Displaying items by tag: Germany

Germany: Cemex has reached a binding agreement to sell its aggregates and ready-mix concrete assets in the north and northwest regions of Germany to GP Günter Papenburg for around Euro87m. It expects to sign the final agreement in April 2019 and close the divestment during the second quarter of 2019.

The assets in Germany being divested consist of four aggregates quarries and four ready-mix concrete (RMX) plants in north Germany, and nine aggregates quarries and fourteen RMX plants in northwest Germany.

The proceeds expected to be obtained from this divestment will be used mainly for debt reduction and for general corporate purposes. The transaction is subject to standard regulatory approval.

Germany: Siemens will be hosting a mining media talk at the Bauma construction machinery trade fair in April 2019. Roland Ehrl, Minerals Executive Vice President, will be showcasing Siemens' portfolio of products, systems and solutions for the global mining industry. Dan Fodor, Head of Application Management and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) Minerals, Christian Dirscherl, Vice President Mining Excavation and Transport Minerals, and Zeng Yun, Director Business Development Minerals, will be highlighting digital topics like Siemens' SmartMining, Autonomous Stockyard Management and Minerals Operation Management Solution.

The ‘Siemens Mining Media Round Table’ will take place on 9 April 2019 at the event in Munich. Registration is required to attend.

Germany: Schenck Process has appointed Keith Cochrane appointed as chief executive officer (CEO). He succeeded Andreas Evertz on 1 March 2019. Evertz, who joined the group in 2014, has left the company to pursue new career opportunities. Cochrane has served as the chairman of the advisory board of Schenck Process since late 2017. Before that, he was the CEO of the Weir Group between 2009 and 2016.

Germany: The executive board of Humboldt Wedag (HWG), a subsidiary of KHD Humboldt Wedag International (KHD), is preparing to cut approximately 80 jobs. It has made this decision in response to a ‘difficult’ business environment in cement plant construction industry in the near future. It said that in light of this, ‘personnel capacities cannot be sufficiently utilised.’ The measures required to implement the reorganisation will be discussed with the works council soon.

Uzbekistan: Russia’s Eurocement has ordered three mills from Germany’s Gebr. Pfeiffer for its Akhangarancement plant upgrade in Uzbekistan. The package includes an MVR 5000 R-4 for raw material grinding and two MVR 5000 C-4 for cement grinding. The MVR 5000 R-4, features a total drive power of 2500kW, will grind 500t/hr of cement raw material to a fineness of 12% R 90µm. The cement mills, each with an installed drive power of 4000kW, are designed to grind 200t/hr of Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) at 3200 Blaine. No value for the order has been disclosed.

Germany: Fuchs Petrolub has officially opened an expansion to its plant in Kaiserslautern. A new automated storage and retrieval system (ASRS) warehouse, two production halls and new office space for a total of Euro16m have been built on the premises of Fuchs Lubritech. The location, which mainly produces lubricants for special applications, now covers a total of 96,000m².

"The growth of the special application division and the concentration of diverse activities at this location made an expansion necessary. The extension is part of our global growth initiative, which is focused on capacity increase in line with advanced technology," said Stefan Fuchs, Chairman of the Board of Fuchs Petrolub.

Germany: Bischof + Klein will present a new product from its PowFlex product range at the Powtech trade fair in April 2019. The film and packaging developer will showcase its B+K PowFlex vs powder packaging product for the first time. This converted alternative to paper valve sacks supplements the B+K PowFlex product range for powder packaging. It is intended for the construction industry but other applications in the chemicals and foodstuff industries are also possible.

Germany: Schmersal Group will be demonstrating its new HDS switchgear series for heavy industry at the Bauma construction machinery trade fair in April 2019. The basis of the new platform is a standardised enclosure concept, which is available in two versions: plastic and grey cast iron. Typical application areas for the product include emergency-stop deactivation, belt misalignment monitoring in the transport of bulk materials, end position monitoring in steel making and level monitoring in material silos.

