Staying young

Concrete Producer, The, March, 2005 by Rick Yelton

I'm undergoing a middle age crisis. It started while I was at lunch with several people on my editorial staff. I was asked what degree I was to Kevin Bacon. "What do you mean?" I asked.

Apparently, this has been a popular game for some time. Actor Kevin Bacon has been in so many movies and met so many people, it's only natural that everyone on the planet is within six or seven layers of contact with him. I'm told the game is so popular, it's even been the subject of a book, a board game, and a television commercial.

It turns out I'm fourth-degree, twice over. First, one of my editors had an extra part in a Chicago-filmed movie whose lead man had been in a movie with this Bacon fellow. My other fourth-degree contact is through my son, a singer. His voice teacher also taught a singer who sang the lead song for a movie in which Bacon starred.

You all can play, too. If you subscribe to the magazine, you are fifth-degree, since you know me. And for those of you who are readers only when your boss lets you have his copy, you are sixth-degree. Since our customers know you, they are seventh-degree. And since everybody in North American uses our concrete products, they are at least eighth-degree.

What if we could convince the world to play the degree game using Stephen Stepanian instead of Kevin Bacon? All of us producers would be second-degree. At some point, each of us uses Stepanian's invention, a ready-mix concrete truck, to deliver product or cast elements.

The Stepanian degree game is a great game to be played this month the start of the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association's 75th anniversary. Despite what many other concrete associations market to our industry's customers, ready-mixed concrete has had a tremendous impact on the development of North America.

Under NRMCA's leadership, producer-developed standards for quality, safety, and production have become norms in the construction industry. NRMCA's leadership has recently started to outreach toward state associations. Efforts by producers soon will create a more sustainable world.

And like Stepanian, producers continue to innovate. In this issue, you'll read about one of these innovators, Jack Delperdang, who developed a new ticket handling system. You'll also meet several producers who have brought innovation to their plants in the first of our periodic feature on the nation's fastest and best concrete plants. And you'll also be happy to learn that Stepanian's influence continues in product development when you read our story on pervious concrete design (a project funded by the producers of Tennessee).

It's too bad the organizing committee at CONEXPO-CON/AGG didn't capitalize on NRMCA's leadership role at this year's event. I can't help but notice how concrete producers are becoming a smaller part of each event. Surely, our showcase continues to grow and again will be very successful.

But it would have been nice to see concrete recognized as the event's foundation. For example, the CONEXPO staff is encouraging attendees to help contribute to its education fund. Contributors to the fund and show attendees who fill out surveys will receive a toy backhoe.

Too bad the prize wasn't a ready-mix truck.