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HeidelbergCement, the German global building materials giant, says it expects a negative balance sheet effect of around €200 million for 2017 due to major US tax reform signed off by President Donald Trump. A company statement read: “In the USA, a fundamental tax reform has become effective on 22 December 2017. An essential element of this tax reform is the reduction of the federal corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% as of the beginning of the year 2018. In addition, the regulations regarding the

JCB shop floor employees have returned to work to a New Year pay rise of 3.9% and order books at their strongest in the company’s history. The 2018 increase, which is linked to November 2017’s Retail Price Index (RPI), is part of a three year wage deal and took effect from January 1st. It follows a £500 (€560) Christmas bonus paid to all of JCB’s 5,500 UK employees. Over the past 12 months JCB has recruited more than 1,200 people at its 11 UK factories in Staffordshire, Derbyshire and Wales and handed

Vulcan Materials (Vulcan) has announced the completion of its acquisition of Aggregates USA. Vulcan chief executive officer, Tom Hill, said the acquisition complements and expands the company’s footprint in Georgia, South Carolina and Florida. In addition, the transaction adds to Vulcan’s product offering and expands the company’s distribution network and service areas. The major deal includes three granite quarries in Georgia and 16 rail distribution yards in the three states. In accordance to its

EPC-UK, a leading company in the manufacture, storage and distribution of commercial explosives, and drilling and blasting services, for quarrying and other industries, has kicked off 2018 with a series of Safety Briefings, to help all employees re-focus after the festive season and ensure safety is at the forefront of everything they do. The two-hour Safety Kick-Off Briefings took place across all EPC-UK sites, and encouraged every employee to take the time to consider the importance of safety throughout

CRH, the Irish global building materials group, has completed the divestment of its Americas Distribution business to Beacon Roofing Supply for €2.2 billion (US$2.63 billion). It follows an agreement that was first announced on 24 August 2017. In 2016, Americas Distribution reported EBITDA of €150 million on sales of €2.3 billion, with profit before tax of €121 million. Its gross assets as of the first half of 2017 were €1.2 billion. It is thought the proceeds of the sale will help fund future CRH

Metso, the Finnish global quarrying and mining equipment giant, has commented on US tax reform legislation signed off recently by president Donald Trump. A company statement read: “On December 22, 2017, President of the United States signed tax reform legislation which includes, among other things, a reduction in the USA federal corporate income tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent from the beginning of the tax year 2018. “The change will have a favourable impact on Metso's effective tax rate going

A more than familiar face around the UK mineral extractives industry, Mike Phillips, general manager of the Institute of Quarrying (IQ), is moving on to new challenges in 2018 after 10 years in post. During his ten-year tenure at IQ Phillips made a considerable contribution, which has seen the organisation move forward in a number of areas. These include IQ gaining Professional Affiliation Status to the Engineering Council, the regulatory body for the engineering profession that sets and maintains

Euro Auctions, a leading global market auctioneer of used industrial plant, construction machinery and agricultural equipment, topped the £200 million mark at its Leeds, England sales site this year for the first time. Staged every couple of months, each of the three-day auctions at Leeds consistently attract around 4,375 quality lots from 450 vendors. This in turn attracts around 2,100 bidder registrations, with many still preferring to attend the sales in person rather than bid online. “Demand for used

Lundin Mining has awarded a contract to Metso for the Somincor Zinc Expansion Project at Neves-Corvo mine in Portugal. In May 2017, Lundin Mining announced the results of its feasibility study for the Neves-Corvo Zinc Expansion Project, confirming the strong project economics and demonstrating significant incremental value for their Neves-Corvo operations. Planning to expand the existing zinc plant from its current capacity of approximately 1.1 million tonnes/year to 2.5 million tonnes, along with furthe

CASE Construction Equipment has received the Good Design Award for its 2017 launched G-Series wheeled loaders – which feature an innovative windscreen design and claimed bar raising operator comfort. This recognition for the CASE G-Series comes in the 50th year of the prestigious Award. It was also the most significant in its history as a record number of Fortune 500 companies and the world’s foremost design firms entered. The G-Series was one of the product designs selected by the Chicago Athenaeum:

With dangerous lorry driving continuing to hit the British headlines, Aggregate Industries has asserted that businesses must pay extra diligence to ensuring the safety credentials of their haulier providers. Throughout the duration of 2017 there has been an influx of headlines around poor lorry driving which has led to structural damage of property and infrastructure, accidents and, most tragically of all, fatalities. As part of an ongoing crackdown on bad driving etiquette by Highways England, last