Schedule of Events
2026 Winter Technical Meeting
Schedule of Events
SAT., March 7, 2026
8:00 AM – 2:00 PM.
Board of Directors Meeting
SUN., March 8, 2026
1:00 – 2:30 p.m.
Committee Meetings
Committee Meetings
Past President’s Reception
5 – 6 p.m.
First Timers’ Reception
6 – 8 p.m.
Opening Reception
Mar Bella Gardens - outdoor green space between hotel and ocean
MON., March 9, 2026
General Sessions will be held in the Conference Center of the hotel
7:30 – 8:00 a.m.
Breakfast with Exhibitors
8 – 8:10 a.m.
Opening Remarks and President's Welcome
8:10 – 8:30 a.m.
50th Anniversary Opener
8:30 – 9:15 a.m.
Brett Laureys, Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates
50 Years of SWR Institute Fellowship: The Importance of Relationships
The most impactful benefit for SWR Institute members over the last 50 years has been fellowship. The relationships members develop at the bi-annual meetings, with committee involvement, and in leadership positions on the board have had a huge impact on the careers of so many members. During this session, learn about the value of relationships in the sealant, waterproofing, and restoration business, understand what is key for developing those relationships, and hear about the journey of a long-time member and how the involvement in the SWRI Institute has shaped his career.
9:15 – 10:00 a.m.
Ben Grandbois and Todd Gold, Sunbelt Waterproofing & Restoration LLC
The Restoration Project of the San Antinio Botanical Gardens Conservatories
This presentation explores the restoration and full glass replacement of the San Antonio Botanical Garden Conservatories, a complex greenhouse project completed while the facility remained fully operational and open to the public. The work included replacing over 1,500 unique glass units and associated glazing joints, along with below-grade waterproofing, concrete repairs, and protective coating systems to extend the life of the structures. The session highlights technical and logistical challenges such as working without original drawings, recreating precise field measurements for uniquely shaped glass panels, and coordinating access through scaffolding, boom lifts, and specialized equipment. Attendees will gain insight into execution strategies, trade coordination, quality control requirements, and risk management considerations necessary to deliver large-scale specialty restoration work in an active, environmentally sensitive environment.
10:00 – 10:30 a.m.
Coffee Break with Exhibitors
10:30 – 10:45 a.m.
Spider by BrandSafway – Jim Dougherty
10:45 – 11:30 a.m.
Joe Berardi, Berardi Partners and Matt Sibila, Coon Restoration & Sealants, Inc.
Historical Tax Credits: Why They Matter and How They Work
Gain a clear understanding of the Historic Tax Credit (HTC) process, the monetary value it brings to the developer, and how a strong grasp of this process allows you to effectively integrate into historic projects.
11:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Jim Justus, Mosaic Engineering & Consulting, PC
Lessons Learned from a Post Tension Repair Project
Lessons learned from a supposedly simple painting and caulking project that turned into a much larger post tension repair project on an operating hotel at the beachfront. Topics covered include deficiencies in the initial engineering evaluations, contracting for a scope of work that drastically changed, contractor scheduling and change order pricing, how to work with all parties to get the best possible outcome, operating revenues and how that impacted the scheduling, physically performing the work, and a project summary.
12:15 - Meeting adjourns
1:00 – 5:00 PM
Golf Tournament
Sold Out (Maximum Capacity Reached)
TUES., March 10, 2026
General Sessions will be held in the Conference Center of the hotel
8:00 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.
Breakfast with Exhibitors
8:30 – 8:40 a.m.
Opening Remarks
8:40 – 8:45 a.m.
Town Hall Meeting and Board Elections
8:45 – 8:50 a.m.
Rolling off Board Member Recognition
8:50– 9:05 a.m.
Project Award’s Ceremony
9:05 – 9:50 a.m.
Moderator: Dan Cain, GDA Contractors
Panel Members: Frank Halsey, Mid-Continental Restoration Company, Inc., John Lambert, Stone Restoration of America, Inc. & Stan Wellinsky, Valcourt Building Services
Growth Strategies for Specialty Trade Contractors
Where do we go from here and how do we get there? This will include a panel discussion with the leaders of small to larger businesses, family owned to investor backed companies.
9:50 – 10:05
EPRO Services, Inc., Scott Schendel
10:05 – 10:30 a.m.
Coffee Break with Exhibitors
10:30– 10:45 a.m.
