U.S. Green Building Council Contingent Tours Epa-Honored Roanoke Cement Plant

A lesson in reducing energy consumption as well as using cement and cement-related products to help build a more sustainable community was gained by members of U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) Southwest Virginia Chapter during an early-summer tour of Roanoke Cement Co.’s (RCC) Troutville, Va., plant. Over 60 attendees — including USGBC members, ready-mixed concrete producers, as well as plant management and employees — enjoyed presentations, refreshments and a bus ride tour highlighting the last 15 years of the facility’s environmental progress.

A lesson in reducing energy consumption as well as using cement and cement-related products to help build a more sustainable community was gained by members of U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) Southwest Virginia Chapter during an early-summer tour of Roanoke Cement Co.’s (RCC) Troutville, Va., plant. Over 60 attendees Û including USGBC members, ready-mixed concrete producers, as well as plant management and employees Û enjoyed presentations, refreshments and a bus ride tour highlighting the last 15 years of the facility’s environmental progress.

What’s important for us is to continue to reduce our own environmental footprint at Roanoke Cement, as well as to assist in building a greener community. Cement is the ÎglueÌ that binds concrete and concrete products, and concrete is a green building product in its own right. This is highlighted in cutting-edge uses like pervious concrete paving and thermal mass construction, noted Roanoke Cement Vice President of Sales and Marketing Don Ingerson.

Virginia’s only active powder mill, Roanoke Cement-Troutville is one of only 10 plants nationwide cited as Top Performing Plants by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In 2007, it earned an Energy Star for superior energy efficiency within the cement industry. The Troutville plant’s impressive record was not achieved without significant outlays, company officials note: RCC spent $50 million in capital upgrades over the last five years, including $30 million in the last two years to improve environmental performance. In his presentation during the event, RCC Production Engineer Dan Babish asserted, If we isolate a single reason for winning the Energy Star Award, it is our investment in the preheater tower. The plant obtains a 40 percent reduction in fuel consumption through the heat exchange alone.

RCC’s efforts to improve energy efficiency benefit both the environment and their bottom line, affirmed Nell Boyle, Southwest Virginia Chapter Chair of USGBC. A tour like this allows our members to be educated about how plants can modernize and become more green. We serve many industries, like engineering, architecture and contracting, that are true staples of our economy; and, they are adaptable.