Millville, N.J.-based Northeast Precast has patented an insulated, precast floor plank system for residential and commercial projects. Prespan allows builders to gain a clear span of the entire home or building to create a full basement or crawl space walls under the garage. The rigid product exhibits less deflection and is 25 percent lighter compared to hollow core plank.
Read More
HeidelbergCement AG, Germany, envisions $1.8 billion to $2.4 billion in acquisitions over the next three years, backed by $1.2 billion to $1.8 billion in non-core asset sales, plus savings realized from continuous efficiency improvements across global cement, aggregates and ready mixed concrete businesses. Driving those improvements at the Lehigh Portland Cement parent company are digital platform implementation in operations, maintenance, logistics and purchasing.
Read More
CRH Americas closed a $3.5 billion acquisition of Ash Grove Cement Co. late last month days after announcing a settlement to resolve Federal Trade Commission charges that the deal violated antitrust law. Terms called for the Oldcastle Inc. parent company to sell a Three Forks, Mont., cement plant and quarry to GCC Americas; three Omaha, Neb., area sand & gravel sites to Martin Marietta Materials; plus, three quarries and two asphalt plants near Kansas City to Summit Materials. The settlement also contains two three-year provisions: It grants GCC an option to use two Three Forks-fed CRH terminals in Alberta; and, holds that CRH, at GCC’s option, will purchase cement from the mill for distribution in Canada.
Read More
Design-build is the fastest growing and most popular method of delivering nonresidential and non-building projects, according to “Design-Build Utilization: Combined Market Study,” prepared by construction-wise management consultant and merger & acquisition specialist FMI. Analysts at the Raleigh, N.C., firm assess the near-term outlook for nonresidential, highway/street and water/wastewater construction markets, leveraging figures from internal project databases, CMD Reed, Dodge Data & Analytics, U.S. Census Bureau and major associations, plus insights from stakeholder surveys.
Read More
Fire researchers point to a simple solution for reducing fire hazards: Eliminate flammable materials. If it doesn’t burn, they say, then there won’t be a fire.
Read More
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration outlined initial enforcement protocol of its revised standard, Respirable Crystalline Silica Standard for General Industry and Maritime, most provisions of became enforceable in June. The standard establishes a new eight-hour time-weighted average permissible exposure limit and action level, plus associated ancillary requirements.
Read More
Through an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking published in the Federal Register, the Environmental Protection Agency is soliciting input on whether and how to change the way it considers costs and benefits in making regulatory decisions, especially those linked to the Clean Air, Clean Water and Safe Drinking Water Acts.
Read More
As part of sweeping Executive Branch reform announced late last month, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) proposes to move Army Corps of Engineers Civil Works functions—coastal and inland commercial navigation programs; flood and storm damage reduction; and, aquatic ecosystem restoration—from the Department of Defense to the Departments of Transportation and Interior (DOT, DOI).
Read MoreRecent news cycles remind us of the ignorance surrounding concrete durability, life cycle performance, and perceived connection to global warming tied to carbon dioxide emissions in portland cement production.
Read MoreSources: Softwood Lumber Board, Washington, D.C.; CP staff
Champions of a 12-story structure built with cross laminated timber assemblies have placed their project on hold indefinitely. A mixed-use residential and commercial design, the Framework tower was pegged for the Portland, Ore., Pearl District; billed as the first U.S. timber high rise; and, secured state and city building permits in 2017.
Read More