Corgan, a Dallas-based architect with 16 U.S. and three overseas offices, is shedding light on the least scrutinized area of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions accounting in structural material extraction and processing. A team from the firm’s Echo sustainability practice and Hugo research group released a white paper, “Understanding Real CO2e Emissions in Mass Timber Production,” in conjunction with last…
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The latest listing in a heavy building materials producer index that has taken shape on Wall Street since Trinity Industries’ 2018 Arcosa Inc. spin-off should arrive on the New York Stock Exchange around Memorial Day. Holcim Ltd. took a major step toward a Big Board listing of its U.S. and Canadian cement, aggregate, concrete and asphalt production assets late last…
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A lawsuit involving the concrete and rebar contractor on the Obama Presidential Center (OPC), Chicago, is a study in contract awarding criteria for challenging cast-in-place structural and architectural work. It highlights the importance of proven field experience coupled with firm understanding of construction documents respecting ACI 318, Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete and Concrete Reinforcing Steel Institute guidance. The…
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The National Association of Home Builders and 15 state attorneys general have filed a complaint in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Tyler Division seeking to stop the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Department of Agriculture from stipulating 2021 International Energy Conservation Code and ASHRAE 90.1-2019, Energy Standard for Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential…
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Federal agencies have spent more than two years reviewing carbon dioxide emissions associated with load-bearing construction material processing or production. Officials recognize regional or local factors affecting the CO2 emissions profile of concrete, asphalt and steel, and have positioned 2025 as a turning point for procurement terms applicable to federally funded transportation and building work. The Federal Highway Administration took…
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This year began with a shareholder vote realigning the portfolio and ownership of Denver-based Summit Materials Inc. around Argos North America Corp. cement and ready mixed production assets and top shareholder Cementos Argos S.A. It closes with prospects for a similar action transforming New York Stock Exchange-traded Summit Materials to a subsidiary of privately held Quikrete Holdings Inc., Atlanta. The…
Read MoreNot long ago I was asked by a person outside of the ready mixed concrete business about our greatest strength and asset as an industry. Without hesitation, I immediately told them it was our drivers. Drivers make up a total of approximately two-thirds of all the employees for a ready mixed producer. They deliver concrete to the point of where…
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Familiar names dominate a new White House report on Federal Buy Clean Initiative and Department of Energy (DOE) Industrial Demonstration Program progress. The administration salutes six concrete or cement producers, CO2-mineralizing process developer CarbonCure Technologies, and four cementitious material startup companies for corporate or project-specific commitments outlined in response to Buy Clean and Industrial Demonstrations calls to action. Commitments referencing…
Read MoreA new report from The Climate Group, based in London with a New York office, looks beyond carbon dioxide emissions reduction cost factors in concrete and steel to price premiums the market might bear when presented conventional versus low-carbon material options. “The Steel and Concrete Transformation: 2024 market outlook on lower emission steel and concrete” was released late last month…
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Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) authors’ recognition of technology transfer hurdles and risk-averse specification tendencies in construction is evident in a slew of U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office and National Laboratories initiatives supporting low carbon materials awareness and procurement. The DOE Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization Office (IEDO) is eyeing a National Laboratory-led Cement and Concrete Center of Excellence to accelerate…
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