Chantilly, VA (PRWEB) March 17, 2014

ICPI will recognize William (Bill) Schneider this month for his significant contributions to the segmental concrete pavement industry at the ICPI 2014 Annual Meeting and 20th Anniversary in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Mr. Schneider is a charter member of ICPI and the first to Chair the ICPI Construction Committee. His noteworthy accomplishments include developing the content for the Concrete Paver Installer Course and the Commercial Paver Technician Course. Mr. Schneider was the first instructor of the Concrete Paver Installer Course that has seen over 15,000 participants since its inception. Additionally, he served on ICPIs Board of Directors, Executive Committee, and numerous standing and special committees. Mr. Schneider has always maintained that educating contractors on industry best practices is paramount to success. He demonstrated this by becoming a founding member and instructor of ICPI courses.

The ICPI Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes significant contributions to the industry through knowledge, technical innovation, and advocacy. The award emphasizes dedication of the recipient to safety and well-being of employees, demonstrated leadership, and/or outstanding contribution to the industry from volunteer service to ICPI which promotes growth and advancement of the association and/or industry. The award recognizes noteworthy public service activities at the local, regional, state, national or international levels that bring honor to the industry or to ICPI.

Bill Schneider in many ways exceeds the challenging requirements and expectations for the award," said ICPI Chair-elect, David Pitre. Bill's ambitions and accomplishments make him highly deserving of the honor. The ICPI award honors those who pursue excellence and have made significant contributions to the segmental concrete pavement industry over their lifetime. There is no one better fitting to be the first recipient of such a prestigious award. Bills professional accomplishments are numerous, and he is widely recognized as the pioneer of paving installations in the United States, said Dave Carter, ICPI Board Chair.

Mr. Schneiders pioneering efforts include the creation of a company specializing in permeable interlocking concrete pavement (PICP) installations that transformed the Chicagoland market. This effort was supported by several trademarks and patents he holds on permeable paver shapes. He also accelerated mechanical paver installation to lower project costs. A few noteworthy projects that he was involved with include:

Morton Arboretum Built in 2003 for the new visitors center, the 173,000 sf parking lot in Lisle, Illinois proved the innovative use of PICP as a viable solution for permeable pavement systems as a post structural best management practice for stormwater management, and was one of the first and largest installations in a cold climate.

The Williamsburg Village Project Built in 1979 in suburban Chicago, this 130,000 sf interlocking concrete pavers project was one of the first street applications in North America. The project was built well before the interlocking concrete pavement industry formed an association, and well before association guide specifications directed designers and contractors on best practices for materials and installation. The 35 year-old roadway has not had any major maintenance, an impressive performance considering the constant delivery-vehicle traffic, the harsh Chicago weather and regular deicer use in the winter.

Port of Oakland, CA This is the largest interlocking concrete pavement project in the western hemisphere with 5 million sf. More than 22 million paving units were mechanically installed over 2 years. The project represented significant progress for the concrete paver industry in the development of specifications, construction methods, and inspection processes for port paving and accelerated use of mechanical paver placement to improve contractor efficiency and reduce installation costs.

Elmhurst College, IL Another mechanical installation, a campus demonstrated that PICP systems could be used as an alternative to unattractive and space wasting detention ponds as well as decrease flows and volumes to city storm sewers working at capacity. The 2008 project was inspired by the success at Morton Arboretum five years earlier.

Original post:
ICPI to Honor William (Bill) Schneider with First Ever ICPI Lifetime Achievement Award

Ponds are a unique feature in any landscape and they often evoke a strong feeling of tranquility and peace. Ponds are arguably one of the oldest architectural components in a garden and have been constructed for thousands of years. Green is bringing this ancient garden structure into your modern landscape to provide you with your very own garden pond. Ponds come in many shapes and sizes and can be as simple as a reflecting pool or as complex as an entire aquatic ecosystem. They can be built to resemble a natural part of the landscape or a striking modern geometric form.

Many modern ponds are simple pools with fountains or cascading waterfalls that add a touch of grandeur to the surrounding landscape. However, a growing trend in America is fully stocked ponds and water features containing a wide array of plant and animal life. These ponds can be stocked with aquatic plants like: papyrus, reeds, rushes, cannas, lilies and lotuses as well as fish like carp, goldfish and the ever popular Kio. At Green T our goal is to bring you the pond of your dreams. Our skilled team can provided you with many options and features to help create the feature for your landscape.

