Displaying items by tag: Titan America

US: The Portland Cement Association (PCA) has announced the winners of its Chairman’s Safety Performance Award for outstanding safety performance in Portland cement production in the US.

The winners were: Cemex USA’s Clinchfield, Georgia and Victorville, California plants; Lehigh Hanson’s Cupertino, California and Tehachapi, California plants; Titan America’s Medley, Florida and Troutville, Virginia plants; LafargeHolcim’s Morgan, Utah and Theodore, Alabama plants; Buzzi Unicem’s Chattanooga, Tennessee plant; GCC of America’s Pueblo, Colorado plant; and Argos USA’s Atlanta, Georgia grinding plant.

PCA chair Tom Beck said, “We’re proud to highlight these top safety performers. Our industry is constantly focused on doing everything possible to assure our employees go home in the same condition as they arrived.”

US: Green Business Certification (GBC) has recognised Titan America subsidiary Roanoake Cement’s successful implementation of its zero waste policy at the 1.5Mt/yr Troutville, Virginia plant with a Total Resource Use and Efficiency (TRUE) Gold award. In 2019 the plant won the GBC’s TRUE Silver award. Roanoake Cement environmental engineer Lindsey Layman said, “In order to elevate our TRUE Zero Waste certification, we ramped up our zero waste policy to include, for example, physical audits of waste and improving recycling practices on-site. As a result, we have created a zero-waste culture and achieved an average of 98% overall diversion from landfill and incineration of solid non-hazardous wastes.”

Greece: Titan Group’s profit dropped by 5.5% year-on-year to Euro50.9m in 2019, from Euro53.8m in 2018. The group said that it ‘demonstrated strength’ in ‘sustaining a growth performance’ despite challenges in Southeastern Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean. Sales were Euro1.61bn, up by 8.0% from Euro1.49bn in 2018, led by Titan Group’s US subsidiary Titan America’s sales growth of 10.7%, to Euro952m from Euro860m. Titan Group’s Greece and Western Europe sales grew to Euro245m, up by 3.3% from Euro237m in 2018, with sales gains from the private sector offsetting the decreased revenue from delays in public infrastructure projects. Cement exports, especially to the US, were also a major regional sales contributor, while clinker exports fell.

Group volumes of cement, including clinker and cementitious materials, were 17.0Mt, down by 7% from 18.2Mt.

US: Titan America subsidiary Roanoke Cement has settled on a fine of US$3640 with the Virginia Department of Environment Quality (DEQ) for the breach of emissions regulations after a kiln gas outlet at its 1.5Mt/yr Troutville plant in Botetourt County, Virginia, recorded an average temperature of 121°C over a nine-hour period on 26 June 2019. Virginia DEQ enforcer Marvin Booth said there was ‘no documented harm to public health or the environment’ resulting from the violation.

US: The Portland Cement Association (PCA) has announced the winners of the 2019 Energy and Environment (E&E) Awards. The awards recognised environmental and community relations projects that were completed in 2018 and were presented at the 3rd Annual Cement and Concrete Fly-In.

The CalPortland Mojave cement plant in California won the Energy Efficiency award for the installation of a new classifier system for its vertical roller mill that increased energy efficiency by reducing fan power requirements. The plant also installed a control system for the finish mill that will maximise performance and help reduce wear on equipment. The classifier installation reduced the finish mill energy intensity by 1.5 to 2.0kWh/t, and the control system reduced energy intensity by 13%. In 2018 22% of the electricity consumed by the plant came from on-site renewable wind energy generation. CalPortland has implemented significant energy efficiency measures and its energy management program has been recognised by the Environmental Protection Agency Energy Star program as the Energy Star Partner of the Year for 15 years in a row.

Roanoke Cement Company and Titan America’s Troutville plant in Virginia won the Environmental Performance award for being the first cement manufacturing plant in the US to receive ISO 50001 certification for energy management of all aspects of energy procurement, design and use. The plant reduced its total electrical consumption by 10% and fossil fuels use by more than 12%. The plant has also implemented an alternative fuels program as part of its certification for the True Zero Waste Program, administered by Green Business Certification and has received silver status achieving a 96% rate of waste divergence from landfills.

Lehigh Hanson’s Permanente cement plant at Cupertino in California won the Innovation award for the installation of a water treatment system reducing concentrations of metals, including selenium, to meet permit limits. Lehigh Hanson developed a treatment system that combined ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis (UF/RO) technology in conjunction with biological treatment technology to remove metals, including selenium and dissolved solids. This ensured applicable effluent limits were met while optimising treatment capacity and efficiency. This treatment system is the first of its kind in the cement industry ensuring that effluent limits are met while, at the same time, limiting the quantity of waste needed to be managed.

