Source: CP staff Domestic and overseas chemical processors and distributors indicate potential price increases in the 40-75 percent range for sodium thiocyanate (NaSCN), a key compound concrete admixture producers use in non-chloride set accelerators, mid-range water reducers and strength-enhancing agents.
Read MoreDay: December 7, 2020
Lanxess capacity upgrade eases black pigment supply bottleneck
Sources: Lanxess, Cologne, Germany; CP staff Lanxess has expanded Bayferrox black synthetic iron oxide pigment output potential by 5,000-plus metric tons per year at its Krefeld-Uerdingen, Germany plant—the world’s largest processing operation of its kind.
Read MoreFEMA: Big data proves high building code standards’ ROI
Sources: Federal Emergency Management Agency; CP staff FEMA presents the benefits of constructing at a higher building code standard for natural disasters such as winds, floods and seismic activity in a new report, “Building Codes Save: A Nationwide Study.” The agency finds that 18.1 million buildings constructed at a higher code standard save the nation about $1.6 billion annually.
Read MoreASCE opens Sustainable Infrastructure standard draft to comment
Sources: American Society of Civil Engineers, Reston, Va.; CP staff The American Society of Civil Engineers invites comments through January 25 on the draft of a new document, ASCE/COS 73-XX Standard Requirements for Sustainable Infrastructure. Components and outcomes described in Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Life-Cycle Cost Analysis, Natural World, Quality of Life, Resilience, Resource Allocation and Sustainability Leadership chapters are intended…
Read MoreNew rule steers block, paver, veneer stone Environmental Product Declarations
Sources: UL Environmental, Northbrook, Ill.; CP staff An updated Product Category Rule (PCR) will inform new Environmental Product Declarations (EPD) for block, segmental retaining wall, segmental paving, manufactured stone veneer and other manufactured concrete units. A PCR provides an established methodology for preparing EPD and conducting a life cycle analysis. Submission of declarations increasingly influences specification of products or materials…
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