2024 Annual Meeting Recap

Read on for meeting highlights, calls to action from the event, committee updates and more.

Momentum Keeps Building After Successful Annual Meeting in Denver

The city of Denver was the perfect host CMHA’s 2024 Annual Meeting, which took place February 5-8 at the Sheraton Downtown Denver Hotel.

Our nearly 400 attendees participated in committee meetings, received updates from association leaders on strategic initiatives, heard from featured speaker Jeremey Bess of ITR Economics during the General Session, had the opportunity hear three innovative presentations during the Innovative Technology Forum, networked at several events including the Wednesday night social event, attended a fantastic plant tour and more!

Read on for more updates.

Annual Meeting by the Numbers

Nearly 400 attendees!

4 days of networking and catching up with colleagues—both new and old—for a total of 38 hours of committee meetings!

40 first-time attendees!

Member involvement continues to grow with over 250 participating on committees.

62 emerging professionals attended the EPG social to meet new attendees.

2 new ICPI Foundation grants approved totaling $33,212.

7 new NCMA Foundation grants approved totaling $417,280.

28 sponsoring companies. Thank you so much for your support!

51 Member exhibitors at the Precast Show.

Calls to Action

Join/Reapply to a Committee! Applications are due March 15! There are many committees who need your expertise. Our Workforce Development advisory committee is especially in need of volunteers.

Identify SRW and MSV projects for us to film from start to finish to provide how-to content for the new installer courses! Contact Lee Krinzman for more information.

Participate in the producer Hardscape Sales Survey. We need the data, you need the data! A pre-survey has gone out, need more info? Contact Kristen Garman.

Update your member profile on the new CMHA member portal. Login and update your information.

Interested in seeing European block and hardscape manufacturing plants? Producers Interested in a Pre-Bauma Tour in 2025 should complete the survey when they receive it. Contact Clare Ramminger for more information.

Make plans now to attend the EPG Workshop this Fall in Pewaukee, WI. Contact Melissa Betts for more information.

Highlights From Denver

Thank You to Our Sponsors

Event Highlights

Changing of the Guard

Matt Lynch of Oldcastle APG provided his outgoing chairman’s address at the General Session and introduced Sam Hoehner who was approved by the Board of Directors as the 2024 CMHA Chair of the Board.

Plant Tour

Basalite Concrete Products hosted a Precast Show tour of their state of the art concrete block and hardscape manufacturing facility in Fort Lupton, CO. Five buses carrying 217 attendees met on-site and afterwards on the exhibit floor of The Precast Show with those vendors supplying equipment and service solutions at the plant.

CMU Checkoff

Kim Spahn and checkoff board members participated actively at the event, providing updates, hosting a meet-and-greet, and supporting coordination of efforts to grow concrete masonry sales. 

Circus sign

Wednesday Night Social Event

Members gathered for a fun evening of catching up with old friends, networking and circus-themed events at Denver’s Mile High Station.

Concrete Women Connect

This group of vital women gathered in Denver to share knowledge and experiences, as they continue to shape the future of women in the industry.

News You Can Use: Committee Updates

Masonry Committee

CMU Technical Subcommittee:

  • Approved moving forward with verification and publication of CMU Industry-Average Environmental Product Declarations.
  • Approved publishing new presentation on CMU and Carbon on AEC Daily.
  • Approved to move forward with modifying ASTM C90 to define products as being made from dry-cast concrete.
  • Approved revisions to several Frequently Asked Questions.

CMU Marketing Subcommittee:

  • CMHA will be a gold sponsor for the ProConnect Multifamily event in Ft. Lauderdale, April 15-17.
  • A task group continues to work on the messaging for CMHA’s Carbon Resources presentation. The task group will be coordinating with the Checkoff program on messaging development and delivery.
  • A task group has been working with ACSA on the 2024-25 National Student Design Competition.
  • A task group was created to look at the way we market our technical resources to different audiences including college students and professors.
  • The committee discussed the Checkoff’s marketing efforts and ways CMHA could assist them with messaging.
  • The committee discussed new technological advances in robotics to help the workforce.
  • The committee discussed adhered veneer and what has been happening with codes. Concerns were shared about the training aspect to these changes.
  • The committee expressed their appreciation to Craig Finch for completing their term of leadership as chair and recognized John Cicciarelli and Starling Johnson as incoming chair and vice chair. 

