Conveyor - March I

PACA wishes to thank our 2024 Corporate Sponsors for their generous support and commitment this year!

PACA News

Monthly Sponsor Spotlight

Burch Materials & Supplies

300 Lapp Road
Malvern, PA 19355

(610) 640-4877

https://burchmaterials.com/

Advocacy News

PACA Meets with Rep. Cutler

A PACA delegation had a productive conversation with Rep. Bryan Cutler (100^th District, part of Lancaster County) on the forthcoming primary, Lancaster County issues and our Association's legislative priorities. In attendance were:

Travis Rohrer & Tom Kifolo, Rohrer's Incorporated
Rod Martin, Martin Stone Quarries, Inc. (PACA Government Affairs & PACA-PAC Chair)
Christina Edgerton, Pennsy Supply, Inc., a CRH company
Joe Buckley, Allan Myers
Greg Donecker, Kemper Equipment (PACA Associate Board Chair)
Hank Butler (PACA Lobbyist)
Peter Vlahos (PACA President / CEO)

Rep. Cutler is the House Minority Leader and served as the House Speaker in the last legislative session. Our takeaways from our conversation were:

Vote in the April 23rd Primary Election. He argued that even though the presidential candidates have already clinched nominations, 14 House Republican incumbents, including Rep. Cutler, are facing challengers that will reshape the House Republican caucus in the next legislative session.
Educate Yourself on Who is Saying What. Educate yourself about the messaging, both in print and on social media. The source of the information is often opaque, and the "facts" are not always accurate. An educated voter is the only solution in the age of misinformation and manipulation of the facts!
A Divided House is a Dysfunctional House. The one-vote majority is detrimental to effective policymaking for the Commonwealth and perpetuates bullhorn politics over common sense governing.
Support Those who Support Us! There are many ways to engage with your legislators during this campaign season beyond your pocketbook.

The PACA-PAC made a $10,000 contribution to Rep. Cutler and we will share with the membership the 14 races mentioned earlier. We respectfully ask that member companies in those districts educate and inform their employees on the importance of voting for individuals that support our industry. We face generational challenges from an Administration that is ticking off all the national issue boxes for a White House run!

Please don't hesitate to contact Peter Vlahos or Hank Butler if we can be of service in engaging with your legislators in the district.

Thank You to Our Members - The PACA-PAC is Growing!

The PACA-PAC has grown to $200,000 because of our members. We support those who support our industry. Pennsylvania's economic revival needs our construction materials.

Check our HONOR ROLL of PACA-PAC donors for this campaign.

To donate to the PACA-PAC, see the QR code at the bottom of this newsletter.

Regulatory News

PACA Spring Environmental Community Meeting

For PACA members only, the Spring Environmental Community Meeting will be held May 22nd at Toftrees Resort in State College.

REGISTER HERE to attend.

Should you have any questions, please contact Josie Gaskey or Kallie Kline.

RISE PA

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) received $3 million from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop a Priority Climate Action Plan focused on reducing emissions in the Commonwealth’s industrial sector. Upon completing the plan, DEP will be eligible to apply for up to $500 million to implement their plan. DEP’s plan will focus on a statewide industrial decarbonization grant program, known as Reducing Industrial Sector Emissions in Pennsylvania (RISE PA), that will provide funding for industries to reduce carbon emissions.

We recently provided input to PA DEP regarding opportunities to decarbonizing industrial emissions in Pennsylvania as part of Pennsylvania's path to 2050.

According to the most recent data available, Pennsylvania was responsible for approximately 238 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MMTCO2e) being emitted into the atmosphere with electricity generation, industrial and transportation taking the top three spots in greenhouse gas emissions generated.

PA DEP Air Quality expects to hear whether they will be awarded grant dollars later this year.

NIOSH and Respirators

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has selected nine winners for the second phase of the Respirator Fit Evaluation Challenge.

The Challenge is a three-phase, $350,000 competition aimed at improving respirator fit evaluation. It seeks practical solutions that deliver real-time information on filtering facepiece respirator fit.

Tight fitting respirators provide the expected level of protection only if they are used correctly. To achieve intended levels of protection, they must properly fit the user.

The nine winners and a short description of their efforts can be found here.

PA DEP PAG-02 New Draft

Last Saturday's PA Bulletin included the draft National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) General Permit for Discharges of Stormwater Associated with Construction Activities (PAG-02).

There are significant changes in this draft PAG-02 General Permit in comparison to the existing PAG-02 General Permit that will expire on December 7, 2024 including proposing to incorporate the EPA's technology-based standards at 40 CFR Part 450 (relating to construction and development point source category) into the effluent limitation requirements, along with two new requirements for construction dewatering water. Discharges would need to be treated by an approved series of at least two BMPs.

Should this be of concern to your operations, please contact Josie Gaskey before April 10, 2024.

Specifications and Sustainability News

PACA Staff Makes Presentation on ASR to Modjeski and Masters, Inc.

On March 13, 2024, Susan Armstrong, accompanied by Steve Somerville of Heidelberg Materials, had the opportunity to discuss Aggregate Reactions with over 70 engineers, both in person and virtual, at the office of Modjeski and Masters Inc. Understanding Alkali Silica Reactions is imperative for the design community as they continue to design and upgrade the infrastructure of the Commonwealth. Modjeski and Masters Inc. have been designing bridges since 1893 and continues to expand their services nationally.

PACA Events Calendar

Next Members Forum Meeting

April 11th at 11:00 AM

Sponsor: Cleveland Brothers Equipment Co., Inc.

