I want to start this column by saying I am frequently surprised when we get a call from producers requesting EPDs that the first question is: “I have a big project coming and I need EPDs, can you explain what they are? And how do I get one?” This column will focus on what they are, so the many of…
Read MoreSEMCO Publishing announced that Concrete Product’s sister publication, Cement Products, the leading voice for North American cement producers, will change its name to Cement Optimized, effective 2025. Cement Optimized will expand its focus on supplementary cementitious materials processing, distribution and uptake in the North American market, where public and private construction interests are streamlining levels of carbon-intensive portland cement in…
Read MoreThe inaugural Heavy Industries Benchmark from World Benchmarking Alliance, Amsterdam, ranks 34 cement, 45 steel and 12 aluminum producers on carbon dioxide emissions reduction metrics. Four of the top five are cement producers Cemex S.A.B. de C.V., CRH Plc, Holcim Ltd. and Heidelberg Materials, all with major North American market positions. Three other multinationals—Votorantim Cimentos, Asia Cement and Siam Cement—along…
Read MorePortland Cement Association reports across the board state agency approval of portland-limestone cement, or ASTM C595 Type IL binder, on the heels of a Connecticut Department of Transportation green light for the material. Compared to ASTM C150 Type I/II portland cement, PLC is finished with higher limestone content, while exhibiting a carbon dioxide emissions footprint up to 10 percent lower.…
Read MoreSources: Master Builders Solutions, Beechwood, Ohio; CP staff World of Concrete 2024 marked the formal North American market debut of Master Builders Solutions’ MasterEase, a next generation rheology-modifying, water-reducing admixture. Recently developed polymers enable the new ASTM C494 Type A agent to lower concrete viscosity compared to prior water reducing admixtures. The polymers reduce yield stress, the main indicator of…
Read MoreSources: American Concrete Institute, Farmington Hills, Mich.; CP staff American Concrete Institute Committee 302, Construction of Concrete Floors, and the American Society of Concrete Contractors are inviting practitioners to share their experiences placing and finishing mixes bearing ASTM C595, Type IL portland-limestone cement (PLC). Their 15-question survey, posted here, launches as cement producers rapidly roll out Type IL—typically ground clinker plus…
Read MoreEnvironmental Protection Agency reporting measures and market mechanisms like the U.S. Green Building Council LEED rating system could position publicly traded portland cement, concrete and aggregate producers for seamless compliance with a proposed U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rule on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and global warming risk disclosures. The subject of a public comment period closing this month, the…
Read MoreBy Don Marsh An energy market-driven nonprofit, RMI, offers credible perspective in its just-released Concrete Solutions Guide, geared to construction interests taking stock of the carbon dioxide emissions factor behind their project materials, products and methods. Posted at www.rmi.org, the document presents specific opportunities for “a nearly ubiquitous material with a sizable climate impact” and expands on the need to…
Read MoreSource: CP staff
The co-located 6th North American Conference on Self-Consolidating Concrete (SCC2016) and 11th International Concrete Sustainability Conferences will draw some of the world’s leading authorities on high performance materials and sustainable practices. Key suppliers and service providers to North American concrete producers will contribute to a deep program, speakers and presentations including:
Read MoreSources: Environmental Protection Agency; CP staff
Twenty-seven portland cement operations are among 70 manufacturing plants to achieve EPA Energy Star certification in 2015. Producers recognized for energy performance in the top 25 percent of the industry are Holcim (five plants); Buzzi Unicem, Cemex USA and Lehigh Cement (four plants); Argos USA, Essroc Cement and Titan America (two plants); plus, Ash Grove Cement, CalPortland Co., Martin Marietta Materials, Salt River Materials and Suwannee American (one plant).
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