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Month: May 2017

Steel fiber specialist advances Direct Tension testing methodology

Concrete News

A proprietary test described in ASTM International’s Journal of Testing and Evaluation provides for direct comparison of steel fiber and conventional rebar concrete specimen tensile properties, according to Helix Steel, developer of Twisted Steel Micro Reinforcement. The Direct Tension method enables engineers to determine steel fiber specimens’ first crack and post crack tensile strength, plus tensile modulus of elasticity. The testing and data analysis approach greatly reduces the variability of results, Helix officials note, thereby solving past problems rooted in small specimen sizes and material inconsistencies.

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Cemex USA leaves nothing to chance in headquarters materials specs

Concrete News

The new home of 200-plus Cemex USA headquarters staff is designed to tell the story of company products through the use and display of concrete, cement and aggregate. Lending an industrial feel, effects include polished concrete hallway floors, cement-based wall tile treatments and handrails fabricated from rebar, which is also used as a circular ring bearing video monitors in the facility’s Customer Experience Center.

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Oldcastle caps record precast pavement contract for Los Angeles freeway

Concrete News
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Oldcastle Precast’s Fontana, Calif., operation was set to close by this month the Interstate 210/Foothill Freeway Pavement and Slab Replacement Project precast schedule. Over an April 2016–March 2017 window, the producer fabricated 6,500 precast slabs, 12.5-ft. wide x 11.33-ft. long, to replace 9.7 miles of deteriorated, mainline pavement north of Los Angeles.

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HeidelbergCement upbeat on 2017 outlook amid key-market strength, Italcementi gains

Concrete News
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Completion of a $4 billion merger involving Essroc Cement Corp. and sister Italcementi S.p.A. businesses, improved financials and credit ratings, plus declining energy costs, support especially positive investor guidance for the parent company of Lehigh Hanson, Inc. “2016 was an exceptional year,” affirms HeidelbergCement AG Chairman Dr. Bernd Scheifele. “With the successful takeover of Italcementi, we have accelerated our growth and are now in an excellent strategic position.”

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GCP formulates agents neutralizing clay factor in sub-par aggregates

Concrete News
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The former Grace Construction Products business arrived at 2017 ConExpo-Con/Agg with new sand & gravel additives and concrete admixtures aimed at mitigating poor quality aggregates’ effect on fresh mix and finished slab or structure performance. The Clarena product portfolio was front and center at GCP Applied Technologies’ Las Vegas Convention Center booth during the early-March show.

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ConExpo-Con/Agg manifests pent-up plant, fleet equipment needs

Concrete News
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Concrete plant equipment manufacturers, mixer truck body builders and fellow exhibitors enjoyed solid booth traffic, quote inquiries and buying activity at 2017 ConExpo-Con/Agg, some telling Concrete Products the March 7-11 event was the best such show to date. Confidence in the business climate and prospects for stepped up infrastructure investment, fueled by President Donald Trump, permeated the Las Vegas Convention Center gathering, co-located with IFPE 2017.

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Ozinga South Florida makes Banaszak Concrete its first bolt-on business

Concrete News

Sources: Ozinga Bros., Mokena, Ill.; CP staff

Less than a month after dedicating its Miami flagship ready mixed plant, Ozinga South Florida has acquired Banaszak Concrete, which brings fully operating satellites in Davie and Hollywood, Fla. The expansion helps demonstrate confidence in the Sunshine State’s recovering economy and steady construction growth, company officials note, and serves as a strong testament to future residential, commercial, industrial and infrastructure job prospects.

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