The Rainscreen Association in North America announced that Laverne Dalgleish, COO of RAiNA and executive director of the ABAA, will be presenting on water-resistive barriers, the last line of defense, at the RAiNA Conference in Chicago on Nov. 7.

The Rainscreen Association in North America announced that Graham Finch of RDH will be presenting on how and why rainscreen walls work or when they don’t at the RAiNA Conference in Chicago on Nov. 7.

Sika has broken ground on a 29,000-square-foot admixture production plant, which is expected to be in operation in late-2025.

On Oct. 7, IIBEC sent a letter to the mayor and city council of Wilmington, North Carolina, recommending that they consider establishing a building façade inspection program in light of two recent building failures.

The Rainscreen Association in North America announced that Brian Nelson of Knight Wall Systems will be presenting on rocket science and understanding the modern cladding support system at the RAiNA Conference in Chicago on Nov. 7.

Fire resistance codes play in important factor in the design of buildings.

The International Code Council suite of I-Codes are perhaps the most robust building codes in the world. Protecting life and property—the goal of the I-Codes—requires ongoing maintenance. 

I want to first thank all the great guests we have had on Walls & Ceilings’ videos with our Publisher Jill Bloom. 

Every three years, in alignment with the building code cycle, the Gypsum Association issues new editions of the Association’s three code-referenced publications: GA-600 Fire Resistance and Sound Control Design Manual, GA-216 Application and Finishing of Gypsum Panel Products, and GA-253 Application of Gypsum Sheathing.

Throughout my first year on the job at GA, I realized the importance of industry standards as a mean of ensuring people receive quality solutions as well as quality products.

Modular building concepts—also known as off-site construction—have been utilized for decades. However, the use of pre-fabrication and modular building techniques is increasingly common now. 

What impact does insulation have on acoustic performance of a wall assembly?

Glass mat gypsum sheathing is common for commercial uses but rarer in residential construction

The Texas Lathing & Plastering Contractors Association’s Annual Convention and Trade Show will be held on June 11-13. Its 72nd Annual Convention will be at the Hotel Galvez in Galveston, Texas.

The American Concrete Institute recognized several professionals, groups and companies for their outstanding contributions and dedication to ACI and the concrete industry.

The American Concrete Institute announced its 2024-2025 president, vice president and four board members. Michael J. Paul has been elected to serve as president of the institute for 2024-2025 and Scott M. Anderson has been elected as ACI Vice President for a two-year term.

The American Concrete Institute has released its 2024 collection of concrete codes, specifications and practices.

Registration is open for the fourth 24 Hours of Concrete Knowledge, a free, virtual conference organized by the American Concrete Institute that will begin at 2 p.m. EDT on July 9.

The New York artisan returns with a new feature regarding intricate/ornate finishes for interior plaster.

The American Concrete Institute announced the formation of a new committee whose mission is to develop and report information on concrete made with brackish, saline, brine water and sea aggregates.

The ACI Foundation’s Concrete Innovation Council gathered in Santa Fe, New Mexico, to discuss technology and innovation at the 2024 Technology Forum. The event took place May 14-16 at the Hilton Santa Fe Historic Plaza.

The American Concrete Institute is excited to host the ACI Concrete Convention on Nov. 3-6 in Philadelphia. Known as the world’s gathering place for advancing concrete, the convention will take place at the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown.

The CIT fund has an interesting initiative for a building envelope program.

How prevalent are decorative plasters in the United States?

The American Concrete Institute, in collaboration with NEx: An ACI Center of Excellence for Nonmetallic Building Materials, has released two new resources for fiber-reinforced polymer reinforcement.

Big changes are coming to adhered masonry veneer codes with the 2022 updates to TMS 402 and 602, soon to be adopted in the 2024 building codes. The revisions introduce two design approaches — prescriptive and engineered — giving more flexibility to architects and engineers.

The ICAA Convention & Trade Show is your one-stop-shop to learn, network and discover the latest insulation industry products and services from the best in the business.

