March 4, 2013 (Arlington, Va.) — For almost a decade, the Composites Growth Initiative (CGI) committees of the American Composites Manufacturers Association (ACMA) have promoted composites in new markets and expanded existing markets. For the first time, ACMA will celebrate the achievements of the CGI committees and share their plans for the future during the entire month of March 2013.
CGIs are establishing standards and specifications that encourage the use of composites in place of traditional materials – steel, aluminum, concrete and wood; creating market growth opportunities; and forming strategic alliances with industry leaders.
CGIs accomplishments in growing the market for composites include:
- Business Development
- Generated 70 business leads to ACMA member companies last year
- Met with Ford Motors on increased use of composites in automotive
- Presented to the Federal Highway Administration encouraging the use of composites in the U.S. crumbling infrastructure
- Technical Resources
- Updated the International Building Code to allow use of Fiber Reinforced Polymer FRP in interior and exterior construction
- Developed Life Cycle Inventory Data that will help open the green marketplace to composites
- Composites Visibility
- Exhibited for 13 years at the International Bridge Conference promoting TSC and rebar
- Launched websites to generate fresh business leads and educate end users
Next year will bring more innovations, more outreach and more business for CGI members. A few of the projects that CGI committees are working on include:
- Developing three ANSI standards and an industry guideline to encourage use of composites materials by engineers, architects, specifiers and OEMs
- Conducting outreach meetings with automotive and truck OEMs to mainstream expanded use in automotive market
- Creating a tool to help members conduct a Life Cycle Inventory to better position their products in the green market
- Producing a marketing toolkit for CGI members to promote composites and their business
More than 200 ACMA member companies are involved in the 12 CGI committees that comprise the Composites Growth Initiative. They are:
- Architectural Division
- Automotive Composites Alliance
- Corrosion Control Division
- Fiberglass Grating Manufacturers Council
- FRP – Rebar Manufacturers Council
- Green Composites Council
- High Performance Council
- International Cast Polymer Alliance
- Pultrusion Industry Council
- Press Molders Council
- Transportation Structures Council
- Utility & Communications Structures Council
CGI committees are only open to ACMA members. Current members should contact Jonathan Roberts, manager, Composites Growth Initiative, at jroberts@acmanet.org or 703-682-1653 for more information about getting involved in this market growth opportunity. For information about the benefits of ACMA membership, contact Paul Hirsh, director of membership, at phirsh@acmanet.org or 703-682-1665.
