Overview

The 2014 Annual Meeting will be held Feb. 2–5 at the Boca Raton Resort & Club in Boca Raton, Fla. More details will be available soon.

High Marks for NAPA Annual Meeting

NAPA's 58th Annual Meeting drew nearly 825 people to Scottsdale, Ariz., including 58 first-time attendees, for high-level discussions and educational sessions critical to the future of the asphalt pavement industry. The meeting began with the passing of the gavel from outgoing Chairman Kurt Bechthold of Payne & Dolan to 2013 NAPA Chairman John Keating of Oldcastle Materials Co. Bechthold highlighted NAPA’s pivot from the fumes issue to the development of the Pavement Economics Committee during the past year, and Keating set the tone for the meeting with a call for companies across the industry to work together to protect and grow asphalt’s share of the pavement market. 

A highlight of the meeting was business guru Jim Collins, who outlined his findings about how great companies survive and grow despite challenges beyond their control. Collins then led a roundtable discussion of industry CEOs who shared thoughts on their companies’ values and management philosophies. Also, leadership expert Alison Levine mesmerized the audience with her lessons learned from organizing expeditions to the top of Mount Everest and their applicability to business.

General sessions also covered the current legislative climate in Washington, D.C., and energy trends and their effect on asphalt supply. Educational breakout sessions covered everything from rubber- and polymer-modified binders, workplace safety, and pavement economics to public-private partnerships, marketing strategies, and high-RAP mixes.

NAPA extends a big thank you to the sponsors who helped make the Annual Meeting possible: Astec Inc., BLS Enterprises Inc., Carbolite Ltd., Caterpillar Inc., Cold Mix Manufacturing Corp., Dynapac USA, Ergon Asphalt & Emulsions Inc., Gencor Industries Inc., Hauck Manufacturing Co., Heavy Construction Systems Specialists Inc. (HCSS), Kenco Engineering Inc., The Lane Construction Corp., LB Performance, LeeBoy Inc., Oldcastle Materials Co., PQ Corp., Roadtec Inc., Shell Oil Products US, Volvo Construction Equipment, Vulcan Materials Co., and Wirtgen America.