A real battle: as the school sector heats up, Southern California block producers try to convey their product's cost-effectiveness - Hot markets: Southern California - Brief Article

Concrete Producer, The, July, 2002 by Don Talend

Making progress

With help from the CMACN, these producers have promoted their product, with some success. Orco Block invites architects for daylong plant visits in which they hear about the benefits of lightweight block. Finch's company, RCP Block, devotes one sales representative to architectural block sales, and schools are a major sector for these units. But successfully promoting concrete masonry--and giving school facility planners an idea of the true costs of construction--necessitates refinements in the promotional approach.

Says Finch: "As an industry, we're all doing our own thing, whereas if we went in as an entire system, if we went into these meetings as the people who make 'em and the people who install 'em, they'd feel more comfortable building with masonry."

Vilas Mujumdar, P.E., S.E., who serves as executive director of the CMACN, is planning to conduct some seminars this summer and fall specifically for architects who design schools. "I will also invite our producer members in those specific areas to be in the seminars so that they can get to know the school architects and answer questions about what products are available," says Mujumdar.

Without a doubt, these promotional battles will take a lot of hard work. They've got misperceptions to overcome. "In the context of the whole building, they call wood frame cheaper, but in reality, maybe it really isn't," says Beard.