Fostering International Collaboration

9/2/2025

ACI has strong ties with allied organizations in Asia, and this year we celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Japan Concrete Institute (JCI) and the 20th anniversary of the Asian Concrete Federation (ACF). In July, I joined a group of ACI members in Japan to celebrate with JCI and to continue a tradition of ACI-JCI joint seminars that began 11 years ago.

JCI formed out of the ACI Japan Chapter in 1965 and shares ACI’s mission to advance concrete knowledge. I was honored to participate in the 60th anniversary celebration in Tokyo, Japan, alongside Professor Koichi Maekawa, President of JCI; Professor Caijun Shi, FACI, President of ACF; Professor Geon Ho Hong, President of the Korea Concrete Institute (KCI); and Milton King, President of the Taiwan Concrete Institute (TCI). It was a wonderful opportunity to meet new people and discuss common interests.

Presidents celebrate JCI’s 60th anniversary in Tokyo, Japan. From left: Caijun Shi, FACI, President of ACF; Maria Juenger, President of ACI; Koichi Maekawa, President of JCI; Geon Ho Hong, President of KCI; Milton King, President of TCI; and ACI Honorary Member Jenn-Chuan Chern, TCI.

Our partnership with JCI has thrived due to our joint seminars. The first ACI-JCI Joint Seminar was held in 2014 in Waimea, HI, USA. Since then, the event has alternated between the two countries, with the 7th JCI-ACI Joint Seminar held at the JCI Annual Convention in Morioka, Japan, in July 2025. This year’s joint seminar was organized by Tomohiro Miki from JCI and Keith Kesner, FACI, from ACI. Eight ACI representatives and eight JCI representatives presented on topics ranging from codes for seismic performance and existing structures to material innovations and sustainable solutions. We shared knowledge and practices common to our countries on building codes, concrete evaluation and repair, low-carbon concrete, and new technologies such as ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) and three-dimensional (3-D) printing. There is no adequate substitute for face-to-face sharing of knowledge to foster relationships, share ideas, and advance concrete knowledge!

Continued collaboration with JCI and similar organizations is instrumental to ACI’s strategic goal of engaging globally. To foster international interactions, the ACI Board of Direction recently established the International Speakers Committee, currently chaired by Julissa Hidalgo, to identify local ACI members to speak at conferences and events worldwide and to advise on symposia such as the ACI-JCI joint seminar. ACI is also expanding its International Affairs Department staff, led by Bernie Pekor. Ahmad Mhanna joined the department in 2018 to establish the ACI Middle East Regional Office in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Now, in 2025, ACI welcomed Zhu Liu as East Asia Regional Manager. In this role, Liu will work with chapters and organizations in East Asia to strengthen collaborations and provide support on the implementation of ACI codes, standards, and certification programs. Liu has been an active member of ACI for more than 20 years and has started in his new role enthusiastically as he joined our group in Japan.

We often hear that concrete is the world’s most used building material, which means that we need a global community to shape knowledge and practice. Building and maintaining relationships with our partners around the world will help us live up to our motto—“Always advancing.”

Maria C.G. Juenger

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