Precast concrete veneer brands Cultured Stone and Eldorado Stone, along with sister Boral Roofing (concrete) and US Tile (clay roofing) businesses, are part of a Boral North America Building Products asset package that Australian parent company Boral Ltd. has agreed to sell Houston-based Westlake Chemical Corp. for $2.15 billion. “This transaction will bring well-established and high-quality architectural solutions and premium…
Read MoreMonth: July 2021
Solid market conditions amplify Texas producers’ return to normal
Speakers at the 67th annual Texas Aggregates & Concrete Association meeting, staged last month in San Antonio, offered 450-plus attendees a sampling of production, economic and demographic data well worth the price of admission.
Read MoreState soybean checkoff puts durability agent to test in AASHTO projects
The Indiana Soybean Alliance – PoreShield will participate in Innovative Technology Demonstrations (ITD), a field program hosted by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials Transportation System Preservation Technical Services Program (TSP-2).
Read MoreDavis-Bacon support deepens along White House, Capitol Hill axis
A White House 2021 regulatory update, coupled with a U.S. Senate vote on a Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) Act amendment, illustrate administrative and legislative branch underpinnings for one of the most contentious statutes affecting construction: the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts (Davis-Bacon or DBRA). Among U.S. Department of Labor responses to a White House executive order is a…
Read MoreASTM C09 revises C94 batch water accuracy target
Source: National Ready Mixed Concrete Association, Alexandria, Va. A revision reflected in the forthcoming ASTM C94/94M-21a, Standard Specification for Ready-Mixed Concrete eases batch water volume verification during the batching process. It requires water to be batched to an accuracy of ±1.5 percent of the target batch water versus two existing accuracy thresholds: batch water to ±1 percent of total mixing…
Read MoreBaker Concrete, Lithko invest in Sika-aligned 3D printing specialist
Sources: Pikus 3D, LLC, Salt Lake City; CP staff A key player of commercial construction-grade 3D concrete printing technology reports significant investments from top practitioners Baker Concrete Inc. and Lithko Contracting LLC, based respectively in Monroe and West Chester, Ohio.
Read MoreNavistar adds North American market heft to Europe’s Traton Group
Sources: Traton Group, Paris; CP staff Scania and MAN nameplate owner Traton Group has begun the second half of 2021 with a third brand known for severe service models, International Truck, after completing a $3.7 billion takeover of Lisle, Ill.-based Navistar Inc. Combining the suitor’s leading stake in the European and South American markets with Navistar’s strong presence in North…
Read MorePandemic measures drive doubling of safety training outlays
Members responding to the Associated Builders and Contractors 2021 Workforce Development Survey invested $1.3 billion last year to provide craft, leadership and safety education to 500,000 course attendees, advancing their careers in commercial and industrial construction. Safety education accounted for 71 percent of the total workforce investment as per-person spending doubled, revealing an elevated focus on total human health during…
Read MoreWorkforce drug test positivity rates evidence of marijuana consumption
The Covid-19 pandemic did not dampen workforce drug testing positivity for marijuana, which continued to increase last year in the general U.S. workforce, according to a new Quest Diagnostics analysis. Based on 7 million-plus urine drug tests collected between January and December 2020, the overall rate was down only slightly in 2020, 4.4 percent, versus 2019, whose 4.5 percent level…
Read MoreNSSGA veteran O’Neill-Kaumo named successor to ACPA chief Voigt
Laura O’Neill-Kaumo assumes the American Concrete Pavement Association president and chief executive officer posts this month, arriving from the American Council of Engineering Companies, Washington, D.C., where as chief operating officer she served engineers engaged in federal infrastructure work. Prior to ACEC, she was National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association senior vice president, charged with overseeing the government affairs agenda…
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