Inpro-Jointmaster, Justin Rice
10:45 – 11:30 a.m.
Nate Harres, Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates and Derek Baum, Otto Baum Company, Inc.
Pay Now or Pay Later: Closing the Information Gap Between Conception and Construction
Unforeseen conditions are a leading cause of cost overruns and delays in construction. This presentation explores how gaps in existing-conditions information force designers and contractors to rely on assumptions, transferring risk downstream and increasing project uncertainty. Through a contractor–architect perspective, the session highlights practical strategies for improving investigation, reducing guesswork, and delivering more predictable project outcomes.
11:30 a.m. – 11:35 a.m.
Golf Tournament Winner Announcements - GOLF IS SOLD OUT
11:35 a.m. – 11:40 a.m.
Dow Silicones, Frank Zhong
11:40 – 12:05 p.m.
Pass the Gavel and 50th Anniversary Ceremony
6:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Pass the Gavel Party
Vista Verde Lawn, green space in front of the Confrence Center
WED., March 11, 2026
8:00 – 8:30 a.m.
Breakfast with Exhibitors
8:30 – 9:15 a.m.
Mike Bates, ARC Restoration & Waterproofing, Inc
The Future of AI in the Construction Industry
Artificial Intelligence is moving from “office software” into field reality — estimating, documentation, safety, scheduling, and quality control are already changing. This session gives attendees a practical, non-hyped view of what’s working right now in construction, what’s coming next, and how to adopt AI responsibly without turning your team into unwilling beta testers. We’ll break down the major AI categories impacting contractors and design professionals, highlight real-world workflows that reduce admin time and improve decision-making, and cover the risks that matter (data privacy, accuracy, liability, and “hallucinations”). Attendees will leave with a simple adoption roadmap: where to start, what to pilot first, how to measure ROI, and how to build guardrails so AI supports professional judgment instead of replacing it.
9:15 – 10:00 a.m.
Tyler Logar, JBCI Engineers, Joseph Phillips, JBCI Engineers. and Matt Wills, Valcourt Building Services
From Assessment to Achievement: The Tower 2 Restoration Journey
A 14-story occupied residential tower. 190,000 square feet of façade. 350 balconies, 322 concrete eyebrows, and nearly 16 miles of failing sealant. Rebuilt through engineering judgment, field innovation, and relentless collaboration. This presentation follows the restoration of Tower 2 at the Towers at Wyncote, a building marked by decades of deferred deterioration, from initial assessment to final completion. What began as a routine evaluation quickly expanded into a multi-phase building-envelope rehabilitation after investigations revealed inadequate reinforcing cover, drainage reversals, failing precast railings, and concealed distress behind existing coatings and netting. The presentation will demonstrate how the design evolved in real-time, incorporating full-depth concrete repairs, a reinforced waterproofing and pedestrian traffic deck system, and coordinated sealant replacement, while managing continuous resident occupancy. Emphasis will be placed on decisions that did not go as planned, the testing and collaboration that corrected them, and the lessons learned by the engineer and contractor working side by side, proving that true restoration is a process of discovery, discipline, and determination.
10:00 – 10:30 a.m.
Coffee Break with Exhibitors
10:30 – 10:45 a.m.
SOPRMEA, Becca Turbeville
10:45 – 11:30 a.m.
Nupur Dube and Anthony Nicastro, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, Inc.
Balancing Performance and Preservation: Strategies for Historic Metal Window Rehabilitation in Public Buildings
Preserving government and civic buildings presents unique challenges that often requires careful rehabilitation of the window assemblies to improve performance, including air- and water penetration resistance and energy efficiency, while maintaining architectural authenticity. This presentation focuses on historic metal windows in public buildings and discusses factors affecting the choice to restore or replace the windows to balance improved performance with preservation efforts. It discusses various methods for restoring, replacing, or supplementing existing historic windows, including the use of interior storm windows, the introduction of modern, concealed flashing materials, and condensation management techniques. The presentation focuses on the impact that each window rehabilitation approach can have on the overall performance of the assembly. The presentation will conclude by providing a guide for building owners, architects, and preservationists interested in making informed decisions when addressing metal window-related needs in historic government and civic buildings.
11:30 – 11:45 a.m.
Closing Remarks
11:45 a.m.
Meeting Adjourns
Schedule of Events
SAT., March 7, 2026
8:00 AM – 2:00 PM.
Board of Directors Meeting
SUN., March 8, 2026
1:00 – 2:30 p.m.
