Displaying items by tag: marketing

Philippines: LafargeHolcim subsidiary Holcim Philippines has launched a new social media marketing campaign for its flagship general purpose Excel brand cement. The Business Mirror newspaper has reported that the campaign uses the words “support and lift” in relation to the attributes consumers most associate with Excel cement.

The company said, “Holcim Philippines has sold over 1bn bags of Excel since 2000. This reflects the trust of local contractors, who in turn have used this to build many of the things that benefit us today. This campaign is a reminder that Excel will continue to be reliable partner in building a better Philippines moving forward.”

US: The Portland Cement Association has launched greenercement.com, an informative website site dedicated to Portland Limestone Cement (PLC) applications and benefits. The organisation says that PLC’s 10% reduced carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions when compared with Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) make it the sustainable choice for innovative construction.

President and chief executive officer (CEO) Mike Ireland said, “PLC is another example of the cement industry evolving over the years, continuing to innovate and sustainably producing the high-quality cement that is needed to help keep America’s infrastructure strong and resilient.” He added, “This initiative will help educate engineers and other specifiers on how PLC can easily be incorporated into numerous projects.”

US: LafargeHolcim subsidiary Holcim US has rebranded its blended cement and supplementary cementitious materials range as Envirocore. Envirocore products include OneCem Portland limestone cement, MaxCem blended cement and NewCem slag cement.

The company noted that the partial substitution of cement with supplementary cementitious materials “not only results in more durable, high-performance concrete, but also lowers energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. CO₂ emissions are reduced by approximately 800,000kg/t of clinker replaced.” It also called on consumers to “adopt solutions that lower carbon emissions.”

India: Dalmia Bharat subsidiary Dalmia Cement has announced the launch of Dalmia Masters, an online platform for builders using Dalmia products. The company says that the platform “will offer opportunities for skill advancement, best-in-class construction practice sharing and a wide range of rewards.”

Chief operating officer (COO) Ujjwal Batria said, “As a leading cement brand, our product’s validation and recommendation by the contractor and technocrat community plays a large role in our success. Reaching out to thousands of contractors and masons, Dalmia Masters will help redefine what construction professionals can expect from cement brands.”

Executive director and head of marketing Pramesh Arya added, “Dalmia Cement’s outreach to construction professionals has always been pioneering. Dalmia Masters is a robust performance-linked loyalty programme, which will also expand our Future Today promise. The programme respects and celebrates the contractor community’s skill and vision, and will further strengthen the relationship we have built with it.”

The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has warned local cement producers to rein in their more outlandish claims. In a letter reported upon by the Economic Times newspaper this week, the government department has accused some manufacturers of making both objective and subjective claims about their products that strained credulity and didn’t fit the corresponding official standards. One industry source from the newspaper blamed the crackdown on some producers claiming that their cement products helped protect people from Covid-19! In their view the bureau was now over-enforcing its rules in retaliation. Given the severity of the outbreak in India - it has the second highest number of reported cases in the world this week - the response of the authorities is understandable to say the least.

The distinction between objective and subjective exaggeration that the BIS makes it worth looking at in more detail. For example, objective or supposedly fact-based claims the BIS cited included: ‘Protect Steel in Concrete’; ‘Protect Concrete from Corrosion’; ‘Corrosion Resistant’; ‘Weather Proof’; and ‘Damp Proof.’ Then, there were subjective, or more emotionally evocative, claims along the lines of ‘strong’ or ‘high performance.’ The BIS then outlines the specific ways in which objective and subjective assertions can be used. Objective claims should be avoided on marketing and packaging material. Subjective claims should, “explicitly indicate that such claims are not covered under the scope of BIS licence granted to them and the responsibility of such claims lies with them.”

Marketing is a big part of standing out in the crowded Indian cement market with producers sponsoring major sports teams. This might seem odd to readers elsewhere in the world but it demonstrates the target market, the importance of cement as a commodity to the general public and the power of brand awareness. Amubja Cement’s logo of a man with a Charles Atlas style physique cuddling a building sums up the message they want to convey: strength. No wonder producers are wary of the BIS wading in.

Standards also appeared in another news story this week with the announcement that Taiwan Cement Corporation (TCC) had obtained the first cement product carbon footprint label issued by the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) in the country. Its products will be marked with carbon footprint labels from the fourth quarter of 2020.

This shows a general trend in cement products towards showing sustainability credentials from putting environmental footprint data in front of specifiers for large projects towards making it a more basic retail selling point. Lots of other cement producers around the world have done and/or are doing similar things, from the dedicated slag cement manufacturers to the larger producers routinely releasing and promoting new low-CO₂ products. To pick one example from many, in July 2020 LafargeHolcim France introduced ‘360Score CO₂ emissions reduction ratings’ to its bagged cement range. The score, between ’A’ and ’D,’ corresponds to the factor of CO₂ compared to CEM-I Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC), with ‘A’ products producing less CO₂ than ‘D’ products in their overall creation.

To look at an older example of the need for standards generally, building collapses in Nigeria appeared to increase post-2000, with the misuse of lower-grade cements blamed for the situation. The Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) took action in 2014, local producers introduced higher strength cements and the problem was reduced. Given the intangible nature of measuring sustainability in cement products there is a need for reliable standards. Unlike performance metrics, such as a strength or durability, the CO₂ footprint of a cement product will generally remain utterly intangible for most end-users. The effects of CO₂ emissions are continually analysed and debated, but the negative climate effects of cement products are more akin to someone else’s house flooding on the other side of the world 50 years later, than one’s own house falling down a decade later due to using the wrong strength cement. So, some form of trustworthy enforcement for sustainability standards is crucial. Standards may represent ‘boring’ bureaucratic red tape at its most officious but we need them. In India and elsewhere though, the debate on enforcement continues.

India: The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has warned producers to avoid the use of objective product descriptions which may subsequently be proven as false claims. The Economic Times newspaper has reported that the advice follows an internal circular of the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution detailing plans for a tightening of standards around the use of objective terms such a ‘corrosion resistant,’ ‘weather proof’ and ‘damp proof’ by cement producers.

India: Shree Cement has signed a sponsorship deal with East Bengal Kolkata, one of two Kolkata, West Bengal-based football teams that compete in the I-League, the top flight of Indian football. The Economic Times newspaper has reported that the company has promised to let the club retain its ‘iconic red-and-yellow jersey’ and crest.

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."

Philippines: LafargeHolcim subsidiary Holcim Philippines says that it has partnered with digital news platform providers Pinoy Builders. The commercial partnership involves Holcim Philippines providing Pinoy Builders with its cement, concrete and health and safety expertise.

Marketing and innovation senior vice president Ram Maganti said, “The Philippines is a very digitally-savvy country and the majority of professionals in the Philippines' construction industry are millennials who are 'digital natives.' With its steadily-growing number of subscribers and followers, Pinoy Builders is helpful in our efforts in engaging and positively influencing the construction industry. We are excited in continuing to contribute to this platform to let Filipino building professionals know how our offerings and solutions can help them in their projects.”

India: Birla Corporation has launched a promotional video entitled ‘Never Will I Ever’ that celebrates the idea of home as somewhere with room for everyone. The video, launched to coincide with Independence Day, consists of inspiring coronavirus lockdown stories. Marketing vice president Suvadip Ghosh Mazumdar said, “Construction is not only about brick and mortar. In the last few months, we have seen many occasions of relationships being built and bonds of togetherness being created. The film is our salute to this spirit of togetherness and coming together of people."