Gleason Award Winners
2020 Winners
Business Continuity
Winner: Kirk McDonald,
Vice President Cement Technical Services
CalPortland
Kirk has been the Chair of PCA’s Product Standard and Technology Committee’s Limestone/Harmonization Task Group (LSHTG) for more than a decade. The group leads guidance to state communication teams for all the Departments of Transportation, providing background on changes in ASTM and AASHTO specifications. These teams succeeded in speeding the acceptance of the change to permit portland cements to contain up to 5% limestone. Currently the task group is working to communicate the creation of a lower embodied carbon cement, namely portland-limestone cement (PLC), containing between 5% and 15% limestone content.
Market Development
Winner: Steve Wilcox
Cement Technical Director
Argos USA
Steve has been the Chair of PCA’s Product Standards and Technology for the past 4 years and is very active at ASTM, Chairing Subcommittees ASTM C01.10 on Hydraulic Cements and C09.27 on Slag Cement, and is an influential member of the highly-regarded Joint AASHTO-ASTM Harmonization Task Group. All these activities have been important in ensuring that specifications are revised to respond to the practicalities of the marketplace. Steve has been influential in assuring that the market is prepared to accept changes in cement processes that continue to occur. One success has been the market acceptance in the State of Florida where the specifications now accept bag house dust as inorganic processing additions in cement. Another, and even greater, success was the acceptance of portland-limestone cement by the Florida DOT (among other states).
Young Leaders
Winner (tie): Allyson Tombesi
Environmental Engineer
Titan America
Allyson lead Titan America's Zero Waste campaign in 2020 to be the first LEED Platinum certified cement and aggregates company in the United States. Allyson's passion for the environment, sustainability, and the good of the cause is great example of a proactive, results oriented environmental stewardship. Allyson's True Advisor credentials, representation in the US Green Building Council (USGBC), and many local outreach programs, demonstrates her leadership not only in the workplace, but within her community. In addition to her many other responsibilities, Allyson also coordinates Titan's GHG recordkeeping/reporting and Sustainability 2025 initiatives.
Winner (tie): Eric Koehler
Director of Quality
Titan America
Eric is the current Chair of PCA’s Product Standards and Technology Committee Task Group on Cement Specifications ASTM C150/ASTM C595. Eric’s industry contributions include his activities in ACI Task Group 211-N. As an active chair, Eric oversaw the creation of a completely new ACI document in a remarkably short timeframe: “Guide for Proportioning Concrete Mixtures with Ground Limestone and Other Mineral Fillers.” This was a significant achievement and was necessary to provide proper background on those materials, which can be used as concrete ingredients, and distinguish them from portland-limestone cements (PLCs).
2019 Winners
Business Continuity
Winner: Curtis Lesslie
Vice President of Environmental Affairs
Ash Grove Cement Company
Curtis is a leader in the cement industry, and is especially well-known for his work on the PCA Environment and Energy Committee where he has served as Chair or Vice-Chair working on numerous environmental initiatives that benefit sustainability and continuity of cement manufacturing. Curtis has long worked with the Cement Kiln Recycling Coalition (CKRC) seeking regulations and enforcement that support the cement industry's use of alternative fuels. He has promoted information sharing and benchmarking between companies, supported PCA's OHS Committee as well as the PCA-MSHA (Mine Safety and Health Administration) alliance.
Market Development
Winner: David Gray
Market Manager
GCC of America
David has been a consistent example to industry professionals, not only internally at GCC, but also to competitors, customers, and industry associates on how promotion can be both a fun and rewarding experience. Working at the customer level, he has raised awareness of the potential gains for cement and concrete in a broad range of construction markets and helped companies and associations create successful promotion initiatives. His work promoting concrete overlays over existing asphalt parking lots resulted in the city of Thornton, CO overlaying the Thorncreek Golf Course 90,000 square foot asphalt parking lot with concrete and has been instrumental in educating decision makers in the industry on concrete overlays.
Young Leaders
Winner: Nathan Kimball
Vice President, Safety & Health
Lehigh Hanson Inc.
Nathan is an active member of PCA’s Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Committee and has distinguished himself with committee members and staff for his insights on safety issues. His work with Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) leaders through information exchange and engagement has helped advance the shared interests of the industry.