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Pond Design and Installation - Ponds | Garden Pond & Koi ...

28 February 2014| last updated at 11:21PM

Many have expressed their condolences, including the prime minister and deputy prime minister and their wives.

The issue now is how to prevent such deaths in the future.

In the past 10 years, at least six people have drowned in Sungai Muar near Buloh Kasap.

According to the Fire and Rescue Department, the number of deaths by drowning in 2013 was 330 persons. Until Feb 22, there were 67 deaths. This is a serious matter.

Many had blamed a company involved in sand extraction activities at the river as being responsible for the tragedy.

This may be true, but it is also high time for the government to look at the whole issue of drowning cases and deaths over the years, and introduce drastic measures to deal with the problems.

The government should take up the proposal by the Life Saving Society of Malaysia (LSSM) that "drowning cases in Malaysia are wholly preventable and avoidable".

The time has come for Malaysia to set up a National Water Safety Council (NWSC) to take the lead in promoting and enhancing water safety in the country.

The NSWC, to comprise representatives from various government agencies, together with NGOs like LSSM, aims to reduce drowning incidences and to promote a water safety culture for Malaysians.

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WATER SAFETY MEASURES: Dire need for 'lifesavers'

25th February, 2014

KUALA LUMPUR: The time has come for Malaysia to set up a National Water Safety Council (NWSC) to take the lead in promoting and enhancing water safety in the country, said National Institute of Occupational Safety & Health (NIOSH) chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye.

He said the NSWC, to comprise representatives from various government agencies and NGOs like the Life Saving Society Malaysia (LSSM), would aim at reducing the incidence of drowning in Malaysia and to promote a water safety culture for Malaysians.

It is indeed so tragic to learn of the latest water disaster where eight students were drowned in Sungai Muar near Buloh Kasap Segamat.

One cannot be unconcerned about the growing number of drowning deaths in our country every year, he said.

Lee said it was therefore high time for the government and the relevant ministries to focus on the growing incidence of drowning cases and take some concrete action to reduce the number of drowning deaths each year.

According to the Fire & Rescue Department, the number of drowning deaths in 2013 was 330. As for this year until February 22 there were 67 deaths. This is indeed a serious matter.

There are many factors which cause drowning such as unrestricted and ready access to beaches, lack of knowledge and understanding of the water conditions, ignorance, disregard or misjudgement of the hazardous water conditions, absence of constant visual supervision and particularly lack of awareness and education in water safety, personal survival and life saving, said Lee.

He said it was the responsibility of those organisations, agencies and authorities with jurisdiction over the beaches, rivers, waterways and other areas to identify and preferably minimize the risks of injury or death by drowning.

It is insufficient to just install signs or provide safety equipment alone.

Read the rest here:
Lee: Set up National Water Safety Council

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Excerpt from:
Pond Design and Installation Clearwater, FL - Outdoor Paradise

Every Sunday Satish S., a software testing engineer at a private firm in Ernakulam carries his weekly laundry to the Dhobi Khana at Veli, Fort Kochi. He gets into one of the 42 washing cubicles and does his laundry by the traditional method. He is one from the 50 families of the Vannar Sangham, a washerman society, who have been doing laundry here since the 1920s. On weekdays, at the same site, Mani, with a turban around his head, stands in ankle-deep water in a cement pit. He beats the clothes on a jutting stone as if mindlessly. As visitors click snapshots of this disappearing way of life Mani flashes a toothy smile. Kumaresan in the adjacent cubicle steps out of the water tub. I have worked on ships too, he says but now I am here. We pay Rs. 10 to the society for using the facilities here.

All the Rajani fans

The quaint Dhobi Khana is the only place in Kerala and one of the few places in the country where the traditional method of laundry continues. It is also one of the most photographed sites with droves of tourists clicking keepsake images of men and women who pursue an uncommon lifestyle. Now only 20 per cent of the youngsters from our community continue in this profession. Most of them are educated and find white collar jobs, says Satish, a young man who has struck a conscious balance between his ancestral livelihood and his urban lifestyle.

As secretary of the Dhobi Khana he has been instrumental in organising the work and lives of the people from his community.

