Jim R. Wagner

Jim Wagner is one of the primary instructors for NRMCA’s Dispatching Training Forum and formerly taught the class when hosted by the Portland Cement Association. He additionally developed, and hosts, a series of online web-seminars for NRMCA, titled, “Dispatch  Management: Real Time Supply Chain Management Solutions in Tight Times.”  The series consists of three, one-hour sessions whose target audience is senior level dispatch managers, operations managers, area managers, and sales managers.

In 2001, Jim wrote the textbook on concrete dispatching, The Handbook of Ready-Mix Concrete Dispatch. The book is now in its second edition.

Since 1968, Jim has lectured for NRMCA, various state concrete associations, CONEXPO-CON/AGG and the World of Concrete.

Most importantly, Jim was the NRMCA 2007 Joseph E. Carpenter Award recipient, recognizing his outstanding lifetime contribution to the ready mixed concrete industry in the fields of operations, environmental and safety.

Jim began his concrete career as a dispatcher for Ready Mixed Concrete Co. of Minneapolis in 1964.  He assisted in the development and co-patenting of The Operations Monitor, a mechanical truck-tracking device, and established processes and procedures for concrete scheduling.  The dispatching system improved utilization from 65 trucks and 180,000 cy in 1964 to 32 trucks and 256,000cy in 1970, a 288% improvement.

After dispatching, Jim became certified as a concrete technician and worked in QC and sales.  He developed the Concrete bid price calculator. In 1973 he founded Advanced Control Systems (ACS) to market dispatching systems.  In 1975, ACS introduced the first commercial computerized dispatching system.  In 1985 Jim merged his company with Command Data Inc. to integrate more closely with accounting.  Jim has installed hundreds of dispatching systems worldwide.  His services are unique in that they cover dispatching and marketing specifically for the Ready Mixed Concrete industry. Today, Jim serves as Vice President of Dispatch & Management Consulting for Command Alkon, Inc.