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drymix.info Newsletter 199/2017; ISSN Number 1613-0111; 28. September 2017

1. Busy Fall for Drymix Experts: Iran and Brasil in October, Malaysia and UAE in November
2. Russian Mortar Days 2018, Moscow, 30. January: Call for Papers Extended
3. BHS Sonthofen Joins drymix.info as Industrial Partner
4. CRH Buys Fels Werke from Xella, Xella Buys Ursa from KKR
5. BASF Lifts Force Majeure on Acrylate-Based Dispersions from Ludwigshafen and Taragona
6. DowDuPont Announces Specialty Products Spinoff
7. Imerys Completes Acquisition of Kerneos
8. Aditex Joins drymix.info as Industrial Partner
9. Heidelbergcement Takes over Cement and Concrete Operations of Cementir Italy
10. Wacker Increases Capacities for VAc/E and RDP in South Korea

1. Busy Fall for Drymix Experts: Iran and Brasil in October, Malaysia and UAE in November

1.1. Registration Strong for Second Iran Drymix Mortar Meeting in Tehran on 9.10.17

The Second Iran Drymix Mortar Meeting takes place at Parsian Evin Hotel (Kohenoor Hall, 2nd floor), Tehran, Iran, on Monday, 9. October 2017 from 09:00 until 17:00. The event is a cooperation of drymix.info with The Iran Construction Chemicals Association ICCA and the Iran Mortar Association IMA, all m ortar manufcaturers which are members of these associations enjoy special prices (please enquire with us).  Online registration is open (Visa or Mastercard required), but there is also a possibility to pay in Iran (see our website for details). Admission to the Iran Drymix Mortar Meeting is 350 Euro, reduced admission for members of drymix.info is 270 Euro. Drymix mortar manufacturers pay only 140 Euro.

1.2 The Fifth Latin American Drymix Mortar Conference ladmmc five, São Paulo, Brasil, 26.10.17: Register now!

The Latin American Drymix Mortar Conference ladmmc five takes place at Espaço Transatlântico, São Paulo on 26. October 2017. drymix.info Club: We are planning a  casual rodisio evening on the day before the conference (Wednesday, 25. October 2017; everyone pays on his own), if you wish to join us please tell us by e-mail. Delegates can already register via our website, admission to ladmmc five is 310 Euro per person, reduced for members of drymix.info to 270 Euro, there is again a specially reduced admission for Mortar Manufacturers which is only 190 Euro per person. An alternative is to pay by bank transfer in Brasil, please enquire with us.

1.3. The 12th Annual Conference in Nusajaya Johor, Malaysia, 23.11.17: Use the Shuttle from Singapore

The 12th Annual SEADMA Conference takes place at Jen Hotel Puteri Harbor, Nusajaya Johor, Malaysia (just across the second link from Singapore) on Thursday, 23. November 2017, from 11:00 to 19:00. The newly formed Malaysia Drymix Mortar Manufacturer's Association MDMMA (we reported earlier) and SEADMA are proud to welcome the international delegates. drymix.info Club: we are planning an outing on Puteri Harbour immediately after the event at 20:00, please tell us if you wish to join us (and book your hotel room accordingly). Admission to the 12th Annual SEADMA Conference is Asia Mortar Summit is 350 Euro, reduced admission for members SEADMA is 270 Euro. Drymix mortar manufacturers pay only 150 Euro. Please book online using your credit card (Visa, Master only).

Special: if you are going from Singapore to Nusajaya Johor, please tell us when - we are offering a Shuttle on 23.11.17, 08:00 and back on 24.11.17, leaving 09:00. Please realize, that crossing the Singapore/Malaysia border may take up to one hour, depending on traffic.

