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Alkern chairman Denis Sicard says the French concrete block and slab manufacturer has earmarked several acquisitions for 2012 in order to increase its productivity.

Concrete suggestions to deal with the economic downturn's effects on the quarrying industry will be publicly debated by a panel, at the University of Derby, England.

Shareholders of Ireland-based cement producer, Readymix, are being urged by the firm to accept a €27.40million takeover bid by Cemex Spain.

The first Quarry Life Award launched by HeidelbergCement raised strong interest from students and researchers with over 300 project proposals competing in 18 countries on four continents.

Caterpillar delivered record-breaking sales and revenues of US$60.1 billion in 2011, an increase of 41% from $42.6 billion in 2010, with profit at $4.9 billion, an increase of 83% ffrom $2.7 billion in 2010.

Metso has signed a contract with Consorcio Construtor Belo Monte (CCBM) to supply equipment to the construction of the Belo Monte hydroelectric power plant (UHE Belo Monte) in Brazil.

Danish industrial firm FLSmidth has posted a record high pre-tax profit of €292million (DKK2.17billion) for 2011.

The Competition Commission (CC) has decided provisionally that the proposed UK joint venture between Anglo American and Lafarge could damage competition in certain markets for construction materials.

Sure Equipment Spares (SES), part of the Finlay Group, has invested €120,000 to increase stocks to ensure it can continue to deliver to its customers quickly and overcome logistics issues involving worldwide airport security checks. Larger items, such as engines, now need to be screened before being transported by plane, meaning spares often have to be moved by road moving delivery time from overnight to a two-day service.

Chinese construction equipment company Sany is buying Putzmeister, the German manufacturer of concrete pumps, in a deal said to be worth €360-500million. The acquisition is seen as a landmark deal for Sany, and one that will give the company access to premium quality concrete pumping technology.

FL Smidth has been awarded contracts worth a total of approximately €66.7 million for equipment supplies to a copper producer in South America. This includes the delivery of gyratory crushers, apron feeders, cyclones, flotation cells, concentrate thickeners, and tailing thickeners.

HeidelbergCement’s preliminary and unaudited figures for the fourth quarter and full year 2011 show that in Q4 revenue increased to €3.3billion (+13.8% from Q4 2010); operating income before depreciation improves by 6.8% to €639million and there was a strong growth in sales volumes for cement (+14.6%), aggregates (+7.7%) and RMC (+12.4).
For the full year 2011, revenue increased to €12.9billion (+9.7% from 2010); operating income before depreciation improves by 3.6% to €2.32 billion, and there was a contin

Finning International, represented in the UK by Finning UK and Ireland, and Caterpillar have reached an agreement for Finning to acquire from Caterpillar the distribution and support business formerly operated by Bucyrus in portions of South America and Western Canada and in the UK.
After closing, Finning expects to begin providing sales, service and support for former Bucyrus mining products in all of Finning’s dealership territories.
The transaction is valued at approximately US$465 million (€365 millio

Latest figures from Cemex show that the company’s consolidated net sales increased by 6% during the fourth quarter of 2011 to approximately US$3.7billion [€2.82billion] and increased 8% for the full year to $15.1billion [€11.5billion] versus the comparable periods in 2010.
Operating EBITDA increased by 13% during the fourth quarter of 2011 to $542million [€413million] and increased 1% for the full year to $2.3billion [€1.75billion] versus 2010.
The infrastructure and residential sectors were the main dr

The German Cement Works Association (VDZ) and the Federal Association of German Cement Industry (BDZ) are combining operations and merging into the German Cement Works Association.
The newly-formed body will represent 23 domestic companies and about 95% cent of the German industry with a turnover of approximately €UR2.1billion.
“The merger gives us significantly greater clout and reach,” said chief executive Dr Martin Schneider, who will lead the new organisation.
Overall, the new structure formally conf

Pump manufacturer Tsurumi has created a YouTube channel to showcase its products online. The company says the channel (www.youtube.com/tsurumi) features high quality videos that mix animations with live-action footage.

Atlas Copco has acquired Perfora, Italy, a company that manufactures and sells cutting and drilling equipment in the dimensional stone industry (DSI). Through this acquisition Atlas Copco is entering the DSI quarry equipment sector, thereby broadening the group’s business interests.

Weir Minerals has launched two new sales and support centres to get closer to its customers across the Iberian Peninsula and Benelux regions. The Netherlands base is in Venlo in the south-east of the country and the Spanish centre is in Madrid.

Lafarge's latest results show "positive trends" in fourth quarter after successfully achieving a net debt reduction target of €2billion with a €500million cost savings programme underway.

A Mineral Products Association (MPA) survey results for the fourth quarter of 2011 indicate that while overall industry markets were broadly positive during 2011, with strong growth in the fourth quarter compared with the same period of 2010, the figures mask weak markets outside London and the south-east England and a favourable weather effect in December.