ASBA Announces New Certified Builders

The American Sports Builders Association (ASBA), the national organization for builders and suppliers of materials for athletic facilities, has announced the names of the individuals most recently recognized as Certified Builders. ASBA offers its voluntary certification program which allows builders of specific athletic facilities (currently tennis courts, running tracks and sports fields) to demonstrate proof of their experience, as well as their knowledge of sports-facility-specific construction.

The program was developed by ASBA in order to help raise professional standards and improve the practice of sports facility construction. Certification is offered in three different disciplines; an individual may choose to pursue the designation of Certified Tennis Court Builder (CTCB), Certified Track Builder (CTB) or Certified Field Builder (CFB). The CFB designation encompasses both natural grass and synthetic turf fields; however, an individual may choose to specialize and become either a CFB-N (the designation for those specializing in natural grass fields) or CFB-S (for those specializing in synthetic turf).

In order to become a certified builder, an individual must meet specific criteria set forth by ASBA; he or she must complete an application that shows proof of a set amount of experience in the chosen type of sports facility, and then pass a comprehensive exam on construction and maintenance. In order to maintain the designation, an individual must recertify every three years by documenting a sufficient level of continuing education activities in the relevant field or by passing the examination again.

The following individuals have successfully completed all requirements to become certified builders:

Certified Tennis Court Builders
John Coll, CTCB, Top-A-Court Co., Hatfield, Pennsylvania Albert Giamei, Jr., CTCB, Copeland Coating Co., Nassau, New York Shawn Hollingsworth, CTCB, Sportsline, Inc., Villanova, Pennsylvania Michael McGrath, CTCB of Talbot Tennis, Marietta, Georgia Carlos Navas, CTCB, Sport Court Midwest, Bensenville, Illinois Larry Pitts, CTCB, Court Surfaces, Inc., Green Cove Springs, Florida JR Rockenfield, CTCB, McConnell & Associates, Kansas City, Missouri Fred Volpacchio, CTCB of Hudson Design Build Group, Peekskill, New York Pat Walker, CTCB, Sport Court Midwest, Bensenville, Illinois

Certified Track Builders
Mark Becker, CTB, Sports Turf Company, Whitesburg, Georgia Tod Lorenzen, CTB of Dalton Track & Tennis, Cheshire, Connecticut Joseph Martin, CTB of Texas Sports Builders, Burleson, Texas Bryan Mitterling, CTB of ATT Sports, Inc., Berlin, New Jersey Paul Nagle, CTB, Nagle Athletic Surfaces, Inc., Liverpool, New York Jameson Sheley, CTB, Byrne & Jones Construction, St. Louis, Missouri Todd Wiggins, CTB, Sports Turf Company, Whitesburg, Georgia

Certified Field Builders
Robert Delmonico, CTB of R.A.D. Sports, Rockland, Massachusetts Hector Puentes, CFB, CTB of Texas Sports Builders, Burleson, Texas David Quirk, CFB, Quirk Construction Corp., Georgetown, Massachusetts John Schedler, CFB, CTB of Atlas Track & Tennis, Tualatin, Oregon Joe Williamson, CFB, Sports Turf Company, Whitesburg, Georgia

The exam is given at meetings offered by the ASBA, at meetings of the Sports Turf Managers Association, or by making other arrangements with ASBA. It was most recently given at the ASBA's Technical Meeting, held in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. The next ASBA Technical Meeting, which will be held December 1-6, 2011, will take place at the J.W. Marriott Resort and Spa in Palm Desert, California.

Those who want to learn more about the certification program are encouraged to go to the ASBA website at www.sportsbuilders.org, and using the top toolbar, select the "Certification" button (fourth from the left). A drop-down menu will allow the user to choose among certification pertaining to tennis courts, running tracks or sports fields.

The ASBA is a non-profit association helping designers, builders, owners, operators and users understand quality athletic facility construction. The Association sponsors informative meetings, publishes newsletters, books and technical construction guidelines, and keeps its members informed of the latest developments in the industry. For additional information on the ASBA, its publications, activities and upcoming meetings, contact the Association by phone at 866-501-ASBA, 410-730-9595, by fax at 410-730-8833, or electronically at www.sportsbuilders.org (http://www.ustctba.org) or info@sportsbuilders.org.