Imagine training employees with a virtual reality, audio-visual headset that puts them on the job, inside a realistic house, with saws buzzing, hammers tapping and birds chirping. That is the concept behind an industry-leading virtual reality training program sponsored by Owens Corning.

Offsite construction methods like prefabrication, modularization, preassembly and offsite multi-trade fabrication have been around for decades.

Prefab construction is here, and it’s happening. The combination of a severe labor shortage and extreme shortfalls in housing supply is driving a renewed interest in prefabricated construction as a more cost-efficient alternative to traditional building.

Chaney Enterprises, a ready-mix concrete, aggregates, custom blends, and related construction supplies provider, announced its customer, Eastern Bay Management Corporation completed the first multi-story, multi-use commercial insulated concrete form (ICF) building on the Eastern Shore in Maryland.

Summer is a great time for construction work, but a brutal time for construction workers. Excessive heat and sun exposure pose significant dangers, such as sunburn, dehydration, heat cramps, heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Every year, construction workers become ill on the job and some even lose their lives due to heat exposure.

Without question, the building and construction industry has been impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak. Approximately 1.1 million construction jobs were eliminated in the first two months of the pandemic prior to the industry’s designation as “essential.” While the industry has recouped nearly 80 percent of its workforce since then, companies will need to hire another 1 million workers over the next two years to meet the country’s insatiable demand for new home construction and improvement.

Walls & Ceilings’ annual roster of the country’s top insulation contractors.

The BlackStar Companies, LLC announced the launch of a new business division called BlackStar SIPs. BlackStar SIPs is the company’s latest entry into sustainable, cost-efficient and high-performance construction solutions for residential, commercial and government clients.

News flash for those of us in the Northern climates—winter is coming. The cold weather will bring a host of problems: equipment will be strained, men become cold and frustrated, daylight hours will dramatically shorten; but construction schedules will keep on moving along. One trade dramatically affected by cold weather is fireproofing.

For years, metal cornerbead was the industry standard and it still remains a reliable choice today. 

Fernando Sanchez expands his long career with L&W to become manager of the Colorado Springs, Colo., branch.

Curious as to the differences between drywall installation/taping in the U.S. vs. Mexico? Read on.

One product that can help save time and money and reduce waste

Plastic Components announced the death of its longtime president, Tom Stark, on March 6.

Plastic Components now offers individual brochures for its PVC Trims and Accessories product lines, which include stucco/plaster, stone veneer, drywall, Direct Applied Systems, Exterior Insulated Finish Systems and fiber cement board trims.

Ideal for EIFS and direct-applied, 2209MESH Corner Bead combines Plastic Components’ reliable PVC corner bead with fire- and alkaline-resistant, 4.5-ounce fiberglass mesh for a time-saving alternative to wrapping corners by hand with multiple pieces of mesh.

Save time with Plastic Components’ non-rusting continuous insulation trims. They improve job quality and deliver a better finish.

Created in the 1960s by the Lyndon B. Johnson administration as part of the “War on Poverty,” 40 years later, Job Corps continues to enjoy strong bi-partisan support in Congress. It continues its mission to help young men and women fulfill their life’s potential, and it may just be part of your solution to meeting the demand for skilled labor in today’s transitional labor market

Since the early 1980s the percentage of the construction industry that has been dominated by unionized companies has decreased, that is until the last few years. Something has changed. Unions offer training programs, a ready supply of skilled labor, and a level playing field of wages and established fringe benefits.

Have you ever been to an industry trade show? I usually attend several each year; the INTEX Expo, World of Concrete, and this year I had the opportunity to attend the Remodeling Show sponsored by the National Association of Home Builders at the Convention Center in Baltimore. You can always tell when a trade show is in town. Local restaurants and hotels are filled with small groups wearing matching shirts.

Plastering being one of the oldest of occupations, or as I am fond of calling it, the second “oldest profession” is represented in the United States and Canada by the Operative Plasterers’ and Cement Masons’ International Association, which was chartered in 1864 and is the oldest of all the active building trades unions in North America.

Are contractors who pay their employees cash or who misclassify their workers as “subcontractors” for the purpose of avoiding taxes, worker compensation insurance cutting into your business?