MSV Technical Subcommittee:

  • Approved updates to MSV Installation Guide.
  • Approved updates to Frequently Asked Questions and Product Certification Program.
  • Discussed design resources for engineers for adhered veneer design.
  • Will be moving forward with proposed changes to ASTM C1670 to align with new code requirements.

MSV Marketing Subcommittee:

  • The subcommittee acknowledged that the Social Media funding request is limited to one market segment of CMHA. Consideration should be given to similarly investing in other market segments.
  • The Content Creation Task Group will continue.
  • This year, MSV has been added as an award category for the HNA Awards. Committee members were encouraged to participate when the awards open.

Hardscape Committee

Hardscapes Construction Subcommittee:

  • Formed a task group to assess the development of the PICP Course Manual and Material. This initiative follows the conclusion of the Job Task Analysis (JTA) and aims to transform the CMHA PICP Course into another true certification program.
  • Is exploring strategies to incorporate mechanical installation as a way to access residential markets. The initial action involves a Task Group evaluating Tech Note PAV-TEC-011 Mechanical Installation of Interlocking Concrete Pavements, and incorporating residential elements into it.
  • Revised Tech Notes 5, 14, 17, 20, 23, and 25, and these updates are anticipated to be published in the near future.

Segmental Pavement Technical Subcommittee:

  • Approved Tech Note PAV-TEC-009 – Guide Specification for the Construction of Interlocking Concrete Pavement for publication with revisions presented to the committee.
  • Approved Tech Note PAV-TEC-010 – Application Guide for Interlocking Concrete Pavements for publication with revisions presented to the committee. Recommend changing the title to Application Guide for Segmental Concrete Pavements.
  • Approved Designing Concrete Paving Slab Rooftops for Wind Effects PAV-MAN-007 for publication as presented to the committee. Minor editorial changes required then it can be branded and published.
  • There was discussion about differentiating vehicular, road/street and residential driveway loading.
  • Discussed development of webinar comparing PICP, standard asphalt and standard concrete pavements.
  • The committee expressed their appreciation to Glenn Herold for completing their term of leadership as chair and recognized Lincoln and Paul Cureton as incoming chair and vice chair. 

SRW Technical Subcommittee:  

  • SRWall version 5 finished beta testing on February 23. The software will go through the necessary updates to address comments and the plan is to launch later this spring.
  • A revised SRW Best Practices Guide has been approved and will be released in March.
  • New FAQ on vegetation over SRWs and Software for SRW design were approved.
  • The NCMA Foundation approved a grant for the update of the Design Manual for Segmental Retaining Walls. This project requested by the SRW Technical Subcommittee is the first significant update since the last edition was published in 2009.

Hardscapes Marketing Subcommittee:

  • A task group will lead the efforts for the Hardscapes Sales survey. The board reiterated its interest in doing the hardscapes sales survey and CMHA is in the process of pre-surveying producer members (Primary contacts) for their commitment to participate when the survey launches.
  • The chair dissolved the task group that was looking into ICPI Foundation Grant Proposals.
  • The social media and crisis communication task group will continue.
  • The committee expressed their appreciation to Kathy Granger for completing their term of leadership as chair and recognized Chris Kirkpatrick and Trevor Fearn as incoming chair and vice chair. 

Other Committee Updates

Certification Committee:

  • MSV and SRW Certification programs will roll out July 1. Both programs are based on a newly outlined Job Task Analysis that was conducted in the summer and fall of 2023 and includes a separation of the training course and assessment exam. The programs require initial installation experience, examination, continued education, and renewal requirements.   

Education Committee:

  • Several new courses are in process of being created, including A Back to Basics course which will be a beginner course for anyone new or with 1-2 years of industry experience. A Plant Manager course for any plant managers in the industry is also being developed.
  • The education committee reviewed a new Education Roadmap that can be used to determine which course someone should take to advance their industry understanding. 
  • The Education committee formed a task group to review CMHA’s Authorized instructor process to merge ICPI’s and NCMA’s process to one new process.

