Masonry Magazine June 1978 Page. 7
AN ANALYSIS OF ALL-WEATHER
MASONRY CONSTRUCTION
by Eugene George
MCAA President
From an Address At the 8th Annual Promotion Meeting of the International Masonry Institute, New Orleans, Louisiana, May 7-10, 1978.
You may wonder how All-Weather could possibly be meaningful in selling to your market place. Well, I must remind you that the masonry industry loses approximately $10 billion per year because of weather. Let me get a little closer to home. This past year was probably one of the worst winters that the United States has experienced in 25 years. Whether you were from Detroit, Boston, Chicago, Chattanooga or Houston, weather did affect you!
Historically, the masonry industry has been one beset by many interruptions. The most significant of its problems has been the most ancient-the weather. Our attempts to cooperate with, or control, this most incorrigible of business partners is my topic.
Not too long ago, in the greater part of this continent, it used to be that at the first sign of winter all masonry construction halted until spring-like conditions were assured. The sign of a heavy concentration of cloud cover with a chance of rain was also enough to effectively halt work. Then too, in summer, when the temperatures started crowding the 90-degree mark, there was still another reason to "pack it in." With this kind of bedfellow to be appeased, the mason only worked approximately 1,000 hours per year the equivalent of six months employment.
Cold Weather Masonry Guide Available
The results of the industry-wide research into all-weather construction techniques to which Mr. George refers in this article are contained in the book, Recommended Practice & Guide Specifications for Cold Weather Masonry Construction. More than 100,000 copies are in circulation. Now in its sixth printing, this definitive work was produced by the International Masonry Industry All-Weather Council. Single copies are available to MCAA Chapter members free of charge. Additional copies may be ordered for 60 cents each from the MCAA Executive Office.
In post-war years conditions began to change. Economics dictated to the tradesman that a six-month period was insufficient to maintain the productive capabilities and fiscal responsibilities required of him. So he himself began seeking a longer work year.
In the spring he worked in light showers or waited until conditions improved. In the heat of summer, protective sun hats or shade areas became the order of the day. The mason began pressing the fall and bundled up for the cold weather that was sure to come. He had now increased his work year to about 1,280 hours or approximately eight months.
However, there was still the most harsh of the seasons to conquer-winter-and the industry was still faced with a climate that was unfavorable to maintaining a constant work force or enticing young men into what was definitely a booming industry.
Competition within the industry and with other industries had become fierce with respect to the training and retraining of manpower. The construction industry was leap-frogging while manpower seemed to become its number one problem. And so, it had to seek a solution, which would incorporate some guarantee of working hours.
Because of ice, snow and cold winds, every fall the industry suffered a great setback in actual time worked and job progress achieved. Many governments recognized this, and in Canada, for example, on some federally sponsored projects, the government began to subsidize the inclusion of winter heating and enclosing methods: both to have the project completed within a reasonable timespan and also to provide some degree of continuous employment. It became a federal incentive to promote winter work.
In 1967 our own industry recognized the severity of the problem, and in Washington an International All-Weather team was set up. It was composed of the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Allied Craftmen, the Laborers International Union of North America, the Brick Institute of America, the Portland Cement Association, the National Concrete Masonry Association, and the Mason Contractors Association of America. Although recognized as individual bodies, never before had a common goal been the target of this now cohesive force. It included representatives of clay, brick and tile and concrete masonry together with mason contractors of America a combination of technical and practical people. Much discussion took