December 2023 Newsletter

President's Report

A Heartfelt Thank You from the President of ACI Houston

Dear Esteemed Board of Directors and Valued Members,

As this remarkable year draws to a close, I am moved to extend my deepest gratitude to each one of you for your unwavering support, dedication, and commitment to the success of ACI Houston. Your collective efforts have been the cornerstone of our achievements, making this year truly exceptional.

Reflecting on the past year, it fills me with immense pride to highlight the outstanding success of our special events. From the exhilarating clay shoot to the insightful symposium, the resounding success of our first annual industry night, and the heartwarming impact of our 2nd annual Toys for Tots toy drive, each event stands as a testament to our community’s spirit and generosity.

Our certifications program has experienced remarkable growth, a testament to the hard work and leadership of Mark Dornak and Joe Hill. Their dedication has been instrumental in steering this program toward unparalleled success. I also would like to thank all our Supplemental Examiners for all of their time and hard work this past year, without them this growth would not have been possible.

Looking ahead, I am filled with confidence as John Mills steps into the role of President for the upcoming year. John’s dedication, vision, and leadership qualities are commendable, and I have no doubt he will continue to elevate our chapter to new heights.

As we move forward, let us carry the momentum and enthusiasm into the coming year. Together, we will continue to foster growth, collaboration, and innovation within our community.

I also encourage anyone thinking about getting involved more with our chapter to please reach out to one of our local board members or myself to see how. Our quarterly membership meetings along with our board meetings are all open and everyone is welcome to join. You can also visit our website for more ways to get involved and keep up with our calendar of events for this coming year.

A special thanks to all our Corporate Sponsors who continue to support the ACI Houston Chapter. Once again, my heartfelt thanks to each one of you for your invaluable contributions. Wishing you all joy, peace, and success in the coming year.

Warm regards,

James Taylor

ACI Houston President

Awards

The ACI Houston Chapter is proud to announce the following recognitions from the ACI National.

ACI Fellow of the Institute

A Fellow shall have made outstanding contributions to the production or use of concrete materials, products, and structures in the areas of education, research, development, design, construction, or management.

David Buzzelli was recognized in the 2023 Class of Fellows. David is a current board member and past President of the ACI Houston Chapter.

ACI Young Member Award for Professional Achievement!

The ACI Young Member Award for Professional Achievement was established by ACI's Board of Direction in 1997 for the purpose of recognizing the contributions of younger members of the Institute for professional achievement.

Will Squyres was recognized in the 2023 Class of ACI Young Member Award for Professional Achievement. Will is a past President of the ACI Houston Chapter.

ACI Certification Award

The ACI Certification Award was established in 2004 to recognize individuals and organizations who have made notable contributions to the advancement of ACI Certification. Notable contributions may be but are not limited to: involvement in the general areas of developing, maintaining, delivering, promoting, specifying, or enforcing requirements for ACI Certification programs. Nominees need not be ACI members.

Mark Dornak was recognized in the 2023 class of ACI Certification Award recipients. Mark is a past President of the ACI Houston Chapter.

Certification Corner

Happy New Year’s to everyone!

As 2023 comes to an end and we look back on the certification group here in Houston, we have much to be proud of. With 39 examiners who assist and lead our certification sessions throughout the year – we hosted 51 certification sessions (including sessions in Guam and Saipan). Over those 51 sessions, 1,039 personnel were certified.

During 2023, we added two new certification programs to our resume - Masonry Field and Laboratory Testing Technician Certifications were added to our program, bringing our total certification inventory to 20!!

In February, we’ll be sending two examiners to the Chicago Resource Center for a train-the-trainer event for the Aggregate / Soil Base Testing technician certification that we currently offer. Through this, we will be able to gain some insight into how National runs this certification and continue to improve our certification programs!

We’ll also be sending three examiners to the Chicago Resource Center in March for another train-the-trainer session in the Cement Physical Tester. This session aims to certify our examiners and enable us to start offering the Cement Physical Tester certification in 2024.

We are currently coordinating with the American Shotcrete Association (ASA) to bring the Shotcrete Nozzleman Certification to the Houston area. Look for upcoming announcements in early 2024 for more details.

Finally, as many of you know, Terracon hosts the ACI Houston Chapter at their facilities on Clay Road. The Houston Office will be undergoing some major renovations and remodeling beginning in June 2024. While we don’t think the construction will have a major impact on our certification sessions, there may be some minor scheduling and logistical changes during the latter part of the year. We will do our best to keep everyone updated via email.

Speaking of emails! We attempt to send out reminders and updates for every session. In almost every session, a student will show up not understanding the schedule of events because they were not forwarded the registration email. It’s important that if you are registering someone besides yourself for a session, that you enter their email address for that particular ticket. Our system allows separate contact information for billing and attendance.

Thank you for an amazing 2023 and for sending employees who truly care about making the concrete industry better!! We look forward to serving you in 2024 and making it even better than 2023!!

Sincerely,
Certification Committee

Calendar of Events

2024 Calendar Announced

Details for all events can be found at ACI Houston Chapter

Awards Banquet at Karbach Brewery
February 1, 2024
6:00 to 9:00 PM

Membership Meeting - Details coming soon
February 15, 2024
11:30 AM to 1:00 PM

Membership Meeting - Details coming soon
April 11, 2024
11:30 AM to 1:00 PM

Clay Shoot at Westside Sporting Grounds
May 2, 2024
8:00 AM to 1:00 PM

Upcoming Certification Sessions

Dates listed are for the exam, if a review is offered, please see the information found via the links.

For information regarding College Station exams – contact Joe Hill (903.826.0089)
For information regarding Bellville and Houston exams – contact Mark Dornak (979.575.7604)

CP-1 Field Testing Technician - Grade 1