It was in 1976 that the GCDA (Greater Cochin Development Authority) built the existing structure after the Veli Maidan, with its ponds, was taken over to build a stadium. The community proposed the design of the Dhobi Khana that now stands over three acres on one side of the ground. Inside the walled premises are barrack like rooms to store the laundry, a long, common shed for ironing and drying during the rainy season, two large wells, washing cubicles and sun-filled courtyards with symmetrical clotheslines. Inside, is also a tiny world of all the Rajani fans who have pasted posters of the legendary Tamil actor in declaration of their love for him. Satish says with a smile, It was his birthday last month and we put up the posters.

In the ironing shed the dhobis (washermen) are immersed silently in their work. The blue tin dryers rattle to life only during the rains. Eighty-six-year-old Shanmugham is ironing and folding starched white shirts. He has been working here since the age of 18. The eight-and-a-half kilogram iron box that he uses is 45 years old brought from Sri Lanka. His technique of ironing is watched keenly by a group of impressed visitors. They ask him about the old times. I dont remember a thing, he says and goes back to his work. Sixty-eight-year-old Pratti with a glittering nose pin and gold earrings is all smiles. Her son and husband work here. She remembers the old times and says that the rains upset their work earlier. After the sangham was formed and the Dhobi Khana came up we have regular and systematised work. She still uses coconut shells to heat the iron.

In the shed also lie heaps of bundled laundry. They are from hospitals, hotels and homestays. There is the old boiler system of heating water and there is electricity too for use. The dhobis have a choice and pay accordingly.

Modernising the laundry

If the Vannar Sangham has organised the work of the dhobis it has also helped the 180 families who stay in little row houses on Dhobi Street close by in their day-to-day living. A small park with colourful swing, slide and see-saw was thoughtfully put up inside the premises for the children of the dhobis engaged in work. There are rest rooms, a common room with indoor games and an outdoor badminton court too. A few from the community who have bought cars park them here. There is a delivery van whose services can be used. They get big orders from cruise ships, hotels and hospitals. The vehicle is good to fetch and carry the laundry, says Satish. He shows a new music system in his office that will soon be installed in the shed.

At Dhobi Street the community gathers at festivals in the two temples dedicated to Mariamman and Subramaniam. In August we have our main festival Mulakottu, says Satish.

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Hand-washed and sun-dried

Pond Design & Installation:

Whether you are thinking about a small water garden or a large Koi pond, The Pond Guy can design and install an easy to maintain pond environment, which will become the focal point of your grounds. We provide state of the art equipment to minimize the labor necessary to keep the pond in clean working condition.

Let us supply all that is needed to create your backyard retreat - from fish, aquatic plants, filters, UV lights, and underwater lighting to waterfalls, streams, etc.

When your project is completed, we then back up our quality work by providing you with answers to any questions you may have or by assisting with any problems that may arise. We are happy to be of assistance.

Our company services many ponds on Long Island and yours can be one of them.

Sit back and enjoy the tranquility that your transformed grounds become - a little bit of paradise in your own yard.

Some samples of ponds we've designed and installed: --Click pics to see larger images--

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The Pond Guy, Inc. - Pond & Waterfall Design and Installation

BROOKFIELD, CT Upper Macungie Township in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania is located in the corridor between Philadelphia and New York City, with quick and easy access to both of these major metropolitan areas. Since Lehigh County neighbors the East Coast's major markets, regular commuters have realized the ultimate convenience of the countys central location. Therefore it became the ideal location for Compass Business Center, LLC to build 11 flex-office, warehouse-type buildings of varying configuration.

The facilities, which are arranged in nine groups of two, one group of four and one group of five, are situated on approximately four-and-a-half acres of land which was previously an open field. The development is designed in a loop, and a road separates the North and South units. The rest of the site is surrounded by an existing industrial park.

While planning for this new development, engineers from Base Engineering, located in Allentown, Penn., coordinated with contractors from Saylorsburg-based A. Scott Enterprises to install a stormwater management system that would provide detention and infiltration to the site.

The team faced a number of challenges during this project, including the infiltration potential of the soil itself. The infiltration rate turned out to be very slow, so the site needed to be over-excavated in order to replace the existing soil with a two-foot layer of engineered fill.

This special fill is a combination of 80% sand and 20% compost, which allows water to soak into the ground at a rate that is neither too fast nor too slow. This amended soil comes with a certain pre-established infiltration rate which had to be assumed. Once the fill was in place, the engineers were required to recheck the in-place infiltration rate to be sure it either matched or exceeded the rate that was assumed, which was a condition of the permit when it was issued.

