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The Latvian producer of dry construction mixes, Sakret, has signed a franchise agreement with the Russia's Sakret Russland to build an construction material production plant in Samara, Russia. The new plant will have an annual capacity of 200,000tonnes. Sakret Russland will sell production output mainly in Samara and neighbouring regions and targets a 15%-20% market share. The deal with Sakret Russland is the first step of Sakret's targeted development and expansion plan of Sakret's franchise network in the

Metso will rebuild a complete crushing and screening plant for an aggregates producer Sablières Malet in Southern France. The new plant will replace an old plant destroyed in fire in 2012. The value of the order is approximately €8 million. When completed, the plant capacity will be 850tonnes/hour, and will be fed by trains from different deposits. The feeding capacity will be 1,200tonnes/hour and it will produce different sized aggregates for road and concrete. The supply consists of a complete plant inclu

Terex Washing Systems (TWS) is making final plans to unveil what it says is a new innovative washing system. The AggreSand system is the latest addition to what the company says is an already extensive product portfolio, and it is due to be officially launched in Quarter 2, 2013. The TWS AggreSand system combines aggregate washing and screening with sand processing on a modular chassis, and brings together “tried and trusted TWS components in an innovative modular design.” TWS says that a gap in the market

Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) has cut the ribbon on its US$100 million (€77.2 million) expansion programme at its Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, USA facility. In addition to the official opening of a new headquarters building for the Americas, the event also marked the start of wheeled loader production at the company’s North American base in Shippensburg. Joining Volvo CE President Pat Olney in the inauguration ceremony were United States Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez; Pennsylvania Dep

Hanson is taking full control of Midland Quarry Products (MQP), a County Leicestershire, England-based asphalt and quarrying company. It already owns 50% of the company and is taking ownership of Tarmac's stake in the business. Hanson is exercising its contractual pre-emption right to buy the shares, while the UK Competition Commission required the sale of Tarmac's stake to clear its joint venture with Lafarge. Hanson has the right to match the price agreed with Hope Valley Holdings and pre-empt any sale of

Swiss-based multi-national building materials producer Holcim has announced that Wolfgang Reitzle will take over as chairman in 2014. To ensure continuity, current chairman Rolf Soiron has been proposed for re-election at the annual general meeting of 17 April 2013. Also at the meeting the board of directors will propose the election of Hanne Birgitte Breinbjerg Sørensen and Anne Wade to the board of directors of Holcim. Sørensen is currently the CEO of Maersk Tankers based in Copenhagen, Denmark, one of th

The two Liebherr wheeled loaders, the L 506 Compact and L 576, have received the Red Dot design award in the Product Design category. The award is one of the most prestigious international design competitions, and the winners are decided by a high-ranking jury of renowned experts, who demand the highest standards of creativity, innovation and product quality. Experts from various countries selected the prizewinners of 2013 from a total of 4,662 designs submitted in the various categories.

A woolly rhinoceros skeleton unearthed at a Lafarge Tarmac quarry is giving scientists new insight into ancient British weather. When it was discovered at the Whitemoor Hay sand and gravel quarry near Alrewas, County Staffordshire, England, the remains were billed as “the most significant fossil find of a large mammal in Britain for over 100 years”. Now, following years of research, the exceptionally well-preserved bones are offering up the secrets of climate in Britain 42,000 years ago. A team of scientist

Banner Contracts has boosted its fleet of Terex Finlay machines with a new C1540 cone crusher, supplied by Finlay Plant Northern. The delivery of the C1450 cone crusher increases Banner Contracts’ Terex Finlay fleet to eight machines in total. Capable of processing up to 150tonnes/hour, the C1540 has a built-in single deck pre-screen, which allows Banner Contracts to process material, removing the fines before it reaches the cone. This means the company can remove any undersized product beforehand, to incre

JCB has embarked on an £8 million (€9.35 million) investment programme at its British manufacturing plants as the company gears up for future growth in global markets. The money is being spent at JCB’s Midlands and Wales factories on new machine tools which will further enhance component quality and production efficiency. One of the biggest single investments is in £4 million (€4.68 million) worth of machine tools in the Hydraulic Business Unit at the World HQ in Rocester, England. The new equipment, which

