Displaying items by tag: aggregates

US: Ireland-based CRH has acquired California-based aggregates and asphalt producer Dutra Materials. The FT newspaper has reported that the business will join CRH’s Americas Materials Solutions business.

CRH Americas Materials Solutions president Scott Parson said “Following our entry into California earlier this year via the acquisitions of BoDean Company and Northgate Ready Mix, we are excited to expand our presence.”

UK: US-based Stellex Capital Management has acquired ready-mix concrete producer and haulier Fox Brothers. Fox Brothers’ portfolio also includes aggregates recycling, quarrying and muck-away services, under subsidiaries including B&W Plant Hire & Sales, Monks Training Services, Tipworx and Woods Waste. Following its acquisition by Stellex Capital Management, Fox Brothers will now merge with ready-mix concrete and aggregates producer JA Jackson.

France: Circular aggregates producer Néolithe has partnered with Hoffmann Green Cement Technologies and Groupe GCC to produce a fuel loading slab for a temporary bus depot in Marseille. The slab will be made of Hoffmann Green Cement Technologies’ H-UKR clinker-free cement and Néolithe’s mixed circular materials-based Anthropocite aggregates. The resulting slab will serve as a test for the use of H-UKR concrete in future Groupe GCC projects.

The partners say that a mix of H-UKR cement with 20% Anthropocite reduces CO₂ emissions by 63% compared to CEM II/A cement-based concrete produced using conventional aggregates, to 62kg CO₂eq/m³.

Groupe GCC executive vice-president Patrick Dubourg said "This project perfectly illustrates one of GCC's key priorities: implementing sustainable solutions. The work we've been doing for several years with Hoffmann Green Cement Technologies enables us to take tangible action in this direction, and the partnership with Néolithe enables us to take a further step in the direction of decarbonisation, an essential issue for construction.”

Laurence Hemerit, infrastructure director at customer Marseille Metropolitan Transport Authority (RTM), said "RTM found GCC's proposal very interesting in that it enabled us to carry out a large-scale, long-term comparative test to assess the qualities of low-carbon concrete. Our temporary bus storage site was therefore the ideal candidate for this experiment."

Saudi Arabia: Al Kifah Ready Mix & Blocks has updated the market on its achievements in the sustainable concrete space in Saudi Arabia. The producer’s mixes include slag-based aggregates, as well as natural pozzolans and CO₂ injected using equipment developed by Canada-based CarbonCure. Gulf Construction News has reported that the company's range of ultra-low CO₂ ConGreen concrete products and BloGreen concrete blocks have supported projects including the Aramco Stadium project in Al Khobar, Qiddiya amusement park in Riyadh and King Salman Global Maritime Industries Complex in Jubail.

General Manager Nigel Harries said "Al Kifah Ready Mix & Blocks’ products have been widely adopted in mega and giga projects across the kingdom and have proved their high performance, thus strengthening the company’s position in the Saudi market. Al Kifah’s green solutions have unique properties that facilitate tasks on the job site through their better workability and finishability. They can be considered an all-in-one solution, offering zero wastage, zero mobilisation time, lower emissions and a smart way for supplying concrete in remote areas."

Germany: Cemex has acquired a majority stake in the Berlin-based recycling company RC-Baustoffe to enhance its circularity business Regenera. The company processes construction, demolition and excavation materials. The acquisition integrates RC-Baustoffe with Regenera, allowing the facility to process up to 400,000t/yr, which will be turned into repurposed aggregates for concrete production.

CEO of Cemex, Fernando González, said “With acquisitions such as this, Cemex continues to strengthen its commitment to circularity through Regenera as well as promoting the world’s transition to a more circular economy. Construction and demolition materials account for more than 30% of global ‘waste’ streams and reintegrating these materials into the construction value chain can reduce the use of virgin raw materials."

France: Cemex France reduced the total emissions of CO₂ from its concrete and aggregates logistics operations by 10% in the two years between 2021 and 2023. The company achieved this through various initiatives, including equipment upgrades, route optimisation and the substitution of alternative fuels, including hydrogenated vegetable oil in pusher vessels, and biogas where possible. The producer says that the reduction aligns with its FRET21 transport sustainability initiative, as well as its Future in Action 2050 net zero roadmap.

Cemex France is currently preparing to renew or expand its commitment to the FRET21 initiative for another three years.

Peru: Switzerland-based Holcim has acquired ready-mix concrete producer Mixercon and industrial minerals producer Comacsa for US$100m combined. Noticias Financieras News has reported that the acquisitions mark Holcim’s entry into Peru, strengthening its hold in the South and Central American market.

Regional head Oliver Osswald said "The incorporation of Comacsa and Mixercon will allow us to generate synergies and develop export markets.”

UK: Low Carbon Materials has participated in a trial project to build roads with lower embodied CO₂ emissions. The company supplied its ACLA carbon-negative aggregate for use in repairs to the M11 in Essex. National Highways has reported that CRH subsidiary Tarmac and Sweden-based construction firm Skanska also collaborated in the project.

National Highways’ research, development and innovation director Joanna White said "Solutions like this could have a real impact on our road to net zero carbon, so we are delighted that we have been able to accelerate the development of the product and get it on one of our roads for testing.”

US: CRH has acquired ready-mix concrete and aggregates producer Ary Corporation. The Commercial Observer newspaper has reported that Ary Corporation operates nine ready-mixed concrete plants and 25 aggregates sites, along with construction and paving services and seven asphalt plants.

CRH’s Americas Materials Solutions president, Scott Parson, said "We are delighted to welcome all Ary Corporation employees to the CRH family. The acquisition expands our existing footprint in Colorado and presents CRH with attractive opportunities for development and growth. As North America's leading integrated supplier of aggregates, asphalt, ready mixed concrete and construction services, we look forward to serving customers in Colorado with our unique combination of building materials, products and solutions."

US: Vulcan Materials has secured approval from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality for its upcoming aggregates quarry in Comal County. The approval is based on the company’s water quality protection plan for the 607 hectare site situated in the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone, which supplies water to 2 million people. The plan involves the use of vegetation strips, berms and flood plain areas, while excavating a total 387 hectare (64%) of the site in nine successive stages.

Vulcan Materials said that it plans to operate the site in a ‘safe, socially and environmentally responsible’ manner, and will ‘protect and conserve’ water.