Building Excellence Awards – Record Number of Entries

ARM Convention – Save the Date

Nominations Sought for ARM Lifetime Achievement and Member of the Year Awards

ARM Board to Meet October 25

Slow Down in Cement Consumption, Economic Growth is Forecast

Action Alert: Contacts On S-MINER Act Urged

Concrete Pavement Rehabilitation (CPR) for Local City Streets and County Roads

ARM Executive Director Seeks Support for Changes to Aggregate Tax

Storm Resistant Homes & Buildings Seminar Planned

ARM Involvement in AIA Minnesota Convention

There were a record number of entries for this year’s Building Excellence Awards. 81 projects were submitted by 14 companies in 17 categories.

The Building Excellence Awards Banquet will be held December 12th at The Depot in downtown Minneapolis. Watch for details!

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“It’s Getting Easier to be Green...” is the theme of the 39th Annual ARM Convention. Mark your calendars now and plan to attend this event December 12-13th. The convention’s theme will revolve around sustainability issues with sessions beginning Wednesday morning, December 12th and concluding after lunch on Thursday, December 13th.

Click Here for Convention Schedule and Registration Information

Click Here to Become a Convention Sponsor

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ARM asks its members to nominate deserving candidates for the 2007 ARM Lifetime Achievement Award and the 2007 ARM Member of the Year Award. Nominations need to be received by the ARM office no later than November 1, 2007.

Click Here to Nominate LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

Click Here to Nominate ARM MEMBER OF THE YEAR

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The ARM Board of Directors will meet Thursday, October 25th at the Eagan Community Center in Eagan. The meeting begins at 11:00 am. Please contact Jill Cohen if you plan to attend.

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Rapidly deteriorating economic conditions, caused primarily by the sub-prime crisis, have prompted the Portland Cement Association (PCA) to adjust its forecast for 2007 and 2008 cement consumption.

At his presentation at the recent PCA meetings in Chicago, chief economist Ed Sullivan announced that PCA now expects 2007 cement consumption to decline 6.8 percent, followed by a 1.8 percent decline in 2008.  The new forecast assumed today's 50-basis point cut in the federal funds rate as well as anticipated further cuts later this year and in early 2008.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE

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NSSGA asks its members living in congressional districts of members of the House Education and Labor Committee to contact their member of Congress and urge them to oppose this legislation and, at the very least, urge delay until the MINER Act is fully implemented.  Please visit NSSGA’s Legislative Action Center for more information. 
Source: NSSGA.

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This workshop will cover all aspects of rehabilitation for concrete pavement, concrete curb and gutter, and median sidewalk pavement. The workshop includes two field sessions-one to determine what to repair, and the other to review actual concrete rehabilitation repairs made using a new Minnesota LRRB manual (Best Practices for Concrete Repair of Local Streets and County Roads). The LRRB has designed new repair standards for the course based on recent successful repairs performed by various Minnesota cities and the Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT).

It will be held October 31 – November 1, 2007. CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAILS

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ARM Executive Director Fred Corrigan made a presentation to the General Government Committee of the Association of Minnesota Counties on September 14 in St. Cloud and outlined ARM proposals regarding aggregate property tax legislation to encourage preservation of aggregate resources and also an ARM proposal to change the aggregate production tax statute to increase the current tax from 7-cents per ton to 15-cents per ton as recommended by the Aggregate Legislative Task Force in 2000. The changes in the aggregate tax would also change the distribution formula for revenues from the tax resulting in increased revenues for host communities. The ARM Aggregate Committee will continue to work with local government organizations and legislative authors in preparation for the 2008 legislative session.

Contact Fred Corrigan with any questions.

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ARM will be working with the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association to bring a seminar titled “Storm Resistant Homes & Buildings” to Minnesota April 9, 2008. Concrete has long been recognized as the material of choice for resisting high winds, flying debris, and storm surge associated with hurricanes and tornadoes. Now attendees of this seminar can learn how concrete building systems can be used to build storm resistant homes and buildings right here in Minnesota. Contact Margaret Mills with questions.

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ARM, as part of the Minnesota Fire Safe Construction Advisory Council, will be involved with sponsoring a presentation by Dr. Walt Schneider, PE at the AIA Minnesota Convention in November. Schneider, who visited Minnesota in March, will present information related to the Minneapolis Fire Safe Construction Cost Comparison Study that was done recently. Schneider’s presentation will be held November 15th from 10:15 – 11:45 am.

Dr. Schneider is the author of the “Fire Safe Construction Cost Comparison Study” and led the team who compiled the results. He is Principal at John C. Haas Associates, an architectural and engineering firm located in State College, PA, as well as a life long firefighter, FEMA trained rescue team member and Penn State University faculty member.

ARM’s ICF Committee Co-Chairs, Jason Fritz (Cemstone Products Company) and Jeff Rutz (AJ Wismin Homes) will also be presenting a two-hour long program on Insulating Concrete Forms on November 14th from 8:00 – 10:00 am.

Click Here for More on the AIA Minnesota Convention

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