Displaying items by tag: Australia

Australia: A court has fined Novus Precast US$19,500 for failures leading to two incidents in 2022 and 2023 during which workers at its Toowoomba precast concrete plant were hit on the head with a chain and suffered a crushed finger. Local press has reported that Novus Precast neglected to ensure that operations conformed to its safe work method statement.

Australia: Aggregates and ready-mix concrete producer Doyle Group has expanded its fleet of ready-mix concrete trucks to 12. Local press has reported that the fleet supports a recently commissioned US$1.68m ready-mix concrete plant in Townsville, Queensland.

Aiden Wherry, raw materials manager at Doyle Group subsidiary CAMM Quarries, said "We want to supply local jobs and keep local jobs going. We are the only local supplier in town."

Australia: Ready-mix concrete producer Baines Concrete says that it will shut up shop in October 2024, ending its 45 years’ service to the construction sector in Woonona, New South Wales. Local press has reported that the producer took the decision to close based on the present economic climate. Allied company Baines Masonry Blocks will continue to operate its Appin block and paving products plant.

General manager Bill Hudson said "Despite our best efforts to sustain the business, the ongoing economic conditions have forced us to make this difficult decision. Our primary focus is to ensure a smooth transition for our clients, suppliers and partners alike. We are committed to fulfilling any outstanding obligations to the best of our abilities before the closure date."

Australia: The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) government has pledged to use low carbon concrete in all future government construction projects, where appropriate, reports Mirage News. This commitment is part of the 'Low carbon concrete policy', designed to cut emissions without significantly raising project costs. The implementation of this policy will begin on 1 January 2025 and will require that designers, engineers and builders provide options for using low carbon concrete options in government projects. This initiative is part of the broader 10-year ACT Sustainable Building Pathway, which aims to embed sustainable practices throughout the building lifecycle.

Minister for Water, Energy and Emissions Reduction, Shane Rattenbury said "Using low carbon concrete is a simple and effective way we can reduce these emissions while supporting local industry. Already in Canberra, we have started using low carbon concrete in significant projects like the new Canberra Hospital expansion and in preparation for Light Rail Stage 2A. This is a fantastic example of how seamlessly low carbon concrete can be integrated into our everyday building projects.”

Australia: Climate Tech Cement and Polevine are due to showcase a newly developed reduced-CO₂ geopolymer concrete in a ‘major infrastructure project’ in Western Australia. Proactive News has reported that the partners will supply backing blocks for the project later in July 2024.

The joint venture aims to develop geopolymer concrete formulations to achieve strengths of 10MPa, 20MPa, 30MPa and 40MPa and to assess their performance and costs.

Australia: Local authorities in Isaac, Queensland, have received an application for the planned US$664m Lotus Creek wind farm, including the construction of three temporary ready-mix concrete batching plants to supply the project. The plants will supply 55,000m³ of concrete for the footings of 46 turbine towers. Each one will operate successively as construction progresses over a period of two years. The Lotus Creek wind farm originally secured planning permission in late 2022.

Australia: CRH has concluded a deal to acquire the remaining 57% of stake in Adbri not owned by Barro Group for US$1.4bn.

CRH CEO Albert Manifold said “We are pleased to reach this important milestone in the potential acquisition of Adbri in partnership with the Barro family. Adbri is an attractive business with high-quality assets and leading market positions that complement our core competencies in cement, concrete and aggregates, while creating additional opportunities for growth and development for our existing Australian business. We look forward to working with the Barro family over the coming years to enhance the long-term growth and performance of Adbri.”

Australia: France-based Saint-Gobain has submitted a non-binding indicative offer of US$5.44bn for building materials producer and land banking entity CSR. CSR’s businesses include insulation producer Bradford, fibre cement systems producer Cemintel, wallboard producer Gyprock, autoclaved aerated concrete (AAC) block producer Hebel and roofing producer Monier. Together, CSR’s building materials units accounted for 72% of its sales in 2023.

Australia: Alternative cement and concrete producers have welcomed a new Australian civil engineering standard that allows builders to use reduced-CO₂ geopolymer concrete in infrastructure projects. Wagners, which produces Earth Friendly Concrete (EFC), said that the revision has removed one if its key barriers to wider market acceptance. EFC replaces 100% of cement with supplementary cementitious materials, including ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) and pulverised fly ash, by virtue of its binder technology. Wagners previously supplied EFC for the London Power Tunnels project in the UK, based on local technical approval-based building codes. The producer now expects a new standard like the Australian one to follow in the EU.

Australia: The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has called for public comment on Switzerland-based Sika's proposed acquisition of Germany-based fellow construction chemicals producer MBCC Group. The commission has raised 'preliminary concerns' over the possible competition impacts of Sika obtaining an 80% Australian market share as a result of the deal.

Sika group responded to the ACCC's concerns with an offer of an undertaking to divest MBCC Group's entire Australia and New Zealand business.