Sources: CalPortland Co., Glendora, Calif.; CP staff Eyeing deliveries throughout southern California, CalPortland is deploying a compressed natural gas bulk tanker fleet as part of a strategy to capture fuel economy and lower the net greenhouse gas emissions associated with cement production at its Oro Grande plant. The producer has staged 24 CNG-fueled tractors with double bulk trailers along a…
Read MoreTag: cement
St. Marys, McInnis Cement pursue joint venture
Sources: Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, Montreal; CP staff The parent companies of St. Marys Cement Inc., Toronto, and McInnis Cement Inc., Montreal plan to combine their production and distribution assets serving Canada and United States markets from the Atlantic seaboard to the Great Lakes. With respective stakes split 83 percent and 17 percent, their joint venture will…
Read MorePCA projects minor 2020-21 shipment drops, or gain, under two recovery models
Sources: Portland Cement Association, Skokie, Ill.; CP staff
Portland Cement Association Chief Economist and Senior Vice President Ed Sullivan offers two U.S. cement consumption scenarios around “U” or “W” shaped economic recovery curves, with respective 2020 and 2021 figures of -3.4 percent or +1.7 percent and -4.8 percent and -2.7 percent—this year’s projections measured against 2019 shipments.
Read MoreCalPortland blended cement series clips carbon dioxide load
Sources: CalPortland Co., Glendora, Calif.; CP staff
The two charter offerings in a new CalPortland line of blended portland-limestone cements (PLC) have an embodied carbon level about 10 percent below that of common ASTM C 150 materials. ADVANCEMENT LT (Light) is a lighter colored, higher albedo Type IL PLC suiting concrete in design and architectural conditions. ADVANCEMENT HS (High Sulfate) is formulated for general use concrete or when high sulfate resistance is required.
Read MoreCement holds steady as minor greenhouse gas emissions data point
Sources: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; CP staff
A just-released EPA report shows the United States continuing to cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions disproportionate to economic output: 2018 levels were down 10 percent compared to 2005, while the economy grew 25 percent over that 13-year span.
Read MoreEnergy Star cement mills log Btu savings by the trillions
Sources: Portland Cement Association, Skokie, Ill.; CP staff
Thirteen portland cement plants earned U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Energy Star Certification for 2019: Alamo Cement Co., San Antonio; Argos USA, Calera, Ala. and Harleyville, S.C.; Ash Grove Cement, Seattle; Buzzi Unicem USA, Festus, Mo. and Chattanooga, Tenn.; CalPortland Co., Rillito, Ariz.; Cemex USA, Brooksville and Miami, Fla.; GCC of America, Pueblo, Colo.; Salt River Materials, Clarkdale, Ariz.; plus, Titan America, Medley, Fla. and Troutville, Va.
Read MorePCA’s Sullivan: Cement consumption will lag GDP growth
Sources: Portland Cement Association, Skokie, Ill.; CP staff
The Portland Cement Association Fall Forecast paints a minor 2019-2021 growth curve for cement consumption, with respective annual gains of 2.4 percent, 1.7 percent and 1.4 percent.
Read MoreResearch network ties industry, scientific institutions
Source: Global Cement and Concrete Association (GCCA), London
GCCA has formed Innovandi, the Global Cement and Concrete Research Network, aiming to drive innovation with actionable findings and build on the industry’s sustainability advances since 1990—among them an 18.3 percent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions per ton of cementitious material and eight-fold increase in the use of fossil fuel alternatives for portland cement production. The initiative was launched October 10 during the GCCA Annual Conference in Singapore.
Read MoreMIT CSHub researchers explore the effects of moisture and drying on cement
In a National Academy of Sciences paper, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology-hosted Concrete Sustainability Hub (CSHub) discuss how the porous network of portland cement absorbs water, and propose how drying permanently rearranges the material while leading to potential structural damage.
Read MoreKey shareholder presses Eagle to weigh cement, wallboard business split
Sources: Sachem Head Capital Management LP, New York; CP staff
An investment manager holding just under 9 percent of Eagle Materials common stock, Sachem Head LP, is encouraging shareholders to support two director nominees toward the Dallas-based cement, aggregate, concrete and wallboard producer’s early-August annual meeting. Board representation would enable the firm to act on concerns principals have raised over investor confidence in Eagle Materials’ asset mix.
Read More