Sources: Titan Cement International SA, Brussels; CP staff The parent company of Virginia-based cement, fly ash, aggregate, ready mixed and concrete block producer Titan America SA has announced an investment in Concrete.ai, Los Angeles developer of artificial intelligence and machine learning technology for mix design optimization, quality control and lowering carbon dioxide emissions associated with finished concrete. Combining Titan Cement’s…
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Summit Materials closing: A quantum leap for Quikrete Holdings
Sources: Summit Materials Inc., Denver; CP staff Atlanta-based Quikrete Holdings Inc. has completed the acquisition of key cement, aggregate and concrete operator Summit Materials. The deal closed February 10 per terms of Quikrete Holdings’ November 2024 offer of $52.50/share, representing an enterprise value of $11.5 billion, about $2 billion of which is assumed debt. Led by Colombia-based Cementos Argos (31…
Read MoreCemex USA chief Muguiro to succeed parent company CEO González
Sources: Cemex S.A.B. de C.V., Monterrey, Mexico; CP staff Cemex Directors have appointed Jaime Muguiro to replace retiring CEO Fernando González, a 35-year veteran of the global cement, aggregate and concrete operator, effective April 2025. “In over a decade as CEO, Fernando has led Cemex to great success, and he will leave us with a company that is an industry…
Read MoreCRH, Holcim commit $75M to Sublime Systems, Microsoft collaborator
Sublime Systems, Somerville, Mass. developer of an electrochemical process netting ASTM C1157-grade binder at lower carbon dioxide emissions levels than portland cement, is teaming with CRH Plc and Holcim Ltd. to advance a premier Sublime Cement facility in Holyoke, Mass. The global cement, aggregate and concrete producers’ $75 million Sublime Systems investment anchors a requisite financial commitment to the facility,…
Read MoreWhite House credits concrete, cement brands augmenting Buy Clean Initiative
Sources: White House Briefing Room; CP staff A mid-October White House update on Federal Buy Clean Initiative and companion Department of Energy (DOE) Industrial Demonstration Program progress references Cemex USA, Clark Pacific, Heidelberg Materials North America, National Ready Mixed Concrete Co., Ozinga Ready Mix Concrete and Summit Materials. Each has committed to measures that advance carbon dioxide emissions reduction goals…
Read MoreAggNexus Conference shows the value of optimal data interpretation
The premier AggNexus Digital Innovation Conference drew upward of 100 representatives of independent or multinational concrete, cement, aggregate and asphalt producers, along with their software and hardware partners. Staged last month on the University of Texas, Austin campus, it demonstrated how the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence models, coupled with data capture or analytics methods, are transforming construction material producer…
Read MoreConcrete Pipe Week amplifies industry’s ‘Proven’ value propositions
Sources: American Concrete Pipe Association, Irving, Texas; CP staff The American Concrete Pipe Association will present one virtual plant tour and three webinars during Concrete Pipe Week 2024, September 22-28, while saluting governors and other public officials who formally recognize concrete drainage structures’ contributions to quality of life. “Proven,” the theme of this year’s event, frames the four presentations ACPA…
Read MoreCommand Alkon steps up automation, AI capabilities in Marcotte Systems deal
Command Alkon has acquired Quebec-based Marcotte Systems, noting how the combined companies’ expertise and talents will accelerate heavy building materials plant automation and production optimization, plus cloud applications and artificial intelligence developments for concrete, aggregate, asphalt, cement, bulk hauling and construction interests. “This acquisition underscores our commitment to accelerating innovation and customer service excellence,” says Command Alkon CEO Martin Willoughby.…
Read MoreInform AI-powered transport planning software drives fleet savings
Amid strong market conditions, cement, aggregate and concrete producers face logistics challenges ranging from unpredictable supply chain disruptions and driver shortages to new sustainability mandates for reducing carbon emissions in product transport and common variants. The latter include narrow delivery time windows, ad-hoc orders, and last minute cancellations. Then there is the matter of manual or spreadsheet-based planning processes, which…
Read MoreInstrumental Workhorse
The past decade’s top two mergers in North American cement, aggregate and concrete—Lafarge Group + Holcim Ltd. and HeidelbergCement AG + Italcementi S.p.A.—have spurred realignment of markets up the Atlantic Seaboard, across the Great Lakes and down the Mississippi. Of all the markets those deals and their asset divestitures impacted, none stands out quite like Toronto, where a case study…
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