Union Quarries deal grows York Building Products’ Keystone State footprint

Sources: York Building Products, York, Pa.; CP staff Key Pennsylvania aggregate and concrete block operator York Building Products has added crushed stone, ready mixed concrete and asphalt production capacity with a deal for Union Quarries of Carlisle, Pa. “This acquisition will allow both operations to provide a greater level of product offering for our respective customers, increase our level of…

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Commerce Secretary appoints inaugural CMU Checkoff Board of Directors

Sources: U.S. Department of Commerce, CMU Checkoff Transition Advisory Council, Washington, D.C.; CP staff  The Department of Commerce named 21 block producers to two-, three- or four-year terms on the CMU Checkoff Board of Directors. They will soon meet to launch initial operations; appoint Regional Advisory Committee chairs and vice chairs; and, determine when checkoff assessments begin. The inaugural directors,…

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Shopify steps up to CarbonBuilt carbon removal credit counter

Sources: CarbonBuilt, Los Angeles; CP staff Manufactured-concrete technology developer CarbonBuilt has entered into a carbon removal purchase agreement with Shopify Inc., Ottawa-based provider of essential internet infrastructure for commerce. Anchoring the agreement are 5,200 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide that will be sequestered in concrete masonry units molded and finished in plants equipped for the CarbonBuilt Reversa process. The purchase…

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Concrete, masonry anchors

Designed for light and medium-duty concrete, block, and brick applications, the Power Pro Concrete Anchors are durable and corrosion resistant, ICC-ES code compliant, and available in three colors, various lengths, plus 3/16-, 1/4- or 5/16-in. diameters. Unlike traditional fastening alternatives, they feature a fully threaded tip to enable quick penetration into wood and other materials. Their wide serrated and mid-crossband…

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CarbonBuilt, Master Builders advance low carbon mixes, products

A collaboration involving Los Angeles-based CarbonBuilt and MBCC Group’s Master Builders Solutions business will focus on formulating admixtures augmenting the former company’s low carbon concrete technology platform. The CarbonBuilt Reversa process uses carbon dioxide to optimize portland cement contents in mix designs and raise finished concrete performance.  New admixtures developed with Master Builders Solutions could position CarbonBuilt to extend the…

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Commerce sets block producer referendum through mid-November

A Department of Commerce-administered referendum, October 15-November 15, will enable registered concrete masonry unit producers to vote to approve formation of a Concrete Masonry Products Board, authorized to fund a CMU Checkoff through a 1-cent assessment per 8-in. equivalent building block sold in the United States. Commerce staff were to email ballots to producers who had registered by the day…

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Foamed glass aggregate producer plans Florida satellite plant

Sources: AeroAggregates, Eddystone, Pa.; CP staff AeroAggregates has broken ground on a Dunnellon, Fla. production facility for ultra-lightweight foamed glass aggregate. Scheduled for October 2021 start up, the operation will turn post-consumer recycled glass into a 0.375- to 2.5-in. graded material suiting concrete block mixes, plus fill for placement over soft compressible soils or underground utilities, or along embankments. 

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CMU Checkoff will propel industry to new heights

People make the concrete masonry industry. And it doesn’t hurt that the men and women who call the business home also contribute to one of the most economically sound, environmentally friendly and functional building materials on the planet. A new checkoff program will help propel the industry to new heights, help block producers put more money in their pockets and…

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NCMA research quantifies CMUs’ carbon dioxide-sequestering capacity

Sources: National Concrete Masonry Association, Herndon, Va.; CP staff National Concrete Masonry Association technicians are collecting block from a cross section of producer members for a two-year investigation measuring specimens’ carbon dioxide sequestration characteristics. Findings have the potential to arm the industry with critical CO2 uptake data plus delineate the sequestration rates and net volumes of dry cast versus conventional precast…

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Masonry interests affirm block construction economy, speed

Sources: Block Strong, Orlando, Fla.; CP staff Block Strong, a public awareness-geared partnership between the Florida Concrete & Products Association Inc. and Florida Concrete Masonry Education Council Inc., taps current Pennsylvania State University research to inform multifamily project specifications. Stakeholders especially note a) how construction materials can be an afterthought when developers and real estate investment trusts define the financial…

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