Committee Meetings
- Membership/Brand Awareness - Room: Rio Mar #2 - AGENDA
- Technical Resources - Room: Rio Mar #3 - AGENDA
Committee Meetings
- Program Planning - Room: Rio Mar #2 - AGENDA
- Safety - Room: Rio Mar #3 - AGENDA
- Validation - Room: Rio Mar #4 - AGENDA
Past President’s Reception
5 – 6 p.m.
First Timers’ Reception
6 – 8 p.m.
Opening Reception
Mar Bella Gardens - outdoor green space between hotel and ocean
MON., March 9, 2026
General Sessions will be held in the Conference Center of the hotel
7:30 – 8:00 a.m.
Breakfast with Exhibitors
8 – 8:10 a.m.
Opening Remarks and President's Welcome
8:10 – 8:30 a.m.
50th Anniversary Opener
8:30 – 9:15 a.m.
Brett Laureys, Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates
50 Years of SWR Institute Fellowship: The Importance of Relationships
The most impactful benefit for SWR Institute members over the last 50 years has been fellowship. The relationships members develop at the bi-annual meetings, with committee involvement, and in leadership positions on the board have had a huge impact on the careers of so many members. During this session, learn about the value of relationships in the sealant, waterproofing, and restoration business, understand what is key for developing those relationships, and hear about the journey of a long-time member and how the involvement in the SWRI Institute has shaped his career.
9:15 – 10:00 a.m.
Ben Grandbois and Todd Gold, Sunbelt Waterproofing & Restoration LLC
The Restoration Project of the San Antinio Botanical Gardens Conservatories
This presentation explores the restoration and full glass replacement of the San Antonio Botanical Garden Conservatories, a complex greenhouse project completed while the facility remained fully operational and open to the public. The work included replacing over 1,500 unique glass units and associated glazing joints, along with below-grade waterproofing, concrete repairs, and protective coating systems to extend the life of the structures. The session highlights technical and logistical challenges such as working without original drawings, recreating precise field measurements for uniquely shaped glass panels, and coordinating access through scaffolding, boom lifts, and specialized equipment. Attendees will gain insight into execution strategies, trade coordination, quality control requirements, and risk management considerations necessary to deliver large-scale specialty restoration work in an active, environmentally sensitive environment.
10:00 – 10:30 a.m.
Coffee Break with Exhibitors
10:30 – 10:45 a.m.
Spider by BrandSafway – Jim Dougherty
10:45 – 11:30 a.m.
Joe Berardi, Berardi Partners and Matt Sibila, Coon Restoration & Sealants, Inc.
Historical Tax Credits: Why They Matter and How They Work
Gain a clear understanding of the Historic Tax Credit (HTC) process, the monetary value it brings to the developer, and how a strong grasp of this process allows you to effectively integrate into historic projects.
11:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Jim Justus, Mosaic Engineering & Consulting, PC
Lessons Learned from a Post Tension Repair Project
Lessons learned from a supposedly simple painting and caulking project that turned into a much larger post tension repair project on an operating hotel at the beachfront. Topics covered include deficiencies in the initial engineering evaluations, contracting for a scope of work that drastically changed, contractor scheduling and change order pricing, how to work with all parties to get the best possible outcome, operating revenues and how that impacted the scheduling, physically performing the work, and a project summary.
12:15 - Meeting adjourns
1:00 – 5:00 PM
Golf Tournament
Sold Out (Maximum Capacity Reached)
TUES., March 10, 2026
General Sessions will be held in the Conference Center of the hotel
8:00 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.
Breakfast with Exhibitors
8:30 – 8:40 a.m.
Opening Remarks
8:40 – 8:45 a.m.
Town Hall Meeting and Board Elections
8:45 – 8:50 a.m.
Rolling off Board Member Recognition
8:50– 9:05 a.m.
Project Award’s Ceremony
9:05 – 9:50 a.m.
Moderator: Dan Cain, GDA Contractors
Panel Members: Frank Halsey, Mid-Continental Restoration Company, Inc., John Lambert, Stone Restoration of America, Inc. & Stan Wellinsky, Valcourt Building Services
Growth Strategies for Specialty Trade Contractors
Where do we go from here and how do we get there? This will include a panel discussion with the leaders of small to larger businesses, family owned to investor backed companies.
9:50 – 10:05
EPRO Services, Inc., Scott Schendel
10:05 – 10:30 a.m.
