Gypsum industry news

Japan: Circular economy company TRE Holdings, a joint holding company of Takeei Corporation and River Holdings, raised its sales by 17% year-on-year to US$175m in the first quarter of the 2025 financial year. Its pre-tax profit was US$16.7m, up by 82% year-on-year. Gypsum wallboard recycling subsidiaries Green Arrows and Gypro reported a decline in sales and profit amid ‘sluggish’ order volumes.

For the full 2025 financial year, TRE Holdings expects to record sales of US$673m, up by 7%, and pre-tax profit of US$53.7m, up by 2%, in line with its previous outlook.

Belgium: Etex says that it ‘considerably’ progressed its Road to Sustainability 2030 plan during 2023. That year, safety intensity increased by 7%, and Etex established a global diversity, equity and inclusion ambassador community of 110 volunteers across 26 countries. In Europe, the company achieved 70% Environmental Product Declaration coverage as a percentage of its turnover, up from 58% in 2022. Etex raised its total use of recycled materials to 7.6%, and achieved a 23% reduction in Scopes 1 and 2 CO₂ compared to 2018 levels, in line with its 2030 target of 35%.

CEO Bernard Delvaux said “In the EU, more than 40% of energy consumed is used in buildings and more than 30% of energy-related greenhouse gasses emissions come from buildings. Next to new building activities, and according to current high energy standards, renovating old building stock should hence be a top priority. With our portfolio of building materials such as glass wool and extruded polystyrene insulation, gypsum wallboard, fibre cement boards and fire protection materials, Etex has the solutions to reach the ambitious targets. But in view of the huge challenge, a holistic and effective plan to boost renovation is needed, to finance and simplify the renovation process, in each of the EU countries.”

UK: The Pallet Loop has concluded a strategic agreement to provide its pallets collection service for British Gypsum’s UK distribution operations. From May 2024, British Gypsum will deliver bagged plaster using The Pallet Loop’s green pallets. It will subsequently begin to transition its gypsum wallboard distribution to The Pallet Loop pallets from July 2024, resulting in 70% coverage of its entire distribution of products. The subsidiary of Saint-Gobain plans to eventually raise this to 100%.

British Gypsum managing director Dean O’Sullivan said “We are delighted to announce our partnership with The Pallet Loop as we aim to radically cut unnecessary waste. Pallets left behind after products have been removed have for a long time created a challenge, with many being unsustainably disposed of at a heavy environmental cost. By joining forces with The Pallet Loop, we aim to significantly reduce this practice.”

The Pallet Loop managing director Paul Lewis said “At Loop, our mission is to transform the way building materials move and we are incredibly excited that British Gypsum, as a market leader, is partnering with us to promote a culture of pallet reuse. Using our service, merchants, distributors, principal contractors and housebuilding companies will be able to book pallet collections, which can take place from as little as 72 hours later. There will also be a payback of up to €4.69 available for every green coloured pallet they put back in the loop.”

UK: Knauf UK and Ireland has announced the launch of a new gypsum wallboard recycling service in partnership with waste management company Encore Environment. The partners will trial the service at contractor Manchester Design and Build’s renovation of the Piccadilly Warehouse in Manchester.

Knauf UK and Ireland national client development manager Jon Watts said “The existing Sittingbourne recycling plant and service is fantastic. However, with this partnership we’re able to really tap into on-site recycling and ensure as much goes back into the supply chain as possible. This is critical, as we don’t want plasterboard being transported all over the country. It’s broken down locally and then gets distributed back to plasterboard manufacturers.”

US: Beneficial Reuse Management (BRM) has acquired Pennsylvania-based gypsum wallboard recycling firm USA Gypsum (USAG).

BRM board chair Dave Schuurman said “The acquisition of USAG gives BRM an opportunity to further diversify our sources of gypsum to include recycled scrap wallboard, as well as to grow our geographic footprint. USAG’s operations will complement our existing gypsum processing operations, which provide gypsum in pelletised form to agricultural and other markets. This acquisition aligns perfectly with our mission of providing sustainable solutions for the management of industrial byproducts to divert materials away from landfills.”

