Displaying items by tag: customers

Poland: The Building Research Institute has issued environmental product declarations (EPDs) for all six cement types produced at its Chełm and Rudniki cement plants and Gdynia grinding plant. The products in question were two CEM I cements, two CEM II Portland fly ash cements, another CEM II cement and a CEM III slag cement. Cemex Poland additionally obtained EPD certification for its Vertua Classic and Vertua Plus concrete products.

Materials director Michał Grys said “For us, product certification is another important step towards sustainable construction and a sustainable future. EPD declarations provide our clients with additional confirmation of the properties of products offered by Cemex Poland. They also improve their chances of obtaining LEED or BREEAM certificates for their investments.”

India: TRA Research has named Ambuja Cements as India’s Most Trusted Cement Brand in its Indian Brand Trust Report 2022. The company also secured fifth place on the report’s Manufacturing category list.

World: The governments of Canada, Germany, India, the UAE and the UK have signed a commitment to support the development of markets for low-carbon cement and concrete in their countries. The governments will create market incentives for purchasers, review and update product standards to allow low-carbon materials to be used in all safe settings and promote their use through their public sector tendering rules.

World Cement Association (WCA) chief executive officer Ian Riley said “I’m delighted to see that governments are heeding our call for urgent action to accelerate decarbonisation of the cement industry around the world, and we look forward to hearing more details from the UK, India, Germany, Canada and UAE on the steps they will take.” He added “This commitment marks a hugely significant shift in mindset that we hope will be followed by other countries in the months ahead. When it comes to hard-to-abate industries like cement, it is vital to work together with governments to create the conditions in which we can get to net zero and beyond, as quickly as possible. We cannot do this alone in time.”

Taiwan: The Asia Responsible Enterprise Awards (AREA) awarding body has named Taiwan Cement Corporation among winners in the Green Leadership category at its 2021 event. The company won the award for its concrete product traceability system, which enables customers to access production details via QR code. The system achieved 100% traceability in 2020. Taiwan Cement Corporation is committed to carbon neutral cement production by 2050.

UK: ZwickRoell UK and Ireland has begun the construction of its new headquarters in Worcester, Worcestershire. The facilities will consist of a customer experience centre, a suite of offices, meeting and seminar rooms and a comprehensively equipped demonstration laboratory. Managing director Benno Sadowski said “We are very happy to be establishing a new facility in the Worcester Six Business Park, with its excellent strategic location in the UK.” He added “With our experience of more than 160 years in the materials testing equipment business, we are always investigating ways in which we can better support our customers with our advanced technology testing solutions in addition to creating relationships which embody our brand, vision and values.”

UK: Bunting has opened the Bunting-Redditch Customer Experience Centre at its Bunting-Redditch facility in Redditch, Worcestershire. The centre is equipped with high-intensity magnetic separators, eddy current separators and a revolutionary electrostatic separator. Bunting said that it will enable its engineers to work in partnership both remotely and at site.

General manager Adrian Coleman said “Having the ability to test and prove the separation capabilities of a specific machine is priceless. There is a constant flow of materials arriving to be tested and being returned. We are fortunate enough to have unique laboratory-scale technology that enables separations that are simply not possible in other test houses. Investing in our new Customer Experience Centre has already generated orders that previously we would not have secured.”

US: Cemex USA has announced plans for an upcoming 600,000t/yr aggregates plant in Brierfield, Alabama. The Birmingham Business Journal newspaper has reported that, when operational, the plant will supply the company’s ready-mix concrete operations in the state. The subsidiary of Mexico-based Cemex operates 30 batching plants in Alabaster, Tuscaloosa and Vance.

Mid-South regional president Marc Tyson said “The Brierfield plant gives us a new opportunity to support our existing customers and earn the business of new ones by leveraging the wealth of experience of our team and providing them materials sourced from all parts of Cemex USA's supply chain.”

UK: The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has said that Breedon Group’s acquisition of a minority of Cemex UK’s ready-mix and aggregates operations “may lead to a substantial lessening of competition in the supply of ready-mixed concrete, non-specialist aggregates or asphalt in 15 local markets across the UK” in a letter to the group. The Herald newspaper has reported that the potentially affected markets are in localities where Breedon Group is already dominant, such as eastern Scotland and the East Midlands.

CMA senior director Colin Rafferty said, “As consumers source the majority of these materials locally, it’s vital to ensure that enough competition will remain at the local level so there’s enough choice and prices remain fair.” If it fails to respond to the CMA’s concerns by 2 September 2020, Breedon Group will face an in-depth Phase 2 investigation into the deal.

El Salvador: LafargeHolcim subsidiary Holcim El Salvador has announced an alteration to the composition of its flagship product, Cuscatlán cement, developed in laboratories in France and Mexico. Strategic marketing manager Amalia Palacios said, “The new formula offers the end user higher quality and less waste, that is to say a yield of around 20% more for the same price, so that we are improving quality without an impact on the customer's pocket."

Colombia: Cementos Argos Colombia says that it has delivered facemasks and biosafety kits containing thermometers, floor charts and a digital health-monitoring app to 23,000 of its customers across Colombia. The company said that the initiative was undertaken, “In the hope of strengthening the commitment to the continuation of the sector operations in biosafety conditions, and the revitalization of the economy.”

Regional vice president Tomás Restrepo said, “At Argos, we have the firm intention of being the best allies to our customers. In this context it becomes more relevant than ever to work hand-in-hand for the health and wellbeing of our strategic allies and to contribute directly to the safe continuity of the construction, the recovery of the industry and the health of the economy.”