2018 Winners
Business Continuity
Winner: Steve Minshall
Corporate Director - Health & Safety
Ash Grove Cement Company
Through his roles at Ash Grove Cement Company and the PCA Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Committee, Steve has proven to be a strong safety leader implementing many programs and initiatives to reduce workplace injuries. He has served on the OHS Committee for the past two decades, including serving as Co-Chair between 2015 through 2018. Some examples of his contributions include the MSHA-PCA Alliance, where he has helped the committee and industry better work with regulatory partners to support the common goal of safety. Steve has been involved in support of specific regulatory issues such as the Portland Cement TLV challenge and the OSHA Hexavalent Chromium and Crystalline Silica rulemaking in recent years.
Market Development
Winner: Lori Tiefenthaler
Senior Director of Marketing
Lehigh Hanson Inc.
As Chair of the American Concrete Pavement Association (ACPA) in 2017, Lori successfully led efforts to improve the cooperative spirit and complementary missions of PCA, ACPA and NRMCA. The launch last year of PavementDesigner.org, a joint concrete paving design and marketing tool by the three associations, is one outcome of her leadership in this area. Lori served on the Executive Board for the National Concrete Consortium and has made certain that the industry is aware of what could be accomplished through the Center and its relationships with FHWA, State Highway Agencies, APWA, NACE, the cement and concrete industries and academia.
Young Leaders
Winner: Gina Lotito
Vice President, Energy & Environmental
GCC of America
Gina is an active volunteer and up-and-coming leader of the PCA Environment & Energy Committee, having served as Chair and Vice Chair of the Sustainable Manufacturing Subcommittee, and is a member of the Sustainable Development Committee. Gina has been active in promoting industry efforts to combust cleaner alternative fuels and leading PCA federal advocacy efforts for lowering barriers to the use of alternative fuels for the cement industry under the Non-Hazardous Secondary Materials Rule.
2017 Winners
Business Continuity
Winner: Daniel Nugent
Senior Vice President, Technical Services and Government Affairs
Buzzi Unicem USA
Over the past several years, Nugent has been a key contributor and valued spokesperson for the cement industry on a variety of regulatory and legislative challenges. He has faithfully and consistently served on a wide range of PCA committees, including the Environment & Energy Committee and Government Affairs Council. He has provided leadership, input, and insight into how the industry approaches important regulatory issues, as well as legislation focused on greenhouse gas emissions. He is a valuable asset in formulating key positions for the industry.
Market Development
Winner: Matthew Wood
Sustainable Products and Promotion Manager
Ash Grove Cement Company
Matt has distinguished himself at the national and local level in the promotion of concrete and other cement-based materials such as roller-compacted concrete and full-depth reclamation. He has been engaged in the PCA Sustainable Development Committee since its inception and became a LEED Accredited Professional to credibly voice the sustainable benefits of concrete applications. For decades he has been actively involved in local and regional promotion. He was instrumental in the establishment of the Northwest Cement Council and the newly formed Utah promotion group, for which he serves as secretary/treasurer.
Young Leaders
Winner: Ruben Guerrero Jr
Director of Corporate Affairs
Salt River Materials Group
Guerrero is a strong participant in PCA’s network of public policy and communications committees. He has served on the Government Affairs Council and Industry Communications Committee since 2013 and on the State Government Affairs Task Force since its formation in 2016. He is highly collaborative and engaging in discussions about how the industry will navigate important issues affecting the business of making cement – whether it’s legislative and regulatory policy affecting a single plant or managing public perceptions about the sustainability of the cement industry as a whole.
2016 Winners
Business Continuity
Winner: Michael Stevens
Senior Vice President and General Counsel
National Cement Company, Inc.
Stevens has long been a leader in working with both state and federal officials on environmental and regulatory issues affecting the cement industry. As part of the Government Affairs Council and Energy and Environment Committee, he helped negotiate the settlement agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency that revised the final NESHAP rule and reset the compliance date. He also serves on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. As a board member of the California Nevada Cement Association, he works with state agencies, legislators, and local government officials to establish the cement industry as a leader in sustainable manufacturing.
