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Saint-Gobain Weber, the French building materials group, has opened a production plant in Samsun, Turkey. The €10.86 million (TRY 30 million) plant is based in Kavak industrial zone (Kavak OSB).

The India-based Jaypee Group is reportedly in talks with Heidelberg Cement and Sajjan Jindal-led JSW Cement, to form a joint venture which will control the majority of its cement plants as part of an ongoing exercise to reduce debt. According to India’s Economic Times (ET) newspaper, the plan envisages a separate joint venture entity which will house around 20-22 million tonnes of Jaypee's operational units spread across Uttar Pradesh, Himachal, Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh, Chattisgarh and a new greenfield

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures reveal that UK brick production surged 17% to over 1.8 billion bricks in 2014. The figure marked the first time UK brick production has topped this figure since 2009. An increase in housebuilding activity has been cited as a factor contributing to the increase, which is forecast to rise by a further 400 million bricks in 2015 as factories closed following the financial crisis are reopened. The pick-up in housebuilding activity also contributed to a 117% surge

The European Commission has given its approval for the planned takeover of Belgian company Joris Ide Group by Irish company Kingspan Group.

Both companies produce construction sheets and sandwich panels. The deal will not reduce competition.

Sifbéton, a new Moroccan company specialising in concrete products for the building and public works sector, has launched its new business. Total investment amounted to MAD 70 million (€6.63 million/US$6.95 million), which went towards two production units equipped with the most advanced technology.

Arabian Cement Company (ACC) in Egypt is installing a new renewable energy facility that will enable it to bring its capacity utilisation up to 100%. The company is currently running at about 80% of capacity, and coal makes up 70% of its energy requirements with waste and biomass adding another 10%. The conversion process is said to be scheduled for completion by mid-April 2015.

A trial for the commercialisation of dry slag granulation (DSG) is being carried out in China. The DSG converts blast furnace waste into an ingredient for cement is a new technology developed in Australia, and is the focus of a partnership formed between the Australia-based chief science body Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation and Beijing MCC Equipment Research & Design to help reduce the use of water and greenhouse gas emissions. The DSG will generate a glassy substance that is sa

According to figures released by All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA), in the July 2014 to February 2015 period, Pakistan recorded a 5.55% drop in its cement exports to 4.98 million tonnes as compared to 5.29 million tonnes in the previous corresponding period. In February 2015 alone, cement exports were 21.08% lower, and the total export volumes in the month under review declined from 583,480tonnes in February 2014 to 460,510tonnes. The total domestic volumes in February 2015 increased fro

Cement consumption in Spain increased by 8.3% in February 2015 to reach 810,104tonnes. It is the second consecutive monthly increase registered by the indicator, and since the start of the year consumption has increased by 6.6%. Cement consumption started the year with 5.2% growth in Spain to reach 769,838tonnes. In the whole of 2014, cement consumption was 10.789 million tonnes, representing a slight increase of 0.4% compared with the previous year.

China's Jiangsu province has decided to eliminate 3.7 million tonnes of obsolete cement output capacity in 2015, as part of its five-year action plan to cope with excess capacity in four major industries. The province will also phase out 1.5 million tonnes of steel output capacity; 1.1 million tonnes of iron output capacity and not less than 2 million DWT (deadweight tonnage) in the shipbuilding sector.

In China, Asia Cement posted a year-on-year growth of 11.77% in revenue to CNY 8.19 billion (€1.24 billion/US$1.31 billion) in 2014, thanks to its acquisition of Sichuan Lanfeng Cement and higher output from Jiangxi factory. The company's net profit fell 3.97% to CNY 790 million.

While one leading concrete production equipment manufacturer is investing heavily in cutting-edge technology, others are finding their new and existing batching plants in big demand. Guy Woodford reports.

Elkon is among the leading global concrete production equipment manufacturers with big plans for 2015. As part of the Turkish company’s continuous investment in its manufacturing facilities in order to improve product quality and production speed, the firm recently increased its number of welding robots

West China Cement posted a 6.8% decline in revenue to CNY 3.88 billion (€585.94 million/US$619.44 million) in 2014, while profit dropped 90.5% year-on-year to CNY 35.9 million. The company's cement sales volume dipped 3.4%. A fall of 2.1 percentage points was recorded in its gross margin to 15.4%.

China-based Shaanxi Qinling Cement will push for a major asset restructuring in 2015, after it reported a second-year loss of CNY 250mn (€37.75 million/US$39.91 million) in 2014. The losses widened 113.88% from a year ago, due mainly to lower output and sales and reduced average selling price of cement and higher expenses. The company's revenue declined 15.46% to CNY 674 million. Qinling Cement has disclosed that it targets to produce and sell 3.85 million tonnes of cement in 2015.

According to the sale representative of Conch South Kalimantan Cement (Conch), Ihan M Palla, the Chinese cement producer plans to produce 10 million tonnes of cement/year in Indonesia. It is developing five cement producing facilities in the country. The plant in Tanung Tabalong started production in January, 2015 while three plants are being developed in Merak, Banten; Manokwari, West Papua, and Maros, south Sulawesi. The location of the fifth project has yet to be disclosed. The plant in Tanjung Tabalong

Chinese cement and clinker producer Hongshi Holding Group will be launching CNY 500 million (€76.18 million/US$79.85 million) unsecured super short-term bills due in 180 days for general corporate purposes and bank debt repayment. The company has named the Agricultural Bank of China to be the joint underwriter, while Shanghai Pudong Development Bank will be the book-runner and lead underwriter. The coupon rate is yet to be confirmed. Trading of the bills will be available on 19 March 2015 at face value on t

The Industrial Developmental Authority (IDA) of Egypt is planning to issue 12 new licences for new cement plants at Upper Egypt governorates in 2015. Ismail Gaber, the chairman of IDA said that the first batch of licences issued will raise cement output by 21 million tonnes by 2018 and most of new licences will be issued at governorates of Beni Suef, New Valley, Qena, Sohag and Minya. The governorates of Delta, Cairo and Alexandria will be excluded from the new licences due to environmental concerns. IDA is

Trimble’s supply of Loadrite L2180 loader scales to John Deere has led to the company being awarded a John Deere supplier innovation award for 2014. The award is presented to a select group of suppliers who have demonstrated innovation in a product or service they provide to John Deere. Selections are based on four factors—creativity, feasibility, collaboration and bottom-line impact. Headquartered in the US, John Deere created the supplier innovation awards in 2010 to promote innovation in the company’s su

A South African sand quarry’s discovery of a decomposed granite rock that significantly adds to its product range, coupled with cost saving initiatives, is paying dividends in a market hit by squeezed margins, writes Munesu Shoko.

The South African construction sector has been in decline for the past few years, and statistics suggest that it is a tale of a struggling industry battling to get back on its feet following robust growth experienced during the build up to the 2010 FIFA World Cup between 2004

Kercim, a French company specialising in cement production and created in late 2012, has been bought Irish company Cement Roaston Holdings, which employs 76,000 people. The takeover value remains undisclosed, and will be effective at the end of June 2015. In 2013, the company's founder and shareholder Jean-Marc Demange died, and the initial shareholders sold their stake to Lafarge on 1 July, 2014, although the products were still marketed under the Kercim name. The planned merger of Lafarge and Holcim oblig