The National Stone Association named its annual Environmental Eagle Award winners last month.

Luck Stone won first and second place in the newly created platinum division (see page 16). That award was created to recognize previous gold winners that have a superior environmental record. It will be given out every three years to the top three operations.

Two Tilcon New Jersey operations brought home the only two gold awards handed out this year. There also were five silver awards and 10 bronze awards given out.

"This year's applicants demonstrate a renewed industry commitment to environmental improvements and overall compliance," said C. J. Spainhour, chairman of NSA's environmental committee. "We are particularly proud to add the platinum award."

The competition drew 34 entries overall. Thirteen of those entries were for the platinum category and 21 for the gold category. The program was created in 1992 to provide national recognition for aggregate producing companies that meet and exceed technical environmental and regulatory requirements.

Lafarge, World Wildlife Federation Partner Lafarge and the World Wildlife Federation, a conservation organization, signed a worldwide partnership agreement in Paris, in the framework of WWF's Conservation Partner Program. Lafarge is the first industrial group to join with WWF to improve its environmental policy, develop WWF's project Forests Reborn and raise awareness of the importance of preserving biodiversity.

Lafarge and WWF will develop a strategy for biodiversity and integrate it into its worldwide quarry rehabilitation program. WWF will also contribute its expertise to help Lafarge improve its practice in the environmental field.

Hanson-Pioneer Deal Concluded Hanson said that by May 5, Hanson Australia Proprietary Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Hanson plc., had received valid acceptances in respect of 761.5 million Pioneer shares, representing approximately 92.38% of the issued share capital of Pioneer.

At the end of the offer period, Hanson will exercise its right under the Corporations Law to compulsorily acquire those Pioneer shares for which no valid acceptance had been received by the close of the offer.

Hanson obtained final clearance from the OFT on May 4. Commenting on the successful conclusion of its offer for Pioneer, Andrew Dougal, chief executive of Hanson plc., said: "We are delighted to welcome Pioneer into Hanson. This (US$2.39 billion) acquisition is a major step forward in our development as a leading global building materials company."

Lafarge Bid Fails The bid to acquire all the capital of Blue Circle Industries launched by Lafarge in early February did not succeed in attracting the majority of shares. Consequently, the bid is now null and void. The price of $6.90 (450 pence) per share was judged insufficientby the majority of Blue Circle shareholders.

Lafarge currently owns 19.99% of shares in Blue Circle, while its consulting bank (Dresdner Bank) holds a further 9.61%.

Lafarge's Chairman and CEO Bertrand Collomb said: "Although we are disappointed that the operation we planned will not materialize, we are better placed than ever to press ahead with our development strategy, while delivering value creation to our shareholders."

Rick Haythornthwaite, Blue Circle's chief executive, said, "Blue Circle is delighted to have retained its independence. We have argued all along that Lafarge's offer undervalued our company and our shareholders have shown that they agree. Our task now is to deliver to shareholders everything we said could be achieved."

2002 Show Taking Shape CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2002 is starting to take form. Like last year's show, the 2002 version will be held in Las Vegas. It will run from March 19-23, 2002, and carry the theme "An Experience to Build on."

North America's largest exposition and technical conference for power transmission systems, components and controls, IFPE 2002, will be located with CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2002. The Associated General Contractors of America and the National Stone Association will hold their annual conventions at the show.

For attendance or exhibition information on CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2002 call (800) 867-6060 or visit www.conexpoconagg.com

News Makers Better Minerals & Aggregates Co., named Butch Reeves president and COO of Stone Materials, its aggregate division. Reeves was president of Hanson Aggregates East.

Nalco Chemical Co. elected Christian Maurin chairman and CEO. Steve Newlin, president, was elected vice chairman and COO.

TXI named William Durbin vice president of human resources.

Godwin Pumps named Bob Spatz and Scott Malcolm branch managers. Spatz will be in Lansing, Ill.; Malcolm will be in Moon Township, Pa.

David Viox joined U.S. Lime & Minerals as its vice president of market development.

Richard Hisert was named project director of Earth Tech's Construction Materials and Mining Group.

Gregg Goodner, president of Hytrol Conveyor, was elected president of the Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers Association.

John Ellis was promoted to vice president of finance and information systems technology for NSK Corp.

Manufacturer News Briefs Komatsu named Power Motive Corp. a premier distributor.

Command Data is the exclusive dealer of TMT Software's Transman, a fleet and equipment maintenance management software. Command Data also moved its Birmingham, Ala. office to: 1800 International Park Drive, Ste. 400, Birmingham, Ala. 35243.

General Electric and Toshiba plan a joint venture by October for manufacturing large industrial drive systems for plant automation.

Wind turbines are being tested in areas not typically known for excessive winds. The results may trim electric costs.

American Electric Power (AEP) is helping customers learn about wind technology by installing five 10-kW wind turbines this year at several company sites and sharing real-time information about their operation and performance on its web site (www.aep.com).

AEP's first wind turbine was recently installed at the John Dolan Electrical Engineering Laboratory in Groveport, Ohio, about 12 miles southeast of Columbus. Additional turbines are planned in Indiana, West Virginia, Virginia and Michigan.

Wind turbines, the successor to the windmill, convert the wind's energy to electricity. In some areas, a 10-kW turbine can generate enough electricity to power an average home. The cost of a wind turbine similar to the model used in this project starts at about $27,000.

AEP Spokeswoman Jeri Waters said she was not aware of any aggregate operations using wind turbines. However, she said this technology can be used as an alternative power source during peak electric usage periods. Some companies that consume a large amount of electricity have turned to alternative sources (in many cases generators) to provide power during peak-demand periods. In exchange, the companies receive cheaper off-peak rates from utility providers and uninterrupted power.

AEP's web site monitors the turbines' output in weak and strong wind areas. An Internet-based energy management system allows viewers to use wind maps from the web site to show at any time how much electricity the wind turbines are generating and compare it to the power typically required for a household or business.

Power quality statistics will be shown to help those with sensitive electronic equipment understand the impact of wind generation on power quality. There are also links to sites that offer more comprehensive data on wind turbines.

"The 10-kW turbines are different than the large turbines clustered on wind farms in Texas, Minnesota, California and other high-wind states," said Bruce Renz, AEP's vice president of energy delivery support. "Government wind maps show these states have suitable winds that cover more of their territory and are more conducive to wind farms, in contrast to AEP states which are characterized by pockets of moderate wind areas."

Each turbine used in the program will be mounted on a 100-ft tower to capture the wind's energy using the turbine's rotating blades. As the wind picks up, the blades slowly spin like a propeller, which in turn spins a generator to make electricity. Increasing wind speeds make the blades spin faster and generate more electricity until the turbine reaches its maximum 10-kW output at about 31 mph (wind speed). AEP will connect the turbines to the power grid and use the generated electricity for its customers.

Renz said AEP will quantify the electrical characteristics of wind turbines and other generation sources, including fuel cells, microturbines, advanced batteries and photovoltaics at its research laboratory.

A 30-minute television documentary produced by the Foundation for Environmental Education will feature AEP's wind turbines program later this year on public television.

Name: John Strope

Employer: State Aggregates, Towanda, Pa.

Occupation: Mixer truck driver who began as ready-mix and block truck driver in 1978.

Quote from the boss: "John has always been a good representative of the company. John comes to work everyday without fail, with a smile on his face and takes that positive attitude out on the road with him."