Mason Contractors Lead Effort to Develop Volunteer Silica Work Practice

President’s Message

By G. Alan Griffin

In my last article, I wrote about a coalition meeting that the Mason Contractors Association of America (MCAA) was spearheading to develop a set of construction industry best practices to minimizing exposure to silica.

On June 22nd, 12 trade associations representing every major construction industry met to begin the process to develop a new standard that we believe will address the need for worker safety while recognizing the cost impact to industry to deal with this pressing concern. Several representatives from the Department of Labor and OSHA were on-hand to monitor our efforts.

I, for one, believe the magnitude of this meeting and the extensive representation from all of the trade associations showed a tremendous commitment to solve the problem with realistic solutions. Representatives from the American Road and Transportation Builders Association, American Subcontractors Association, Associated General Contractors of America, Association of Equipment Manufacturers, Brick Industry Association, Concrete Sawing and Drilling Association, Masonry and Concrete Saw Manufacturers Institute, National Association of Home Builders, National Concrete Masonry Association, National Ready Mixed Concrete Association, and Portland Cement Association joined MCAA in mapping out a set of goals and objectives to meet the challenge of developing a standard that OSHA can support in what I believe to be a very aggressive timeline. We challenged ourselves to have a rough standard developed by October of this year, which in my opinion is unprecedented but achievable.

We left the meeting with guidelines to get us all moving together to achieve our goals. While we may be as much as a year away from completing our work, I was excited about the progress we made in only a few hours together. I would like to thank MCAA members Jerry Painter of Painter Masonry, Mark Kemp of Superior Masonry Builders, Zach Everett of Brazos Masonry, Todd Lankford of Masonry Arts and Brian Delahaut of MK Diamond for making significant contributions to this meeting. Your efforts at this meeting were invaluable.

I was extremely pleased to see, firsthand, the influence and professionalism of the MCAA and particularly our staff in representing our industry's interests. Our Association has truly grown over the past few years and, as members, we should be proud to be a part of such a dynamic and effective trade association.

I encourage all of you reading this article to join the Mason Contractors Association of America. Currently, 17,000 of you receive this magazine, but only about 1,000 of you are members. It is a safe bet to say that you are probably not a member. I urge you to call us today and join. Considering the work we are doing to protect your business, the dues are the best deal in town.

We will fax you an application. You can download it from our web site (www.masoncontractors.org), or we can e-mail one to you. Join us today and lend your support. One new member can make a difference. One hundred new members can have an impact. One thousand new members can truly change our future. Call us today at 800-536-2225 or visit our web site.