4 Days ’til World of Concrete- Booth N1953
January 28th, 2010 | Marketing
Only a few days until World of Concrete
Hello! I know you guys were excited for some more project showcases and pictures, however I’m running around today getting ready for World of Concrete. On Monday I fly out and start setting up our booth, which can be a very taxing day. Seems like you are at the mercy of the trade show guys that are doing the large rigging and laying the floor down (I was told to bring some $5’s and things can get done a lot quicker). So the day is a bit slow going. I’d rather get there and get ‘er done and hit some quarter slots for a couple hours before the Bossman comes- who knows he may join me then.
I hope many of you will be able to make it and we look forward to seeing our customers and some potential new customers at our mid week reception! The response has been amazing, so thanks to all who have RSVP’d.
From the Show Floor: WOC
If you can’t make it to WOC this year, come back next week as I will try to post some pictures of the show, to give you an idea of the size and scope (similar to what i did for Greenbuild). Plus, I’ll try to post a few G rated photos of our customer event, we have a very close knit group and some of our customers sure seem to love the flash of a camera so hopefully I can at least get 1.
ICF Builder Award Winner
We were told Carleton College Dorms in Northfield, Minnesota won an ICF Builder award, however they are holding out until next week to let us know if it won First or Second place. Obviously, in my opinion, there isn’t a single better project out there, not just because of its size and scope of ICFs but with all of the features of the entire building. After this awards season, I’ll go more in-depth on the project. I promise you’ll be impressed.
One more thing: Insulating Concrete Forms on TV??
By the way we are being featured on Hometime on PBS starting end of February on a 13 episode series! Check out the prelim teaser of this ICF Concrete Home and the schedules for broadcast. We’ll have DVDs to share shortly!
ICF Concrete Home- Texas Part II
January 26th, 2010 | Project Showcase
ICFs can reduce heat and cooling tonnage
Homes of this size tend to require large heating and air conditioning systems which use quite a bit of electricity. The owners wanted to reduce the heating and air conditioning demands to have a very energy efficient home. Again, ICF provided the best option to achieve those goals along with other inherent advantages of ICF. Reward Wall Systems, Inc. 11” iForm ICF was chosen for its reputation, quality, ease of installation, and excellent local support from the ICF installer and local distributor.
ICF Exterior Walls
Exterior walls were placed in two phases. The 1st floor ICF wall was stacked and poured on the Insul-Deck foundation. Using a quality for, like the iForm, makes short work, even for a large home like this. Challenges such as curve walls and free standing wall sections are simplified due to the strength and ease of stacking. Reward’s Product Manual (one of the best in the business) and installation documentation makes calculating the relief cuts on the forms for curved walls a cinch.
After the framing crew installed the 1st floor interior walls and 2nd floor sub-floor, the 2nd floor exterior ICF walls were stacked and poured. The 2nd floor walls are basically a continuation of the 1st floor. There is one 2nd floor wall section that needed to be supported by structural steel due to the lack of an ICF wall below. Again, Reward’s Product Manual and engineering documentation aided the engineers in their calculations and these types of wall configurations are no problem with proper engineering and planning.
In total, approximately three truckloads of Reward Wall Systems, Inc. ICFs were used in this magnificent home.
Engineer: The Interfield Group, LLC
Builder: Watermark Builders and Developers, Inc.
ICF Installer: ICF Constructors, LLC
See last post of ICF Construction in Texas
ICF Concrete Home- Texas
January 19th, 2010 | Project Showcase
Concrete Home Scope
- -1st floor is a raised ICF floor using 12.5″ Insul-Deck for the occupied spaces and 7″ Insul-Deck for the outdoor and pool deck area.
- -Stem walls and exterior floor support are ICF using Reward Wall Systems, Inc. 11″ iForm.
- -1st and 2nd floor exterior walls are ICF using Reward Wall Systems, Inc. 11″ iForm.
This custom home is located on the southwest side of the Houston, Texas metro area, inside IH-610 loop, in the City of Bellaire.
Due to local building codes, new construction in this area is required to use raised floors, not “slab on grade” as is common in the Houston area. The home owner did not want to use wood or wood products for the raised floor, but wanted a raised concrete floor which will be completely covered with tile. Several construction methods are available to build a well insulated raised concrete floor. An ICF floor using Insul-Deck provided the best option considering speed of installation, insulation properties, strength of finished floor, and total installed cost (TIC) of the finished floor compared to the other methods.
ICF Construction Information
Almost 7,600 square feet of Insul-Deck was used in the raised floor, approximately 2,400 square feet in the front porch, rear porch and pool deck, and approximately 5,200 square feet in the occupied area of the home. This resulted in a total raised floor of approximately 8,400 square feet in total raised floor area.
When you walk on this floor, you would swear that you are walking on a concrete slab on grade. It’s very hard to convince people that the floor is raised until they look in the ventilation openings and can see completely through the crawl space under the floor.
Supporting this raised floor is an engineered pier and beam foundation, along with structural steel on pier supports, and a perimeter wall using Reward Wall Systems, Inc. 11” iForm ICF. Reinforcing steel, supports, and concrete for the floor are engineered to provide a strong floor by incorporating all of the elements into a single structure.
