MARATHON, Wis. (October 4, 2002) – If you want to have a successful open house in the concrete and construction business, you need to open your doors wide and treat your customers to indepth plant tours, hot topic seminars and vendor demonstrations of the latest products advises Dave Reneson of County Materials Corporation.

That's exactly what the company's Prestress, Precast and Pipe Division in Roberts, Wisc. did on August 27th when they invited engineers, architects, agencies and prospects in for a look behind the scenes at County Materials's new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility. Reneson, general manager of the Prestress division in Roberts, says that the event has opened many new doors of opportunity for them. Guests represented over 40 firms, municipalities, state offices and manufacturers.

"When organizing an open house, be clear of your objectives," Reneson suggests. County Materials's goals were to educate their market, and show appreciation to valued customers. "After expanding and upgrading our facility we wanted to tell the industry about our increased capabilities. Showing them first hand was the best way to educate them about us."

Part of educating an audience is not being afraid to expose your operations. High-profile projects generate interest and help get your products into future projects. A narrated tour provided a unique opportunity to witness manufacturing of prestressed tunnel panels for the Hiawatha Light Rail Transit Line, a highly publicized transportation system linking prime locations throughout Minneapolis and St. Paul. This tour also demonstrated County Materials's hollowcore plank capabilities.

Other guided tours included viewing of the new bridge girder system that's capable of producing high-strength girders up to 96 inches in height and up to 175-180 feet in length. Viewers learned about the impressive pouring process and concrete mixes used in the production of these beds. Production of concrete pipe, including elliptical pipe and sanitary systems were also on display.

"I am very impressed with the advancement in technology that County Materials has incorporated into their facilities. I didn't realize they're as high-tech as this," commented Darrin Stanke, engineer with Zenith Tech, Inc. of Wausau, Wisc.

Benefit focused seminars on self-compacting concrete and the advantages of slag added to the usefulness of the open house. "I felt the self-compacting concrete seminar was very good and it answered many questions I had. I haven't used the product before, but may in the future after learning about its many capabilities," says Murray Schomburg of BWBR, a St. Paul architectural firm. Self-Compacting Concrete is an innovative, highly-fluid concrete that saves companies time and labor costs. Holcim Cement and La Farge Corporation, two of the top mix producers in the county, presented the slag seminar to a well-attended audience.

"Seminar attendance can be hit or miss at open houses depending upon the level of interest in the topics, so it's important that they're current and presented by top industry experts," Reneson says.

Also highlighting the event, a barbecue luncheon and golf outing sponsored by the company allowed their representatives to talk one on one with customers and answer questions that may not come up during a typical business day.

For more information about the County Materials "Open" 2002, please call Dave Reneson at 1-800-426-1126. To learn more about County Materials's Prestress, Precast and Pipe Division, visit www.countyconcrete.com.

With over 55 years of industry experience, County Materials is the upper Midwest's solution for premium building, construction and landscaping products. It continues to add new and innovative concrete solutions, facilities, equipment, services, and locations throughout Wisconsin and Minnesota. Headquartered in its founding city of Marathon, Wisc., County Materials currently owns and operates 14 facilities and HomeScape Studios. The Prestress, Precast & Pipe Division of County Materials Corporation is headquartered in Roberts at 1203 70th Avenue.