News Detail

ACI International

9/1/2000

In 1979, ACI published the inaugural issue of Concrete International: Design and Construction. The objective was to "gather, correlate, and disseminate ideas, technology, and information about concrete and its uses to members and others around the world." It was a way of celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Institute, and CI has lived up to expectations. In 1990, the title became "Concrete International, The Magazine of the American Concrete Institute." A year later, the phrase "—an International Technical Society" was added. In the September 1991 issue of CI, ACI President Leon Glassgold referred to "ACI International" and Editor Bill Semioli explained the change: "ACI International is still us—the American Concrete Institute! The Institute is emphasizing that though it has ‘American’ in its name, its reach and influence extends, in fact, beyond the borders of the U.S.A. The worldwide involvement of ACI has always been reflected, in part, by its overseas chapters, in the name of the magazine, and in the size of the non-U.S. portion of ACI membership." The ACI Board officially changed our name to ACI International in November 1991.

As we approach our 100th anniversary, our international program is being aligned to the needs of our second century. About 20% of our members live outside the U.S., in 119 countries. There are ACI chapters in 30 countries. ACI members from a variety of nations serve on committees, enriching ACI by contributing their experience and knowledge about concrete technology all over the world. In a global economy, it is vital to the Institute’s future that broad participation be encouraged and increased. How we can best involve members from around the globe, while also serving their interests, is a key element in our strategic planning.

In my memo last month, I discussed the strategic planning meeting that was held in June. Outreach to international members and collaboration and partnering with concrete-related associations and organizations worldwide were prominent elements of those discussions. The global relevance of ACI will continue to be an important aspect as the Board moves forward in finalizing our new strategic plan.

Two years ago, the Task Group on International Strategy was appointed to advise the Board on issues related to international activities. Recognizing that some prominent figures in ACI’s past international relations were no longer available to provide the needed historical perspective, the Task Group began its work by compiling a history of ACI’s international activities. This compilation includes relevant committee activities, international standards and certification, chapters in other countries, affiliations and collaboration with concrete associations outside the U.S., and meetings (conferences, workshops, symposia) organized or endorsed by ACI. Later this year, after assessing the opportunities and challenges of the international arena, the Task Group will recommend a course of action to the Board.

A major issue for the Task Group is the formulation of international standards for design and construction of concrete structures. ACI holds the Secretariat for Technical Committee 71 (Concrete, Reinforced Concrete, and Prestressed Concrete) of the International Standards Organization (ISO). A worldwide federation of national standards bodies from some 130 countries, ISO has a strategic partnership with the World Trade Organization to promote free and fair trade between nations. The importance of this activity to ACI is obvious. Dr. Gene Corley, who chairs TC 71, has been instrumental in maintaining ACI’s active participation. Dr. Shuaib Ahmad, ACI Chief Engineer, provides support relating to the Secretariat function. Various countries carry Secretariat responsibilities for the six TC 71 subcommittees: Israel has SC1 (Test Methods for Concrete); the UK has SC2 (Rules for Design of Concrete Structures); Norway has SC3 (Production and Control of Concrete); the U.S. (ACI) has SC4 (Performance Requirements for Concrete Structures); Colombia has SC5 (Simplified Design Standards for Concrete Structures); and Japan has SC6 (Nontraditional Reinforcing Materials for Concrete Structures).

The scope of ISO TC 71/SC4 (chaired by Dr. Corley) is to establish a procedure under which requirements of existing concrete codes could be accepted, eliminating the need to develop a "world concrete code" from scratch. The document "Performance and Assessment Requirements for Structural Concrete" (ISO/CD 19338) describes a framework within which a variety of existing codes (such as ACI 318 and Eurocode 2) could be used. The goal of SC5 (chaired by Luis Garcia) is to provide rules for the design and construction of common, low-rise concrete structures with small to medium floor areas. ISO TC 71/SC5, working with the Instituto Colombiano de Normas Técnicas y Certificación (ICONTEC), has prepared a draft document "Standard for the Simplified Design of Structural Reinforced Concrete for Buildings" (ISO/DIS 15673). This document, which relies heavily on ACI procedures, is now under review and will likely be made available through ACI. The efforts of ICONTEC and Prof. Garcia represent a major contribution to facilitating design of regular, relatively simple concrete buildings. The eighth plenary meeting of TC 71 is scheduled for September 28-29, 2000, in Tokyo, Japan.

As you can see, ACI is already participating internationally—as our name implies. But there is much more we can and should do. I ask ACI members both inside and outside the U.S. to contact me directly with their views on how we can improve ACI programs and products to serve our international members and customers better, and how we can involve them to an even greater degree in improving concrete worldwide!

James O. Jirsa
President
American Concrete Institute

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