Masonry Magazine May 2003 Page. 54
MCAA News
MCAA Signs Agreement to Co-locate Masonry Showcase with the CSI Construct America Show™™
The Mason Contractors Association of America (MCAA) signed a three-year agreement on April 10 with the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) to co-locate its trade show, the Masonry Showcase, at Construct America™ starting in 2005. Construct America, which debuted April 9-11, 2003, at McCormick Place in Chicago, was created by CSI to better serve all the nonresidential building design and construction disciplines through exhibit show partnerships with leading industry organizations.
With the Masonry Showcase's co-location in 2005, Construct America will grow to three co-located exhibit shows:
* The CSI Show, one of the nation's largest annual gatherings of representatives from all disciplines involved in creating and sustaining the built environment that typically draws approximately 9,000 attendees and features more than 1,000 exhibit booths representing 600 participating companies.
* MCAA's Masonry Showcase, the forum dedicated to the masonry industry's success, typically draws approximately 1,700 attendees and an average of 100 exhibiting companies covering about 24,000 square feet of exhibit space. In addition to its exhibits, the Masonry Showcase offers educational sessions for all levels of industry personnel, an intensive program for architects, unique industry networking events, and awards banquets.
* Group C Communications' The TFM Show™, the most comprehensive conference and exhibition designed exclusively for facility professionals' needs. The 2002 event had 200 exhibit booths attracting approximately 3,100 attendees. The TFM Show's co-location at Construct America starts this year.
Michael Adelizzi, Executive Director of MCAA, says, "The benefits to our members and exhibitors of co-locating the Masonry Showcase with other shows at Construct America are clear and compelling. Masonry contractors will come away from Chicago in 2005 better equipped than ever for success. We look forward to being a key part of this premier event."
"Construct America is quickly shaping up to be one of the largest construction shows in North America for people from all disciplines involved in creating and sustaining the non-residential built environment," says CSI Executive Director Karl Borgstrom. "This latest partnership with the Mason Contractors Association of America solidifies Construct America in the masonry contractor sector- as well as in non-residential construction overall - as the one place to discover and share leading-edge applications and technologies covering all phases of the facility life cycle."
Registration for any one show at Construct America includes admission to all other co-located shows' exhibits. By co-locating their shows, participating organizations provide their members, customers and other construction industry professionals access to more product information, continuing education offerings, and networking opportunities at one time under one roof.
Each organization participating in Construct America retains ownership and management of its show and promotes its own event.
Construct America will be at Chicago's McCormick Place exhibition complex each year for three years and then move to the Las Vegas Convention Center in 2006. Starting in 2007, the show will alternate between Chicago and Las Vegas.
Obituary
William "Bill" D. Toal, former chief economist for the Portland Cement Association(PCA), died on March 16. He was 60.
Toal joined PCA in 1987 as economist and was promoted to chief economist in 1989, continuing in that role until June 2002. Throughout his career, Toal served in various economic positions including senior business economist for the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, manager of forecasting and corporate economist for The Allen Bradley Company, state economist for the State of Minnesota, and manager of forecasting for Sears, Roebuck, and Co.
Toal attended the University of Notre Dame from 1961-1970 where he earned his B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. in economics.
Toal was a member of the National Association of Business Economists.
MCAA sends their deepest condolences to the Toal family.
Hanson Launches North America's Largest Brick Manufacturer
There's a new leader in North America's brick industry after seven major brick companies from across the continent officially became part of the new Hanson Brick. The Charlotte-based company, which sells more than 1.6 billion bricks per year, has 22 plants in Texas, Kentucky, Michigan, the Carolinas and Canada.
The integration of the seven companies was a huge undertaking that began in 1999, when Hanson Building Materials America, a subsidiary of London-based Hanson PLC, acquired seven major brick companies. Hanson Brick integrates Boren Brick (North Carolina), Richtex Brick (South Carolina), Sipple Brick (Kentucky), Michigan Brick (Michigan), U.S. Brick (Texas), Canada Brick (Ontario), and Briqueterie St. Laurent (Québec).
Hanson Brick brings together the skills and experience of more than 2,000 employees who serve customers in three languages English, Spanish and French. The new company offers five regional brick collections with more than 1,000 styles of brick.
Hanson Brick also launched its new website (www.hansonbrick.com), a key knowledge center for the brick industry.
Hanson Brick is part of Hanson PLC, an international building materials company with more than 28,000 employees and operations in 17 countries. Hanson PLC is the largest producer of aggregates and the third largest producer of brick in the world.