The 2019 ACPA Education Conference proved to be another big success, as the concrete pumping industry gathered to learn, network and see the newest in equipment and technology. With the recurring theme of “Pumping Knowledge into Your Business,” this year’s conference was held Oct. 6-7 at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, Florida.
According to various sources, Reptile strategy has taken the plaintiffs’ bar by storm. This is at least in part because Reptile theory asserts that you can prevail at trial by speaking to—and scaring—the primitive part of jurors’ brains, commonly understood as the part of the brain they share with reptiles.
On March 21, 2019, the ACPA’s two-year exemption from the federal Hours of Service (HOS) requirement that commercial drivers take a 30-minute off-duty break after eight hours of work expired. ACPA applied for a five-year renewal of its exemption from the 30-minute break requirement in September 2018. However, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) incorrectly assumed that concrete pumpers did not need the 30-minute break exception after FMCSA granted ACPA a two-hour extension to the HOS short- haul exemption* in November 2018.
This past April 9th and 10th, a delegation of ACPA members traveled to Washington, D.C. to attend the 2019 Cement and Concrete Fly-In sponsored by the Portland Cement Association (PCA). In all, there were over 140 attendees representing various sectors of the concrete industry who participated in the opportunity to discuss key issues that impact the concrete and cement industries with many top federal officials and congressional offices.
