The professional committees of the World Cement Association (WCA) announced their goals for the new year at the association’s general assembly meeting last month.
Climate change, decarbonization and sustainability challenges facing the cement industry led the agenda for the Environment & Climate Change committee. The key focus will be on accelerating sustainability through addressing energy efficiency, alternative fuels, digitization, CCUS, and promoting low carbon cement and concrete. The committee also intends to seek commitments from progressive companies toward zero/low carbon cement production.
Technology & Innovation Committee Chair Wang Kedong (CUCC) presented a technology roadmap covering several key priorities, including reducing emissions and energy consumption, green product innovation, Industry 4.0 and digitalization. The committee will also be working closely with the PEGASUS 2020 program, offering expertise on WCA benchmarking and performance improvement initiatives.
The Safety & Health Committee introduced a series of initiatives, ranging from COVID-19 support and preventative measures, to managing high risk activities such as energy isolation and traffic safety. The committee also hopes to create an anonymized incident database, collected from WCA members to share learnings, in particular on how to avoid high risks incidents and how to most effectively share best practices.
“This has been a very challenging and unpredictable year for our industry, and we have all had to adapt and find new ways of working. In this context, I’m especially pleased with how our professional committees have continued to work together effectively to tackle some of the sector’s key issues,” said Ian Riley, WCA chief executive. “They successfully launched a comprehensive agenda, including new initiatives and member benefits, and we look forward to building on that work next year, creating opportunities and sharing of knowledge for the benefit of all across the global cement ecosystem.”
