News Detail

The Power to Transform

1/2/2019

One million dollars! ACI reported that its 2018 funding to the ACI Foundation reached $1,000,000 in support of research, scholarships, new technologies, and issues of strategic importance to the concrete industry. It is inspiring to see ACI mobilizing resources on a scale that has transformative potential. During 2018, the ACI Foundation distributed 19 scholarships and fellowships, funded eight new research projects, and invested in other initiatives to advance new technology. This is all possible through generous contributions by ACI, ACI chapters, corporate donors, and individual members.

I am especially excited about increased funding for scholarships. My day job is in the university setting, so it will not surprise you to hear my conviction about investing in the next generation of professionals to lead the profession and guide the future of ACI. Over my 27 years at the University of Illinois, I have personally seen the power of education to transform lives. Education can lift a person from disadvantaged circumstances to participate in, and perhaps even lead, efforts that benefit society. You have read my memos in recent months about international travel to ACI chapters around the world. My conversations with our international colleagues remind me how the education and research enterprise connects the world and brings us to depend on each other more, understand each other better, and empathize with each other’s challenges. Educational exchange is one of the best ways we can foster economic and political stability as we solve the problems of the world together.

As I think about the transformative power of education, I give great credit to my mentors who supported me through my university training. I am forever grateful to Surendra Shah and the late Hamlin Jennings, who were my PhD advisors at Northwestern University. I also fondly recall Francis Young, who recruited me to the Illinois faculty in 1992. A favorite photo of mine is from a 1999 conference in the beautiful Tuscany region in Italy. I think it is the only photo with all four of us together at one time.

From left: Francis Young, Hamlin Jennings, David Lange, and Surendra Shah in Tuscany in 1999

Our work at ACI has the power to transform, too. ACI’s technical domain is squarely in the middle of infrastructure renewal, and that is a strong economic driving force. News in the United States continues to trot out stories about a $1 trillion infrastructure program. In a landscape of political battles, infrastructure spending generally receives bipartisan support. As opportunity unfolds, ACI members can provide advice for prioritization of resources, support the notion that strong infrastructure leads to a strong economy, and advocate for concrete construction where it delivers high benefit at affordable cost.

ACI needs to embrace change to thrive in the future. ACI Committee 564, 3-D Printing with Cementitious Materials, met for the first time at The ACI Concrete Convention and Exposition – Fall 2018, and it was immediately clear that this new technology will challenge the status quo. How can one comply with the ACI 318 code when using this technology? Do the associated concrete mixtures, reinforcing materials, and nonlinear configurations require new thinking about design and construction standards? Think of all the other questions that bubble up through ACI committees. How can we encourage sustainable building practices with appropriate code provisions? How can we craft code language that can be used by an owner to achieve durability objectives?

ACI has a responsibility for ensuring public safety in concrete construction, but this goal requires that ACI aggressively meets marketplace demands for emerging technologies that improve quality and performance. The ability to adapt is a competitive advantage. John F. Kennedy once said, "Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future." This truism serves as sage advice to individuals, companies, and even a great institute such as ACI.

David A. Lange