Feds weigh Lehigh commitment to Keystone Cement powder pricing

Sources: U.S. Federal Trade Commission; CP staff The Federal Trade Commission is preparing for a November 2021 administrative trial aimed at blocking or altering the terms of Lehigh Cement Co. LLC’s purchase of Keystone Cement, arguing that the $151 million deal will harm regional competition and violate the FTC and Clayton Acts.

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Martin Marietta blazes Pacific trail in Lehigh Hanson West deal

Sources: Martin Marietta Materials, Raleigh, N.C.; HeidelbergCement AG, Germany; CP staff Martin Marietta will significantly boost its West Coast presence in a $2.3 billion cash deal for the bulk of Lehigh Hanson West Region operations in Arizona, California, Nevada and Oregon. Anchoring the asset package are the Lehigh Cement Redding and Tehachapi, Calif. plants, with combined annual capacity upward of…

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Eagle Materials Board: One company better than two

Sources: Eagle Materials Inc., Dallas; CP staff Sterling fiscal 2021 results, portfolio-streamlining measures, successful integration of Cemex USA cement plant and distribution assets valued at $665 million, plus market changes favoring critical corporate mass, underpin the tabling of a plan to split Eagle Materials into two separate, publicly traded companies. A 2019 strategic portfolio review, partly triggered by an activist…

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Lehigh Hanson aligns with supply chain-wise Building Transparency

Sources: Lehigh Hanson Inc., Irving, Texas; CP staff Lehigh Hanson is the newest pilot partner in Building Transparency, a Silicon Valley-backed nonprofit organization that provides open access data and tools supporting broad and swift industry action on embodied carbon. The concrete, cement and aggregates giant aims to support advanced supply chain knowledge “for a better building future.” 

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Low carbon LC3 binder steers Sika’s next admixture chapter

Sources: Sika AG, Baar, Switzerland; CP staff The Swiss parent company of New Jersey-based Sika Corp. will tailor a new family of concrete admixtures and cement additives around the chemistry and behavior of an emerging binder known as LC3, or Limestone Calcined Clay Cement. Through work with Sika AG and peers, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology officials view the material…

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Master Builders represents Command Alkon load-monitoring system

Sources: Command Alkon, Birmingham, Ala.; Master Builders Solutions, Beachwood, Ohio; CP staff Master Builders Solutions has entered into an exclusive agreement with Command Alkon to be the sole third-party reseller of the COMMANDassurance in-transit concrete monitoring system for ready mixed producers in the U.S. and Canada. A drum-mounted probe at the core of system provides real-time slump, temperature and volume…

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ACI harnesses practitioner insights in global learning marathon

Sources: American Concrete Institute, Farmington Hills, Mich.; CP staff Production skills honed during a year of virtual conference, convention and education presentations have the American Concrete Institute poised for a first of its kind gathering: 24 Hours of Concrete Knowledge, a free online learning program taking participants around the world with visits to experts from 12 ACI Chapters and 12…

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State DOT spec recognizes mixer truck option for FDR cement slurry hauling

Sources: National Ready Mixed Concrete Association, Alexandria, Va.; Portland Cement Association, Washington, D.C.; CP staff The National Ready Mixed Concrete Association credits a prospective fleet utilization opportunity for members to the Illinois Department of Transportation’s adoption of a Full-Depth Reclamation specification allowing mixer truck delivery of cement slurry. A rapidly growing practice among pavement engineers, FDR entails blending of cement…

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Besser caps leadership transition, saluting Curtis and naming Suszek CEO

Sources: Besser Co., Alpena, Mich.; CP staff Consistent with an executive transition plan outlined last year, Besser has appointed Ryan Suszek successor to Chief Executive Officer Kevin Curtis, who retires after 43 years with the concrete products machinery and plant equipment mainstay. Suszek was named president in 2019 following a 14-year tour of duty leading to the vice president of…

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George Schofield Co. anchors Outdoor Living hardscapes franchise

Sources: Outdoor Living Supply, Rochester, Minn.; CP staff Outdoor Living Supply has commenced a hardscapes distribution business plan with the acquisition of Bridgewater, N.J.-based Geo. Schofield Co. Inc., a leading natural stone source. The transaction is the first for an entity established late last year in partnership with New York private equity firm Trilantic North America. OLS principals aim to…

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