“With the modular HDS switchgear platform, we’ve created a product that our customers can use flexibly over a wide range of applications. The HDS platform can also be used worldwide thanks to its international approvals,” said Udo Sekin, heavy industry sector manager at the Schmersal Group.

Germany: Bernd Scheifele has decided to step down as chairman of the managing board of HeidelbergCement in February 2020 after 15 years in the post. He will be succeeded by Dominik von Achten, the current deputy chairman. Scheifele will then be proposed for election as successor to the chairman of the supervisory board at the annual general meeting 2022.

In other changes to the group’s managing board, Lorenz Näger will remain chief financial officer (CFO) until May 2022 and then become deputy chairman of the managing board. Jon Morrish, previously the head of North America, will take on responsibility for Western and Southern Europe from Von Achten in 2020. Chris Ward, currently head of the Canada region, will be promoted to the managing board and take on responsibility for North America from Jon Morrish. Ernest Jelito, currently the head of HeidelbergCement’s activities in Poland, will be promoted to the managing board and take on responsibility for Northern and Eastern Europe-Central Asia from Albert Scheuer, who will leave the managing board in August 2019.

“The changes in 2020 are part of long-term succession planning for the Supervisory Board and Managing Board of HeidelbergCement,” said Fritz-Jürgen Heckmann, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of HeidelbergCement AG. “Since assuming office in 2005, Dr Bernd Scheifele has decisively shaped the Group and successfully moved it into new dimensions both operationally and strategically. By introducing effective management processes and a lean organisation, he significantly increased the competitiveness of HeidelbergCement, propelling us to the forefront of the industry. He has also overseen expansion of our geographic footprint and the scope of our core activities and made HeidelbergCement the leading vertically integrated building materials company globally,” said Fritz-Jürgen Heckmann, chairman of the supervisory board of HeidelbergCement. He added that the changes in 2020 are part of long-term succession planning for the supervisory board and managing board of HeidelbergCement,”

Dominik von Achten has served as the deputy chairman of the managing board since 2015. He has been a member of the Managing Board since 2007 with responsibility for North America Group area and other topics. Currently, he is in charge of the Western and Southern Europe Group area and the Competence Center Materials. As Chief Digital Officer, he also oversees the digital transformation and digital ventures.

Lorenz Näger has been the CFO of HeidelbergCement since 2004. In addition, he is the head of finance, accounting, controlling, tax, treasury, insurances and risk management, information technology (IT) and shared service centre.

Ernest Jelito joined HeidelbergCement in 1982 and held various technical and management positions before taking over as Director Global HTC in 2009. Since 2015 he has worked as General Manager Poland.

Chris Ward has been with the group since 1996, holding various management positions in Georgia, North Carolina and Texas before taking on responsibility for the aggregates business in the Southeast region of the US. Currently, he is responsible for the Canada region in the North America Group area.

Germany: Poor weather in the US and lower asset sales than expected reduced HeidelbergCement’s earnings in 2018. Its operating earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 6.8% year-on-year Euro3.07bn in 2018 from Euro3.3bn in 2017. Its revenue rose by 4.7% to Euro18.1bn from Euro17.3bn. Cement sales volumes grew by 3.4% to 130Mt from 126Mt and ready-mix concrete volumes increased by 3.7% to 49Mm3 from 47.2Mm3.

“In operational terms, we were almost able to offset the impact of adverse weather conditions, particularly in the US, and the higher than expected cost inflation through growth in sales volumes and price increases,” said Bernd Scheifele, chairman of the managing board. He added that the company achieved record sales volumes and revenues in 2018. He also said that its action plan is producing its first results, with a reduction in debt to below Euro8.4bn due to portfolio ‘optimisation’ and spending discipline.

By region the group reported that construction activity in North America was hampered by a long winter in the north and heavy rainfall, particularly in the north and southwest of the US. A ‘strong’ level of construction was noted in the group’s Northern and Eastern Europe-Central Asia Group area leading to revenue increases. In Asia-Pacific its operating EBITDA fell by 4.4% due in part to high competition in Indonesia and infrastructure project delays in Thailand. Cement sales volumes growth was reported in most counties in Sub-Saharan Africa.