Market Development
Winner: Scott Palmer
Manager, Market Development
Salt River Materials Group
Palmer has been a tireless champion for the use of concrete wall systems in production homebuilding. During the past several years he has facilitated a partnership with Meritage Homes and Hercuwall, which has led to a large-scale pilot project in Goodyear, Arizona. The result is that for the first time ever a major national home builder is offering a concrete wall system for the same price as wood. In addition to the Meritage partnership, he worked with Habitat for Humanity Central Arizona to build their first negative energy concrete home, which was showcased on tour during the 2009 Greenbuild Convention in Phoenix. He co-founded the Smart Home Alliance to promote sustainable, energy-efficient residential concrete wall construction and is a founding board member of the Green Builder Coalition.
Young Leaders
Winner: Scott Nielson
Corporate Environmental Manager
Ash Grove Cement Company
As a member of several PCA committees, Scott Nielson is an active volunteer who serves as co-chairman on PCA’s Energy and Environment Technology Subcommittee. Nielson has direct responsibility for environmental compliance at Ash Grove Cement Company’s midwestern cement and quarry operations. He has taken a leadership role in CEMS implementation as well as DAS implementation within the company. he has presented at several technical conferences including the IEEE-IAS/PCA Cement Conference in 2014, and he is involved in planning the IEEE West Coast conference.
2015 Winners
Bill Larson
Vice President, Marketing CalPortland Company
PCA activities: Co-Chair, Sustainable Development Committee, MIT Industry Advisory Council, PCA Northwest Region
Category: Business Continuity
Bill continues to be an effective advocate for the use of portland cement and concrete in all aspects of government. His passion for advancing PCA’s sustainability goals is contagious. As a leader in the region, he has influenced state agencies, legislators, and local government officials to adopt policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions with rigid pavement. Through his work with the California EPA and the California Air Resources Board (CARB) the cement industry has maintained its strategic position as an environmental leader. He developed relationships with California’s department of transportation, encouraging them to implement MIT’s pavement vehicle interaction model in real-world conditions; to consider true LCCAs as defined by MIT; and to adopt an AD/AB policy that makes concrete pavement a financially viable solution. Bill’s untiring efforts to promote the industry make him a valuable asset on the boards of the California Nevada Cement Association and PCA Northwest Region.
Jim Mack
Director, Market Development, CEMEX USA
PCA Activities: Paving Committee
Category: Market Promotion
Jim has been a critical component in PCA paving advocacy efforts. His research and analysis has been integral to past and on-going life cycle assessment and life-cycle cost analysis research, the integration of MIT Concrete Sustainability Hub work into advocacy, and the melding of technical engineering aspects with financial aspects. Time and time again, Jim has been an industry representative at meetings with such agencies as the White House’s Office of Management and Budget, the Federal
Highway Administration, state departments of transportation, and the U.S. Government Accountability Office to illustrate concrete’s LCCA benefits. He is also active in sending the message to local advocacy arenas.
Adam Swercheck
Director, Environmental Affairs, Buzzi Unicem USA, Inc.
PCA Activities: Clean Air Support Subcommittee, Environment and Energy Technology Subcommittee, Environment and Energy Regulatory Development Subcommittee, Environment and Energy Water and Solid Waste Subcommittee, Environment and Energy Subcommittee, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Environment and Energy Data, Government Affairs Council, Environment and Energy Committee
Category: Young Leader
During the past several years, Adam has made significant contributions towards the development of industry positions and issues related to the PC MACT, NHSM, and CISWI rules and has been instrumental in contributing to successful advocacy with EPA for necessary revisions. Likewise, Adam was one of a handful of PCA representatives working with EPA through the
Energy Subcommittee to provide input to their ENERGY STAR® program as it underwent revisions to its cement sector certification process and established a new finish mill energy benchmarking program. Adam’s collective contributions have demonstrated his commitment to serving the better interest of the Industry. He has gained significant recognition and respect from his peers within PCA and is increasingly looked to for leadership roles in the areas of Energy and Environment.
2014 Winners
Jacqueline Clark, APR, Fellow PRSA
Director of Communications and Public Affairs, Ash Grove Cement Company
Category: Business Continuity
Jackie led teams in Kansas and Oklahoma to resolve important taxation and transportation issues. In Kansas, her team helped pass legislation to remedy a property tax issue with the support of the Boilermakers, three chambers of commerce, and members of the plant’s Community Advisory Committee. In Oklahoma, she worked with a multi-industry coalition to promote a positive resolution to a rail line ownership matter.
