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Finnish company Robit has started to deliver first production batches of its Diamond Button series for top hammer bits to selected global key accounts.

Spanish and Portuguese aggregates producers have had a tough time in recent years due to sluggish national economies suppressing demand for building materials. But with major new infrastructure spending having been approved by both countries’ governments, the future looks somewhat brighter.

Command Alkon, one of North America's leading digital collaboration platforms for heavy construction and quarrying customers, is close to being acquired by Thoma Bravo, a leading private equity firm focused on the software and technology-enabled services sectors.

The two companies have announced a definitive agreement for the acquisition of Command Alkon by Thoma Bravo from its current owner, Quilvest Capital Partners.

Terex Trucks wants to develop its share of the articulated hauler market in Georgia and has signed up a new dealer in the state: Border Equipment. The manufacturer hopes that the new deal will help support the growing demand from customers choosing ADTs (articulated dump trucks) in North America, says Terex Trucks.

The Liebherr Group claims that 2019 was another year of record setting for its financial performance. The firm saw a total turnover of €11.75 billion for 2019, an increase of €1.199 billion or 11.4% compared with 2018.

The Concrete Sustainability Council (CSC) has awarded a CSC Gold certificate to the first 13 plants of Heidelberger Sand und Kies - currently the highest achievable rating for CSC aggregate certifications.

Building solutions business Tarmac has started an employee-led campaign to donate personal protective equipment (PPE) to hospitals and NHS and social care workers across the UK.

HeidelbergCement is developing new and innovative technologies to reduce CO2 emissions. After very good results from the first phase of the project, the company is starting to scale-up its LEILAC technology (Low Emissions Intensity Lime And Cement) together with Australian technology company Calix and a European consortium.

The patented LEILAC process makes it possible to capture high-purity CO2 from cement production via a separate exhaust gas stream ... and the use the gas for other purposes.

Cement manufacturing giant LafargeHolcim says the Chinese construction sector has started to recover in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As North America continues to shut down in the face of the virus crisis, LafargeHolcim says that all of its Chinese plants outside of Hubei Province are now operating.

LafargeHolcim forecasts market demand in China to further recover and expects to supply 70% of last year’s volume in April 2020.

Swedish aggregates group Peab has received approval from the EU Commission to finalise its SEK 3billion (€272.9mn) acquisition of YIT’s Nordic paving and mineral aggregates business in Finland, Norway, Denmark and Sweden.

Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) has highlighted how excavator operators in the northern hemisphere can ensure their machines are in prime condition for the warmer spring conditions.

Hitachi Construction Machinery has released an uplifting video of its machines in action on job sites, including quarries, to raise spirits during the coronavirus pandemic.

Building materials provider Breedon Group has suspended production at all its sites in the Republic of Irleand.

MLM (Martin Marietta Materials) is anticipating good results from its aggregates business this year, as well as positive returns from "robust underlying construction market fundamentals, higher demand for public sector infrastructure and acquisition synergies."

Metso has made additional investments in its Mesa machinery repair facility in Arizona, USA, in order to optimise safety and broaden service capabilities. The site offers repairs and field services while supporting Metso’s Life Cycle Services contracts.

Mesa has seen steady growth since the opening in 2015. Metso says that 2019 set a new facility record for safety performance, revenue, and profitability.

CEMEX, the Mexican building materials giant, has published its Integrated Report 2019: 'Innovating for a Better World', which includes a complete analysis of the company's strategic vision, operational performance, corporate governance, and value creation at a global level.

The report highlights CEMEX's new Climate Action strategy and its commitment to drive the industry’s innovation by unlocking new value opportunities.

Caterpillar chief executive officer Jim Umpleby, other senior executives, management and salaried workers will not get a pay increase in 2020 as part of the world's biggest off-highway machine maker's efforts to cut costs during the coronavirus pandemic, Bloomberg news agency reports. They also won’t receive the payout outlined under an annual incentive plan.

Building materials supplier CEMEX says it has successfully completed a project to supply over 25,000 tonnes of asphalt to RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire, UK while ensuring the site remained operational at all times.

Paul McManus, chairman of the British Aggregates Association (BAA) and owner of Cloburn Quarry Company, in Lanark, Scotland, has stressed to BAA members that both he and the association's officers were making every effort to support the membership throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

Many jobs are being put at risk as the virus crisis halts construction sites across the U.S. says a new survey out this week from AGC, the Associated General Contractors of America.

“The Coronavirus is taking a swift and severe toll on the industry,” says the association. AGC officials are now calling for “additional measures to help workers and firms recover.”