Year: 2011

A study released recently by an independent research center reveals using household garbage, tires, and even plastic to manufacture cement would produce fewer greenhouse gases and reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill than the fossil fuels currently used. Conducted by the London, Ontario-based Network for Business Sustainability, a non-profit research group based at the Richard Ivey School of…

An Environmental Protection Agency-commissioned survey finds energy intensity in cement production dropped 13% from 1997–2007. Duke University researchers compared producer-collected energy usage data against Department of Commerce figures, confirming a 1%-plus improvement trend per year to factor into EPA’s cement industry energy curve. The power savings equate to a reduction of almost 1.5 million metric tons of energy-related carbon.

According to reports in the local Ohio media, Cemex USA’s Fairborn plant in Xenia was given the green light for its quarry expansion request. The Xenia Township zoning board allowed the company to rezone 290 acres of land for mining, despite pleas from dozens of residents who spoke out against the expansion during a hearing at Central State University.

In response to ever-increasing market demand for sustainable building solutions, Lafarge North America recently introduced a new portland-limestone cement (PLC) commercial offering in Canada. Widely used in Europe for over 25 years, PLC is a new category of cement that provides performance similar to conventional portland cement with up to 10% less CO2 emissions.

The Mineral Information Institute’s latest “Minerals Baby” notes that 38,052 lb. of new minerals must be provided for every person in the United States to make the items used daily.

Mexico’s Cemex, S.A.B. de C.V. announced recently the successful execution of its integration to SAP-centric enterprise platform for its operations across all business lines in Mexico, Spain and Costa Rica.

According to the UK-based Builders Merchants Journal, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has referred a proposed UK construction materials joint venture between Tarmac UK parent company Anglo American and Lafarge to the Competition Commission. The parties propose to establish a 50-50 joint venture to which each of them would contribute the bulk of their construction materials businesses in the…

Two studies from the Concrete Sustainability Hub at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology represent major advancements for construction-related life-cycle assessments (LCA), as they quantify cradle-to-grave cost and environmental impacts for buildings and pavements.

For the fourth time, Heidelberg Cement is publishing a Group Sustainability Report focusing on a transparent presentation of the most significant topics relating to sustainability, in order to comply with the latest standards of reporting.