Government Affairs Committee:

  • Agreed to pursue and new 3-year sponsorship/partnership with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities to promote the use of segmental pavement solutions.
  • Continuing to support HR1477/S722 Freedom to Invest in Tomorrow’s Workforce Act, which should enable installers of hardscape and masonry installers to apply 529 savings plans toward education in support of CMHA Certification programs and other similarly qualified industry programs.
  • Continuing efforts in Congress to ensure support for the Concrete Masonry Checkoff program, overseen by the Department of Commerce, and accelerate the use of checkoff escrow resources.
  • Progress continues to be made with seven prioritized state agencies and departments of transportation.

Canadian Government Affairs:

  • Requested to renew our corporate partnership with Canadian municipalities went though committees and is being considered for the FY25 budget.

HNA Advisory Committee:

HNA continues to grow at a record pace with 56,900 sq. ft. indoor space sold and 14,300 sq. ft. of outdoor space sold at the 2023 show. HNA exhibitors total 207 confirmed exhibitors with 63 new to the show! HNA and Equip combined attendance was up 8% over 2022. HNA has a new show management team this year: NTP Events. NTP Events will continue to grow the show!

Attendees can look forward to many NEW things in Louisville, including:

  • Expanded VIP Pass, which includes an additional 5 hours of education at the same great price!
  • Early-Access to West Wing Exhibits Wednesday from 9am-12pm for ALL attendees.
  • Show Keynote: Kevin O’Connor, host of This Ol’ House.
  • New Food Pavilion and Pre-Order Chef’s Table Lunch Options.
  • Return of the Cornhole tournament!  
  • Daily giveaways – will include HNA branded coolers.
  • Free coffee on the show floor returns.
  • 3 Free Concerts – Welcome Reception at Churchill Downs, Freedom Hall Happy Hour (The Crashers), and KFC Yum! Center (Trace Adkins). 
  • The Women’s Leadership Reception returns Thursday.
  • Registration and Hyatt Room Block open April 1.

Foundation Updates

ICPI Foundation Approves Two Projects

The ICPI Foundation approved funding for two projects.

  • The first project submitted by the CMHA Hardscape Construction Subcommittee for $20,300 will fund CMHA Lab research into the lateral load capacity of different types of edge restraints. The research will develop a standardized test to compare different edge restraint systems. It will also provide fundamental information about the load requirements for various applications.
  • The second grant will continue funding the Tools For Schools program. The grant will provide $12,912 to the College of DuPage to purchase tools for the hardscape component of their Landscape Construction program. Funds will be used to buy two Weber MT CF3 compactors, Pave-Tool Quick-E Hardscape Tools and Organizer and an iQ PowerTools 360XT 16″ table saw with dust control system.

NCMA Foundation Approves New Projects

The NCMA Foundation Board of Trustees awarded seven new grants, totaling $417,280:

  • Grantee: MIT Concrete Sustainability Hub
    Embodied and Carbon Uptake Impact of Concrete Masonry Products
  • Grantee: CMHA
    Evaluation of Thermal and Hygrothermal Properties of Concrete Masonry
  • Grantee: North Carolina State University
    Integrating CMU into Architecture Design Studio Curriculum (2024-2026)
  • Grantee: Coltivomae
    Updating the Design Manual for Segmental Retaining Walls
  • Grantee: Northwest Concrete Masonry Association
    Masonry Design Course at Boise State University
  • Grantee: University of Houston
    Creating a Road Map to Code Adoption of High Strength Steel in Concrete Masonry – Phase II
  • Grantee: Richard Bennett and Jason Thompson
    Development of a Draft Mandatory Language Prescriptive Design Standard for Residential Concrete Masonry Construction – Seismic

Save the Date!

2024 Midyear Meeting

The Midyear Meeting will take place Aug. 12-15 at the Westin Ottawa Hotel in Ottawa, ON. See you there!
Reminder: Check your passport now to make sure it is still valid.
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CMHA at Upcoming Industry Events

CMHA will be attending the following upcoming industry events. We hope to see you there.

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Northeast Hardscape Expo        March 20-21                                  Uncasville, CT