Roanoke Cement Company

Titanic┬ámaterial┬áAs buildings become greener and the value of concrete as a versatile and carbon-efficient building material is exploited, prospects are good for cement producers like Roanoke Cement, plant manager Kevin Baird explains to John OÔÇÖHanlon. The Titans were the original gods of ancient Greece, and Titan, the $2 billion global cement manufacturer, is indeed based in Greece. Roanoke Cement is a subsidiary of Titan America, the largest unit in its Mid-Atlantic division, which also contains a ready-mixed concrete business in eastern parts of Virginia, North and South Carolina, as well as an aggregate quarry in Kentucky.The only cement plant in Virginia, it produces annually some 1.4 million tons of Portland and masonry cement. This is supplied to local concrete companies, precast concrete producers and concrete road builders. Roanoke Cement also supplies wholesale and retail outlets with packaged cement.This is a business that tracks the economy and the amount of building being done, says Baird. Over most of 15 years the company has grown; this year it will be down like the overall economy. However, the North American market is favorable to a cement producer. The cement industry in North America does not make all that the market needs, so it is a net importer, says Baird. ÔÇ£The US under normal conditions makes only about 75 percent of its needs. On the East Coast this situation is similar, so there is room for new cement manufacturing capacity.ÔÇØAs well as having a local position in Virginia, RoanokeÔÇÖs market footprint extends to the neighboring states of West Virginia, Maryland, Tennessee, North Carolina and even parts of the District of Columbia. North Carolina in particular has no cement production whatsoever, and Titan is currently pursuing the necessary permits to construct an over two million ton plant in the future at Castle Hayne near Wilmington.Naturally, Baird is looking forward to any federal or state action to stimulate the economy and push forward concrete road building and public infrastructure projects. However, the biggest opportunity for Roanoke and the cement industry in general, he thinks, lies in the growing awareness, in society at large and architecture and contracting in particular, that concrete is the most sustainable building material.The choice of concrete over alternatives minimizes the cost of ownership, he stresses. ÔÇ£The per-capita use of concrete is increasing as building codes are upgraded, LEED certification becomes the standard for many new buildings, and people come to understand that buildings are the countryÔÇÖs biggest consumers of energy,ÔÇØ he says. ÔÇ£Building with concrete can often reduce the ongoing energy costs related to heating and cooling year after year. LEED doesnÔÇÖt take into account just the performance of the building itself but also the production cycle of the materials it contains, including transportation costs, which often favor concrete.ÔÇØHe cites many other advantages of concrete design: pervious paving surfaces that reduce storm water runoff, the thermal mass properties of a concrete building that keep it cool in the summer and warm in the winter, and benefits not widely appreciated, such as reflective qualities. A parking lot made of light-colored concrete requires less lighting than a dark asphalt one and stays 30 degrees cooler. Also, concreteÔÇÖs lower rolling resistance, compared to asphalt, makes for a more efficient road surface. A concrete highway becomes carbon neutral in nine years, according to a study by the National Concrete Consortium. A 62-mile road carrying 20,000 vehicles a day, 15 percent of them trucks, will save 165,000 tons of CO2 in its 30-year lifespan, more than three times the amount produced in its construction. The CO2 produced from cement manufacture is an investment that is paid back many times over with the use of concrete.True, CO2 is a byproduct of cement production. However, environmental performance is a key business driver for Titan. The parent company was a founding member of the Cement Sustainability Initiative within the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), setting goals for reducing carbon emissions in the global industry. ÔÇ£We do that by first measuring it, then concentrating on the process,ÔÇØ says Baird. ÔÇ£Since the mid 1970s the cement industry has reduced its CO2 emissions by about 33 percent through technical innovation.ÔÇØThe Roanoke plant made a big step in 1996, he explains. ÔÇ£Back then we were running five kilns and producing roughly 900,000 tons of cement. We shut down four of them and upgraded the remaining single kiln to a modern design that significantly reduced our emissions, just about halved our energy consumption, and at the same time allowed us to increase our output by 55 percent.ÔÇØSince then continuous improvement has been the name of the game. The Roanoke plant has picked up numerous awards and recognitions for its performance, and both of Titan AmericaÔÇÖs cement plants have won the prestigious Energy Star Award. Titan America is also an Energy Star partner within the Environmental Protection AgencyÔÇÖs flagship energy efficiency program. The two plants are among only 19 cement facilities out of 118 nationwide ranked by the EPA as Top Performing Plants. Since 1996 the Roanoke plant has delivered consistent year-on-year reductions in its energy consumption. ÔÇ£We reduced our electricity consumption by three or four percent over each of the last three years and expect to do even more in 2009. Power has been relatively inexpensive in Virginia, so the business case based on costs alone for these measures was not compelling. However, our companyÔÇÖs commitment to improving environmental performance coupled with likely higher energy prices around the corner mean the energy reduction program has, if anything, gathered pace,ÔÇØ Baird says.The secret lies in turning things off when they arenÔÇÖt needed, such as the plantÔÇÖs large pre-heater tower, which used to be lit like a Christmas tree. Analysis showed that the lights were rarely needed for maintenance, so off they went, saving significant sums and cutting light pollution for the local community. ÔÇ£ItÔÇÖs important to me that we are a good neighbor in this community,ÔÇØ says Baird. So in addition to this kind of good housekeeping, the plant has just joined a local ÔÇ£demand responseÔÇØ program by which, if the supply companies are getting high domestic demand (in very hot weather, for example), the plant will cut production as far as possible to make that power available to the public. This commitment reduces the need for new electric generating capacity to cover the publicÔÇÖs peak demand.Roanoke Cement employs 220 people directly and another 100 or so in ancillary services like specialty contractors and transportation-related jobs. Employees are encouraged to be actively involved in green projects and can be proud of what is being done there. For example, all rainwater runoff is collected to make the plant self-sufficient for everything except drinking water. It has made huge advances in dust control, spending $1.3 million in paving all internal roads in concrete and installing a new super-efficient bag house to collect cement kiln dust (CKD). ÔÇ£I strongly oppose landfills,ÔÇØ declares Baird. ÔÇ£In 1999 we were sending 30,000 tons of CKD to landfills every year, but now we have reduced our production of CKD by two-thirds and have found ways to use the remains back into the process. We are even recovering 20-year-old CKD from the landfill and selling it to other industries as a cost-effective replacement for hydrated lime.ÔÇØRoanoke Cement is actually located about five miles out of Roanoke at Troutville, so itÔÇÖs appropriate that one of its most recent green initiatives was to release 350 rainbow trout into a quarry pond on the site, in collaboration with Trout Unlimited. School students raise fingerlings until theyÔÇÖre mature, then release them into the local streams, a perfect example of the companyÔÇÖs clean water effort in conjunction with local and national conservation and education programs. ÔÇô Editorial research by Paul Wile┬á