Buzzi Unicem USA’s Greencastle cement plant in Indiana won the Land Stewardship award for opening a 4km smooth packed stone trail in conjunction with the not-for-profit People Pathways organisation as Phase 2 of the Putnam Nature Trail. Buzzi Unicem USA staff and People Pathways used heavy equipment for rough clearing and grading of the overgrown former railroad bed and improved and expanded the physical trail. These areas were then landscaped with trees, native prairie vegetation plugs, interpretive signage, benches, birdhouses and other features. Additional nature trail enhancements include placement of wildlife monitoring cameras along the trail, installation of nesting boxes and interpretive signage, and maintenance of the recently completed restoration of native flora installed in 2017 and 2018.

Cemex’s Lyons cement plant in Colorado won the Outreach award for volunteering work by its staff at the Rocky Mountain National Park in Boulder, Colorado, performing campground improvement activities at Glacier Basin Campground by moving rocks and fallen timber and clearing existing fire pits of ash deposits. The plant then introduced a new community outreach initiative by hosting a Manufacturing Day event, providing local students tours of the quarry and plant to increase youth interest in pursuing a vocation in skilled trades. Additionally, the plant teamed up with the Celestial Seasonings B Strong Ride for cancer care and research for an event aimed at increasing safety awareness while fundraising for two local organizations and their efforts to fight cancer.

US: Argos USA’s Harleyville cement plant in South Carolina and Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua’s (GCC) Pueblo plant in Colorado have been awarded Energy Star certification by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for the first time. Altogether 100 manufacturing plants across different industries earned the certification in 2018.

24 cement plants received the certification in 13 states. These cement companies included Alamo Cement, Argos USA, Buzzi Unicem, CalPortland, Cemex, Continental Cement, GCC, Holcim US, Lehigh Cement, Salt River Materials and Titan America.

“America’s cement manufacturers’ commitment to sustainable manufacturing have led to improved equipment reliability, energy efficiency, and the increased the use of alternative fuels,” said Portland Cement Association president and chief executive officer (CEO) Mike Ireland.

US: The Wildlife Habitat Council (WHC) has recertified four of Roanoke Cement Company’s terminals in Virginia and North Carolina. Units at Front Royal, Richmond and Bristol in Virginia and Winston-Salem, North Carolina received the certification.

"Having the Wildlife Habitat Council's recertification for each of them is a distinguished recognition confirming that all of Roanoke Cement's sites are on the right track ecologically. We look forward to continuing our conservation efforts providing pleasing, ‘green’ features within our terminal campuses. A few examples include pollinator meadows at Front Royal and Winston-Salem, avian habitats for the Eastern Bluebird in Richmond, and stream restoration in Bristol," said David Brinkley, Director of Distribution & Customer Resources at Roanoke Cement Company.

WHC's certification program, ‘Conservation Certification,’ is built on global recognition programs, reflects contemporary conservation efforts and applies its collective learning to the future of biodiversity in the US and the globe. Front Royal, Richmond and Winston-Salem were originally certified in 2013. Bristol was originally certified in 2015. Certification by WHC is valid for two years.

Weather always seems like an excuse in cement company financial reports. It seems that it can pop up when a producer has nothing else to blame for its poor performance. Except, of course, when there has actually been some bad weather. With this in mind the weather is likely to have a rather larger presence in the next set of results for companies in the Caribbean and Florida in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma. The storm tore across the region in a rough north-western bearing, reaching Category Five hurricane status on the Saffir–Simpson scale with sustained winds of over 252km/hr. It caused loss of life and mass destruction to property and infrastructure.

Bottom lines flutter in the wind as construction markets upend in the wake of the weather. Yet cement companies have a more direct relationship with extreme weather events. Cement plants themselves are large industrial sites with staff and equipment that are vulnerable to the elements. This is covered by a company’s resilience strategy but it can include things like reducing non-essential staff levels, shutting down production and securing a site. Cemex USA, for example, set up telephone lines to help employees in need of assistance for both Hurricane Harvey in Texas in late August 2017 and Irma this week. Titan America shut down its Florida operations over the weekend ahead of Irma and then started reopening them on 12 September 2017.

