INDIANAPOLIS, IN — Steve Friess, Vice President of concrete operations at Milestone Contractors, LP, was named Chairman of the Board for the American Concrete Pavement Association (ACPA) at the organization's 59th Annual Meeting. Friess takes the helm at a time when the paving industry is poised to receive approximately $350 billion over five years in highway and bridge funding as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).

Under Friess' chairmanship, a significant focus of ACPA will be to continue progress on improving concrete's sustainability and resiliency. Concrete has proven durability on roadways and airfields across the nation, many of which have a lifespan of 50, 75, or even 100 years of service. Resilient concrete infrastructure can recover after a disruptive event, like flooding, reducing future reconstruction costs and societal costs associated with the inability to use the infrastructure during rescue, recovery, and rebuilding.

Friess will also help the association navigate several critical workforce challenges the concrete industry faces. "As an association and as individual employers, we must commit to formally training our workers and leaders, so they are positioned to have the ability to meet the upcoming demand," Friess said. "Certification, which is being increasingly specified for projects, is key."

Friess knows all about improvements to concrete products and pavements. With 35 years of industry experience, Friess has been instrumental in developing Heritage Construction + Materials expertise in concrete at Milestone Contractors. "We've enhanced our concrete offerings so dramatically that I'm proud to say we're the only concrete paving contractor in Indiana with accreditations in ASHTO R-18 and ASTM C1077 concrete testing lab," Friess said.

"One way I'll lead the charge at the ACPA is by working with the team to promote our success stories — especially stories about long-lived concrete roadways," Friess said.