Quarry Products

French cement producer Ciments Français has posted turnover of €899 million for Q3 2013, down 1.5% year-on-year. At a constant exchange rate, turnover rose by 3.7%. Over a nine-month period, aggregate sales fell 1.6% to 23.1 million tonnes, while ready-mixed concrete sales rose 3.5% to 7.1 million m³, and cement and clinker sales declined by 3.4% to 28.6 million tonnes due to a fall in Egyptian activity. Since the start of 2013, Ciments Français registered consolidated turnover of €2.73 billion, down 3.4% y

Mexican cement producer Cemex is planning to cut salaries at its six Spanish production plants by 25% in order to keen the plants open, according to trade unions CCOO and UGT.
Four plants are said to have already agreed to the move, but the plants in Alicante and Lloseta (Majorca) have rejected them. In total, the six plants have a workforce of 800 – with the two plants opposing the plan containing a combined 240 employees.
If the Alicante and Lloseta plants continue to snub the plan, CCOO and UGT claim C

Hanson Concrete has won the British Ready-Mixed Concrete Association’s (BRMCA) |Gold Medal for excellence in customer service for its supply to a rail viaduct repair project in County Yorkshire, northern England.

Contractor Story Rail had to repair two viaducts some 5km apart on the historic Settle to Carlisle railway line in the Ribble Valley between a Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning. The concrete was delivered to a central point, pumped into rail-mounted mixers then transported over 1.5km down th

BASF has launched its launches the Master Builders Solutions brand in Russia, Turkey, the Gulf Cooperation Council countries (for example Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates) as well as Kazakhstan.

The company says the brand strengthens its industry orientation, standing for its “commitment to provide the whole construction industry with tailored products and solutions.”

Experts anticipate a 7% growth of the ready-mix concrete market in St Petersburg and the Leningrad region of Russia in 2013 compared with 15% in 2012.

The market, however, is expected to retain its structure, except that some small companies are likely to quit business. In Q1-Q3 2013, 4.6 million m³ of concrete was produced in the region (compare with 6 million m³ in 2012).

French concrete product manufacturer BIP Bétons has launched a new concrete block which is said to offer a high mechanical and thermal performance, baptised Bétotherm 105.

Made from volcanic rock, the block is available in two formats. The product meets Promotélec energy performance standards and offers a thermal resistance which meets NF Th regulations. Bétotherm 105 also meets Eurocode 8 earthquake resistance norms and is compatible with all types of insulation and exterior coatings.

The potential demand for aggregates for ballast, scour protection and concrete in the UK to deliver gravity bases for offshore wind farms has been increased since the release of Offshore Wind: A 2013 Supply Chain Health Check by BVG Associates for The Crown Estate.

In this report, elements in the supply chain are assessed and ultimately rated on a green, amber and red scale. The majority of the 22 elements are given a green rating. Tellingly, one of only three elements to be judged red is vessels for ins

Aircrete systems producer H+H International boosted turnover to DKK 376.50mn (€50.48 million) in the third-quarter of 2013 from DKK 349.9 million in the third-quarter of 2012.

EBITDA increased to DKK 41.8 million from DKK 38.5 million. EBIT improved to a profit of DKK 19 million in Q3 2013 from a loss of DKK 32.4 million in Q3 2012. Net result was a DKK 5.8 million profit compared with a loss of DKK 55.1 million in Q3 2012.

Egypt-based Suez Cement revealed its affiliate Helwan Cement Company has introduced a new filter system to lower dust emissions to up to 10mg per cubic metre.

According to Suez Cement, the level is well below the standards used in Egypt, as well as Europe. In a press release, Suez Cement said it planned to invest EGP 500 million (€53.77 million) to improving the environmental standards of its five plants across Egypt.