PCI Gulf South Newsletter | Issue #39 |
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The Dicies Arena parking garage is part of a long-term master plan for a Memorial Center that was constructed in 1936 and hosts 2 million visitors annually to its Cultural District.
Given the parking structure’s large size and its prominence to pedestrians and vehicles from all four sides, the Design Architect wanted to create a facade that masked the garage’s inherent horizontally. The ability to efficiently and effectively incorporate the level of detail into the facade elements, which included 3D relief-based Art Deco patterns, was part of the Design Team’s reason for choosing precast concrete for this project.
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Participation is the lifeblood of any endeavor. It’s the “teamwork” that makes the “dream work”. Taking ownership through participation at your company or in the industry as a whole translates into benefits for everyone. It’s through participation that we come to know problem solvers, innovators, and leaders.
One of the often unintended benefits of participation is being on the receiving end of thoughts and experiences from others who share similar challenges. As leaders at our companies and in the industry, it is our duty to participate and encourage the participation of others, whether that is our peers or our company employees. Creating events and opportunities within our companies for participation allows us to know our employees and vice versa, just as participating in national events allows us to better understand and guide the progress of our industry.
Participation is the glue that holds it all together. Without it, common goals and momentum begin to erode. In a world where we are pulled in many directions and time is always at a premium, participation is one thing that cannot be put aside. I encourage you to find ways that participation can fit into your schedule and share your talents and skills. The sidelines are full of spectators, what is needed is more players.
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Click on a headline to read more about precast and concrete in the news |
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NPCA and its members are hosting Precast Days 2023 which is scheduled in 22 cities across the US during October.
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A Finnish start-up is joining the tiny band of companies with technologies using concrete as a sink for industrial emissions of carbon dioxide.
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A group of women in Lamar, MO are helping change what is considered a predominately male-driven career field.
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Welcome The Pickering Firm to PCI Gulf South |
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Pickering Firm Inc. is a full-service engineering and architectural firm founded in 1946. Headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, with additional offices throughout Mississippi and Arkansas, Pickering designs precast/prestressed bridges for multiple state DOT's and provides precast/prestress beam and pile shop drawing and detailing services.
Visit our website to learn about all of our Professional members.
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PCI Gulf South Summer Convention |
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PCI Gulf South held its Annual Summer Meeting at the beautiful and historic Grand Hotel in Point Clear, Alabama, from July 27th through July 29th. We were honored to have past Secretary of Transportation and current candidate for Governor of Louisiana, Dr. Shawn Wilson. Dr. Wilson is no stranger to the issues facing precast producers. He understands that you have to look at the whole picture of education, workforce development, and economic factors to create a strong state and that infrastructure plays a vital role in the economy of any state.
Following Dr. Wilson was Kelly Kemp, Assistant Bridge Design Administrator for Louisiana DOTD, and Micah Dew, Sr. Bridge Design Engineer for Mississippi. Rounding out Day one was Tim Colquett, ALDOT Bureau Chief State Bridge Engineer. Tim has 42 years and 11 months of service to the state DOT and is planning on retiring later this year. Congratulations Tim!
We also had a few new faces: Brad Lott of CSW Worldwide talked about manpower solutions, and Derek Read of the Pascagoula School District gave the group a lot of information about workforce development and the Vocational Technical school system. Derek has put together an absolute class-A program at Pascagoula, and we are hopeful local producers can take advantage of his efforts.
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Learn@Lunch - Go Virtual! |
PCI Gulf South offers a variety of ways to reach the existing design community.
The Learn@Lunch program was developed to allow professionals the opportunity to learn about precast products and systems.
Get the design credits you need all without having to leave your home or office!
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The Alabama ASCE/APWA Annual Summer Show was held at Perdido Beach Resort in Orange Beach, Alabama, from July 12th through July 14th. This year's event featured a corn hole competition as part of the reception. Our very own Johnnie Hayes and Kipp Moore of Contech Engineered Solutions came in second place. It was an extremely close game!
PCI Gulf South was also one of the presenters this year presenting the results of the Mini Prestressed Beam competition that was held at the University of South Alabama. Jennifer McIntire with Contech Engineered Solutions also helped with the presentation. Jennifer had a unique perspective in being a producer member and an advisor to the University of Alabama at Birmingham student competitors.
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PCI Committee Days
Oct 4 - 8 | Tampa, FL
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The conference will take place at the J.W. Marriott in Tampa, FL, and feature more than 60 committee and council meetings. Networking events and tabletop exhibits are also a part of the venue.
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MS AIA Conference
Sep 21 | Ocean Springs, MS
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The Design and Membership Awards Ceremony will be held in person this year at the 2023 AIAMS Convention on September 21, 2023.
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AIA AL Conference
Sep 28 - Oct 1 | Orange Beach, AL
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The annual AIA AL Conference will be held in the newly renovated Perdido Beach Resort and include networking events, professional development sessions, and an awards ceremony.
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As part of PCI Gulf South’s transportation outreach, our Transportation Committee met with the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development in Baton Rouge on July 11th. We would like to thank Dave Tomley with Gulf Coast Prestress for leading our group through many topics of interest and always providing guidance for the committee. It should also be mentioned that Zheng Zheng “Jenny” Fu will be retiring, and Mark Bucci will take the reins of the Bridge department. PCI Gulf South would like to thank Jenny for her years of cooperation with our group and welcome Mark to the new post of Bridge Design Engineer Administrator. |
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To help producer members attract local labor talent, PCI Gulf South has launched a Career Page on its website. Filled with job descriptions and company links, the page offers potential team members an idea about what it is like working for a precast, prestressed concrete producer. Please check out our page to see if a precast career is right for you. |
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If you are a recently graduated student and want to continue to receive emails from PCI Gulf South, please be sure to update your email address as
most school email addresses expire after 6 months!
To update, simply forward your new email address to
pcigulfsouth1@att.net and we will update it in our system.
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PCI
Committee Days
Tampa, FL
Oct 4-8
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MS AIA Conference on Architecture
Ocean Springs, MS
Sept 21
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AIA AL Conference on Architecture
Orange Beach, SL
Sep 28 - Oct 1
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PCI Gulf South
Winter Meeting
Biloxi, MS
Nov 7-8
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MDOT Annual
Transportation Meeting
Jackson, MS
Nov 15
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Check Out Our Most Recent Blog! |
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How to Engage Students More Effectively |
The second semester of a student's senior year is not the appropriate time to begin developing career-ready students. Students should be focused on their future throughout their college career, and precasters can help them with this preparation. By offering valuable resources and engaging content, precasters can help guide the next generation of precast workers to help improve an already weakened workforce. |
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