Enviro-Line Concrete with Ryan Andre

Red Army Radio

This week on Red Army Radio, Francis sits down with Ryan Andre, Quality Control Manager at Tomlinson Ready Mix, to explore the world of concrete. Drawing from his 18 years of experience with the Tomlinson team, Ryan shares his journey in the industry, from his beginnings as a Quality Control Manager to the influence of his family on his passion for concrete.

Throughout their conversation, Francis and Ryan discuss the past, present, and future of concrete, highlighting its ubiquitous presence and daily usage around the world. They delve into the durability and sustainability of concrete, examining its lifecycle and sustainable production with local materials.

The discussion also covers the focus on low carbon-intensive mixes, exploring how they are created and how Tomlinson Ready Mix collaborates with customers to design mixes that meet specific project goals.

Episode Highlights:

· Ryan’s introduction and extensive background in the concrete industry

· The reasons why concrete is the preferred building material

· The locally sourced materials used in our mixes; all sourced within 400 km or less

· Sustainability in the concrete industry and Tomlinson Ready Mix's ongoing efforts to enhance sustainability

· The evolution of concrete mix designs from past to present

· An exploration of supplementary cementing materials

Key Takeaways:

“My families in it, my father was in concrete, my brothers in it, my wife's in construction”

“It's a byproduct of the steal – it becomes a bonus product for our concrete industry”

“Slag cement is the number one supplementary cementing material in Ontario”

“What we’re trying to do is lower that Global Warming Potential per cubic meter”

“There are certain elements you're pouring in a project that we can make quite a bit greener”

“You make an overall carbon budget to hit those targets, it’s the ideal way to do it”

“Upfront if you were to just visually look at the mix, you’re not going to see any difference”