NRMCA, Industry Expert Helps Boost Pervious Concrete in Chicago Market

Earlier this month, Matt Offenberg, Southeast technical services manger for Grace Construction Products and chairman of the ACI 522 Committee on Pervious Concrete, addressed 45 regional engineers and water district managers at the Municipal Engineers Conference in Wheaton, IL, reports Jon Hansen, NRMCA Midwest national resource director. Offenberg's 20-minute presentation on the "How and Why" of pervious concrete for stormwater control turned into a 40-minute session because of the interest and questions generated by the topic, Hansen said.

"Matt delivered a concise overview of the benefits of pervious concrete, the design and site considerations, and addressed the anticipated questions of maintenance and monitoring. His expertise and experience in pervious concrete systems was the right message, at the right time for this group," he said. "The entire Chicago metro area is embracing green building practices, and rethinking stormwater runoff management, aquifer replenishment and site containment requirements are high on the list."

With the huge potential in the Chicago market, NRMCA staff was able to convince Offenberg and Grace to make this very important visit to Wheaton to help advance the industry. The groundwork for this meeting was laid by Theron Tobolski of NRMCA producer member Prairie Materials of Illinois. Tobolski has been working diligently in the Chicago market to promote pervious concrete as an alternative to conventional detention ponds and has also worked with the City of Chicago in adopting a standard specification for pervious concrete mixes, supplying samples in recent months as part of the national research to establish albedo numbers for pervious concrete. Working with Tobolski to pull the details together and involve other state and local partners was Bruce Grohne of the Illinois Ready Mixed Concrete Association.

For more information, contact NRMCA's Jon Hansen at jhansen@nrmca.org or visit www.nrmca.org