Featured Speaker: Joe Robinson, Chief Materials Engineer, PennDOT

REGISTER HERE

PACA Townhall Meeting and Golf Outing - Registration NOW OPEN

Work is underway to provide important and timely information to our members at PACA's upcoming Townhall meeting in State College (which will include a golf outing on the final day.)

This year's program will include presentations on effective community relations, case law and legislation driving zoning and land development practices at the local level, how to engage local decisionmakers to protect your interests and the political outlook for the November 2024 statehouse races.

Location:

Toftrees Golf Resort

1 Country Club Ln, State College, PA 16803

Below is the information on the schedule, the room block and how to register.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

Wednesday, April 24

4:30 PM - Registration opens for those who pre-registered to attend reception / dinner

5:00 - 9:00 PM - Reception and Dinner with Pennsylvania Policymakers (separate registration fee applies - do not need to register for the Townhall to participate)

Thursday, April 25

7:00 - 8:30 AM - Breakfast / Registration for those registered to arrive on this day (not attending previous evening's reception/dinner)

8:30 - 11:45 AM - Townhall Meeting General Sessions

11:45 AM - Boxed lunches available for all

Option 1 - Stay, enjoy your lunch and network, OR
Option 2 - Grab your box to go and return to the office, OR
Option 3 - Grab your box, warm up for golf outing

12:30 PM - Optional golfing outing begins (separate registration fee applies & do not need to be registered for the townhall meeting to participate)

We are attempting to include a PA policymaker in every foursome, so threesome registrations only will be accepted at this time.

TO BOOK YOUR ROOM:

To make your room reservations, please use the following email contacts to reserve your room Laura Phillippi - [email protected] or [email protected] and ask for a room in the PA Aggregates & Concrete Association’s block.

TO REGISTER FOR DINNER, TOWNHALL MEETING AND/OR GOLF:

https://web.pacaweb.org/events/PACA-Townhall-Meeting-Golf-Outing-2024-28120/details

If you have any questions, please contact Kallie Kline.

Spread the News!

Article submitted by Susan Armstrong, Director of Specifications & Sustainability

PACA and NRMCA have joined forces to host a Day of Learning – Low Carbon Concrete.

Engineers and other members of the design community will be invited to learn more about low carbon concrete, what are EPDs, how to use the NRMCA Carbon Calculator, and hear about projects that have used low carbon concrete and lessons learned in the process.

The event will be held on May 15, 2024 at Toftrees in State College. A brochure and registration link will be provided soon. I encourage you to either forward the information yourself to your local specifying community members, or share that information with us, so we make sure invitations are extended.

Learning Management System: Second Course Release Coming Soon – Designing for Sustainability

A reminder that our Learning Management System has its first course available, with the second course in production, and scheduled for release in mid-April. Again, I encourage you to reach out to the design community with this information or share with us.

Coming Soon!

More information on the PACA Summer Summit!

Watch your inbox for more information.

Industry News

FHWA Buy America Guidance on Manufactured Products

Last week the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) announced proposed changes to its Buy America policies to revamp the general waiver for manufactured products used in federal-aid highway projects. This change does not have any effect on our industry’s exemption. NSSGA, NRMCA and PCA led the effort to get an exclusion for our products.

The new proposal affecting manufactured products was mentioned in President Biden’s State of the Union remarks. FHWA Administrator Shailen Bhatt stated the new change is intended to “do away with a policy that did not incentivize restricted American-based manufacturing,” providing “American businesses now have a long-term incentive to tap into the broader government market.”

Source: NSSGA Washington Alert (March 8, 2024)

Members in the News

Centre Concrete Continues to Educate Both Design Community and Contractors

A big thank you to Centre Concrete for including PACA in their inaugural Concrete Products Expo recently held March 12, at Nittany Valley Sports Complex in State College. Eighteen vendors including PACA Members Heidelberg Materials, Sika, Euclid Chemical and Interstar Inc. Over 80 contractors attended the event and had the opportunity to learn about new products and technologies. Congrats to Centre Concrete for supporting and educating the contractor community!

Centre Concrete also hosted the 4^th annual Day of Learning for Engineering and Architect professionals. Key note speakers included JP Thornton PE of Centre Concrete, Jim Casilio PE of PACA, Bruce Krasalsky of XHAB, and Craig Knarr and Noah Callantine of SIKA. Attendees learned about current trends in construction, referbishmen sealants and bonding, flooring solutions, 3D concrete printing, Type IL cement as a soltion for low carbon concrete, and water repellant fibers.

Command Alkon Invests $20M in Cloud Suite for Ready Mix, Aggregates & Asphalt Markets

Earlier this week, Command Alkon announced their commitment to invest $20M in their Cloud suite of solutions for the ready mix, aggregates and asphalt markets.

The company's aggregates and asphalt Cloud solutions will be available for implementation in early 2025. This development marks a significant milestone in modernizing the industry. These products will cover all essential functionality and seamlessly integrate with existing and future plant automation equipment, offering unparalleled efficiency and integration advantages for vertically integrated businesses.  

This investment demonstrates their dedication to transforming the way the aggregates and asphalt markets conduct business. By streamlining workflows and fostering seamless connectivity across technologies and applications, we aim to revolutionize the industry. Furthermore, this initiative allows them to replicate the value and benefits that the ready mix market has already realized through next-generation cloud capabilities. It also highlights their commitment to staying at the forefront of innovation, enabling their customers to thrive in the digital era.