We are pleased to announce we have received two Innovative Fiber Project of the Year (IFPY) Awards at this year’s World of Concrete (WOC) – the concrete industry’s largest event for building professionals. 

Presented by the Fiber Reinforced Concrete Association (FRCA), the IFPY Awards recognize distinguished projects that involve the specification and/or use of fiber-reinforced concrete (FRC) by a contractor, architect, engineer, facility owner or precaster. Evaluated by a panel of industry experts based on their innovative use of FRC and its value to advancing FRC within the concrete industry, the projects are assigned across five categories: micro-synthetic, macro-synthetic, steel, glass and natural fibers.

In the macrofiber category, Euclid Chemical won a first-place IFPY Award for supplying its TUF-STRAND SF synthetic macrofiber to the Tesla Gigafactory 5 project in Austin, Texas. With the goal of providing a durable, crack-resistant and cost-effective slab for years to come, TUF-STRAND SF was recommended to reinforce the slab and be used in replacement of conventional steel reinforcement. This project incorporated more than 8M ft² of floor and used 200,000 yd³ of fiber concrete.

In the microfiber category, Euclid Chemical won a second-place IFPY Award for supplying its new PSI Fiberstrand REPREVE 225 synthetic microfiber to a Tractor Supply Company project in Olive Branch, Miss. Used to mitigate plastic shrinkage cracks, PSI Fiberstrand REPREVE 225 is manufactured from plastic bottles. For every pound of PSI Fiberstrand REPREVE 225, up to 10 plastic bottles are diverted from landfills and instead used to reinforce concrete. For this project, nearly 3,000 bottles were diverted from landfill operations.

As part of this year’s WOC event, Euclid Chemical also:

• Sponsored a luncheon and forum, which was hosted by WOC360 and the American Society of Concrete Contractors (ASCC). The forum discussed how to prevent problems with concrete slabs when a project calls for a “green” floor by using more carbon neutral concrete mixes.
• Provided an educational seminar hosted by Euclid’s Business Development Manager Michael Weber, who discussed concrete floor topical treatments and resurfacing techniques.

In addition, Euclid donated a concrete sealer and webinar training package at the Concrete Industry Management (CIM) silent/live auction. Developed specifically to grow the concrete industry, the CIM program provides four-year bachelor’s degrees in concrete industry management to graduates at participating universities. To date, more than 1,500 individuals have graduated through the program, with an additional 400+ currently enrolled. 

This year’s auction helped support CIM programs at Middle Tennessee State University, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Texas State University, California State University – Chico, South Dakota State University and the CIM Executive MBA degree program, as well as funded various scholarships offered by organizations in the concrete industry.