Chair's Message

The SCI Construction Materials Group was founded in September 1933 as the Road and Building Materials Group, our new name being adopted in the 1980s. The reason for this change of name was to reflect more accurately the general scope of the meetings.

Our activities are principally to provide events for our members and these include whole day, half-day and evening meetings, group visits and interactions with other organisations. Suggestions for topical events are always welcome and members are encouraged to send ideas for meetings to the Group Secretary or Chairman.

Our interests span all aspects of construction materials and practice, but two strong themes have lead to us establishing sub-committees to co-ordinate our events in Asphaltic and Bituminous Materials (the 'Black Top' sub-committee) and in Cement and Concrete (the 'White Top' sub-committee). Each sub-committee comprises experts from industry and academia and is responsible for the organisation of events in their respective subjects. In addition, we try to include a number of events each year which lie outside these subject areas, such as structural steel, glass, gypsum, structural ceramics and wood products. There are other topics which span these material divisions, such as advances in standards, codes of practice or analytical methods.

Many of our events are held in association with other organisations and we particularly acknowledge the contributions by and cordial relations with:

  • The Institute of Asphalt Technology
  • The Chartered Institution of Highways & Transportation
  • The Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining
  • The Institute of Concrete Technology

Through co-operation with these partners, we collectively ensure that a healthy balance and spread of topics is maintained throughout the year in each subject area.

As with all groups within SCI, our aim is to provide members with an interesting, timely and industrial relevant range of events over the year. Most of our meetings are topical; addressing areas of current interest or concern, yet we have had a number of very successful events taking a historical perspective on a subject. Our committee meetings are commonly held before or after events at the SCI headquarters in Belgrave Square.

Each summer, we organise a visit to a site of interest, some of which are listed here:

  • Ketton Cement Works at Ketton (near Peterborough)
  • Bison Concrete Plant at Iver (Bucks)
  • Sikh Temple at Southall
  • Shri Swaminarayan Mandir at Neasden
  • The London Eye and Millennium Bridge crossing the River Thames

At our Christmas meetings, we invite a guest speaker to present their thoughts on a largely non-technical subject of wide appeal. These are open meetings to which members are welcome to invite a guest and at which we enjoy seasonal drinks and mince pies. Topics in recent years have included:

  • The History of the London Underground
  • The Work of Sir Joseph Bazalgette on the Development of the London Sewer System in the 19th Century
  • The Development of Belgravia
  • Windsor Castle

Our annual general meeting is held in May, at which members and officers of the committee are elected and any major business of the group is considered. The AGM is open to all members and our 78th AGM will be held on 17 May 2012. Formally, election to this committee is for a period of twelve months (although members often serve longer, by re-election) with the Committee Chairman and Vice Chairman serving for two years. It has been our normal practice to elect the Vice Chairman to Serve as Chairman following their term of office.

The Chairman's Annual Report on the activities of the Group for each year together with the annual Hon. Treasurer's Report are presented at the AGMs. Each AGM is held on the same day as an ordinary Committee Meeting and an afternoon or evening Lecture in order to maximise attendance and interest in the Group's activities.

Education is an important aspect of the philosophy of the Construction Materials Group. We host a Young Researchers Forum periodically, the next to be at Belgrave Square in March of 2012 in association with the IoMMM. These are friendly meetings intended to allow postgraduate students and early-career industrial staff to present to an audience of their peers. Inquiries for this event should be sent to the Group Chairman.

In closing, it is important to remind group members that our activities will best serve their needs if we know what they are! Is there is a subject which you feel is important and likely to interest a number of your colleagues? If so, please let us know and on behalf of the Construction Materials Group, we look forward to seeing you at SCI in the coming year.

Prof Mark Tyrer
Chairman
Construction Materials Group