A 2nd Edition of Procurement of Construction Products – A guide to achieving compliance was released in November 2015.  The Guide now recognises 34 industry led product accreditation schemes and guidance information across a range of building product categories including reinforcing and structural steel, cementitious materials for concrete, wood products, glazing products, electrical products, fire safety services, plumbing products, insulation products, coating products and building products. The Guide is an important and valuable contribution to the efficiency and reliability of the building and construction industry. This Guide has been jointly developed by 30 key construction industry stakeholders and supported by many others. 

This is the first Australian Society for Concrete Pavements event for 2016, where length of concrete path will be constructed by slipforming. There will be the opportunity to view the placing process, and then the jointing of the path later that day. Presentations on the successful construction of concrete pavements will be presented. The making and delivering of good concrete will be discussed, including guidelines for how slump may be adjusted if required.

The Concrete Institute of Australia conducts regular seminars, technical evenings and site visits around Australia each year.  2016 will be no exception with more than 70 events being delivered through both National and State Branch programs. Keeping abreast of the latest issues and developments occurring within the dynamic field of concrete is crucial.

The Construction Materials Industry Conference will return to Melbourne in 2016. Celebrating CMIC's 10th anniversary, CMIC16 has a re-energised format that will attract more than 600 Australian and international delegates and guests from the heavy construction materials industry, suppliers and government.

AS/NZS 3582.1, AS 3582.2 and AS/NZS 3582.3 were published and are now available for purchase through SAI Global from Friday, 12 February 2016.   

The Concrete Institute of Australia is kicking its 2016 workshop program on High Performance Concrete Floors and Pavements between March and April, Want to be part of it?

The annual participants forum was held Thursday, 26 November 2015 – Friday, 27 November 2015 at the Australian Maritime Museum. A full report from Executive - Craig Heidrich will be featured in the upcoming March Edition of Connections.

"Methods for sampling and testing aggregates-Coarse aggregate quality by visual comparison" AS 1141.30.1-2009 Amd 1 draft is open for public comment, and is due to close in four days. If you wish to make a comment, click on the link below for more information.

Gary started employment at the age of sixteen as a Fitter & Turner in January 1981. His first year was spent in a training workshop with two hundred and twenty (220) other apprentices learning the skills required to work competently and safely. His second and third year was spent at the Works Soaking Pits and the Stainless Steel Building located within the Slab Yard Department, working on stainless steel slab grinding machines.

After months of meticulous editing, QRG 4 - Electric Arc Furnance Slag is live and ready to read! The 4 page publication encompasses the physical properties, applications, environmental considerations and multiple case studies.

Fifteen Australian Standards documents have been released for Public Comment. All comments are submitted on the Standards Hub. Follow the link in the article to submit your comments. If you have any queries regarding the submission of comments, contact Australian Standards (contact details provided in artcile).

Concrete 2015 was held at the Pullman Hotel, Albert Park, Melbourne from 30th August to 2nd September 2015. More than four hundred (600) delegates attended the Conference, exceeding the Concrete Institutes of Australia’s expectations.

Another interesting use for slag is starting to sprout out of France. In the north of the country where its mining and industrial industry has now been abandoned all that remains are the small mining villages and the colossal slag hills or “terrils”.

From the 14th to the 15th of September 2015, the INTERCEM Cementitious Materials Forum will gather cement producers and traders from around the world to share their real-life case-study experiences and look in detail not just at the benefits of using SCMs but also at challenges they have faced! Click below to fine out more!

The theme for Concrete 2015 is ‘Research into Practice.’ This event will allow industry-leading stakeholders to share their innovative research in areas including materials, construction and design. The Association will be a sponsor and exhibitor, so make sure you visit our stand.

After switching off their lights for Earth Hour, Dubai took another step to reducing their environmental impact. The day after the event, Dubai announced its decision to switch to Green Concrete that uses a minimum of 66% by-product, such as Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBFS).

When we think about slag most of us imagine a rocky, rough, rugged material. But recently, some have polished this diamond in the rough and created something beautiful. A family in Riddells Creek, Victoria, have created an eco-friendly home which has polished e-crete slag on the floors. 

We want to know what you think about Connections and how we can improve it for you in the future. A short two minute survey is now avaliable online, we would love to hear your thoughts and ideas about future editions.

In the United States two researchers at DOE's National Energy Technology Laboratory have discovered that mixing two slag products at a unique ratio can generate energy in the form of heat and fuels.

The CRC: Low Carbon Living project commenced on the 12th of December 2012. Upon its initiation it was expected to create seven beneficial outcomes by 2020, including being able to provide 88 research students with detailed experience in the low carbon built environment. One of these 88 students (Jamie Watts) has recently produced his CRC funded Honours Thesis.​

Want to submit your nomination for the 2015 Awards? Nominations for the 2015 Global Slag Awards are already open, you can nominate your preference online!

This exhibition of six large sculptural columns by Sydney-based artist Jamie North features plant life growing from concrete pylons in an apparent state of erosion. Each column, ascending from a solid base to a condition of lesser materiality, will be slowly overrun by creeping vines (Pandorea pandorana) that reflect the artist’s lifelong engagement with the observance and cultivation of plants. The exhibition is being held at NGV International bewteen 25 March to 12 July 2015.  Open 10am–5pm, closed Tuesday.  Free entry

Australian technology which harvests molten iron blast furnace slag and converts it into a granulated blast furnace slag make cement is being trialled in China where 60% of the world’s iron blast furnace slag is produced. The process is considered environmentally within metal production, called Dry Slag Granulation (DSG), reduces water use and cuts greenhouse gas emissions.

The 8th EUROSlag Conference will be held in Linz, Austria, from 21-23 October 2015! With the global slag market estimated to be worth $28 billion by 2020, The EUROSlag Conference continues to grow and bring together leading international companies concerned with ferrous slag products.

​QRG 4: EAFS has begun the initial drafting stage under the authorship of members from the ASA Technical and Education Committee and is due for publication in June 2015. This Guide will be published in the Connections October 2015 edition.