1.4. Second Asia Mortar Summit, University of Sharjah, 26.11.17

The 2nd Asia Mortar Summit takes place on 26. November 2017 from 09:00 until 17:30 at fabulous University of Sharjah. We will start with practical sessions, for which active participation of the students of the Universities on and near the campus will be required (program will be published once fixed). Platinum Sponsors are Mapei and Wacker (thanks a lot!). Admission to the Second Asia Mortar Summit is 350 Euro, reduced admission for members of drymix.info, SEADMA or MEDMA is 270 Euro. Drymix mortar manufacturers pay only 150 Euro. In order to encourage mortar manufacturers coming from Europe, South-East or Eastern Asia, we are preparing special travel packages with our sponsors, please inquire with us.

2. Russian Mortar Days, Moscow, 30. January 2018: Call for Papers Extended

For the fifth time, the scientific conference Russian Mortar Days takes place in Moscow, Russia on 30. January 2018. The event is hosted by Russia's leading Technical Institute, the Moscow State University of Civil Engineering (MCU or MGSU). Russian Mortar Days are being organized in a cooperation of MCU with The Association of Russian Mortar Producers SPSSS, The Russian Gypsum Association and drymix.info, The International Community for Drymix Mortars. Quintet Company , St. Petersburg, Russia is organizing the event locally. Technical Chairman of Russian Mortar Days is again Prof. Dr. Andrey Pustovgar, head of the drymix mortar laboratory at MCU and also Vice Rector of MCU. Like last time, drymix.info is handling the international contributions for Russian Mortar Days and coordinates sponsors from abroad. Target attendance is 120 drymix mortar experts. Like the previous events at MCU, Russian Mortar Days 2018 will feature a Technical Conference with 12 scientific lectures and an Industry Showcase. Sponsoring is still available and welcome. The Call for Papers has recently been extended to 15. October 2017, after which the program will be announced - please submit your proposal and abstract to drymix.info.

Admission per person is 310 Euro, reduced to 270 Euro for drymix.info members. Drymix mortar producers pay only 170 Euro per person. Students and Faculty are admitted free of charge upon proof of enrolment (advance registration is however absolutely mandatory!). Delegate registration for international visitors is available on the drymix.info website, for payments in Roubles within Russia, it is better to register with Quintet at baltimix.ru. A suitable hotel nearby is Hotel Cosmos, from which there is also a shuttle bus to MCU in the morning of 30.1.18.

3. BHS Sonthofen Joins drymix.info as Industrial Partner

BHS-Sonthofen GmbH has decided to join drymix.info drymix.info as Industrial Partner. The company's roots reach back into the early 15th century, when a smeltering work was established in Sonthofen in 1607. Smeltering went on until iron ore supply from the mines in nearby Grünten ceased in 1859. BHS (stands for "Bayrische Hütten- und Salzwerke") concentrated on heavy machinery and foundry supplies. Since 1888 the company manufactures the famous BHS twin shaft mixer, well known for its use in concrete batching plants worldwide. After the privatizing in 1995, BHS-Sonthofen operates as a privately held company and focusses on mixers (for both concrete and mortars), crushers (rotor impact crushers/mills) and auxiliary machinery for the aggregates and recycling industries. BHS operates subsidiaries in the US, China, India, Russia and, since 2015, in Australia.

We warmly welcome BHS Sonthofen to our community.

4. CRH Buys Fels Werke from Xella, Xella Buys Ursa from KKR

Xella International GmbH (Xella) Duisburg, Germany is selling its business unit Fels (Werke) to CRH Plc Dublin, Ireland. Fels Werke headquartered in Goslar, Germany, is selling lime and lime stone products and has large raw-material reserves. The company has about 1.000 employees at 13 locations in Germany, the Czech Republic and Russia. Fels had a turnover of 265 mio Euro in 2016. A transaction value was not disclosed, the sale is still subject to the approval of the competition authorities.

Also, recently Xella has signed a contract with the investment firm KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P. , New York, NY, USA) to buy URSA Insulation S.A. Madrid, Spain. Ursa is a manufacturer of insulation media and panels with activities throughout Europe, it employs about 2.000 people. The sale is still subject to the approval of the relevant authorities, a transaction value was not given.