Thursday’s post will include more on ICF A/C tonnage and a couple more pictures, bringing this project to completion.
World Of Concrete 2010- Booth N1953
January 14th, 2010 | Marketing
Reward at World of Concrete
Exhibiting at World of Concrete is one of the more fun times of the year for our company. This year we are pulling in all of our regional sales managers, our President, VP of Sales, VP of Engineering, COO and some other grunts, like myself to work the booth at World of Concrete. This is great for everyone including our current customers as well as folks we have spoken on the phone with recently but never had the chance to meet face to face.
This show has proven to be the biggest of the year and the 3 sections of the convention center, amassed with giant heavy equipment and concrete machines used for cutting, laying , mixing, and booms used for placing concrete in the most sustainable wall construction known to man, is one of the most visually impressive shows out there.
Another reason it’s our favorite time: It’s Vegas baby!
So if you are making it to WOC please swing by our booth and say “Hello” This year we are displaying our new waterproofing solutions as well as our new custom metal frames product line, the NoricF4. Our booth information-
World Of Concrete- Booth N1953
February 2 – 5
Cocktail Reception at the Flamingo
Also we make it an annual event to host a customer meet and greet cocktail party. This year it will be at the Flamingo Hotel at 7pm on Wednesday February 3rd. Drinks and Hors d’œuvres will be provided.
We respectfully request an RSVP of who’s planning on attending- as nothing is more embarrassing then running out of food by 7:30! To RSVP contact your Regional Sales Manager, our corporate office, or tgibson@rewardwalls.com with how many will be in your party.
We hope to see you all there 2/3/2010 at 7pm at the Flamingo!
Insulating Concrete Form Home in Urban Chicago
January 12th, 2010 | Project Showcase
ICF Home in Chicago
The Sam Park and Mary Raines Residence in Chicago, IL is an interesting project. It is 5,550 sq ft of Reward Wall Systems Insulated Concrete Forms, constructed in a very narrow lot. This project was conducted by industry newcomer Cian O’Mahony with Leitrim and Mani, LLC. Cian received onsite training from Darryl U, our Product Application Specialist. With use of this service and Cian’s willingness to learn, this project was a great success in revitalizing the neighborhood and spurring further developments.
Cian said that he was a bit nervous to use a product that he knew little about, but after he got comfortable it became his construction method of choice because of the ease of installation, comfortable jobsite conditions, significant labor savings due to our 5 in 1 assembly process, and the overall energy efficiency of the walls. By the looks of the pictures, I think Cian got the hang of it.
Reward Wall Systems, Inc. congratulates Cian and his crew on a project well done.
The New Standard for Sustainability.
Becoming a Successful ICF Distributor: Promotion & Education
January 5th, 2010 | Distributor Spotlight, Marketing
As discussed earlier, insulated concrete forms are not a “shelf” item, meaning that consumers or contractors don’t walk in and take them as you would a box of nails. As a result, the general public still has no idea what they are or how they perform unless they’re doing their own research. Often times at sites we will be approached by the curious onlooker who’s just amazed at the igloo or cooler that’s being built. A successful distributor needs to have a proactive mindset in educating the public as to the benefits of ICF construction. But what do you target? How do you go about market development? Budgetary and time constraints dictate that you need to have a solid focus or you will wind up chasing your tail. The successful distributor tends to take a three-pronged approach: Top-down and bottom-up selling combined with education/training. Let me give a little explanation here.
The top-down approach focuses on the design community and educating architects, engineers, code officials, etc. on the benefits of ICF construction. The successful distributor develops a network of architects and design firms who take advantage of the many benefits inherent in an ICF structure. But that successful distributor takes it upon themselves to educate the design community so they fully understand what ICF’s can and cannot do. Once ICF’s are specified, it becomes a matter of determining WHO will build it and not WHAT to build it with.
The bottom-up approach focuses on the consumer. Educating the consumer through a number of cost-effective methods is key. Before the housing market crashed, consumers walked in to a builder and asked how much square footage can we get for this much money. One builder I know told me that his people and the industry in general forgot how to sell because the housing market was so hot. Now things have changed. Consumers are looking more at what they get for their dollar and not necessarily how big can we build. It’s a prime opportunity for ICF’s to gain market share in the residential market. One very common method the successful distributor reaches consumers is by exhibiting at local home shows. Whether it’s a county show or a state-wide show, you have a great opportunity to generate both interest in ICF’s and leads for the future.
The third leg of this top-down/bottom-up foundation has to be your contractor base. We have the design community specifying the product and the consumer demanding the product. Now we need the contractor who can actually DO it. Most contractors are very good at what they do and as a result, they do not like change. However, if the design community is specifying ICF’s and the general public is demanding ICF’s, the contractor who has vision will see an opportunity to expand his business. This is where the successful distributor brings value to the local marketplace. Distributors can offer regularly scheduled training classes to the local contractor base. They will also typically offer onsite support as contractors start their first few jobs. Once a contractor gets an ICF job or two under his belt, MUCH less support is required of the distributor and that distributor now has a qualified local installer to whom he can forward his consumer leads.
Why are you a successful distributor?