Our 11th Annual Winter Conference was held on Tuesday, January 12, 2010 at the Royal Plaza Conference Center & Hotel in Marlborough, MA. A great turnout of over 130 individuals from producer members, associate members and local engineers/specifiers were present for the meeting. Over twenty-five exhibitors showcased their products and provided information on their companies.

NEPCA’s continued efforts to promote concrete and educate producers, associates and engineers were evident throughout the conference. The conference provided Professional Development Hours for engineers that attended the programs.

The featured speakers were:
Altos Marketing Group of Bedford, NH gave a presentation on marketing- “Leveraging the Web to Increase Sales & Loyalty.” Today’s businesses rely on the internet as a primary marketing and communication tool more than ever. An internet presence, quite literally, has become the first impression a potential customer has of you. The internet levels the playing field on exposure rates between you and your competitor. This means that the design of a smart internet marketing strategy can be the difference as to who that customer decides to contact. This course guided you in creating an online appearance.

Donald Lepley P.E. ~ Hanson Pipe & Precast, Ohio presentation on “Rigid vs. Flexible Pipe Design, Installation, and Service Life.” If all design factors are well understood, a suitable piping system can be created using either "rigid" or "flexible" pipe design methodology. However, design factors and assumptions are often not well known, incorrect, or they may change over time. A piping systems performance under load or embedment conditions that vary from the design assumptions is a good way of evaluating rigid versus flexible pipe. This course examined a few scenarios and helped you understand how to design installations that minimize risk.

Claude Goguen~ National Precast Concrete Association - “New Opportunity for Precasters and Engineers in Advanced Treatment for On-site Wastewater Systems.” This course covered the basic operation of a complete range of on-site systems from the basic to the most complex. Participants learned how systems function, as well as understand the important differences between these technologies and how they can be effectively used for wastewater treatment and disposal. Participants also discovered how to determine the opportunities for using different on-site technologies.

Following a delicious buffet lunch, an exciting presentation on “Achieving Success” was given by keynote speaker Frank Damelio, founder of Target Intellect. He is a national speaker, trainer and entertainer whose clients include Procter & Gamble, Pfizer, Fidelity Investments, AT&T, Price Waterhouse Coopers and many more. He is also an accomplished magician who performs annually at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Before moving onto the afternoon sessions, raffles were drawn giving away door prizes and a widescreen TV.

James Muka; CPA ~ Muka Development, New Jersey, gave an in-depth presentation on “Counting the Days: Cash Flow Management.” To be competitive, business owners must plan and prepare for all future events and market changes. Possibly the most important aspect of preparation is effective cash-flow planning. Failure to properly plan cash flow is one of the leading causes for small business failures in the United States.

Wally Swiger ~ A-LOK Products Inc., Pennsylvania. The presentation gave insight on “Specifying A Watertight Stormwater System.” The seminar helped you to better understand watertight connectors, how they are used and how they can affect our infrastructure and environment in a positive way. The presentation covered many styles of connectors available and how they work. He proved to you that using connectors provides a faster, higher quality installation to keeping contaminated ground water from entering the system whether used in sewer or drainage applications.

Jeffrey Benway, P.E. ~ SFC Engineering, New Hampshire. “Retaining Wall Site Design." He illustrated design tools, construction techniques and performance of retaining walls used for support of earth fills and excavations or cut slopes. He provided information on subsurface investigation, soil property design, earth pressures for wall system design and load and resistance factor design for retaining wall systems.

Everyone attending the seminars walked away with great ideas in marketing and business opportunities as well as a better understanding of products used in the precast concrete industry. Throughout the day time was also spent by attendees in the exhibit area learning new technology from over 25 different companies. Attendees that visited at least 90% of the exhibitors were placed in a drawing for Red Sox tickets.