Displaying items by tag: GCC

Mexico: Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua’s net sales rose by 11% year-on-year to US$667m in the first nine months of 2018 from US$610m in the same period in 2017. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 16.3% to US$199m from US$171m. It attributed the growth to building demand and rising prices in both the US and Mexico. Notable events in the third quarter of 2018 included: the operational integration of the Trident cement plant in Montana; completion of construction of the Rapid City, South Dakota plant expansion and start of the tie-in process; and reactivation of two idled kilns in Chihuahua to meet growing demand in the US and Mexico.

US: Staff members from Ash Grove Cement, Argos USA and Lehigh Hanson have won awards at the Portland Cement Association’s (PCA) 2018 John P Gleason, Jr Leadership Awards. The awards recognise PCA members who have exhibited leadership in advancing industry programs and initiatives. The scheme is named after John ’Jay’ Gleason who served as PCA president from 1986 until his retirement in 2007.

Steve Minshall, Corporate Director, Safety and Health at Ash Grove Cement won the Business Continuity award. He has served on the PCA Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Committee for two decades, where the PCA say he has proven to be a strong safety leader in implementing many programs and initiatives to reduce workplace injuries. He has led efforts to better partnership with regulatory agencies in pursuit of the common goal of safety. Finalists in this category were Brett Lindsay, Environmental & Energy Manager at Salt River Materials Group, and Steve Wilcox, Cement Technical Director at Argos USA.

Lori Tiefenthaler, Senior Director of Marketing at Lehigh Hanson won the Market Development award. As chair of the American Concrete Pavement Association (ACPA) in 2017, Tiefenthaler led efforts to better align the missions of allied cement and concrete associations, including an effort to launch PavementDesigner.org, which is a joint project between PCA, ACPA and National Ready Mixed Concrete Association. She has served on the executive board for the National Concrete Consortium, through which she has helped improve connections and outcomes for the cement and concrete industries with federal and state departments of transportation and academia. Finalists in this category were Bill Asselstine, Vice President Sustainability at St. Marys Cement/VCNA, and David Gray, Market Manager at GCC of America.

Gina Lotito, Vice President, Energy & Environmental, GCC of America won the Young Leaders award. She is an active member of the PCA Environment & Energy Committee, where she has been chair and vice chair of the Sustainable Manufacturing Subcommittee, and served on the Sustainable Development Committee. She has proven a leader in promoting the use of clean alternative fuels for cement production, and in federal advocacy efforts to lower regulatory barriers for using such fuels under the Non-Hazardous Secondary Materials Rule. Finalists in this category were Ed Griffith, Vice President Sales & Marketing, US at St. Marys Cement/VCNA and Adam Posly, Production Manager at LafargeHolcim US.

US: CRH has completed the sale of cement and ready-mix assets to Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua (GCC) following its acquisition of Ash Grove Cement. Ireland's biggest company sold the Trident cement plant in Montana to GCC for US$107.5m.

The move comes less than a month after CRH received regulatory approval from the US Federal Trade Commission to acquire cement manufacturer Ash Grove Cement for US$3.5bn in a deal first announced in September 2017.

As part of the transaction with GCC, CRH acquired most of the ready-mix plants and transportation assets belonging to GCC in Oklahoma and northwest Arkansas for US$118.5m. GCC will continue to own and operate four ready-mix plants in the Fort Smith, Arkansas area and own an office building in Tulsa, Oklahoma, which it will lease to CRH.
The purchase and sale amounts have been paid in full but are subject to final inventory valuation adjustments, which are expected to be completed within 90 days.