We are the local chapter of ACI International, and we invite you to join our chapter if you are not already a member. ACI International members can join for a mere $65 per year; non-members of ACI International can join as affiliate members. With this membership come the following benefits: Networking, Education, Recognition and Information.
In contemplating how far one can go in life, it has been claimed that the sky is the limit. Looking down on the clouds and the vast rugged terrain that shapes the western portion of our beloved U.S. of A. as I return from the ACI Spring Convention in Los Angeles, this claim seems to clearly ring true. Although I may not own a mansion in Beverly Hills, I know what it feels like to look out across Los Angeles from the living room of one. I know what it feels like to splash my feet in the Pacific Ocean, walk through the sand, and do a set of pull ups on Muscle Beach in Santa Monica. What's more, I know how to ride the Metro, take a shower, and get to the Concrete Mixer. The possibilities are endless.
After leaving Philadelphia early Sunday, I arrived at the convention in time to attend the Opening Session and Awards Program. The Opening Reception was followed by the Hot Topic Session on Concrete and Sustainability. Remarkable strides are being made toward environmental stewardship and energy independence. Supplemental cementitious materials and recycled aggregates are being used. Perhaps most significant, advances in durability will provide concrete structures with longer service life.
[Chapter President Ted Smulski, right, with Mohammed Sonebi of Queen's University Belfast, left, and Ali Ngab of Al-Fateh University, center.]
Every ACI Convention offers more sessions and meetings than one can attend, and choices must be made. I attended a session on Corrosion Protection Strategies for Reinforced Concrete; this was a great opportunity to expand on the excellent information given by Kevin Earley during our March EPDACI Dinner Meeting. During the Student Lunch (I'm not too old to learn), Ken Hover, a Professor at Cornell and highly acclaimed speaker, presented "Using Your Senses When Building with Concrete." The Committee 123 Forum was a panel discussion of the merits of concrete homes in seismic zones. The session on Foundations for Equipment and Machinery and Baseplate Grouting was particularly relevant for the industrial work in my own engineering practice. Sessions were sponsored by the ACI Southern California Chapter on high rise construction, identifying the characteristics of regulatory environment, design, research, and construction that have enabled concrete to become the material of choice for high rise buildings in that region. An International Lunch presentation demonstrated how very high strength concrete and steel reinforcement are being used to build taller buildings in a high density seismic area in Japan. These convention activities are outstanding opportunities to learn about the current state of the art in concrete design and construction.
Although we cannot offer such an extensive array of simultaneous sessions at the chapter level, the quality and timeliness of the programs at EPDACI are no less impressive. Our Student Beam Competition, which was a forerunner of the current international competition, will be held at Widener University on April 19. The Seventeenth Annual Concrete Awards Banquet, to be held at the luxurious Villanova Conference Center on April 23, will be a gala celebration second to none. Plans are being made for our May Breakfast Meeting; watch for the announcement. I look forward to visiting with many of our chapter members and friends at these events.
Returning from the glamour of Hollywood, I am thankful for the jewel of a home that the Lord has allowed me to inhabit. I will be glad to see the diamonds in the rough (or lumps of coal) that share my home. We all need times of encouragement, and the Spring Convention has been good. As a structural engineer, I know what it feels like to shape an idea into reality and walk through the finished product. My association with ACI has been singularly helpful in instructing and inspiring me to build well. The success of a great institute and of a great chapter is the result of the tireless efforts of many dedicated volunteers. I invite you to join us as we effect progress through knowledge. For what we can accomplish as we work together, the sky is the limit.
Sincerely, Ted Smulski Delaware Engineering and Design Corp. President of EPDACI
During what may be called the golden age of concrete shell construction, from the 1920s to the early 1960s, a variety of innovative landmark shells were constructed. The first large thin concrete shell in the U.S. was a barrel shell for an ice hockey arena in Hershey, PA, designed by Anton Tedesko in 1936. In more recent years, however, interest in thin concrete shell construction has faded. Reasons for this decline were explored in a paper by Christian Meyer and Michael H. Sheer published in the October 2005 issue of Concrete International.
Many prominent structural engineers in the United States consider concrete shells to be too expensive and currently out of style. Perhaps provocative wierd shapes are more popular this week than structural elegance. Large graceful concrete shells continue to be built in Europe. A few experts in this country have found that more shells are being built using novel methods such as modular formwork and air-inflated forms. Two recent concrete shells are shown here. The shell in the photograph above was constructed using a system created by Italian engineer Dante Bini in which concrete and reinforcing steel are placed on the ground over a form which is then inflated to form the desired geometry. The Public Works Complex in Price, Utah, shown below, was constructed using a system developed by David and Barry South in which polyurethane foam is sprayed onto the inside of an inflated fabric form to provide stiffness, reinforcing steel is placed, and shotcrete is applied to the interior of the form.
Author Christian Meyer, FACI, PE, is a Professor of Civil Engineering at Columbia University in New York City. Author Michael H. Sheer, PE, is an ACI Member, EPDACI Chapter Member, and Project Manager at Joseph L. Barbato Associates in Chadds Ford, PA. The Board of Directors of the Eastern Pennsylvania & Delaware Chapter ACI would like to commend the authors for their insightful exploration of this elegant structural form. Do concrete shells deserve another look?
September 12 & 13 - Course, Concrete Field Testing Technician - Grade I, at Montgomery County Fire Academy.
September 20 - Exam, Concrete Field Testing Technician - Grade I, and Flatwork Finisher and Flatwork Finisher Technician, at Montgomery County Fire Academy.
September 3 - Board of Directors Meeting, 8:30 a.m., Marriott West, West Conshohocken, Pa. All interested chapter members are encouraged to attend.
September 17 - Ken Hover, Dinner Presentation on Concrete and People in Cold Weather, Sheraton Park Ridge, King of Prussia, Pa. For more information, click here.
April 19 - Student Beam Competition was held on April 19, 2008, at Widener University, Chester, Pa. For more information, click here.
October 10 - "Environmental Engineering Concrete Structures," Philadelphia. For more information, click here.
October 9 - Our annual Golf Outing was held on October 9, 2007. Contact Eric Publicover for more information, or call (610) 586-1332. Download a registration form here.
April 23, 2008 - Seventeenth Annual Concrete Awards Banquet was held on April 23, 2008. For more information, click here.
Check back for more information and for final announcements. Dates are subject to change.
We are the local chapter of 
During what may be called the golden age of concrete shell construction, from the 1920s to the early 1960s, a variety of innovative landmark shells were constructed. The first large thin concrete shell in the U.S. was a barrel shell for an ice hockey arena in Hershey, PA, designed by Anton Tedesko in 1936. In more recent years, however, interest in thin concrete shell construction has faded. Reasons for this decline were explored in a paper by Christian Meyer and Michael H. Sheer published in the October 2005 issue of Concrete International.
Author Christian Meyer, FACI, PE, is a Professor of Civil Engineering at Columbia University in New York City. Author Michael H. Sheer, PE, is an ACI Member, EPDACI Chapter Member, and Project Manager at Joseph L. Barbato Associates in Chadds Ford, PA. The Board of Directors of the Eastern Pennsylvania & Delaware Chapter ACI would like to commend the authors for their insightful exploration of this elegant structural form. Do concrete shells deserve another look?
