CemWeek Magazine, Issue 30

CW Group is pleased to announce the publication of the new issue of CemWeek Magazine. The 30^th issue provides in depth features about the challenges that the cement industry is facing, as well as the solutions and innovative technologies that will help producers stay profitable and protect the environment.

Here are some of the topics covered in the latest edition of the magazine.

• The new issue of CemWeek features a detailed analysis of the challenges that the cement industry is facing, against increasing pressures from environmental regulators and ever lower reserves of raw materials. To cope with the challenging dynamics of the sector, cement players are exploring new product recipes and production techniques. Read the story to find out how producers are looking for new kinds of cement composition and new techniques for processing raw materials, while aiming for sustainable development.
• To provide an in-depth picture of the technological advances that cement producers are making, the CemWeek team paid a visit to India's Wonder Cement's plant at Nimbahera, Rajasthan. The discussion with company's management revealed that Wonder Cement has left no stone unturned while installing the state-of-the-art technologies in the plant. Don't miss out the report to find out what solutions the plant's management has found to increase productivity while protecting the environment.
• Direct exchange with cement players is essential to discover for industry insights, and that is what CemWeek did by interviewing┬á Munkhnasan Narmandakh, CEO, Monpolymet Group┬á and responsible for the ÔÇ£MoncementÔÇØ project in Mongolia. Read the magazine to find out how Moncement took the challenge to build a local clinker and cement production unit to substitute the country's dependence on Chinese imports.
• True to its own standards of analytic performance, CemWeek provides an insight into the findings of the latest Global Cement Trade Price Report. The document is CW Research's benchmark price assessment for monthly gray cement, white cement, clinker and granulated blast furnace slag prices and volumes. The report shows that global gray cement prices fell over 11 percent year-on-year, according to preliminary figures presented in the CW Research's 3/4Q2015 update to its benchmark price assessment. More figures and trends are outlined in the report.

Americas

• The Cubatao cement plants, located in S├úo Paulo, Brazil, are hit by the crisis in the steel market as they are dependent on blast furnace slag to produce special cements. The two plants, owned by Votorantim and InterCement, are likely to be hit by the suspension of the primary activities of production of Usiminas.
• Colombia-based Cementos Argos expects to benefit from the infrastructure and housing projects to be implemented in the country. The cement company expects consumption to reach around 13 million tons in Columbia due to growing housing and infrastructure markets.

Asia Pacific

• Thailand-based Siam City Cement is planning to become a global player in the cement industry. SCG president and chief executive Kan Trakulhoon, who is handing over the company's reins to Roongrote Rangsiyopash, stressed on the need for the Thai industrial giant to step up and become a global player.
• Siam Cement predicts steady earnings in 2016. The company expects up to a 7 percent gain derived from lower energy costs, mainly due to lower prices in oil, natural gas and coal. The cement & distribution business is predicted to boost the company's earnings, even with an expected 5 percent decline in domestic consumption and with less ramp-up rate at the new cement plant in Indonesia has it was expected.

Construction Materials

• LafargeHolcim and UK's CDC Group have signed a memorandum of understanding to set up a company that will produce and promote affordable low-carbon construction solution for developing countries. The new company aims at scaling-up production of earth-cement bricks, a simple, reliable, affordable and environmentally friendly building material that was launched by LafargeHolcim in Malawi in 2013.
• In Germany, Cemex has exhibited a new concrete type it has made with recycled aggregates. Recycling building materials in the construction sector may contribute to decreasing the extraction of primary minerals and conservation of natural resources, making it a more sustainable alternative that has increasingly become an attractive option in the construction industry.

Central and South Eastern Asia

• The Kazakhstan cement sector witnessed a 34 percent increase in turnover from cement sales to KZT 60 billion in the first nine months of 2015 as compared to the same period in 2014. The weighted average price of cement for the first nine months of 2015 amounted to KZT 11,957 per ton.
• Bangladesh-based MI Cement plans to become the top manufacturer of construction material in Bangladesh in the next five years. The cement company is planning to invest a substantial amount of funds for expansion activities. At present, the company's production capacity is around 6,000 tons, a day. Going further, the company has plans to increase the capacity to 10,000 tons by December, next year and subsequently, to 16,000 tons by 2020

EMEA

• Saudi Arabia's Hail Cement Company received four international certificates. The cement company successfully passed an external audit of its procedures. The audit was carried out by ABS Global Inc. The four certificates received were: quality management system certification ISO 9001, a certificate of health occupational and safety management systems OHSAS 18001, environmental management system certification ISO 14001, responsible care certification RC14001.
• The program of cement distribution to Palestinian citizens affected by the 2014 Gaza war is stalled without a clear explanation. The Palestinian Ministry of Economy explained that the citizens of Gaza are still in need of thousands of tons of cement for reconstruction efforts. Demand for cement and other building materials is expected to increase further due to weather conditions.

Equipment

• Japan's Taiheiyo Cement and Matsuda Sangyo seek to reduce cement making costs. Tokyo-based Taiheiyo Cement and Matsuda Sangyo has embarked on reinventing the cement manufacturing process. Both the companies are planning to use, economical lithium ion secondary battery.
• Hormicreto C├¡a will install a new grinding station and replace aging ball mills at its Hormicreto Clinker Plant in Ecuador. The project, awarded to Gebr. Pfeiffer, is expected to reduce the plant's energy consumption and improve the overall grinding efficiency, allowing the plant to increase production from a single mill.

People

• Chief Executive Officer of Hanson UK, Patrick O'Shea stepped down from his position in December. Daniel Cooper, formerly northern regional general manager for Hanson Australia, will step into his shoes.
• Russia-based Lipetskcement appointed Oleg Lopatin as the new CEO of the company. The newly appointed CEO has work experience of over 35 years, including 15 years in management positions.

You can subscribe to CemWeek Magazine print-edition in two ways, by contacting us at sales@cemweek.com or ordering individual copies by clicking here. Subscribing has the benefiting of accessing all the content in the magazine, particularly the data sections of each issue only available to subscribers.

 

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CONTENTS

FEATURES

4  Q&A: LEADERS

In conversation with Munkhnasan Narmandakh, Chief Executive Officer, Monpolymet Group

10  CEMENT PLANT VISIT

Doing Wonders

14 RESOURCE OPTIMIZATION

Exploring new product recipes and production techniques

 

22  GLOBAL CEMENT TRADE PRICE

Global cementitious products records declining trend

DEPARTMENTS

2┬á EDITORÔÇÖS LETTER

2016: What lies ahead

 

3  NUMBERS IN BRIEF

USA's growth to boosts cement demand

 

RESEARCH

26 Cement Volumes

Cement Energy Markets

 

PEOPLE

30 People on the move

 

REGIONAL REPORTS

32 Europe, Middle East and Africa

34 South-East Asia

36 Asia Pacific

38 Americas

CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING MATERIALS BY BMWEEK.COM

40 Construction and building materials update

 

EQUIPMENT

42 Equipment and notable projects

 

CW GROUP MEETING AGENDA

44 CW Group's upcoming events

 

BUZZ

45 Top 20 CemWeek and BMWeek stories