Howdy from the “Big D”!
I’m right now in Dallas attending the American Concrete Institute’s annual national
convention and am immersed in everything concrete. It’s amazing – everywhere you go people are
talking our language – concrete. 1,600
professionals from all over the world are gathered here with the purpose of
sharing and/or improving their knowledge of this age old building
material. One of the things I hope to
accomplish while here is learning what it takes to host a national
convention. There’s a strong desire by
many in our Chapter to take on this daunting task. I’ll gather up as much information as I can
and report back to you in the near future.
Ten months ago your Board laid out objectives that we wanted to accomplish during
this term. One of them was to earn the
distinction of being selected as an “Excellent Chapter” as defined by ACI
National. This is the highest rating a
Chapter can attain and it’s only bestowed on those Chapters that have truly
distinguished themselves over the past year.
This year only 15 Chapters WORLDWIDE were selected and guess what – we
were one of them!! During the Opening
Ceremony, in front of all the movers and shakers in the International ACI
community, our Chapter was recognized as one of the few groups to attain the
“Excellent Chapter” designation.
Congratulations to all of you that worked so hard to make this vision a
reality.
Our Programs group has been working overtime the past couple of months to bring our
members several unique and informative seminars and field trips. Earlier this month our Chapter co-hosted a
seminar/field trip to the UCSD Shake Table along with the local Chapter of the
Structural Engineers Association of California (SEAOC). Over 60 professionals from the local concrete
and structural engineering community received a 45 minute lecture from three
renowned structural engineers and then went on a behind the scenes tour of the
largest outdoor shake table in the world.
Next up is another field trip to a local construction project that has
been making headlines in engineering circles.
On April 10th we will be conducting a tour of the San Vicente Dam Raise project. Due to Homeland Security
issues, space will be limited for this dynamic tour so get your reservations in
early.
Finally, we’ll finish off the year with a fun night of socializing mixed with a bit of
drinking and gambling. While it may not
be Las Vegas our Chapter will do it’s best to party the night away during this
year’s Poker Night. The event will be
held in early June. As soon as we get
the date finalized we’ll let you know so you can lock in the date and get ready
to come out for a fun time!
Respectfully,
Mike Archibald
2011-2012
President