New Products Equal New Opportunities for You

Steve Gervasio, President and CEO of TruStone America, speaking to the Executive Council.

At their winter meeting, Executive Council members heard reports from two manufacturers of masonry products on ways that their collaboration with BAC and the International Masonry Institute (IMI) are producing positive results for all parties.

AAC’s “Shell Solution”

BAC and IMI’s relationship with TruStone America isn’t new, but the progress and direction it’s taking are producing exciting results. Steve Gervasio, President and CEO of TruStone America, updated the Council on the status of the new AAC plant in New Jersey and introduced a new residential building approach using AAC called the “Shell Solution.” This innovative approach responds to the MMP’s recommendations related to expanding BAC’s share of the residential construction market and addresses the challenges production developers have been facing related to the rising cost of lumber and poor quality materials, mold-related concerns, increased construction cycle times, and labor shortages. These challenges, Gervasio told the Council, create opportunities for TruStone and BAC.

"This is all our work - the installation and the coatings - and through IMI we have the training available to get interested members ready to work with AAC." -John J. Flynn

To put it in perspective, Gervasio laid out some compelling statistics. “Every year about 2 million homes are built, and the top ten production builders represent over 400,000 of the housing starts annually. New wood framing alone is a $50 billion dollar industry. If we capture 20 percent of this housing construction over the next 20 years we will create 100,800 new jobs for BAC members.”

The AAC “Shell Solution” offers a developer the chance to build homes faster and with fewer steps that are more structurally sound, better insulated and more fire resistant than traditional wood construction, according to Gervasio, and consumers recognize the benefits. In a demonstration project in Apache Junction, Arizona with Pulte Homes, 12 identical homes were built using TruStone AAC. The same crew of BAC members built the entire exterior, “the shell,” and applied all coatings. The floor plan was the same as 125 existing wood frame floor plans built by Pulte. A focus group of 60 consumers yielded these notworthy perceptions of the AAC “Shell Solution” homes:

• safer;
• a higher resale value;
• lower utility costs;
• lower maintenance costs;
• lower insurance costs;
• easily decorated, modified and expanded; and
• quieter.

Consumers’ perceptions, along with the savings this system creates for production builders will all add up to more opportunities for BAC members since the product is only guaranteed if installed by IMI certified craftworkers – and this training program is only available to BAC members. BAC President John J. Flynn reminded the Council, “This is all our work – the installation and the coatings – and through IMI we have the training available to get interested members ready to work with AAC.”

Building Green with SEALTECH Block

Ray Williams, President of U.S. Technologies and the creator of SEALTECH Block, addressing the Executive Council.

In 2004 SEALTECH Block and the International Masonry Institute (IMI) joined forces to create the country’s first and only certified training program for the installation of SEALTECH Block. This certification program, which is only open to BAC members, gives BAC a competitive edge in the growing sustainable or “Green” building market.

“Over the past decade there have been profound changes in the way our government, architects, developers and the construction industry as a whole view the future. The new buzz words of the industry are “sustainment” and “Green,” Ray Williams, President of U.S. Technologies and the developer of SEALTECH Block, told the Council. As the only concrete masonry unit in the country that can offer a third party certified Green masonry unit certification, SEALTECH Block is filling the growing demand for building products that meet LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) requirements.

The demand for LEED Certified projects is growing steadily. Four years ago, there were only a handful of LEED Certified projects in the United States. Today, that number has climbed to more than 167, and there are more than 1,800 projects registered for certification across the country. In addition to government agencies, Williams told the Council that the Green Building movement is gaining interest from the architectural firms that represent high-profile organizations such as Home Depot, Lowe’s, and Target. It is estimated that these types of companies alone will initiate more than 470 construction projects in 2005. Williams added that when “these ‘big box’ chain owners specify construction they want dependability and consistency more than low price. When you are building a hundred, $10M buildings a year you do not want uniqueness in the materials or installation on each one.”

"We need BAC because the block is only as good as the installed system.” –Ray Williams, President, U.S. Technologies

Bob Fozio, Director of the Northern Ohio Administrative District Council, who introduced Williams to BAC, reported that four Targets have already been built with SEALTECH Block using BAC members because the specifications said “IMI-trained people” and those people are BAC members.

These projects not only offer SEALTECH Block an opportunity to grow, but because they only guarantee their product if installed by BAC craftworkers who are IMI-certified, BAC members gain tremendous opportunities.

“As good as SEALTECH Block is, and even considering the unique advantages that it offers, our product’s performance is only as good as the consistency of its installation,” said Williams. “Without the ability to install SEALTECH Block to exacting standards, the potential of its performance is diminished. We need BAC because the block is only as good as the installed system.”

“Since SEALTECH offers certified installation that’s only available through IMI, this gives our members the competitive edge,” says BAC President John J. Flynn. “But it’s up to us to keep this work Union by organizing the workers and getting the workforce trained.”