To look at one facet of preparing a cement plant shutting a clinker kiln down with adequate notice, like for a maintenance period, is one thing. Yet doing it in an emergency is an entirely different proposition as the kiln generally needs time to cool down. Global Cement discovered what happens when a kiln is simply stopped when it visited the Cemex South Ferriby plant in the UK. The plant suffered a complete electrical outage following a tidal surge at the site. A 22m-long section of one of the kiln shells had to be replaced because it had been distorted by the sudden cooling.

Secondly, the concrete that cement is used to make plays a key role in what the Portland Cement Association (PCA) and others call resilient construction. Typically concrete structures and buildings survive extreme weather events better than other weaker building materials. Although a wide range of other factors such as building design, foundations and roofing construction are also important. Notably, much of the footage that emerged during the storm in Florida was shot from concrete buildings. As Cary Cohrs, former chairman of the PCA put it: "The greenest building is the one still standing." At the time of this push 2013 Cohrs and the PCA were lobbying to strengthen US building codes and standards. It is likely that the association will renew its efforts in the wake of Irma.

With the winds slackening, the clean up operation starts. Cemex USA’s Houston Terminal said it had reopened for business after Harvey despite being two feet under water a week earlier. As reports start to emerge about the scale of the devastation in the region following Hurricane Irma the insured losses have been estimated at US$20 – 65bn by analysts quoted by the Financial Times. Two things are certain though. One, bad weather is likely to make an appearance in the third quarter financial reports and, two, the rebuilding is going to need lots of cement.

US: The Portland Cement Association (PCA) has announced the winners of the 2017 John P Gleason Jr Leadership Awards, honouring individuals who have exhibited leadership in association activities in support of member company objectives and operations. The awards will be presented at the PCA’s Fall Congress in Chicago.

Daniel Nugent, Senior Vice President, Technical Services and Government Affairs, Buzzi Unicem USA won the award for Business Continuity for his leadership role in industry regulatory and legislative initiatives, including greenhouse gas emissions and other significant issues that impact cement manufacturing operations. He serves on a variety of PCA committees, including the Energy and Environment Committee and Government Affairs Council. Finalists for this award included Hamid Farzam, Vice President of Technical Services and Quality Assurance for Cemex USA and Steve Regis, Senior Vice President of Corporate Services for CalPortland Company.

Matthew Wood, Sustainable Products and Promotion Manager, Ash Grove Cement Company, won the award for Market Development for the promotion of cement-based products at the national and local level, such as roller-compacted concrete and full-depth reclamation paving solutions. He is also a member of the PCA’s Sustainable Development Committee and LEED Accredited Professional. Finalists for this award included David Gray, Market Manager for GCC of America and Larry Rowland, Manager of Marketing and Technical Services for Lehigh Hanson.

Ruben Guerrero Jr, Director of Corporate Affairs, Salt River Materials Group won the award for Young Leaders for his active engagement in the PCA’s network of public policy and communications committees, including the Government Affairs Council, Industry Communications Committee and State Government Affairs Task Force. Finalists for this award included Desirea Haggard, Environmental Manager, CalPortland Company and William Kissel, Senior Environmental Manager, Titan America.

US: Titan America's Pennsuco plant, which includes cement manufacturing, aggregates, quarrying, block manufacturing and ready-mix concrete operations, has been officially recognised as a Gold Level Zero Waste facility, making it the only facility of its kind in the US to achieve Zero Waste Status.

"The Zero Waste Certification is a remarkable accomplishment and consistent with Titan America's commitment to striving for best-in-class sustainability practices. Congratulations to our Environmental Department and thanks to everyone at Pennsuco for their help and support. We should all feel very proud of this," said Randy Dunlap, president of Titan America's Florida business.

To qualify for Zero Waste Certification, the Pennsuco Complex was required to demonstrate greater than 90% diversion from landfill use for a minimum of 12 consecutive months. This includes reducing, reusing, recycling or composting discarded materials or recovering the materials for productive use in nature of the economy at biological temperatures and pressures. It requires implementing sustainable strategies for resource and waste management. The process for certification process also included an extensive on-site audit, which was performed by Zero Waste Council members.

Zero Waste recertification occurs every three years. The Pennsuco site is now aiming for Platinum Certification. Titan's Pennsuco Plant has also been recognised for other sustainability initiatives, including Wildlife Habitat Certification and EnergyStar Certification. Titan's two cement plants at Pennsuco and Roanoke have been EnergyStar certified for 10 consecutive years.