Off to a Good Start

In my December 2023 column I told you that we at the Association of the Wall and Ceiling Industry had “big plans” for 2024, and here we are in March with two big announcements already having been made. We are off to a good start.

First, in early January, our new website (awci.org) made its debut. If you love the look of this magazine, and we know you do, then you are going to feel the same about the look of the new website. That’s because Craig Wood, our award-winning design/graphics mastermind who makes this magazine look so good, had a heavy hand in the final layout and design of the website. Site visitors will quickly realize how AWCI’s new modern-looking, friendly setup is the reason why so many people come to awci.org for industry information and education.

Second, AWCI’s popular EIFS—Doing It Right® education program has been revamped and updated in the recently introduced second edition. Not only has the content been updated—it now references the 2024 international building codes, but the entire learning experience has been enhanced. In the article that starts on page 32, AWCI’s education director spells out all the changes. Note that AWCI’s Don Allen’s “Codes & Standards” column (page 20) is a complement to this feature article. And of course all your questions can be answered by going to the Education tab on awci.org.

Site visitors will quickly realize how AWCI’s new modern-looking, friendly setup is the reason why so many people come to awci.org for industry information and education.

As this issue is going to be given to every attendee at Build24: AWCI’s Convention + Expo at the end of this month, it is only fitting that we went to some of our members for their thoughts on the other two feature articles in this issue. Because I am also very involved with AWCI’s awards program, which includes an award for construction quality, I know what our members our can do. So I thought it would be interesting (and fun!) to ask about the best project our members ever tackled. The result? AWCI members never disappoint me. See what I mean by going to page 26.

Then we home in on Iowa’s Tri-State Drywall in our AWCI member spotlight story on page 44. Tri-State Drywall is a small company that has no fear of large projects, and I consider this company’s president, Jerry Reicks Jr., to be a friend. Similar to how I described his company, I would say Jerry is not an imposing presence on first sight (he is incredibly amicable and interesting), but you soon realize that he is also very intelligent, fair and vocal when he needs to be. Knowing this, read this spotlight article to see how his company, now incorporating the next generation, Jerry III, is relying on its long history to propel itself into the future.

I mentioned that this issue will be distributed at Build24, so I want to close by saying I hope to see you there. I look forward to visiting with members and soon-to-be members. Let’s make some memories!