Coffee Break with Exhibitors
10:30– 10:45 a.m.
Inpro-Jointmaster, Justin Rice
10:45 – 11:30 a.m.
Nate Harres, Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates and Derek Baum, Otto Baum Company, Inc.
Pay Now or Pay Later: Closing the Information Gap Between Conception and Construction
Unforeseen conditions are a leading cause of cost overruns and delays in construction. This presentation explores how gaps in existing-conditions information force designers and contractors to rely on assumptions, transferring risk downstream and increasing project uncertainty. Through a contractor–architect perspective, the session highlights practical strategies for improving investigation, reducing guesswork, and delivering more predictable project outcomes.
11:30 a.m. – 11:35 a.m.
Golf Tournament Winner Announcements - GOLF IS SOLD OUT
11:35 a.m. – 11:40 a.m.
Dow Silicones, Frank Zhong
11:40 – 12:05 p.m.
Pass the Gavel and 50th Anniversary Ceremony
6:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Pass the Gavel Party
Vista Verde Lawn, green space in front of the Confrence Center
WED., March 11, 2026
8:00 – 8:30 a.m.
Breakfast with Exhibitors
8:30 – 9:15 a.m.
Mike Bates, ARC Restoration & Waterproofing, Inc
The Future of AI in the Construction Industry
Artificial Intelligence is moving from “office software” into field reality — estimating, documentation, safety, scheduling, and quality control are already changing. This session gives attendees a practical, non-hyped view of what’s working right now in construction, what’s coming next, and how to adopt AI responsibly without turning your team into unwilling beta testers. We’ll break down the major AI categories impacting contractors and design professionals, highlight real-world workflows that reduce admin time and improve decision-making, and cover the risks that matter (data privacy, accuracy, liability, and “hallucinations”). Attendees will leave with a simple adoption roadmap: where to start, what to pilot first, how to measure ROI, and how to build guardrails so AI supports professional judgment instead of replacing it.
9:15 – 10:00 a.m.
Tyler Logar, JBCI Engineers, Joseph Phillips, JBCI Engineers. and Matt Wills, Valcourt Building Services
From Assessment to Achievement: The Tower 2 Restoration Journey
A 14-story occupied residential tower. 190,000 square feet of façade. 350 balconies, 322 concrete eyebrows, and nearly 16 miles of failing sealant. Rebuilt through engineering judgment, field innovation, and relentless collaboration. This presentation follows the restoration of Tower 2 at the Towers at Wyncote, a building marked by decades of deferred deterioration, from initial assessment to final completion. What began as a routine evaluation quickly expanded into a multi-phase building-envelope rehabilitation after investigations revealed inadequate reinforcing cover, drainage reversals, failing precast railings, and concealed distress behind existing coatings and netting. The presentation will demonstrate how the design evolved in real-time, incorporating full-depth concrete repairs, a reinforced waterproofing and pedestrian traffic deck system, and coordinated sealant replacement, while managing continuous resident occupancy. Emphasis will be placed on decisions that did not go as planned, the testing and collaboration that corrected them, and the lessons learned by the engineer and contractor working side by side, proving that true restoration is a process of discovery, discipline, and determination.
10:00 – 10:30 a.m.
Coffee Break with Exhibitors
10:30 – 10:45 a.m.
SOPRMEA, Becca Turbeville
10:45 – 11:30 a.m.
Nupur Dube and Anthony Nicastro, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, Inc.
Balancing Performance and Preservation: Strategies for Historic Metal Window Rehabilitation in Public Buildings
Preserving government and civic buildings presents unique challenges that often requires careful rehabilitation of the window assemblies to improve performance, including air- and water penetration resistance and energy efficiency, while maintaining architectural authenticity. This presentation focuses on historic metal windows in public buildings and discusses factors affecting the choice to restore or replace the windows to balance improved performance with preservation efforts. It discusses various methods for restoring, replacing, or supplementing existing historic windows, including the use of interior storm windows, the introduction of modern, concealed flashing materials, and condensation management techniques. The presentation focuses on the impact that each window rehabilitation approach can have on the overall performance of the assembly. The presentation will conclude by providing a guide for building owners, architects, and preservationists interested in making informed decisions when addressing metal window-related needs in historic government and civic buildings.
11:30 – 11:45 a.m.
Closing Remarks
11:45 a.m.
Meeting Adjourns
Golden Anniversary Sponsors
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