JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A four-story apartment building under construction on Jacksonville’s Southside burned to the ground before dawn Sunday morning in a fire that kept the eastbound lanes of Baymeadows Road blocked at Interstate 295 all morning.
Flames from the Fusion Apartment at Baymeadows being built along Baymeadows Road East spread to woods but the fire was stopped before it could spread into the neighboring Hampton Park neighborhood.

​A man built his vacation home in the fire zone, and when the Thomas Fire blazed through, it reached his property. But it didn't burn it down. He says it's due to his fire-resistant design and materials, and officials are saying it's the way to go.

As Woolsey Fire victims start to rebuild their homes, fire experts say they need to rethink how they rebuild. And maybe they should be doing it the way Jeremy wolf did — rebuilding with specific materials to prevent their home from burning down in a future fire.
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"It’s a beautiful place to spend time," said Jeremy Wolf about his weekend home in Ojai Valley. He built the house five years ago, and knew he had to rebuild wisely.
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Read more: https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/fire-proof-home-california-wildfires-ojai-valley-thomas-fire/82278/

​Tanner Brooks, a young concrete mason for an outfit based in the Phoenix area knows he has it good. Even as an apprentice, he's likely making more money than his former schoolmates and he has no student loan debt. He's also just 19 years old. "It allowed me to pay for my own vehicle, my own place to live, and I live comfortably," Brooks said. "I don't struggle all." He also didn't struggle to find his job. In fact, he says construction companies were calling him while he was in school, when he started working as an apprentice before he ever graduated. Numbers recently released by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) show the Phoenix metro area added nearly 14,000 construction jobs from March 2018 to March 2019. But it's not just Arizona -- it's nationwide. To read more, click here.

PCA report delves resilient construction at big picture, granular levels
Published: Thursday, 09 May 2019 10:13 Written by Concrete News

A new PCA report presents historical data, evidence from external sources, and structural material comparisons supporting the premise: Cast-in-place or precast concrete, or concrete masonry construction methods lead to longer lasting buildings owing to their ability to stand up to normal wear and tear plus resistance to extreme weather events.
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“The Real Value of Resilient Construction” addresses design, engineering and life cycle criteria for owners and lawmakers or officials behind policy affecting public or private building design. "U.S. taxpayers cannot afford to continue building and rebuilding the way we did in the past. Strong, robust structures ensure community continuity and provide long lasting value for scarce taxpayer dollars," says PCA CEO Michael Ireland—emphasizing a position the industry has held as Congress and government agencies take stock of escalating post-disaster costs rooted in sub-par construction. 

Read more==> http://concreteproducts.com/news/11697-pca-report-delves-resilient-construction-at-big-picture-granular-levels.html#.XN2r2XdFxPa 

​The Masonry Association of Florida BLOCK-toberfest event was on Friday, October 26, 2018 at the Maschmeyer Concrete Company of Florida Debary block plant with Block Strong as a sponsor. Troy Maschmeyer, Steve Bishop, Donna Hinson and Matt Sitter are pictured alongside legislators Rene Plasencia and Stockton Reeves.

September 8, 2018 - Orlando, FL
The Masonry Association of Florida (MAF) held its annual Masonry Apprentice competition and Fastest Trowel on the Block competition on Saturday, September 8, 2018 at the Florida’s Best Block plant in Orlando, Florida.
The following apprentices were found to be the best in the state:
1st Year Apprentice Winners:
·        3rd Place - Dominic Lindsey – MCAF - K & D Construction
·        2nd Place - Tyler Austin - Central FL - Trinity Contractors, Inc.
·        1st Place - Ruddy Alvarez - Central FL - Trinity Contractors, Inc.
2nd Year Apprentice Winners:
·        3rd Place - Wildy Lozandier - SE Chapter - Coastal Masonry
·        2nd Place - Ruben Ramirez - SWFL MAF - Westcoast Structural
·        1st Place - Randall Pepevnik - MCAF - Pardue Masonry
3rd Place Apprentice Winners:
·        3rd Place - Jabari Francis - SE Chapter -Coastal Masonry
·        2nd Place - Jake Franklin - MCAF - E.L. Shearer C & M
·        1st Place - Kenny Tilghman - MCAF - Billy G & L Masonry
In addition to bragging rights, the winners were awarded cash prizes and our generous sponsors donated tool bags full of masonry tools to the winners.  

The MAF's Fastest Trowel on the Block, with six Florida teams competing, was also held on Saturday, September 8 at Florida's Best Block in Orlando.  

The team from Pascal Robertson Masonry, Inc.,  Irvin Willoughby (Mason) and Lawrence Singleton (Tender) took home the grand prize and the opportunity to represent Florida at the MCAA's Fastest Trowel on the Block national competition held in Las Vegas in early 2019.

The other winning teams were:

• 2nd Place - Chris Carlton (Mason) and Germaine Velasquez (Tender) - Capital Concrete & Masonry Solutions, Inc. 
• 3rd Place - Victor Leal (Mason) and Jonathon Smith (Tender) - Victory Masonry, Inc.

All of the winners were honored at the Saturday night MAF Masonry Excellence Banquet.  Congratulations to all who participated and thank you to all of our very generous sponsors!