Miscellaneous

ICFMA Members Support NRMCA Build With Strength Future Schools Summit by D.C. Mangimelli, Business Development Advisor – Fox Blocks The ICFMA and several member companies participated in the recent Future Schools Summit, a resilient and high-performance schools symposium held at the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky. This successful three-day event was held November 1st-3rd, 2022, and was organized by the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association (NRMCA), Build with Strength (BWS) coalition. The audience included; architects, design professionals, civil and structural engineers, school board members, general contractors, building envelope professionals, mechanical engineers, and several state NRMCA representatives. All desired to learn more and share experiences about the holistic approach of Net Zero Energy (NZE) or near NZE school buildings. These buildings are constructed utilizing updated modern building components like ICF as the basis of design for the building envelope. When discussing the many features and benefits that ICFs provide for school buildings, the speakers shared common experiences. Including First cost savings; cost performance when evaluated against Steel Frame or CMU; reduced construction timelines, long-term maintenance cost savings, extreme energy efficiency lowering utility costs; high sound attenuation (quieter) creating a less distracting learning environment; and increased life, safety and security [...]

It’s not the beautiful open-spaced chef’s kitchen equipped with the latest high-end appliances nor the opulent, lavish on-suite bathroom with luxurious finishes and fixtures.  The key feature of building a home with the highest potential to increase its long-term property value is none other than insulated concrete form construction.  According to Keven Rector at NUDURA, a leader in building with insulated concrete forms (ICFs), the real estate industry is all a buzz about the rise in popularity of ICF built homes due to the long-term value this building method can bring to a home. As a result, these homes are becoming more lucrative options for buyers, investors, and the real estate industry. What are ICF homes? There are homes built with an ultra-durable insulated building envelope made up of ICF walls, which consist of two panels of Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) foam connected with NUDURA’s patented web system that is made of 100 percent recycled material.  ICFs are then stacked, steel-reinforced, and filled with concrete to complete the home’s building envelope in one efficient building step. Continue reading.

At NUDURA, we will still receive questions or comments about how ICFs, as shape-molded forms, can satisfy architects’ custom designs. We know that every building comes with many sets of circumstances and different conditions that may require a specialty block or two. We’ve developed our forms with that knowledge top-of-mind. Here’s a quick breakdown of a few of our different specialty forms and accessories, and when you might use them: CORNER FORMS: Ninety-degree and/or 45-degree corner forms are necessary for almost any design. TAPER-TOP FORMS: If your project requires additional bearing to support a floor system, these forms will allow concrete to flow to the interior and exterior edges. BRICK LEDGE FORMS: Support the heavy loads of brick and nearly any other type of cladding material with these forms. Continue reading here.

Is your construction company facing a lack of skilled labor? If so, you’re like many other contractors across both Canada and the US. The most recent Contractor Survey reported that 62% of contractors experienced a shortage in the past three years. NAHB similarly reported that builders reported the labour shortage as their “Top Challenge” this year. Indeed, it’s having a negative impact on builders with the above surveys showing poor growth, increased project costs and delays. But the good news is that there is a solution. Insulated concrete forms (ICFs) require less labor (and smaller crews) and a lower percentage of skilled labour as well. This blog post will go into more depth about how ICFs can offset your lack of skilled labor. How ICFs Can Solve Your Skilled Labor Shortage ICFs can offset the challenges associated with a lack of skilled labour in two ways: ICFs Don’t Require As Much Labor First and foremost, ICFs don’t require nearly as much labor as wood-framed builds, both in terms of hours spent and crew size. Harvey Schellenberg of Schell Construction built two identical buildings beside each other, one constructed with ICFs and the other with wood, a project you can read [...]