The use of CULTEC chambers was very useful in this instance because engineered fill cannot be compressed or it nullifies the infiltration capacity and capability, said Amit Mukherjee, MS, P.E., Base Engineering. The CULTEC chambers are rigid, which helped to even out the load distribution so the fill placed directly beneath them was not compacted.

The site consists of two separate systems, North and South, and CULTECs Recharger 280HD was chosen for the project because the model would provide the 43,560 cu. ft. of total storage required within the smallest footprint while accommodating the site parameters. Each unit is 47 inches wide, 26.5 inches high and offers a bare chamber capacity of 6.08 cubic feet per linear foot of storage capacity. It is designed to retain water until the soil is no longer saturated and is suitable for infiltration back into the ground.

The North system contains 18 rows and 369 chambers while the South system has eight rows with 231 chambers. The 600 chambers combined with a layer of stone provide 44,249 cu. ft. of storage for the site.

A second challenge was encountered by contractors when they were installing the chambers in the South basin. A utility pole and guide wire, which prevents the pole from leaning, was anchored in concrete directly in the middle of the infiltration basin. In order to progress on the site, the contractors installed chambers up to the guide wire and then skipped approximately 15-20 feet while a utility company moved the wire and pole. Once the pole and wire were safely relocated, the contractors were able to return to the South basin and complete the middle section, effectively joining all of the chambers together.

The design plans for the Compass Business Center were reviewed by the township engineer, Keystone Consulting, to verify CULTECs products satisfied a number of Department of Environmental Protection requirements, specifically the infiltration rate could not be less than 1.02 inches per hour, said Frank Daddona, Estimator and Project Manager for A. Scott Enterprises. Since CULTECs system passed this inspection, and they were competitively priced they were chosen over a number of other brands.

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CULTEC Chambers Solve Infiltration Issues for Business Center

Union Mayor Mike Livengood said 2013 was a successful year for the city, and major accomplishments include the completion of two road projects.

We accomplished quite a lot, Livengood said.

Last year the Main Street enhancement project, and Independence Drive resurfacing and roundabout construction were completed.

Main Street

Livengood noted that the Main Street project took longer than scheduled to complete, and was an inconvenience, but the final product turned out very nice.

The work completed last year included downtown streetscape enhancements.

When traveling west on Main Street, there is a gateway, or portal that includes one monument on each side of the street. That portal separates the residentially zoned district from the B-1 downtown businesses district.

There also is a wall on the south side of the road between McKinley Avenue and Church Street to screen out county parking lots. There were new sidewalks, with a foot-wide colored stamped stripe, installed on both sides of Main Street from McKinley Avenue to Washington Avenue.

Independence Drive

The project also included stamped concrete crosswalks, new benches and planters.

Excerpt from:
Mayor: 2013 Successful Year for City

With two photographs, Bill Norris can show the benefit of native grass plantings in his south Lincoln neighborhood.

One picture shows muddy-looking water running off the street and into a drain. The other photo shows clear water coming from a pipe.

The difference, said Norris, is likely the cleansing action of a stand of native grass planted in Aspen Greens, a housing area south of Pine Lake Road and west of 56th Street.

The Aspen Greens' stormwater management projectis a series of four earthen weirs, or ridges of soil that act like mini dams, and the native grasses planted between them. The project slows runoff, allowing more of it to soak into the ground.

In the future, under new rules being considered by the City Council, developers of larger projects in Lincoln would be required to install stormwater management structures to keep runoff from racing straight for the nearest stream and taking with it urban pollution such asdog poop, fertilizer and herbicidesfrom hundreds of yards.

Slow it down, spread it out and let it soak is the motto for producing cleaner runoff and thus cleaner streams and rivers.

The council is expected to vote Jan. 27 on the rules, which would apply to developers of projects that cover more than an acre.

But critics question the cost and challenge the science involved.

No one has studied the effects on water quality of bigger detention and retention ponds, weirs and stands of grass or permeable paving, says Mark Hunzeker, a Lincoln attorney who represents area developers.

The inability to measure specific effects of these structures is part of the reason the federal government hasn't set nationwide standards, Hunzeker said.

The rest is here:
Proposed runoff rules not water under the bridge