Last month, I wrote about the housing boom that I had been predicting, and since then, the National Association of Realtors released a report stating that construction of new housing in the past 20 years fell 5.5 million units short of long-term historical levels and called for a “once-in-a-generation” policy response. But a booming housing market rife with shortages is…
Read MoreMonth: July 2021
The Horses Are Out of the Barn
Well, the barn door has been kicked open, and the horses are out. After more than a year of COVID-19-driven inactivity, a lot is starting to happen. For openers, two major mergers rocked the aggregates industry, changing the landscape regionally and nationally. Vulcan Materials Co. and U.S. Concrete Inc. entered into a definitive merger agreement; and Martin Marietta Materials Inc.…
Read MoreFirst Look July 2021
TOP NEWS • USGS STATS • ECONOMIC INDICATORS • MSHA WATCH • ENERGY TOP NEWS Bipartisan BillPresident Biden and a bipartisan group of senators have announced a deal on infrastructure spending. According to the White House, the price tag comes in at $1.2 trillion over eight years, with $579 billion in new spending. Other sources peg the legislation as a $973-…
Read MoreAggregates Industry Market Report
In This Quarterly Report, Provided Exclusively to Rock Products, Capstone Partners Offers Insight Into Merger and Acquisitions (M&A), Capital Markets Trends, Aggregate Production and Pricing. By Darin Good, Brian Krehbiel and Crista Gilmore
Read MoreMetso Outotec Launches Integrated Planet Positive
Metso Outotec is launching new in-pit crush and convey (IPCC) solutions consisting of crushing, conveying and stacking equipment combined with IPCC planning and life cycle services. The offering has been designed to ensure the highest productivity, energy efficiency and maintainability.
Read MoreConstruction Spending Down in May; Highways Up
The U.S. Census Bureau reported that construction spending during May 2021 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,545.3 billion, 0.3% (±1.0%) below the revised April estimate of $1,549.5 billion.
Read MoreTrimble Insight
Productivity data is often late, unreliable or requires a manual process to gather. Managers often rely on tally sheets, spreadsheets or in-house systems to manage quarry operations, but this isn’t always efficient to manage large data sets. It can be difficult for managers and operators to make informed decisions during the shift that positively influences productivity or production. Now there…
Read MoreHouse Passes $715 Billion Infrastructure Package
The House passed a $715 billion proposal to fund transportation and water projects that’s meant to shape parts of a broader infrastructure package that will eventually emerge, according to The Hill.
Read MorePacific Northwest Not Built For Heat
July 1, 2021 – Very interesting story on Wired. On Sunday, as temperatures hit 105, the concrete beneath State Route 544 outside Everson, Wash., began to do what concrete does when it gets really hot: It expanded. By 5 p.m., the asphalt above it had softened and cracked, leaving a thick, humped seam across two lanes. To the south, in Portland, Ore., a road on the…
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