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The Concrete Society Trust
Incorporating The Joe Peirce Concrete Technology Award Trust
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The Concrete Society Trust was established in 1965 with the broad remit of promoting and encouraging the use of concrete. Recently its main activity has been an annual awards competition for students studying a concrete related discipline, involving the assessment of research papers and theses. The Joe Peirce Trust was established in 1969, initially to provide an annual prize for the best candidate for the Advanced Concrete Technology (ACT) diploma. Later the Trust’s remit was widened and recently it has been awarding travel bursaries for students wishing to attend national and international conferences related to their field of study.
Both Trusts currently provide financial support for students to assist in their education and development in a subject area containing a strong element of concrete technology. However, in recent years the number of suitable candidates has fallen significantly. The Trustees of the two charities therefore agreed that combining the two into a single body with a combined portfolio of awards would be a more effective way of operating. This has now taken place, under the single banner of The Concrete Society Trust.
The new Trustees for the combined charity have agreed that awards should continue along the lines of those made by the original Trusts, but that the scope should be broadened to make them applicable to all stages of career development within the concrete industry. For example, funding to attend a conference will no longer be restricted to university students. Further extending the scope, support could be given to a concrete technician wanting to undergo further training. At all times, The Trust will look more favourably on applications for funding (both for training and for attending conferences) if the individual is receiving some support from his/her employer or from another source. Generally, any award will be provisional on the recipient providing something for The Concrete Society in return, such as an article for CONCRETE or giving a talk to the Regions and Clubs.
In summary, three types of award will be considered, as detailed below. All applications should be made to the Secretary to the Trust, at The Concrete Society or via e-mail.
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Travel Awards
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To contribute towards the cost of attending a National or International Conference related to concrete in general and to the applicants particular specialisation.
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Applications should give full details of the Conference and show how attendance will further the applicant’s specific expertise.
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Applications may be made at any time of the year, but at least 3 months prior to the event
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Successful applicants will be expected to submit a report on the Conference, suitable for publication in CONCRETE, within 3 months of attending.
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Further Education Awards
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To contribute towards the cost of undertaking an appropriate form of Further Education (e.g. attending a training course) related to the applicants particular concrete specialisation.
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Applications should give full details of the course and show how attendance will further the applicant’s specific expertise.
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Applications may be made at any time of the year, but at least 3 months prior to the start of the course.
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Technical Paper Award
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The Award will be for the best technical paper, thesis etc submitted to the Trust in a given Academic Year.
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Information about the Award will be placed on The Concrete Society’s web site and in CONCRETE and will be distributed via the Regions and Clubs.
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Notification of the intention to submit a paper/thesis must be made by the end of April in a particular year. The notification should include a brief summary of the contents of the paper/thesis so that the assessors can determine whether it comes within the scope of the Award.
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The completed paper/thesis should be received by the end of August.
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The winner of any Award will be expected to submit an article suitable for publication in CONCRETE, within 3 months of the Award being made.
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The Trustees reserve the right to not make an Award in a given year if there are too few submissions or if they are not of a sufficiently high standard.
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Clearly the Trust’s funds are limited and hence it is unlikely that awards in each category will be made each year. However, the Trustees very much hope that industrial Sponsors will see the benefits of the Awards and will provide financial support, thereby increasing the number of Awards that can be made
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