
Jeff Roesler, Ph.D., P.E., offers comments before presenting the ISCP Honorary Member award to Juan Pablo Covarrubias Torres, Sr. (Photo: ISCP.)
With attendance at or above record levels, the 11th International Conference on Concrete Pavements (11th ICCP) was a success on many levels. The conference drew an estimated 400 professionals from 26 countries, with participants representing industry, owners/agencies, and academia.
“This is the premier international conference on concrete pavements,” said Leif Wathne, P.E., ACPA Executive Vice President and chairman of the conference organizing committee, adding, “It’s also a great forum for relationship building and collaboration.”
Organized by the International Society for Concrete Pavements (ISCP), the conference was held August 28 through September 1, 2016 in San Antonio. The event was held in conjunction with the National Concrete Consortium (NCC) Fall Meeting.
Tech Transfer and Education
One of the hallmarks of the event is its tech transfer and education program. The event included more than 110 poster and podium presentations, 11 workshops, exhibitor displays, and field trips. As with the previous international conferences, the focus of the 11th ICCP was on concrete pavement design, construction, and rehabilitation. Wathne explained that the event included a special session presented exclusively in Spanish. The session reflects the international membership of the organization, Wathne said.
Awards and Recognitions
Another highlight of the event was the formal induction of Ing. Dr. Juan Pablo Covarrubias Torres, Sr., as an ISCP Honorary Member. Covarrubias was recognized for more 40 years of development of concrete pavement technology in Latin America. He also was recognized for his academic contributions as Professor of Engineering at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile and the Universidad de los Andes. He also collaborated in the formation of the ISCP in the late 1990s and served on its board of directors for several terms.
In addition to the robust education and training forums, the ICCP event also included a student poster session (with 26 student posters), social networking events, and gala awards ceremony at Knibbe Ranch. The following awards were presented:
- Frank McCullough Award for Best Student Poster to Moinul I. Mahdi, Louisiana State University, “Construction and Performance Evaluation of Roller Compacted Concrete under Accelerated Testing.”
- Bengt Friberg Award for Best Paper by a Young Author to Sushobhan Sen and Jeff Roesler, Ph.D., P.E., University of Illinois for the paper, “Albedo as an Engineering Property of Concrete Pavements.”
- Eldon J. Yoder Outstanding Paper Award to James W. Mack, P.E., CEMEX*; Leif G. Wathne, P.E., ACPA; and Feng Mu, Ph.D., CEMEX for the paper, “Improving Network Investment Results by Implementing Competition and Asset Management in the Pavement Type Selection Process.”

Participants had the opportunity to tour the oldest concrete street in Texas (left), which is shown with a core sample atop (right). (Photos: ISCP and Leif Wathne.)
Other activities included two optional field trips including a tour of the Capitol Cement* plant and Belknap Street, Texas’ oldest concrete pavement, as well as a tour of a local steel plant.
Wathne said another highlight of the event was a very moving tribute to B. Frank McCullough, Ph.D., Emeritus Professor of Transportation Engineering at The University of Texas – Austin; Director for the Center for Transportation Research at The University of Texas; and co-founder of the consulting firm Austin Research Engineers, according to the ISCP website. He was also involved (with his son) in the formation of The Transtec Group*, and served as a consultant to the firm for many years. McCullough was known and respected for his expertise and his role as a teacher and advisor.
The tribute, presented during the event’s plenary session, was moderated by Andrew Wimsatt, Ph.D., P.E., Texas Transportation Institute. Presenters included John Hodgkinson, Grad. Dip., Pavement Consultant; Michael I. Darter, Ph.D., P.E., Applied Research Associates*; David Pittman, Ph.D., U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center; and David W. Fowler, Ph.D, University of Texas at Austin.
The conference is held every four years and carries on the tradition of a series of international conferences begun in 1977 by Purdue University, and now organized by ISCP.
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* ACPA member company.