2025 Award Winners and Nominees
Project Name
New York State DOT Gives Glass SCMs the Green Light and Specifies Low Carbon Concrete for a $21.2M Southern Tier Bridge Replacement
Description
NYSDOT Gives the Green Light:
There's a secret in recycling; it often doesn't work, at least not in the way we usually think. According to the EPA, 7.55 million tons of glass end up in landfills each year due to paper, plastic, and metal contamination.
In 2024, the New York State Department of Transportation partnered with ready-mix provider Barney & Dickenson and specified glass SCMs for a $21.2M bridge and infrastructure project in Whitney Point, simultaneously solving the biggest recycling and concrete industry challenges.
Construction Begins in Whitney Point:
The defining feature of this project was the use of glass SCMs in over 1,000 yards of concrete, diverting 106 tons of glass from our local landfill and preventing 72 tons of CO2 emissions.
The bridge carries U.S. Route 11 over the Tioughnioga River in the Village of Whitney Point, servicing 11,000 vehicles every day. The project also included critical safety upgrades to the Village's main corridor, including 1.5 miles of ADA-compliant sidewalks and new crosswalks at the Whitney Point Middle School.
Federal, State, and Local Support:
Support for the project came from all levels of government, including representatives from the EPA and the Department of Energy traveling to Whitney Point for the commencement.
The project marks the first time in nearly 10 years that the NYSDOT has accepted a new SCM, and it was one of the first times they specified a novel technology to improve performance engineered mix designs.
NYSDOT's ability to achieve outstanding performance with glass SCMs was featured in Concrete Products Magazine, FHWA Public Roads, Roads and Bridges, EPA Science Matters, and numerous local news sources.
NYSDOT gives Klaw Pantheon glass pozzolan the green light
https://concreteproducts.com/index.php/2024/08/12/nysdot-gives-klaw-pantheon-glass-pozzolan-the-green-light/
Turning Waste into the Next Generation of Concrete
https://highways.dot.gov/public-roads/winter-2025/06
Recycled Glass: EPA-Funded Technology Provides a Renewable Alternative to Concrete in New York
https://www.epa.gov/sciencematters/recycled-glass-epa-funded-technology-provides-renewable-alternative-concrete-new
Clarkson University Startup Earns NYSDOT Approval
https://www.clarkson.edu/news-events/clarkson-university-startup-earns-nysdot-approval
NYSDOT’s Strategic Move
https://www.materialmatters-digital.com/ncmb/0224_fall_2024/MobilePagedArticle.action?articleId=2003851#articleId2003851
Evidence
How a Local Ready-Mix Company Set the Foundation:
Barney & Dickenson was the leader in this project, and their adoption of glass SCMs inspired NYSDOT to begin deploying high-performance, low-carbon concrete in Whitney Point.
The story begins in 2021 when Tim Ruffo from Barney & Dickenson met with two college students who recently founded KLAW Industries and decided to be the first person to test their glass SCM. It ended up working, improving strength by 11% over slag. Over the next 3 years, Tim brought glass SCMs to residential projects, commercial contractors, and full-scale municipal sidewalks with the City of Binghamton.
Small-Town Innovations:
NYSDOT Engineer Ray Standish heard about the new SCM hitting the streets in Binghamton and went to Tim. Trials began shortly after, resulting in KLAW Industries glass SCM being added to the State's approved list in January 2024.
When NYSDOT specified glass SCMs in the Whitney Point project, Tim took the opportunity to lead mix integration, making Barney & Dickenson the first ready-mix provider to bring a new SCM to a performance-engineered mix design in New York.
Game-Changing Results at Scale:
Whitney Point would become the proving ground for glass SCMs as the first state-funded infrastructure project using the material.
Tim's optimization in trials led to record-breaking resistivity results of 3x design spec at 63 kOhm-cm at 56 days. Strength results averaged above 7,000 PSI on the 4,000 PSI design mix, with cylinders reaching over 8,000 PSI. Glass SCMs sourced from local curbside recycling replaced 20% of cement content, preventing over 140 lbs of CO2 per yard.
The rapidly moving project required support from all levels of Barney & Dickenson. Vinny Carlucci led batching operations, managing the full-scale use of new SCMs in one of the highest-profile low-carbon concrete projects in the State. President Mary Murphy Harrison was critical in making the project possible, diverting her full effort to becoming the primary supplier of low-carbon concrete in New York.
The Future of Concrete for Transportation Infrastructure:
Tim, Mary, Vinny, and the entire Barney & Dickenson team worked with NYSDOT to bring glass SCMs to state contracts, the first ready-mix company to achieve that feat.
With successful results from Whitney Point, the second NYSDOT project using glass SCMs is underway with a new retaining wall installation in partnership with Barney & Dickenson and KLAW Industries.
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