Cement shipment data recently released by the United States Geological Service for January 2018, shows tonnage to the state grew for the seventh consecutive month. The 84,753 tons shipped to the state represents over a 11% increase compared to January 2017 and the largest volume in five years for the…

Despite the unseasonably cold temperatures, 41 drivers from across the Southeast gathered at Thompson Tractor Company on Saturday, April 7th, to compete in the 2018 Truck Driver Championship. The event is held each year to thank these men and women for all the hard work they do for our industry….

Cement shipments to Alabama in December rose by 19% over the same period in 2016, according to recently released USGS cement data. For the month, 86,587 tons were shipped in the state versus 70,168 in December 2016. The increase marks the sixth consecutive month shipments have outpaced the previous year’s…

The Alabama Legislature has met for 23 of its possible 30 meeting days, and will likely adjourn after meeting only two days this week. This is very atypical of an organization that often goes to the last minute to pass the budgets. A long time employee of the legislature recently…

On Tuesday, March 20th, the Alabama Concrete Industries Association sponsored the monthly meeting of the Birmingham Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). Michael Cleary, CEO of ICF Panels based in New York, spoke to more than 70 architects at the Cahaba Brewery. Available under several different brand names,…

The 2018 legislative session is at minimum half way over. The legislature has now met 16 of the possible 30 days this session, however as mentioned in previous reports there are high hopes the session will end early for members to return home to campaign. Both the ETF and General…

Cement Shipments Increase Again in November 2017 Cement shipments to Alabama increased for the fifth consecutive month in November. While it is impossible to predict the exact cause, the pent up demand from a very wet summer and the warm dry winter appears to have increased cement and concrete usage…

The General Fund Budget passed the Senate on Tuesday afternoon following an extended debate 26-2. The $2 billion dollar budget is $158 million more than the 2018 budget thanks in part to growth and $92 million carried over from 2018. The biggest benefactor of the larger budget was the Department…

Johnny Canfield, longtime employee of the Alabama Concrete Association, received the Chairman’s Award for his outstanding career and leadership in the concrete industry. The award is given each year at the Annual Business Meeting which was held in Birmingham on January 18th. Johnny was born in 1940 in Memphis, TN,…

Despite the frigid temperatures, more than 75 professionals of the concrete industry attended the Alabama Concrete Industries Association’s Annual Business Meeting on Thursday, Jan. 18th at the Hyatt Regency-formerly Wynfrey Hotel in Birmingham. The meeting is held each year to recognize the association’s scholarship recipients, award the coveted Chairman’s Award…

The Alabama Legislature has now used 12 of the possible 30 meeting days for 2018. Except for a few minor issues, the session has remained relatively quiet with the goal of passing the budgets and leaving early still a good possibility. On Tuesday, the House passed the $6.63 billion Education…

The two hot button issues in the Alabama legislature last week were Uber and church daycares. For the past several years, the legislature has attempted to establish regulations for ride sharing providers such as Uber and Lyft. House Bill 190 by Representative David Faulkner would create a state wide system…

Monday’s vote to reopen the Federal Government made all Alabama legislators breathe a sigh of relief before reconvening Tuesday afternoon. The reopening included a provision to fund the CHIP Program, which provides insurance coverage to 84,000 children, for seven years. Otherwise, members of the Alabama legislature would have been forced…

The Alabama Legislature, like most of the state last week, was turned upside down by the winter weather. Both Chambers left early on Tuesday and all committee meetings were cancelled on Wednesday. The House and Senate did return on Thursday for committee meetings and shorter than typical meeting days. SB…

Cement shipments to Alabama increased for the fourth consecutive month in October. The four month increase comes on the heels of the state seeing three months of contraction.