Gypsum industry news

One can tell that gypsum wallboard is a popular product because companies keep trying to devise alternatives to it. A recent one is Breathaboard. The company making it, Adaptavate, announced in August 2023 that it had generated around Euro2.3m in its latest investment round. It is building a pilot production line in Bristol in the UK and attempting to licence its Breathaboard product, amongst other plans. Its take on wallboard is being marketed as a sustainable substitute that is made from crop waste, that sequesters CO₂ and that then can be composted at the end of its life. It is also promoting the product’s breathability and moisture buffering capabilities, hence the name.

Another new contender hoping to steal some of the gypsum wallboard market is Xeriant’s Nexaboard product. This one uses plastic waste as its alternative to gypsum. Florida-based Xeriant said in July 2023 that it had started to buy equipment and raw materials, was running pilot production and was testing its first samples. It too is working on getting its product used in pilot construction projects.

Both of these examples, and others over the years, have taken a pop at wallboard’s sustainability credentials. Adaptavate is rather quieter about what happens to all of that sequestered CO₂ when its product is composted and Xeriant does not mention the environmental impact of making the plastic it uses in the first place. Yet, it is a valid question to ask how sustainable is gypsum wallboard? This column has covered issues with the supply of raw gypsum from either natural, synthetic or recycled sources previously, so we will stick to the general picture here.

The late-lamented consultant Bob Bruce pulled together data from various studies for the Global Gypsum Conference in 2019 to estimate the CO₂ emissions from wallboard production. He estimated that the global average of CO₂ production by wallboard was around 2.4kg/m², equating to 24Mt/yr of CO₂ for the global wallboard industry. For reference, it is estimated by the Center for International Climate and Environmental Research - Oslo (CICERO) that the process emissions from clinker production alone released around 1.6Gt/yr of CO₂ in 2022. When compared by mass (as opposed to area) to other building materials, wallboard has a lower carbon intensity than many products such as glass, cement (made from clinker), plastics, steel and plywood. Timber, concrete and brick are all better than wallboard though. However, as Bruce pointed out, a lot more concrete is manufactured than wallboard. Bruce came up with a handful of suggestions for how wallboard production could reduce its CO₂ emissions such as the reduction of slurry water, local delivery, co-generation, increasing drying efficiency and so on.

The two big sustainability trends from the sector over the last year have been the drive to support higher recycling rates of gypsum and a move towards ‘greener’ sources of energy. This can be seen in the growing use of electrical energy from renewable sources such as the production of net zero CO₂ gypsum wallboard at Saint-Gobain’s Fredrikstad plant in Norway from April 2023. The group’s Montreal plant looks set to follow in 2024 following an upgrade, potentially making it the first net zero wallboard plant in North America. Chiyoda-Ute in Japan has also started using renewably-sourced electricity at its plants in Japan, but it is uncertain what other energy sources these sites are using. China-based BNBM also claimed in its half-year results that it had built four “nearly zero emission” gypsum board production lines in the reporting period.

Wallboard's market position in North America, Europe and elsewhere seems secure. However, it is in dynamic tension as it is both a potential replacement for more carbon intensive building materials and it could also be susceptible to new emerging products that can improve on its own emissions. The manufacturers of Breathaboard and Nexaboard are clearly hoping for the latter. Yet, as is often pointed out, giving more market share to wallboard from other common building materials could reduce CO₂ emissions from construction massively. The diversification of traditional heavy building materials companies such as Holcim into light building materials in recent years suggests that some businesses are seriously preparing for this possibility. No doubt, if global wallboard usage does start to rise significantly, the pressure will grow to make wallboard more sustainable and to devise even more alternative board products.

Japan: Chiyoda-Ute will add its Chiba gypsum wallboard plant to its ‘green electricity’ mark scheme from September 2023. The certificate from Japan Natural Energy shows that products have been manufactured at a plant using electricity generated from a renewable source. The switch to using renewably-sourced electricity is expected to reduce CO₂ emissions at the Chiba plant by 3800t/yr.

Japan: Chiyoda-Ute plans to mark the packaging of its gypsum wallboard product with a ‘green electricity’ mark when it has been manufactured at a plant using electricity generated from a renewable source. The company first started using electricity supplied from sustainable sources at its Yokkaichi wallboard plant in April 2023. It intends to extend this to its other plants in the near future.

Japan: Chiyoda-Ute is preparing to launch a gypsum board product, Chiyoda Circular Gypsum Board, from June 2023 that uses 100% recycled gypsum. The company says it is the first product of its kind in the world to use 100% waste gypsum board collected from construction sites. Manufacturing will also be carbon neutral through the use of wood chips to heat the plant’s boiler and electricity supplied from renewable sources.

Japan: Yoshino Gypsum has developed a new gypsum wallboard fixing method called ‘Smart JG’ that uses adhesive and a magnet. It is intended to replace the usual installation method using power tools, screws and nails. The Smart JG method uses a special tape-like solid adhesive ‘JG02’ and a special tool ‘Super Mag Chuck’ to fix boards to the iron base and layer them. Notably, this new approach does not use screws and does not have staple marks on the surface of the board allowing for more decorative applications. This method is also quieter as power tools are not used. The patent for ‘Smart JG’ is currently pending.

Japan: Two workers have died at Chiyoda-Ute’s Yokkaichi gypsum wallboard plant in Mie Prefecture. The accident occurred when three sub-contractors were conducting regular maintenance work near a wood waste boiler at the site. Local press reports that the workers became trapped in a dust collector during the incident. Chiyoda-Ute is investigating what happened.

Japan: Chiyoda Ute has reported that it has produced 100% climate neutral and 100% recycled wallboard at its Yokkaichi factory in Mie Prefecture. The company says that, to the best of its knowledge, this is a world first. The board was produced on 1 August 2022.

Speaking about the achievement, Frederick Knauf, Chiyoda Ute’s representative managing director said “We do not know whether another manufacturer has achieved this already on an industrial scale, but it shouldn't matter who was first, as the whole industry needs to come to this point. Being second, third or 25th is the same achievement from my point of view."

Japan: Chiyoda Ute has issued a share sales request as part of ongoing plans to form a joint-venture with Germany-based Knauf. Knauf is expected to acquire the outstanding shares. Shares in Chiyoda Ute will then be delisted in late July 2022. The move follows a tender offer from Knauf that was issued in April 2022. The eventual plan is form a joint-venture between the companies with Knauf holding a 75% share.

Japan: Data from the Gypsum Board Industry Association shows that domestic shipments of gypsum wallboard fell by 0.9% year-on-year to 455Mm² in 2021. This is the second consecutive annual decline, according to Nikkei. Local wallboard production is reportedly linked to new housing starts in the country. Recovery in non-residential markets, such as office interiors, has been slow.

Japan: Chiyode Ute has launched Chiyoda Virus Guard Board, a gypsum wallboard product with antibacterial and antiviral properties. The board’s lining is coated with an antibacterial and antiviral agent. It carries the Society of International Sustaining Growth for Antimicrobial Articles (SIAA) ISO21702 and ISO22196 markings.