Displaying items by tag: UK
Simon Vivian appointed as new Mineral Products Association Chairman
02 September 2015UK: Simon Vivian, Chief Executive of Breedon Aggregates Limited, has been appointed as Chairman of the UK's Mineral Products Association (MPA) for the next two years. He succeeded Bill Brett, effective 1 September 2015. Vivian is the third chairman of the MPA to date to serve from an independent company.
"We are delighted that Simon has agreed to pick up the baton from Bill. His wide industry knowledge and experience will be invaluable to the association as we look to set the agenda for the industry for the next 10 years and respond to the challenges ahead," said MPA Chief Executive Nigel Jackson
The MPA looks out for the interests of the UK's cement producers.
UK: Established UK liquid waste and industrial services tanker specialist, Greens Environmental, has launched a new high vacuum air conveying plant called the iVac.
The iVac is believed to be the only British-made deep vacuum and pressure discharge unit on the market. It was designed to uplift heavy wet and dry industrial materials, including cement, aggregate and powder products and is particularly suitable for product recovery. The iVac has a 16.5m3 capacity tank to maximise payload and can operate with airflow up to 8000cfm (cubic feet per minute) with a vacuum level down in excess of 90%. It also features an automatic filter media cleansing unit to maximise operating time.
Additionally, for the first time, Greens Environmental has made its range of vehicles and equipment available to hire for short, medium and long-term projects, a move made in response to customer demand.
"The iVac is the result of an ambitious year's investment of around Euro280,000 in design and development, culminating in the release of the iVac Series," said Paul Cutter, director of the iVAC project. The tanker will be manufactured in-house, so that the iVAC team can retain full technical control.
"We wanted to make a product that not only met our customers' technical requirement, but made commercial sense to all parties. We have simplified the technical characteristics of the units without compromising on quality or results, which has resulted in much lower manufacturing costs. This cost saving is, quite simply, passed down the line to the client," said Phil Green, director of Greens Environmental.
UK: Axion Polymers has invested significantly in new laboratory and testing facilities to ensure consistent quality of its solid recovered fuel (SRF) products and to satisfy the stringent standards of its technical end markets.
It has installed a laboratory-scale furnace at its large-scale processing facility, Shredder Waste Advanced Processing Plant (SWAPP), in Trafford Park, Manchester to enhance accurate measurement and testing of the physical and thermal properties of its Axfuel® SRF 30, an alternative fuel used by the cement industry, among others.
Axion has also recruited a quality control team working within ISO 9001 operating procedures to conduct in-house product testing, including analysis on critical aspects such as SRF calorific value and chemical composition. Samples are sent on a weekly basis to external laboratories for further testing and verification.
Derived from automotive shredder residue, Axfuel SRF 30 is a sub 30mm-sized mixture of textiles, fibre-fluff, plastic, foam and rubber, with a gross calorific value of 18 - 22MJ/Kg and available in large tonnages.
"We have made this important investment because alternative fuels from waste need to be treated as a product, not as a waste. If SRF is to deliver the fuel benefit and meet the technically-demanding specifications of our end markets, it has to be of consistently high quality so customers can buy with confidence," said Axion director Roger Morton. "By operating within strict quality controls, we can ensure our reliable supply of SRF is produced to exceptionally high standards. As this fuel is sourced from end-of-life vehicles, giving it a second life as an alternative high-energy feed is going to be an attractive option for companies who want to demonstrate their environmental credentials."
UK: The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has welcomed the sale of plants by Lafarge Tarmac and Hanson.
In the Competition Commission's (CC) market investigation published in January 2014, the CC had ordered Lafarge Tarmac to sell one of two cement plants and Hanson to sell one of its ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) plants to enhance competition in the cement and GGBS markets in the UK. Lafarge Tarmac appealed the CC's decision to the Competition Appeal Tribunal. However, in December 2014, the European Commission cleared the merger between Lafarge and Holcim, provided it divest certain assets to a new market entrant. In accordance with those commitments, the Lafarge Tarmac business in the UK, with the exception of the Cauldon cement plant, was sold to CRH and the legal challenges brought by Lafarge Tarmac to the CC have been withdrawn.
In addition, Hanson completed the sale of its GGBS plant in Scunthorpe, as required by the CC's report, to Francis Flower on 31 July 2015. This news means that the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has completed the divestment remedies arising from the CC's report.
