Displaying items by tag: building products

Ireland: CRH has announced the launch of its new innovation investments company CRH Ventures. The new subsidiary has funds of US$250m and will focus on the technologies that address the construction sector's core challenges. The group said that CRH Ventures' investment decisions will assess potential for decarbonisation, automation and the development of advanced sustainable building products, among other factors.

CRH's CEO Albert Manifold said "The launch of CRH Ventures demonstrates our continued commitment to investing in new technologies that will shape the built environment of tomorrow. CRH Ventures will serve as a valuable partner to start-ups and entrepreneurs, which will benefit from the technical capabilities, knowledge and expertise of a global industry leader, to pilot and scale new technologies and innovations that will enable safer, smarter and more sustainable construction.”

India: Aditya Birla subsidiary UltraTech Cement has commissioned a new 400,000t/yr putty plant in Rajasthan. The facility will produce the company's WallCare white cement-based putty. Reuters News has reported the cost of its construction as US$22.9m.

Russia: The government is ‘working to establish import flows’ of building materials from Uzbekistan. Russian media sources have reported that the construction industry is also hoping to expand import partnerships with China, India, Iran and Turkey. Russian cement production reportedly continues to adequately serve the national demand for cement.

India: ACC has expanded its Green Building Centre chain into Telangana. The Orissa Diary newspaper has reported that the producer inaugurated the new Karimnagar Green Building Centre in the state on 14 December 2021. The centre will stock affordable alternative building products such as fly ash bricks and reduced-CO² concrete blocks. ACC aims to support Indian cities’ social, environmental and financial development through its Green Building Centres.

Managing director and chief executive officer Sridhar Balakrishnan said "At ACC, we strongly believe in embracing communities and working together to effect the real change. ACC's Green Building Centre business model benefits thousands of small scale construction workers by giving them employment and training."

Colombia: Cementos Argos and Saint-Gobain have launched a joint venture in the area of lightweight construction materials. The new business will supply the Colombian market with mortar and ‘a wide range’ of other products. Cementos Argos says that the venture will combine Saint-Gobain’s global mortars technology and know-how with its own strong leadership and local presence to accelerate the evolution of the construction market towards a sustainable future. It added that the undertaking aims to strengthen both parties’ leadership and regional growth. They expect to conclude the deal in early 2022.

US: Australia-based Boral has agreed to sell its US fly ash business to Eco Material Technologies for US$755m. The parties expect to conclude the transaction by the start of 2023. The proceeds of the sale will add to Boral’s surplus capital.

Boral’s chief executive officer Zlatko Todorcevski said “Together with the sale of our North American building products business and our stake in Meridian Brick, we will have divested the North American businesses for more than US$3bn.” He added “This is a significant milestone that supports our strategy to refocus on our construction materials business in Australia.”

Switzerland: Holcim has launched its Strategy 2025 – Accelerating Green Growth plan to become a global innovative and sustainable building solutions leader. Under the plan, the group will expand its solutions and products sales to account for 30% of consolidated sales by 2025. During the three-year period, it aims to deliver continuous group sales growth of 3 – 5% and over-proportional recurring earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBIT) growth on a like-for-like basis. It is also targeting a 10% return on invested capital (ROIC), cash conversion of 45% and leverage below 1.5x.

As part of the new strategy, the group will aim to recycle 75Mt of materials, including 10Mt of construction waste, in its products in 2022 – 2024. It aims to invest Euro476m in green capital expenditure (CAPEX) and link 40% of its financing agreements to its sustainable performance.

Chief executive officer Jan Jenisch said “We delivered what we promised with our Strategy 2022 one year in advance, setting strong foundations for our next era of growth. With our new level of performance, we have the firepower to invest in solutions and products to make it 30% of our company, while leading the way in green building solutions from ECOPact green concrete to energy-efficient roofing.” He added “With our Accelerating Green Growth strategy, we are ready to seize the opportunities ahead on our way to becoming the global leader in innovative and sustainable building solutions.”

UK: SigmaRoc has announced the ratification of its Greenbloc cement-free concrete block’s environmental credentials with an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD). The EPD is a Type III environmental declaration with ISO 14025, providing full-lifecycle information on the product’s impacts. Greenbloc, an ultra-low carbon alternative to traditional concrete blocks, is the first product of its kind.

Managing Director Michael Roddy said “With the launch of Greenbloc, we believe that we can now offer architects, contractors and housebuilders a competitive, reliable and – thanks to our EPD certification – proven low-carbon alternative to ordinary Portland cement (OPC) blocks. Making the switch from traditional blocks to Greenbloc can reduce the embodied carbon of a typical three-bedroom house by 73%, saving the equivalent of 2.7t of CO₂ per dwelling. It is also worth noting that we have obtained additional third-party test results against the declaration of performance certificate.” He added “The world is changing for the better, and technology is facilitating greater accessibility to materials that can bring about meaningful change for the construction industry. The reception for Greenbloc has already exceeded all expectations, and we are incredibly excited for the potential it has to offer.”

Australia: Boral has agreed to sell its roof tiles business to private equity company Lutum and other investors. The Australian newspaper has reported that the deal is part of Boral’s exit out of building materials markets in Australia.

Azerbaijan: Azerbaijan’s cement sector produced 3.30Mt of cement in 2019, down by 1.4% year-on-year from 3.35Mt in 2018. Ready-mix concrete volumes rose by 29% to 1.8Mt in 2019, from 1.4Mt in 2018.

The total value of building materials produced in 2019 rose by 5.0% to US$454m from US$432m in 2018.