5. BASF Lifts Force Majeure on Acrylate-Based Dispersions from Ludwigshafen and Taragona

BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany has recently lifted the force majeure status that was declared after the explosion at their loading docks on the Rhine river in October 2016. The restriction concerned dispersions, redispersible powders and hot melts on acrylic monomer basis. The force majeure also included also to BASF's production location in Tarragona, Catalonia, Spain.

6. DowDuPont Announces Specialty Products Spinoff

DowDuPont, Midland, Michigan and Wilmington, Delaware, USA has announced to re-organize its specialty chemicals business a turnover of up to 6.730 mio Euro. The company, incorportated only recently, is planning the formation of three individual firms, namely the material sciences (HQ in Midland, MI, targeted turnover 33.600 mio Euro), specialties (Wilmington, DE, targeted turnover 17.663 mio Euro) and the agricultural chemicals (Wilmington, De, no further details given). The specialty business will include most of the recently acquired Dow Corning activities, DuPont’s performance polymers division. DowDuPont expects annual savings of up to 2.500 mio Euro and growth synergies amounting to 840 mio Euro from the restructuring measures. The organizational change met the approval of several strategic investors whose interest it is to raise synergies fast and improve the overall enterprise value.

7. Imerys Completes Acquisition of Kerneos

Imerys SA, Paris, France has recently completed the acquisition of Kerneos SA, Paris La Défense (we reported earlier). Kerneos had reorted a turnover of 417 mio Euro and a, EBITDA of 99 mio Euro in 2016. The transaction value (total enterprise value) was 880 mio Euro which Imerys entirely financed from available internal resources. Expected synergies are estimated to be 23 mio Euro per year from 2018 onwards. Recently all required regulatory approvals have been obtained and Kerneos was integrated into Imerys' High Resistance Minerals Division.

8. Aditex Joins drymix.ino as Industrial Partner

Aditex, São Paulo, Brasil has decided to join drymix.info as an industrial partner. The company, founded in 1985 is a formulator and distributor of additives and binders into the construction chemicals industry with particular focus on drymix mortar. Aditex entertains technical centers for application development in Manaus (Amazonas), João Pessoa (Paraíba) and São Paulo and several distribution centers throughout Brasil.

We warmly welcome Aditex to our Community.

9. Heidelbergcement Takes over Cement and Concrete Operations of Cementir Italy

Heidelbergcement (Heidelberg, Germany), via its daughter company Italcementi (Bergamo, Italy) has reached an agreement with Cementir Holding (Rome, Italy) to take over its entire cement and concrete business in Italy. The deal includes 5 cement plants 2 grinding units in italy (annual capacity: 5,5 mio t) as well as 16 ready-mix concrete plants and related installations such as terminals. It includes the concrete makers Cementir Sacci and Betontir. The transaction value is 315 mio Euro. Annual synergies are expected to reach 25 mio Euro from 2020. The take-over is still subject to regulatory approval and is expected to clear in early 2018

Cementir Holding is part of Caltagirone Group and will retain control over its white cement business (Aalborg, production in Denmark, Egypt, China, Malaysia and USA), its aggregates mines as well as all other grey cement activities outside Italy such as Çimentaş (Turkey).

10. Wacker Increases Capacities for VAc/E and RDP in South Korea

Wacker Chemie AG, Munich, Germany has announced major investments in its existing production location for polymer binders at Ulsan, South Korea. The investment will include a 80.000 tons per year spray dryer for the production of redispersible powders (tradename Vinnapas) and a reactor for the pressure copolymerization of dispersions based on vinyl acetate-ethylene (VAc/E). According to Wacker, spending will be around 60 mio Euro for those projects, completion is expected in early 2019.

The drymix.info Newsletter is being sent exclusively to registered subscribers and all members of drymix.info. Editor-in-Chief: Ferdinand Leopolder. Back issues will be published on www.drymix.info.

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Sincerely Yours, Ferdinand Leopolder