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www.rockproducts.com ROCK products • July 2017 • 57 McInnis Cement announced the pro- duction of the first cement at its Port-Daniel–Gascons plant on June 16, meeting the company's established deadlines for the project. "This important milestone marks the work of hundreds of employees, work- ers and partners who have helped make our plant a performance model for the cement industry, both in terms of productivity and environment," said Hervé Mallet, president and CEO of McInnis Cement. "I want to express my gratitude to my exceptional team, which has been work- ing relentlessly for months. The efforts, commitment and dedication of each employee were essential to achieve the first cement," added Alexandre Rail, vice-president of operations at the Port-Daniel–Gascons plant. "This step constitutes a motivation to continue to work with the same determination." The Port-Daniel–Gascons complex includes a quarry, cement plant and marine terminal. Construction on the site commenced in spring 2014. With the latest technologies, the plant is anticipated to produce 2.2 million tons of cement annually. Holcim (US), a member of Lafarge- Holcim, unveiled its new plant at its Ada, Okla., facility after a three-year modernization project. The invest- ment focused on construction of a new kiln line that would meet and exceed emission limits, improve operational performance and increase capacity to meet market growth. As a result, manufacturing capacity is anticipated to increase by 20 percent, producing approximately 682,000 metric tons of cement annually to support the region's transportation and construc- tion industries. "The Ada facility has been a significant part of the local and regional economy since 1907," said John Stull, CEO U.S. Cement, LafargeHolcim. "By modern- izing the plant, we have transformed it into an efficient, competitive and state- of-the-art facility that will allow us to meet the growing needs of our custom- ers and remain a strong partner to the community for the foreseeable future." Through Geocycle, LafargeHolcim's waste management company, the Ada plant reuses more than three million scrap tires a year as a supplemental fuel to replace at least 20 percent of the fossil fuel used to power its facility, in addition to coal and natural gas. "Investing in the environment is critical for the health and long-term viability of the communities where we work, which is why we reuse materials that would normally be sent to landfills," explained Mike Langan, Ada plant manager. "We appreciate the support of the Oklahoma Department of Envi- ronmental Quality in rapidly permitting this investment, and continue to value our partnership to help us optimize our operation and demonstrate the sustain- able performance of the plant." Holcim (US) Plant Completes $100M Modernization Total shipments of portland and blended cement in the United States and Puerto Rico in March 2017 were about 7.5 million metric tons (Mt), slightly less than sales in March 2016, according to the most recent USGS Mineral Industry Survey. The lead- ing producing states for portland and blended cement in March 2017 were Texas, California, Missouri, Florida and Alabama, in descending order. The leading cement-consuming states (Texas, California, Florida, Georgia and North Carolina, in descending order) received 46 percent of the March ship- ments. Shipments for the year through March were nearly 19.0 Mt, slightly higher than for the same period in 2016. Clinker production totaled 6.2 Mt in March 2017, up by 3.1 percent from the output in March 2016. The leading clin- ker-producing states in March were, in descending order, Texas, Missouri, Cal- ifornia, Florida and Alabama. Clinker production for the year through March totaled 15.8 Mt, down by 3.5 percent from that of the same period in 2016. Masonry cement shipments of about 228,000 metric tons (t) in March 2017 were down slightly from those in March 2016. The leading mason- ry-cement-consuming states were, in descending order, Florida, Texas, Cal- ifornia, North Carolina and Georgia; these received about 60 percent of March's shipments. Masonry cement shipments for the year through March were 587,000 t, up by 4.1 percent from those of the same period in 2016. March Cement Shipments Drop Slightly McInnis Cement Produces First Cement at New Plant