Tim Kuebler
Vice President, Florida Materials, Titan America LLC
Committees: Board of Directors, Federal Advocacy Committee, Government Affairs Council, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Paving Committee
Category: Market Promotion
Tim’s leadership expands well beyond his role as co-chairman of the PCA Paving Committee. Whether he is testifying in legislative forums or speaking with community groups, his mantra of people, planet, and profit for consideration of sustainable pavements is evident. Tim has championed regular sharing of best-practices among industry allies.
Corey Zollinger
Director Market Development & Paving Solutions, CEMEX
Category: Young Leaders
Corey is an energetic, passionate industry spokesperson for roller-compacted concrete pavements. He played a major role in organizing and obtaining financial sponsors for the very successful RCC paving demonstrations at the 2013 and 2014 World of Concrete. He was instrumental in the creation of the recently established Roller Compacted Concrete Pavement Promotion and Research Council with the mission to build awareness of RCC pavements and support research.
2013 Winners
Satish Sheth
Vice President, Environmental Affairs, CEMEX USA
Committees: Clean Air Committee, Government Affairs Committee.
Category: Business Continuity
As co-chair of the PCA Clean Air Committee, Sheth coordinated PCA's multi-faceted advocacy efforts to address the near-term clean air challenges of the portland cement national emission standards for hazardous air pollutants (NESHAP) and the commercial and industrial solid waste incinerator (CISWI) rules. During a two-year period, he manages a very complicated, multi-pronged regulatory, legislative and legal advocacy strategy, with multiple concurrent and overlapping actions and time-frames, such as developing regulatory comments while also preparing congressional legislation and testimony. The work on the NESHAP rule was rewarded with a favorable court decision followed by a settlement agreement with EPA which ultimately resulted in a new NESHAP rule with more favorable emission standards and more time for the industry to comply. Efforts to address the CISWI rule resulted in significant improvements to what was a very challenging rule when first finalized by EPA. He has now focused Committee efforts on defending EPA's new NESHAP rule and making a few more improvements to the CISWI rule.
Tom Chizmadia
Senior Vice President-Government Affairs & Sustainability, Lehigh Hanson Inc.
Committees: Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Communication Committee, the MIT Communications Group, the PAC Board, the Clean Air Committee, Sustainable Development Committee, the Energy and Environment Committee, and the Federal Advocacy Committee.
Category: Market Development
Tom's leadership touches nearly every aspect of cement industry and association initiatives. As co-chair of the MIT Industry Advisory Committee and former chair of the Mercury Advisory Task Group, he helped craft both a governance and deployment strategy for the MIT Concrete Sustainability Hub. His work has made the research more responsive to industry needs, and his participation in PCA committees and task groups has helped integrate the results in both advocacy and promotion initiatives.
2012 Winners
Al Innis
Vice President of Quality & Product Performance Holcim (US) Inc.
Committees: PCA Product Standards and Technology Committee, PCA Board of Directors, Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Concrete Sustainability Hub, Green Concrete Science, Focus Group and Industry Task Group.
Category: Business Continuity
Al provided constant, unyielding efforts with the AASHTO/ASTM Harmonization Task Group to get limestone cements accepted for the last several years were vital to the final agreement. These changes to standards resulted in millions of dollars in savings per year to the cement industry. In addition, it provided an opportunity for manufacturers to producer greener cements with lower carbon footprints. Under his guidance as co-chair of the Product and Standards and Technology Committee, the industry came to consensus on the various issues surrounding limestone cements and was able to defend those positions in the standards arena.
Frank Craddock
Executive Vice President CEMEX, Houston, Texas
Committees: PCA Board of Directors, PCA Government Affairs Concil, Industry Advisory Council, PCA PAC Board and the PCA PAC Finance Committee.
Category: Market Development
Frank was instrumental in fostering the creation of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Concrete Sustainability Hub, which was established in 2009 with the goal of accelerating emerging breakthroughs in concrete science, and engineering and transferring that science into practice. Supported by PCA and the Ready Mixed Concrete Education and Research Foundation, Craddock coordinated the governance structure of The Hub and established an Industry Advisory Council of both cement and ready mixed concrete executives for the Hub. He also acted as this advisory group's first chairman.