Gypsum industry news

US: CertainTeed has gained six additional Environmental Product Declarations (EPD), bringing its total number of gypsum wallboard EPDs to 12. The building materials producer started launching product specific EPDs in the drywall category in late 20115.

"CertainTeed is proud to have pioneered EPD verifications both within our drywall products and extending across CertainTeed insulation and ceilings categories. Since the beginning, we've delivered on our commitment to provide better product transparency so that our customers can make informed decisions on environmental sustainability implications at the initial stages of project development," said Dave Engelhardt, president of CertainTeed Gypsum.

CertainTeed Gypsum offers 12 product-specific Type III EPDs that include seven plants in four different product categories. The company says it is the only manufacturer to offer 'Cradle-to-Grave' EPD transparency that takes the entire development process into account. The EPDs from CertainTeed Gypsum are third-party verified by UL Environment and include information on global warming potential, embodied energy and other impacts that occur as a result of manufacturing.

The six new EPDs are available for four product groups including AirRenew, M2Tech, Easi-Lite and CertainTeed Type X. AirRenew is produced at the Moundsville plant in West Virginia and the other products are manufactured at the Montreal plant in Quebec, Canada.

Ethiopia: Habesha Cement plans to produce gypsum wallboard. In an interview with the Capitol Ethiopia newspaper Mesfin Abi, the chief executive of the company, announced plans to target the imported market locally and export wallboard also. Habesha Cement operates a 1.4Mt/yr cement plant near to Addis Ababa that is expected to start selling products locally in the coming weeks.

France/Switzerland: Saint-Gobain has extended its agreements with the Burkard family relating to the sale of the shares of Schenker-Winkler Holding (SWH), which holds the majority of Sika voting rights, to 31 December 2017. Saint-Gobain will then have the right to extend the agreement up until 31 December 2018. The building products manufacturer said that that the further extension reflected its determination to eventually buy Sika.

Saint-Gobain has attempted to buy Sika since at least 2014. An attempt to transfer shares of Sika from the Burkard family was blocked by a Swiss court in late 2016.

Switzerland: The Board of Directors of Sika has made a series of management changes that will take effect from 1 April 2017.

Thomas Hasler, the Chief Technology Officer, has been appointed as the Head of Industry. The Target Market Industry serves the markets automobile and commercial vehicle industry, automotive aftermarket, renewable energies, and facade engineering. The new position will also include responsibility for the two global business units Automotive and Tooling & Composites.

Yumi Kan, the Head Building Systems & Industry, has been appointed as the Head of Construction which will include markets in concrete, waterproofing, refurbishment, sealing and bonding, flooring and roofing. Combining these markets is intended to enable Sika to strengthen its services for global customers and key accounts as well as for large construction projects with cross-selling potential.

Ernesto Schuemperli, the Head of Concrete & Waterproofing, has been appointed as the Head of Infrastructure & Mining, directly reporting to the chief executive officer. He will also support the change to the new organisation of the target markets.

Frank Hoefflin, currently the Technology Head of Thermoplastic Systems, has been appointed as the Chief Technology Officer and member of group management. Hoefflin joined Sika in the USA and has worked in both the USA and Switzerland in various research and development functions. He holds a PhD from the University of Freiburg in Germany and is a US and German citizen.

Heinz Gisel, currently the Regional Manager for Asia/Pacific, has decided to step down from his position in order to take a sabbatical. Gisel will return in the second half of 2017 and assume a new position within Sika.

Mike Campion, currently Head of Area Greater China, has been appointed as the Regional Manager of Asia/Pacific and member of the group management. Campion joined Sika in the USA and has held several management positions in the USA and China. He holds a degree in Science from Villanova University, Pennsylvania, and is a US citizen.

Belgium: Revenue from Etex's Building Performance division rose slightly to Euro1.44bn in 2016 from Euro1.43bn in 2015. The division produces gypsum wallboard as well as fibre cement boards and other dry construction materials. The group said that it had posted sound results in 2016, particularly in Europe, its largest market, where it performed within expectations.

However, the company's overall revenue fell by 5.6% year-on-year to Euro2.88bn from Euro3.05bn. It blamed this on the sale of its ceramics floor and wall tiles business in Latin America and unfavourable exchange rates. On a like-for-like basis it said that its revenue rose by 1.5% in the period. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 10.4% to Euro404m from Euro366m.