The 4th International Conference on Construction Materials – Performance, Innovations and Structural Implications (ConMat’09) was held at the Nagoya Congress Center in Nagoya, Japan from Monday 24 to Wednesday 26 August 2009. The Conference was organized by Japan Society of Civil Engineers (JSCE), Japan Concrete Institute (JCI) and Canadian Society for Civil Engineering (CSCE). The conference was clearly a success, with 25 countries represented, 344 participants and 221 presentations given. The participants were notables from various fields including academic institutions, consultants, design and engineering firms, material suppliers, and students.

At the opening session on August 24, the participants were welcomed by Prof. Taketo Uomoto (Chair of the organizing committee, Shibaura Institute of Technology), Prof. Nemy Banthia (Co-chair of the organizing committee, University of British Columbia), Prof. Emeritus Kenji Sakata (President of JCI) and Prof. Toyoaki Miyagawa (Chairman of Concrete committee of JSCE).

Chair, Prof. T. Uomoto
giving welcome speech

Prof. T. Miyagawa
giving welcome speech

During the course of the conference, a total of twelve invited and keynote lectures were given by leading international researchers and engineers listed below.

- INVITED LECTURES -

1. Full-scale 3-D shake table tests on reinforced concrete building structures at E-Defense, Prof. Toshimi Kabeyasawa, The University of Tokyo, JAPAN
2. Current concrete construction industry in ASEAN-Countries, Prof. Ekasit Limsuwan, Chulalongkom University, THAILAND
3. Structural assessment of concrete structures damaged by fracture of reinforcing steels due to alkali-silica reaction, Prof. Toyoaki Miyagawa,Kyoto University, JAPAN
4. Design equations for debonding strains in FRP-strengthened concrete structures, Prof. Kenneth W. Neale,University of Sherbrooke, CANADA
5. Non-destructive testing of bridges, Prof. Herbert Wiggenhauser, BAM - Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing, GERMANY
6. Green projects:Example of a building and a bridge, Prof. Mahesh Tandon,Tandon Consultants Pvt Ltd., INDIA

Prof. Limsuwan (left) and Prof. Wiggenhauser (right) delivering invited lectures

- KEYNOTE LECTURES -

1. Research activity of JCI Technical Committee T C-075B: Autogenous healing in cementitious materials, Prof. Shin-ichi Igarashi, Kanazawa University, JAPAN
2. Maintenance for leakage due to cracking in concrete structures, Prof. Sang Keun Oh, Seoul National University of Technology, KOREA
3. Analysis of Roman Concrete Excavated from the Somma Vesuviana Archeological Site, Prof. Etsuo Sakai, Tokyo Institute of Technology, JAPAN
4. The current state and future prospects on environmental performance of concrete structures, Prof. Koji Sakai,Kagawa University, JAPAN
5. The mechanisms of brittle fracture of steel bar due to excessive ASR expansion of concrete, Prof. Kazuyuki Torii,Kanazawa University, JAPAN
6. Cross-national comparison of concrete materials and messages for the future - Results of international questionnaire survey Dr. Kazuo Yamada,Taiheiyo Cement Co., JAPAN

Technical sessions were held in seven parallel sessions during three days of the conference on topics ranging from materials, structural performance, properties of fresh and hardened concrete, durability, recycling/reuse and applications (Refer to the table shown below).

Along with the technical sessions, some interesting activities were added to the program for promoting information exchange among the participants. An extensive technical exhibition comprised of fourteen organizations and companies demonstrated advanced concrete technologies and recent developments. The exhibition was a useful opportunity for the participants to make new contacts during the coffee breaks. A distinctive program, especially for the students, was a tour of the famous historical and cultural place, Shirakawa-go, Gifu. During the tour, students also enjoyed the technical discussions with Prof. Keitetsu Rokugo (Vice-chair of the local organizing committee, Gifu University) and Prof. Banthia. Another tour was prepared for the participants, a technical tour of typical infrastructures and industrial facilities in Nagoya and the vicinity. In addition to the technical activities, a special event was prepared for spouses and accompanying persons: a tour for experiencing Japanese traditional arts and crafts. It was a pleasure for the organizers to share the fun time with all the participants.

Technical Tour

Student Tour

Accompanying Person's Tour

The banquet on Tuesday evening at the Hotel Grand Court Nagoya featured a multi-course dinner, and musical and Japanese traditional performance, Shishimai and Mochitsuki. This memorable evening was enjoyed by all, and Prof. Banthia introduced the plan for the next ConMat to be held in Canada.

Conference Banquet;
Prof. K. Sakata(left) and Prof. S. Nagataki(right)

During the closing session on Wednesday, Prof. Rokugo thanked the conference sponsors, JCI and the Kajima foundation and summarized the conference activities. Prof. Rokugo also gave a presentation of appreciation for the efforts of JSCE, JCI, and CSCE and those related to the organizing committee. The official web-site of ConMat’09 (http://www.jci-web.jp/conmat09/) is still active and　many photos taken at all opportunities during the conference are available. For those wish to know more about details of the conference program and activities, please visit the web-site. The next ConMat to be held in Canada will again bring together researchers, designers, and engineers from around the world to promote better understandings of our common and interesting subject, construction materials.