The Mineral Products Association (MPA) has welcomed measures in today’s Budget which taken as a package help boost the outlook for the mineral products and construction sectors. Particularly welcome is the decision to freeze the indexation of the Aggregates Levy until April 2014 and the decision to introduce the Climate Change Levy mineralogical and metallurgical exemption for energy intensive industries such as cement and lime. Nigel Jackson, chief executive MPA, said: “MPA has lobbied hard on both of thes

A team of pumps from Tsurumi are working at one of Europe’s largest open air copper mines to keep it safe. Operated by Hellenic Copper Mines, the 4,000-year-old Skouriotissa copper mine in Cyprus is one of the oldest operational mines in the world. Integral to the day-to-day operation of the mine, the pumps remove groundwater, rainwater and highly acidic liquids (pH 2) unearthed by explosive excavation. The pumps have been working fault-free at the site for two years and counting. Pumping muddy water with l

Weir Minerals has won a £4.4million (€5 million) process equipment supply order for the Bozshakol copper mine sulphide plant in northern Kazakhstan, which will access one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper-ore deposits. The project is being developed by Kazakhmys, a London-headquartered mining company, and is expected to output an average of 75,000 tonnes of copper concentrate per annum across its 40-year lifespan, with production scheduled to begin in 2015. The order will be delivered by Weir Minera

Reports say that the ultimate reason for the collapse of the concrete water tower in Jyväskylä in Finland in early November 2012 was delayed hydrogen embrittlement in the steel bars strengthening the concrete beam connecting the tower's floor elements and supporting the upright walls of the water tank. According to the Safety Investigation Authority there was no indication of any material faults or production faults in the steel that was used in the bars. Apparently the hydrogen in the steel structures was

In Portugal, Portuguese cement company Cimpor is closing off its Cabo Mondego unit in Figueira da Foz. The factory employs 28 workers. Facilities are to be dismantled and the area closed. Brazilian group Intercement (Camargo Correa), the company’s majority shareholder stressed that, due to the country's current financial situation, Cimpor is required to undergo restructuring. The plan involves the termination of 150 jobs. Around 90% of cases involve early retirement. Despite guaranteeing no job cuts, Interc

According to a survey conducted by the McGrath Group, almost two-thirds of those involved in the construction industry are unaware that recycled aggregates sold in the UK will need to carry a CE-mark from July. Hitherto CE-marking of aggregates was voluntary in the UK but the new Construction Products Regulations state that from 1 July 2013 all construction products that have a harmonised standard (hEN) or a European Technical Assessment must have CE marking affixed to the product and be accompanied by a de

Holcim and HeidelbergCement intend to balance their respective interests in Cement Australia and to operate the company as a joint venture. Holcim plans to sell 25% of the share capital of Cement Australia to HeidelbergCement. After signing the contract, the two construction materials groups will each hold a 50% interest in this joint venture. The transaction is already approved by the Australian authorities. The parties have agreed not to disclose the cash purchase price. In future, Holcim and HeidelbergCe

HeidelbergCement increased revenue and operating income in 2012 while net debt significantly reduced. These are some of the highligfhts in the company’s 2012 consolidated financial statements. Group revenue improved by 9% to €14 billion; operating income before depreciation (OIBD) increased by 7% to €2.48 billion; free cash flow significantly improved; profit for the financial year rose by 2% to €545 million despite considerable one-off charges and net debt lowered to €7 billion. In its outlook the company

The joint venture Fonika Gips (Aksolit's brand) will deliver a gypsum plant in the Kamskoe Ustye district of the Tatarstan Republic (Volga) in July 2013. The enterprise will include an underground mine, a gypsum crushing unit, and seven facilities for producing gypsum mixes and gypsum board. The plant will manufacture 200,000 tonnes of gypsum stone; 15 million m² of gypsum board; 300,000 m² of gypsum partition blocks and 120,000 tonnes of dry building mixes. Investments are estimated at €124.91 million and

SCF Betongelement, the Swedish concrete element manufacturer, has been awarded a contract by JM to be responsible for design, manufacture, and assembly of elements for the Kista Torn building at Kista Centrum near Stockholm. The 40-storey Kista Torn is to be the highest residential building in Stockholm with 266 apartments. The contract is the largest ever received by SCF Betongelement. Planning and design are due to start immediately and construction is scheduled to begin on 1 February 2014.