Sources: Sika AG, Baar, Switzerland; CP staff
The parent company of New Jersey-based Sika Corp. has announced further investment in polymer production capacity at its Sealy, Texas plant, the second such outlay in five years. The move will yield higher volumes of the chemical building blocks underpinning the ViscoCrete family of admixtures for self-consolidating, high slump and cement-optimized concrete mixes.
Public construction initiatives such as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs and Inflation Reduction Acts unlock business opportunities for a broad range of Sika solutions, management notes, adding “With goals to revitalize America’s infrastructure, there will be increased investments in large-scale developments and expansion of energy and water facilities. Furthermore, reshoring efforts to relocate international manufacturing to the USA fuels the construction of new factories, particularly in the batteries and semiconductors sectors. Among developed countries, the USA’s demand for concrete additives is projected to experience the most rapid growth, maintaining a compounded annual growth rate of 3.4 percent and reaching $3.6 billion by 2026.”
Along with supporting increased ViscoCrete shipments, adds Sika AG Regional Manager Americas Mike Campion, the Sealy plant investment “aligns with the global shift towards more sustainable construction—specifically the requirements for lower embodied carbon concrete.”