Austria: Saint-Gobain Austria, waste management company Saubermacher and construction firm PORR have secured permission to build a new gypsum-to-gypsum recycling plant in Stockerau. The plant will cost Euro7m. Saint-Gobain Austria said that the facility will support the government’s Raw Materials 2030 circular economic development plan.

CEO Peter Giffinger said "Gypsum is endlessly recyclable, but special quality criteria must be met in order for recycled gypsum to be used again to produce new panels.”

Canada: Leading global gypsum recycling company New West Gypsum Recycling announced the death of its founder and chief executive officer Tony McCamley on 16 March 2023. It said that McCamley will be 'deeply and dearly' missed as a proud Irishman and for his sense of humour and love of his family.

The company said "Tony was an innovator and a visionary; he was passionate about his business and his family. He started New West Gypsum Recycling over 35 years ago and it has grown into a global business with a lasting environmental impact. His success is attributed to his hard work and dedication: his legacy will live on."

Lithuania: Eco Baltia plans to invest Euro700,000 in the establishment of a new construction waste sorting line in Lithuania. Nordic Daily News has reported that this will enable the company to improve its material recovery rate to 82% from 60%. Supplier Ecoservice will supply the automated line, which can handle waste gypsum wallboard alongside other materials.

Eco Baltia's head of environmental management Jānis Aizbalts said "Considering the increasing volume of construction waste and the need to ensure their reuse, we are purposefully developing construction waste sorting possibilities and new technological solutions. Ecoservice has already completed a modernisation project for the existing construction waste sorting area, installing new and more efficient equipment that will double the company's construction waste sorting capacity."

US: The city council of Glenwood Springs in Colorado is aiming to implement single-haul refuse collection in order to eliminate the dumping of recyclables by 2023, local press has reported. A review of waste management practices found that the city has a recycling contamination rate of just 8%, yet 80% of waste sent to landfill consists of recyclable materials. Eagle County Recycle operates the city's waste management facility. The company says that it supplies waste cardboard for gypsum wallboard backing production in neighbouring Oklahoma.

Manager Jesse Masten said “The mill in Oklahoma that we send the cardboard to actually makes the paper backing for wallboard. Then, that paper backing is potentially sent back to the American Gypsum gypsum wallboard plant in Gypsum and used for the wallboard that they’re producing.”

US: Saint-Gobain subsidiary CertainTeed's Buchanan gypsum wallboard plant in New York has successfully participated in a gypsum wallboard recycling pilot. Together with contractors Structure Tone and Cooper Recycling, it processed 20t of gypsum from waste wallboard in its gypsum wallboard production.

CertainTeed interior products vice president and general manager Jay Bachmann said "For us to achieve our sustainability goals, we must change the way we think. By partnering with organisations in the community like Cooper Recycling and Structure Tone, we can get there faster." Bachmann continued, "As the only gypsum manufacturing plant in New York, our colleagues in Buchanan were able to create a true circular economy. From the creation of drywall products to construction, to processing scraps and back into drywall production, the material is continuously used and never leaves the state. This maximises our company's positive impact while working to minimise our environmental footprint. Our Buchanan plant has increased our capacity to reuse recycled material, and we look forward to growing this successful pilot into a long-term programme, while working with builders and recyclers across the state. Partnering with CertainTeed, New York builders have the opportunity to not only reduce waste at their job sites, but also gain Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) points on their projects."

The Buchanan plant joins CertainTeed's units at Nashville in Arkansas and Palatka in Florida in supporting the company's circular economic efforts in the US. The Nashville plant commissioned a 65,000t/yr line in May 2022, while the Palatka plant increased the recycled content of its wallboard by 18,000t/yr in August 2022. The Palatka plant plans to install a new 100t/hr Rotochopper grinding unit to replace its existing trommel machine in its reclaim processing and screening operations.