Perella Weinberg Partners hires LafargeHolcim co-chairman Wolfgang Reitzle in advisory role
05 August 2015UK: Investment boutique Perella Weinberg Partners has hired LafargeHolcim co-chairman Wolfgang Reitzle as an advisory partner.
Reitzle, also a former chief executive of the German gas maker Linde and chairman of the supervisory board of German car supplier Continental, will provide counsel in a senior role to the investment firm and its clients, especially in Europe, according to Perella Weinberg. He will continue in his role at LafargeHolcim.
Reitzle has had previous dealings with Perella Weinberg Partners; Holcim appointed Perella Weinberg banker Dietrich Becker to renegotiate the terms of its merger with Lafarge. "Reitzle has an exceptional track record of successfully managing growth across a variety of industries," said Joseph Perella, co-founder and chairman of Perella Weinberg Partners.
Francis Flower acquires Scunthorpe ground granulated blast furnace slag plant from Hanson
04 August 2015UK: Mineral resources company Francis Flower has announced the acquisition of the Scunthorpe ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) plant from Hanson Cement.
The business is capable of producing more than 500,000t/yr of GGBS and supplies customers in the Midlands and north of England. GGBS complements Francis Flower's existing range of high quality powdered minerals, which originate as by-products from various industries. This reduces the need for mineral extraction and landfill, delivering sustainable environmental solutions for its customers. The acquisition reflects both Francis Flower's commitment to developing its range of products and services in this sector and the credibility it has for making the most of mineral resources.
"We are absolutely delighted and very excited to announce this new acquisition. GGBS is an excellent fit to our existing product range and will help further our longstanding relationships in this sector," said Adrian Willmott, Chairman and CEO of Francis Flower. "We have a proven track record of making the most of mineral resources, reducing the need for mineral extraction as well as landfill and delivering sustainable solutions for our customers. We are very much looking forward to working with the team in Scunthorpe and developing the opportunities in the GGBS market as the UK construction sector continues to grow."
Aggregate Industries names Joe Hudson as managing director of cement and concrete products
22 July 2015UK: Aggregate Industries' new cement division will be led by Joe Hudson as managing director of cement and concrete products. He joins Aggregate Industries from Lafarge, where he has worked in a number of key functional and operational roles since 2001. Hudson was heavily involved in preparations for the LafargeHolcim merger as group senior vice president for organisation and development at Lafarge and has experience of running a cement business, having previously worked as managing director / CEO for Lafarge Wapco Plc in Nigeria.
LafargeHolcim’s Aggregate Industries takes ownership of two Lafarge cement plants in the UK
22 July 2015UK: Leicestershire-based Aggregate Industries, now part of the LafargeHolcim group, has taken ownership of Lafarge cement plants in Cauldon, Staffordshire and Cookstown, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland.
The transfer of ownership of the two plants, along with a quarry at Cauldon Low and a cement terminal at Belfast Docks, was finalised on 20 July 2015 and also involves the transfer of 250 employees from the existing operations to Aggregate Industries. Originally owned by Holcim, Aggregate Industries said that becoming a cement producer and supplier 'is the final piece in the jigsaw,' providing a full range of construction materials to its customers.
"These are exciting times for Aggregate Industries. Along with the wider benefits of being part of the new LafargeHolcim group, the integration of cement production represents a significant strategic opportunity for us. We're now able to offer our customers the full range of construction materials and solutions, while maintaining our high levels of customer service," said Pat Ward, Aggregate Industries CEO. The business will continue with the Lafarge cement brand for its bulk cement products, although some of the bagged products will be renamed in due course.
UK: As part of the preliminary steps to implement the disposals required by the European Commission for its approval of the merger to create LafargeHolcim, the group has completed the acquisition of the 50% share in Lafarge Tarmac held by Anglo American for Euro1.4bn.
This step is required to allow for the full divestment of Lafarge Tarmac, with the exception of the Cauldon and Cookstown plants and certain non-operational properties, to Ireland's CRH as part of the divestment of several assets in Europe, Canada, Brazil and the Philippines.
The divestments of these assets are expected to be completed at the end of July 2015, with the exception of the Philippines, which is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2015.
Plymouth quay to be turned into cement depot
06 July 2015UK: According to the Plymouth Herald, a major new six-silo cement depot is being planned in Corporation Wharf in Cattedown, Plymouth, Devon as part of a bid to bring its historic wharf back into use. It is part of a bid to transport the tens of thousands of tonnes of cement brought in and out of Plymouth every year by boat instead of road. The Victoria Group wants to build a new bulk cement storage and terminal at Corporation Wharf in Cattedown.