Torrington, CT, March 15, 2023: Build With Strength, an initiative of the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association (NRMCA), recently celebrated industry innovators at the 2023 Concrete Innovation Awards in Las Vegas, NV. Winners were selected by a panel of judges for their commitment to improving the resilience, performance, and sustainability of concrete.
Two Connecticut innovators received awards; Urban Mining Industries in Beacon Falls and the new Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s West District Headquarters, currently under construction in Black Rock State Park in Watertown.
Urban Mining Industries was acknowledged with an Innovative Product Award for Pozzotive®, a ground glass pozzolan made entirely from recycled waste glass that can reduce the embodied CO2 in concrete by up to 40 percent.
“Pozzotive takes a problematic recyclable – post-consumer waste glass, the majority of which has headed to overburdened landfills – and creates a low-carbon solution for concrete that actually makes it better. Concrete with Pozzotive is not only reducing CO2, it is proven to be stronger, longer lasting and more resistant to the elements, a perfect solution for today’s sustainable building and infrastructure projects,” explained Lou Grasso Jr., LEED AP, Inventor, and a Managing Partner for Urban Mining Industries.
Pozzotive has been part of sustainable solutions achieved in other CT projects such as the New Canaan Library, Ox Ridge School, Torrington High School, and ESPN’s Digital Center 2. Concrete with Pozzotive can also be found in NY Metro area projects like the United Nations Plaza, the Second Avenue subway stations, and the new JP Morgan Chase global headquarters, the largest net-zero emissions building in New York City.
The new DEEP West District Headquarters in Black Rock State Park received an Innovative Project Award for being the first net-zero and LEED Platinum building built by the State of Connecticut. Contributing to the maximum sustainability of this project was the use of concrete with Pozzotive ground glass pozzolan. O&G Industries, an NRMCA member, supplied the concrete on the project, using a mix that replaced 40 percent of the cement with Pozzotive.
“DAS is delighted the DEEP West District HQ at Black Rock State Park has received this award for using glass pozzolans in the concrete mix. As a result of this project, DAS now requires the use of glass pozzolans in all our projects due to the reductions in embodied carbon, other strength, and plasticity characteristics, without any cost impact,” said David Barkin, Chief Architect, Director of Operational and Process Planning, Real Estate and Construction Services for the CT Department of Administrative Services.
“Rarely do we have an opportunity to specify materials that have such a profound impact on the reduction of Global Warming Potential without a premium in cost, impact to schedule, or challenges with constructability,” explained Michael Fortuna, AIA, Principal of TLB Architecture. “With Pozzotive Ground Glass pozzolan, we were able to realize the enhanced sustainability of low embodied carbon concrete, without compromising in other areas.”
About O&G Industries, Inc.: O&G Industries, Inc. (O&G) is Connecticut’s largest privately held construction company, serving as General Contractor, Construction Manager, Design/Builder, and Specialty Sub-Contractor with a century of experience in the commercial building, power plant, road, and bridge, and site construction. The company serves clients in educational, healthcare, industrial manufacturing, transportation, power, and municipal markets throughout the U.S., with a focus on environmental sustainability. O&G is Connecticut’s top construction manager for school construction projects, completing more than 300 projects to date. As a fourth-generation, family-owned company, it is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2023. O&G is headquartered in Torrington, CT. For more information, visit ogind.com.
About Urban Mining Industries: Urban Mining Industries produces Pozzotive®, a ground glass cement replacement made from post-consumer glass. It is a proven, safer, sustainable, and higher-performing material that can dramatically reduce the embodied CO2 emissions in concrete by up to 40% while providing a large-scale solution to the ongoing challenges that waste glass creates in our recycling stream. The company operates a full-scale production facility in Beacon Falls, CT, and is actively pursuing new markets in which to expand. For more information, visit www.pozzotive.com
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