{"id":2864,"date":"2024-12-28T04:22:27","date_gmt":"2024-12-28T04:22:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/prairieprod.vcnastaging.com\/?p=2864"},"modified":"2024-12-28T04:23:15","modified_gmt":"2024-12-28T04:23:15","slug":"mix-master","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/mix-master\/","title":{"rendered":"Mix Master"},"content":{"rendered":"

He arrived in Chicago during a construction lull, but that didn\u2019t dampen\u00a0Len Burkart\u2019s<\/b>\u00a0enthusiasm for the opportunities that lay ahead.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was 1985, and the boom of the early 80s had slowed down, especially in New Orleans where I\u2019d been working,\u201d Burkart remembers. \u201cBut I was excited to be here, making a fresh start.\u201d<\/p>\n

Before his move north, Burkart worked for concrete supplier\u00a0Jimco Inc.<\/b>, earning his first Level 1 certification from the\u00a0American Concrete Institute (ACI)<\/b>\u00a0in 1983. \u201cPrairie brought me in to teach and test the QC staff on their technical knowledge,\u201d he explains. \u201cWe wanted to be the best qualified team in the region, and that\u2019s still our goal today.\u201d<\/p>\n

On May 11,\u00a0ACI Illinois<\/b>\u00a0honored Burkart with the Henry Crown Award for 2014, reflecting his many contributions to our industry. Here, he comments on the evolution of concrete construction and the trends he feels will shape our future.<\/p>\n

Len, describe your current role and how you got here.<\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been fortunate to work with some very talented people over the years, starting with the QC team and then, about 6 years ago, moving to Technical Sales under\u00a0Chet McGrath<\/b>. Then in 2010, I was put in charge of the newly created Technical Support Department reporting to\u00a0Steve Fleming<\/b>.<\/p>\n

Today I manage a 4-member team. We work closely with engineers and contractors and serve as a resource for Prairie sales and delivery staff. Most of my time is spent at our Bridgeview offices, reviewing specs and working on technical questions of every kind. I also spend time in the field, tying together the theoretical mix designs with their real-life applications.<\/p>\n

What was the first landmark project you worked on?<\/h2>\n

I\u2019d say it was the tower at 311\u00a0South Wacker<\/b>\u00a0in Chicago, completed in 1990 with\u00a0J.A. Jones Construction<\/b>. At the time, it was the tallest reinforced concrete building in the world. It was a big breakthrough for Prairie because prior to this,\u00a0Material Service Corp.<\/b>\u00a0was the go-to company for major downtown jobs of this kind. It gave us the chance to prove we could provide high-strength, pumpable mixes for high-rise construction. Today, Prairie is an industry leader in high-rise mix design.<\/p>\n

What other projects stand out in your mind?<\/h2>\n

We had fun working on\u00a0Trump Tower Chicago<\/b>\u00a0with\u00a0McHugh Construction<\/b>. There were 20 performance mixes on that job, including SCC and ultra-high-strength formulas. The mat pour alone took 22 continuous hours and involved 5,000 yards of SCC. We were there around the clock \u2013 we\u2019d take naps in hotel rooms, go back to the site and just keep going.<\/p>\n

I also enjoyed working on slag mixes for durable pavements at\u00a0O\u2019Hare Airport<\/b>\u00a0and low-heat mixes for the\u00a0Corn Products International<\/b>\u00a0plant in Bedford Park, Illinois with\u00a0Lindblad Construction<\/b>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What trends do you feel will be critical in the years ahead?<\/h2>\n

Green building will be our greatest focus. Every decision-maker is thinking about ways to reduce the carbon footprint of new structures. Extending concrete life and incorporating recycled materials are increasingly important. The\u00a0Illinois Tollway<\/b>\u00a0is one of our most active partners — we\u2019ve worked with them to deliver bridge deck mixes that greatly reduce cracking and hot-patch mixes made with slag and other recycled materials.<\/p>\n

Concrete providers can be proactive in suggesting green alternatives. For example, when we see a job with massive footings where the contractor needs high-strength concrete, we ask them to think about using a low-heat mix. By offering good ideas, we can help engineers and contractors lead the way.<\/p>\n

How did it feel to receive the Henry Crown Award?<\/h2>\n

When I look at others who\u2019ve received this award, I\u2019m proud and humbled to be in their company. But the honor isn\u2019t just mine; it belongs to our whole team. Nothing moves forward without the contributions of each person. So I\u2019m thankful for the recognition, but even more thankful for the talented people I work with every day.\u200b<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

He arrived in Chicago during a construction lull, but that didn\u2019t dampen\u00a0Len Burkart\u2019s\u00a0enthusiasm for the opportunities that lay ahead. \u201cThat was 1985, and the boom of the early 80s had slowed down, especially in New Orleans where I\u2019d been working,\u201d Burkart remembers. \u201cBut I was excited to be here, making a fresh start.\u201d Before his […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2865,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2864","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2864","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2864"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2864\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2865"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2864"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2864"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2864"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}