Technical Division Staff Bios

Jim Klinger: Concrete Construction Specialist

Jim is a member of Joint ACI-ASCC Committee 117, Tolerances; ACI Committees 134, Concrete Constructability, and 318, Structural Concrete Building Code; and ACI Subcommittee 318-A, General, Concrete, and Construction. Klinger received his master’s degree in structural engineering from the University of Maryland, College Park, MD. He received the 2022 ACI Roger H. Corbetta Concrete Constructor Award and the 2020 ACI Construction Award as co-author of “Constructability of Embedded Steel Plates in Cast-in-Place Concrete.”

Jim’s experience includes 44 years in concrete, including 28 years as project manager and estimator with The Conco Companies, where notable projects included the San Francisco-Oakland SAS Bay Bridge and the 1072-ft. (supertall) Salesforce Tower in San Francisco.. He also worked for John A. Martin & Associates, Martin, Middlebrook & Louie, Inc., KCE Structural Engineers, PC, and Miller & Long, Inc. in construction administration, inspection, and field engineering.

As a Concrete Construction Specialist, Jim answers the ASCC Hotline, writes a monthly VOICE column, co-chairs the Technical and Constructability Committees, co-authors articles and Position Statements, and reviews ACI documents on construction for the ACI Construction Liaison Committee (CLC). Jim is also the ASCC representative on ASCC Company Certification and manages the ASCC Contractor Forum.

Chris Sullivan: DCC and CPC Programs Director

Chris is widely recognized as a leading expert in the decorative concrete industry, with a career spanning over two decades focused on troubleshooting, technical excellence, and education. Known for his deep expertise in sealers, color systems, and surface performance, Chris has been a sought-after speaker and trusted voice in the field since 2005.

He has presented at major industry events, including the World of Concrete (since 2004) and the Concrete Decor Show (since 2009), and contributed to dozens of other conferences and symposiums worldwide. His written work has appeared in industry-leading publications such as Concrete Expressions, Durability and Design, Concrete Homes, Concrete Décor, and Concrete Products. His popular “Concrete Questions” column in Concrete Decor magazine ran for over a decade, and his technical forum on Concretenetwork.com continues to serve as a go-to resource.

Chris has authored over 200 articles and four books on trends, troubleshooting, and best practices in decorative concrete. In recognition of his impact, he was inducted into the Decorative Concrete Hall of Fame in 2015.

Chris previously served as ASCC’s Decorative Concrete Specialist from 2019–2022, where his contributions were instrumental in elevating technical support and educational resources for our members. He is also a technical consultant for Bomanite International, an ACI-certified examiner, and—remarkably—a living kidney donor, having made an altruistic donation in 2020.

Chris holds a B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Pittsburgh and currently lives in Denver, Colorado, with his family. He is also the Senior Vice President of Sales for Painters USA, the largest woman-owned industrial services contractor in the country.

Joe Whiteman, Director of Safety Services

Joe has met the requirements of the Board of Certified Safety Professionals as a Certified Safety Professional (CSP-33942) and a Certified Construction Health and Safety Professional (CHST-2734). Joe is a member of the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) and has completed the AGC Executive Safety Management course along with numerous OSHA training courses.

Joe has 20 years of safety experience for Turner Construction, Barnhart-Heery, and Morley Builders Inc., where he amassed his wide range of concrete construction safety experience. Joe has a breadth of knowledge and experience from large slab on grade industrial and infrastructure, multi-residential high-rise, parking structures, major civic structures, healthcare, education, and seismic retrofit and repair. Joe also brings firsthand safety knowledge of working with different types of form systems, concrete delivery systems, tower cranes, as well as high-end architectural finishes and processes.

As Director of Safety Services, Joe oversees all safety and risk management activities. He provides safety bulletins, newsletters, training, and other directions for ASCC members. Joe serves as liaison to the Safety & Risk Management Council (SRMC) Advisory Board. He leads the Safety Training Assessment & Recognition Program (S.T.A.R.), which is a benchmarking and improvement tool for the concrete construction industry that dramatically improves safety performance and provides on-site safety program assessments and mock OSHA inspections for members. Joe leads the annual Safety Summit, which is co-sponsored by the Tilt-Up Concrete Association (TCA), the American Concrete Pumping Association (ACPA), and the monthly ASCC Safety Roundtables.