NRMCA, Build With Strength Announce Winners of 2024 Concrete Innovations Award
Annual awards program celebrates excellence in concrete manufacturing, research, design and construction that reduces environmental impacts
Alexandria, VA – March 12, 2024
Build With Strength, an initiative of the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association (NRMCA), has announced the recipients of the 2024 Concrete Innovations Award. This program celebrates accomplishments in the design and construction of concrete structures where an NRMCA member company was involved in supplying products or services to the project. Winners represent building and infrastructure projects substantially designed and built using concrete and having improved all-around performance, including reduced carbon footprint.
There were 10 winners selected:
- 681 Florida Street Affordable Family Housing in San Francisco was recognized for its pioneering project under the Bay Area Low-Carbon Concrete Model Code, in collaboration with NRMCA Producer member Central Concrete Supply, a Vulcan Materials company. Effective teamwork led to the achievement of a 36% decrease in the embodied carbon of the concrete and resulted in an overall reduction of 23% in embodied carbon for the entire project.
- Cement-Free Concrete (C-Crete) in Hubbard’s Corner Project in Seattleis being recognized for its innovative use of 60 tons of C-Crete in the foundations and shear walls of a commercial building. This landmark pour, a collaboration between C-Crete and NRMCA member Heidelberg Materials, marked a significant advancement in cement-free concrete technology which uses zeolite, a naturally occurring crystalline material, as a replacement for portland cement.
- Gig Harbor Habitat for Humanity is being acknowledged for constructing sustainable homes that boast a lower environmental impact, courtesy of the BioLock Admixture by Solid Carbon. Heidelberg Materials supplied the concrete for this project located in Gig Harbor, WA, utilizing its Climate Earth technology to publish Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) to show some the lowest recorded carbon footprint for commercial concrete in North America.
- Indiana University Ferguson International Center in Bloomington, IN, is being awarded for its innovative design approach that sidestepped the use of traditional cement and aggregates, marking a notable achievement in sustainability through decreased embodied carbon. NRMCA Producer member Irving Materials Inc. worked closely with the project’s architects, engineers and general contractors in creating a performance-oriented mix that aligned with the project team’s low-carbon vision.
- MnDOT I-35 W Stormwater Storage Facility is being recognized for its underground water storage facility in Minneapolis with a storage capacity of 4.8 million gallons across six interconnected concrete tanks, designed to mitigate flooding. Cemstone Products Company, an NRMCA Producer member, played a critical role in the design, testing and supply of 32,000 cubic yards of concrete essential for ensuring the facility’s watertight integrity while lowering carbon footprint by as much as 21%.
- New Canaan Library is being recognized for its sustainability, employing materials that are locally sourced, recycled and known for their energy efficiency and low-carbon footprint. The project achieved an energy use intensity which is 89% below the U.S. baseline. Integral to this New Canaan, CT, project is the utilization of Pozzotive®, produced by Urban Mining Industries, a recycled, ground glass pozzolan produced locally, with the active participation of NRMCA member O&G Industries. Carbon footprint of the concrete was reduced by nearly 30%.
- Prologis Nexus is being recognized for its groundbreaking and eco-friendly industrial building, boasting a reduction in embodied carbon emissions by more than 40%. Central Concrete Supply developed the low-carbon concrete mixes and supplied concrete for this 260,000 square-foot facility in San Leandro, CA.
- SFO Harvey Milk Terminal 1 Boarding Area B stands as a hallmark reconstruction endeavor at the San Francisco National Airport, containing 25 gates serving both international and domestic flights. This project has notably earned the distinction of being the first terminal globally to receive a LEED BD+C New Construction Platinum v4.0/4.1 certification. Thanks to a collaborative effort headed by Central Concrete Supply, the initiative has successfully managed to reduce embodied carbon by nearly 30%.
- Seattle Storm Center for Basketball Performance, designed by architects Shive-Hattery and ZGF Architects, was acknowledged for its expansive 50,000-square-foot project, aimed at securing LEED® Gold Certification. NRMCA Producer member Stoneway Concrete contributed its eco-friendly low-carbon concrete, serving as the fundamental carbon reduction element of the building which achieved up to 68% reduction in carbon footprint for some elements of the project.
- The Hope Center + Berkeley Way Apartments is being honored for their innovative affordable housing model, which integrates four distinct types of affordable housing into two structures. Central Concrete Supply provided roughly 4,000 cubic yards of concrete for the California project. The concrete mixes utilized 55% less cement than the average for concrete of equivalent strength.
Build With Strength and NRMCA congratulate and thank all winners and nominees on their dedication to advancing sustainability and resilience in the world, their communities and the concrete industry.
“The concrete industry is dedicated to reducing its carbon footprint. Our goal is to provide strong, resilient structures while substantially reducing environmental impact through product and process innovations. These winning projects are outstanding examples of how NRMCA members are working with design and build teams to accomplish amazing results,” said Lionel Lemay, NRMCA executive vice president, structures and sustainability.
More details about the nominees and winners, including images, can be viewed at www.concreteinnovations.com/2024winners.