Asphalt Institute History
A century of leadership in asphalt technology, research, and education.
W. Reed Ryan Becomes Asphalt Institute President
W. Reed Ryan, a native of Utah, brings extensive experience in leadership and advocacy within the asphalt industry. Before joining the Asphalt Institute, he served as the Executive Director of the Asphalt Pavement Alliance (APA) and as the founding Executive Director of the Utah Asphalt Pavement Association.
Asphalt Institute Celebrates Centennial
Asphalt Institute commemorates 100 years of serving the asphalt industry.
Asphalt Institute Foundation Is Established
The Asphalt Institute Foundation, a 501(c)3 non-profit public foundation, was established with the mission to conduct strategic research and educational activities that are designed to advance and improve the liquid asphalt industry.
International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) Formed
The International Agency for Research on Cancer announced that Monograph 103, would focus on a review or carcinogenicity potention for bitumen and bitumen fume. The Asphalt Institute sponsored an Observer Academy to prepare for the review which was conducted in Lyon, France in 2011.
Global Trade Association Alliance Is Formed
The Global Trade Alliance was established through a collaboration between the Asphalt Institute and Eurobitume, uniting the two leading asphalt trade associations to strengthen respect for health and safety issues, technical specifications, and general industry information relating to the Bitumen industry.
EPIC Leadership Development Program Launches
The EPIC (Experiential, Participatory, Image-Driven, and Connective) is a program designed to foster future leaders within Asphalt Institute and develop members for further industry leadership.
Asphalt Institute Declaration of Commitment Is Signed
In honor of Asphalt Institute's 90th anniversary, the 2009 executive committee members signed the Asphalt Institute Declaration of Commitment in Williamsburg, Virginia, signaling a renewed and continued commitment to the mission and vision of Asphalt Institute.
Pete Grass Becomes Asphalt Institute President
Pete Grass served as the longest-tenured chief staff executive, recognizing 23 years of dedicated service to the Asphalt Institute, its members and the asphalt industry. Before joining the institute, Pete worked for the US Army Corps of Engineers for over 21 years, rising to the rank of Colonel.
Bernie McCarthy Becomes Asphalt Institute President
Bernie McCarthy, a graduate of the University of Maryland, was first employed by the Asphalt Institute in 1967 as a District Engineer. During his long career with the Asphalt Institute, Bernie was productive in promoting the technical use and increased volume of asphalt usage.
Asphalt Pavement Alliance Is Formed
Asphalt Institute and the National Asphalt Pavement Association partnered to form the Asphalt Pavement Alliance (APA).
National Asphalt Training Center Launches
The National Asphalt Training Center (NATC) was funded by the FHWA and functioned as the primary facility for training agency and industry personnel in Superpave technology.
Ed Miller Becomes Asphalt Institute President
Ed Miller joined the Asphalt Institute after serving 24 years in the Air Force.
Headquarters Move to Lexington, Kentucky
The Asphalt Institute moved to new Executive Offices and Research Center in Lexington, Kentucky, after the Board of Directors selected the University of Kentucky as its new headquarters site.
Gerald S. Triplett Becomes Asphalt Institute President
Mr. Triplett guided the Institute through major reorganizations and through the crucial move in 1989 of its International Headquarters and Research Center from College Park, Maryland to Lexington, Kentucky.
Joseph R. Coupal, Jr. Becomes Asphalt Institute President
Joseph R. Coupal, Jr., a Harvard graduate, was a former Deputy Federal Highway Administration Administrator.
Basic Asphalt Emulsion Manual Is Developed
After the Clean Air Act was passed, Asphalt Institute, along with the Federal Highway Administration and the Asphalt Emulsion Manufacturers Association, developed the Basic Asphalt Emulsion Manual and a series of regional workshops designed to train state and county road personnel in the proper use of asphalt emulsions.
Asphalt Institute Champions Asphalt Recycling Practices
Asphalt Institute's Pacific Coast division developed a comprehensive recycling manual and field engineers began to promote recycling.
Viscosity Grading System Is Developed
The Asphalt Institute developed the viscosity grading system that changed the specification system from traditional penetration grading to one based on viscosity, a more fundamental property.
Eugene M. Johnson Becomes Asphalt Institute President
Eugene M. Johnson, a native of Indianola, Mississippi, was a graduate of the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Field Engineers Begin Supporting Full-Depth Paving
Field engineers from the Asphalt Institute are supporting the full-depth method of paving, which involves using asphalt for every layer of the road, from the surface to the base. This approach creates a smoother, longer-lasting pavement that can be built faster and maintained more easily, helping communities save both time and money over the life of the roadway.
Field Engineers Promote Cost Advantages of Asphalt Pavements
During the 1957–58 recession, funding for the Interstate System tightened, but Asphalt Institute field engineers used the opportunity to promote the cost advantages and ease of constructing asphalt pavements—efforts that nearly doubled asphalt sales from 1950 to 1959.
National Campaign Promotes Asphalt for the Interstate System
Following the 1956 Federal-Aid Highway Act that launched the Interstate System, the Asphalt Institute led a national campaign promoting the advantages of asphalt over concrete and educating the public about the benefits of asphalt pavements.
