati, led the September gathering. Smith took part in the discussions of performance engineered mixtures (PEM) implementation and Tritsch gave the group an update on CP Tech Center activities. Taylor reported on studies dealing with mechanisms and prevention for salt and deicer scaling in a research-based session.
There were nearly 190 attendees, including the CP Tech staffers above, who represented 30 states and the Illinois Tollway, the concrete industry, and transportation agencies—higher than last-year’s record-breaking 20th anniversary meeting. The semi-annual NC2 meeting gives the state materials engineers, industry and academia an opportunity to share research and technical information specifically about concrete pavements. The group originally began as the Midwest Concrete Consortium and has expanded to include over 30 state DOT’s, along with toll highway authorities. The NCC meeting participants focused on several timely themes for the concrete industry:
- PEM progress
- Acceptance when balancing quality/cost/time
- Quality assurance – quality control and quality acceptance
- New and ongoing research
- Accelerated construction – use of precast concrete for pavements and bridges
- Use of technology and e-documentation
Specific reports and presentations addressed performance engineered mixtures (PEM), including a PEM Tech Advisory Committee meeting, where participants discussed recent shadow testing data collection efforts on trials of the PEM suite of tests. The tests are showing promise, and the trials are helping identify improvements. Other focuses of the NC2 discussion included quality assurance programs; quality assurance testing; contractor quality control; new and evolving technology—the use of e-ticketing/documentation; and accelerated construction (using precast concrete for pavements and bridges).
NC2 presentations and discussion focus (can be downloaded: http://www.cptechcenter.org/ncc/TTCC-NCC-2018/):
TTCC TPF5(313) Pooled Fund States Meeting:
- CP Tech Center Update
General Session:
- Updates
- National CP Tech Center Update
- FHWA Updates
- State Reports – QC/QA State Practices, Tolerances Quality Plans, Plant Certification, E-construction and PEM Status
State Surveys – All
- Performance Engineered Mixtures
- PEM Update
- Minnesota Experience with FHWA PEM Implementation
- Iowa Experience with FHWA PEM Implementation
- Variability of PEM Tests – FHWA Experience
- Industry SAM Testing
- Acceptance when Balancing Quality/Cost/Time
- Constructing a Quality Product – Balancing Risk and Reward in Changing Times
- Development and Use of Effective Quality Plans
- Quality Assurance – Quality Control and Quality Acceptance
- Industry Perspective on Quality Control
- Seasoned Experience with QC/QA
- Recent Implementation of QC/QA
- Research
- Salt and Deicers Scaling – Mechanisms and Prevention
- FHWA Concrete Pavement Preservation Strategies Update
- SPS-2 Performance Update
- Determining the Optimized Traffic Opening Time Through an In-situ NDT Method for Concrete Early-Age Properties Monitoring
- Accelerated Construction – Use of Precast Concrete for Pavements and Bridges
- UHPC/Precast DOT Experience
- Accelerated Construction-Using Precast Concrete Deck Panels on the New NY Bridge Approach Spans
- Preview of Fort Miller Plant Field Trip
- Use of Technology and E-Documentation
- Electronic Tickets in E-Construction
- Ctag and App for Tracking PP84 Field Implementation
- LADOTD Evaluation of HeadLight: An E-Construction Inspection Technology
Participants also benefitted from a field trip on Thursday, September 20, hosted by The Fort Miller Group at its precast plant in nearby Greenwich, New York.
For all Papers from the Fall 2018 Meeting, as well as the Spring 2018 Meeting, please go to: http://www.cptechcenter.org/ncc/TTCC-NCC-2018/.
Some copy for this ISCP article derived
from the “ACPA Today” September 19, 2018.
The 2019 NC2 Spring Meeting will be held April 2-4, 2019 at the Sheraton Denver West Hotel in Lakewood, Colorado, USA
United States image from: “CP Tech Center Update Presentation” by Steve Tritsch, P.E.: page:
“CP Tech Center Travels/Presentations January-September 2018”: http://www.cptechcenter.org/ncc/TTCC-NCC-2018/Fall-2018-NCC/01%20Fall%20Tritsch%20CPTech%20Update.pdf