Headquarters Move to College Park, Maryland
Asphalt Institute moved its headquarters from New York City to the University of Maryland campus in College Park.
Western Conference Promotes New Uses for Asphalt
The first Western Conference on Asphalt in Hydraulics was held in Salt Lake City, sponsored by the University of Utah, Asphalt Institute, and the Utah Water Users Association. The event helped open new markets for asphalt applications, including parking lots, recreational facilities, test tracks, and speedways.
Jess E. Buchanan Becomes Asphalt Institute President
Jess E. Buchanan contributed to the asphalt industry as engineer, educator and administrator. He was successful in strengthening the Institute's divisional managment plan and in promoting the concept of full-depth asphalt across the nation.
The First "Asphalt Quarterly" Is Published
The first issue of Asphalt Quarterly magazine is published.
Bernard Gray Becomes Asphalt Institute President
Bernard E. Gray, a native of Massachusetts with a distinguished career in highway engineering and engineering education.
Board Establishes Five Regional Divisions for Field Engineers
The Asphalt Institute Board of Directors consolidated field engineers and districts into five divisions: Atlantic and Gulf Coast States; Ohio Valley; Great Lakes and Midwest; Southwest; and Pacific Coast, Alaska, and Hawaii.
Herbert Spencer Becomes Asphalt Institute President
Herbert Spencer, an outstanding engineer whose long career dates from his work on construction of the Manhattan subway system and includes the development of asphalt penetration methods in highway construction. He was president of The Asphalt Institute from 1941 to 1945.
Asphalt Institute Contributes Expertise to B-29 Airfield Design
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers requested the Asphalt Institute's expertise on rock and asphalt materials for heavy-duty pavements. Asphalt Institute proposed a design that enabled the new B-29 bomber to operate safely and effectively.
Asphalt Institute Publishes Low-Cost Road Construction Specifications
Low-cost road construction expanded significantly through the continued promotion and distribution of specification booklets developed by the Asphalt Institute. These materials helped state highway engineers learn proper technical methods for asphalt road construction.
Pacific Coast Office Opens in San Francisco
Asphalt Institute expanded its presence with the opening of a Pacific Coast office in San Francisco to serve the growing number of member companies in the western United States.
Washington, D.C., Office Opens
Asphalt Institute opens an office in Washington, D.C.
Asphalt Institute Expands Educational Resources on Asphalt Use
Asphalt Institute provided an open forum for state highway engineers to exchange ideas and learn proper asphalt techniques. Between 1930 and 1937, Asphalt Institute published 155 booklets and pamphlets to advance knowledge and best practices in asphalt applications.
The Asphalt Association Becomes Asphalt Institute
The Asphalt Association closed its doors on December 31, 1929, and dissolved all membership except the asphalt producers. It re-opened the next day as the Asphalt Institute to carry the mission of providing sound technical, engineering, educational, and scientific information to state and local engineers building the roads.
Partnership Promotes Upgrading of Secondary Roads
The Asphalt Association partnered with the American Farm Bureau Federation to launch a national campaign highlighting the benefits of improving the nation's secondary road system. Contributing $100,000 to the effort, the partnership helped spur the construction of thousands of miles of all-weather secondary roads across the country.
Asphalt Grading System Is Simplified
The Asphalt Association engineers proposed reducing the number of asphalt grades from 102 to 9, a recommendation later approved by the Board of Directors.
The First Asphalt Handbook Is Created
Asphalt Association District Engineer Wallace Craig developed a personal handbook on the proper use of asphalt, which later became the model for the first Asphalt Handbook.
J.E. Pennybacker is the Asphalt Association Managing Director
J.R. Draney Becomes First President of the Asphalt Association
J.R. Draney: a former manager of the U. S. Asphalt and Refining Company's asphalt department - one of the first organizations, to refine and sell Mexican petroleum asphalt in the eastern part of the United States. One of his greatest contributions to the industry was his activity in helping form the Asphalt Association (which became The Asphalt Institute in 1929). He was the Association's first president.
Asphalt Association Founded in New York City
The Asphalt Association was officially formed at the Union League Club in New York City with eleven founding member companies, marking the beginning of a unified industry organization for the advancement of asphalt technology and use. The founding members were: U.S. Asphalt Refining Company, Warner-Quinlan Company, Freeport Mexican Fuel Oil Corporation, Atlantic Refining Company, Standard Oil Company of New York, Prudential Oil Corporation, Standard Oil Company of New Jersey, Imperial Oil Company, Standard Oil Company of Louisiana, Sun Oil Company, Island Oil and Transport Corporation.
Commemorating 100 Years of Asphalt Excellence
In 2019, Asphalt Institute celebrated a century of leadership in the asphalt industry—honoring the members, partners, and innovators who built our foundation and continue to drive our future.
A Mission to Preserve Our Past
In 2018, as Asphalt Institute’s former headquarters at the University of Maryland faced demolition, members returned to recover a piece of history: the original Asphalt Institute seal set in the foyer floor. This lighthearted “mission” became a symbol of our enduring connection to our past.