Geomechanics.io

Marshalls reported a 0.5% fall in first-half revenues to £317.8m but increased profit before tax by 13.2% to £24.9m, up from £22m in the first half of 2025. The building products manufacturer appears to be holding margins in a weak construction market, implying tighter cost control and more selective pricing across its paving, drainage and hard landscaping ranges. Contractors and specifiers can expect continued supply from a financially stable UK producer, but with limited scope for aggressive discounting on standard civils and streetscape products.

Builders merchants MKM Airdrie will begin stocking Sisalwool natural fibre insulation batts, loft rolls and breathable low‑carbon products, following a link-up arranged by the Federation of Master Builders Scotland. The range, already used on the Greyfriars Charteris Centre in Edinburgh, is aimed at heritage, retrofit and conservation projects where vapour-open, hygroscopic insulation is often required to manage moisture in solid-wall and traditional constructions. A launch “Builders’ Breakfast” with live installation demonstrations is scheduled for 27 August at the Airdrie branch.

JCB’s Hydromax hydrogen-powered streamliner has reached 368.347mph at the Bonneville Salt Flats, breaking the Southern California Timing Association Blown Gas Streamliner (AA/BGS, 500+ cubic inches) class record of 348.342mph set by the Spectre Streamliner in 2010. Driven by Wing Commander Andy Green OBE, the car uses two production-based JCB hydrogen internal combustion engines now being pushed towards a combined 1,600hp. The team is preparing the vehicle for an FIA-sanctioned outright world land speed record attempt next week, positioning hydrogen ICE as a zero-emission, high-load power option for heavy plant.

Housebuilding slowdown has pushed Ibstock’s first-half revenues down 15.1% to £164m, with profit before tax swinging from an £8m profit in 2025 to a £27m loss in 2026, despite clay brick revenues only falling 8% to £118m and concrete revenues £44m, down 11% like-for-like. Brick volumes declined by less than the market average, supported by February price increases and a temporary energy and fuel surcharge introduced in June. With major upgrades to its manufacturing network largely complete, Ibstock plans to keep flexing capacity, inventories and costs, targeting stronger adjusted EBITDA in H2.

Niron Magnetics has secured a conditional $150 million, 20‑year direct loan commitment from the US Department of War’s Office of Strategic Capital to build an advanced Iron Nitride magnet plant in Sartell, Minnesota. The 287,000‑square‑foot facility, due online in 2027, is designed for integrated material‑to‑magnet production of up to 1,500 tonnes per year of rare‑earth‑free permanent magnets, with a follow‑on US plant targeted at 10,000 tonnes annually from 2028. Iron Nitride technology, developed at the University of Minnesota over 13 years, offers a domestic alternative to rare earth magnet supply dominated by Asian producers.

Enva has launched White HIPS-8513, a high-impact polystyrene compound made from end-of-life refrigerators, containing 93% post-consumer recycled content and positioned as its whitest recycled HIPS grade for construction products such as piping, ducting, ventilation components, access panels and loft hatches. Life cycle assessment shows more than 90% lower carbon emissions than equivalent virgin HIPS while maintaining prime-equivalent mechanical performance and colour consistency. With integrated control from appliance recycling to compounding, Enva has installed capacity to supply 12,000 tonnes per year, targeting long-term, traceable raw material streams for manufacturers.

SuperCritical Materials has appointed Neal Froneman, founder and former CEO of Sibanye-Stillwater, as chair of its board, bringing more than 30 years’ experience and a track record that includes leading Sibanye’s move into lithium via a stake in Finland’s Keliber project. Froneman, already an investor in SuperCritical, says he was attracted by its focus on fuel‑production infrastructure for nuclear. The company is scaling advanced seawater uranium extraction to expand nuclear fuel supply for new reactors and power‑hungry AI data centres, signalling future demand for large marine and processing facilities.

CRH reported second-quarter revenues of $10.8bn, up 6%, with adjusted EBITDA rising 7% to $2.6bn, driven by 10% revenue growth in its Americas Materials Solutions business and 5% growth in Europe from infrastructure and reindustrialisation demand. The group agreed an $8.5bn acquisition of Arcosa to strengthen its aggregates and critical infrastructure footprint in North America, while completing three non-core divestitures. For contractors and materials suppliers, this signals sustained demand for asphalt, aggregates and concrete, particularly in US and European infrastructure pipelines.

Carbon capture is being deployed at cement plants to tackle process emissions that account for much of cement’s contribution to roughly 8% of global CO₂ output, targeting the calcination step where limestone is converted to clinker. Projects are trialling post‑combustion capture on kiln exhausts, oxy‑fuel combustion to produce CO₂‑rich flue gas, and integration with storage or utilisation routes such as mineralisation in aggregates. For designers and contractors, this enables lower‑embodied‑carbon concrete without major changes to mix design, but raises questions on plant energy demand, capture rates and long‑term storage liability.

Building materials group Breedon reported first-half revenues of £857.9m, with volumes in Great Britain continuing to decline while its newly established US business delivered what it called a “strong start”. The company, a major supplier of aggregates, asphalt and ready-mixed concrete to UK infrastructure and housing schemes, is seeing weaker demand in British construction markets despite ongoing road and civils work. For contractors and material specifiers, this points to tighter domestic supply dynamics and a growing shift in Breedon’s capital and production focus towards North America.

Fischer has launched FBS 4 and FBS 5 concrete screws for electrical and HVAC fixings in concrete and dense masonry, with fire resistance rated up to R120 and expansion-free undercut anchorage allowing small edge distances and close spacing. Serrated thread geometry cuts rapidly into the substrate for faster installation with cordless impact drivers, while two anchorage depths let installers adjust for differing load demands and to bridge plaster layers. The zinc-plated range spans five variants, including FBS 5 US with hex head and washer, FBS 5 M6 threaded stud, and a dedicated FBS 4 cable clip screw.

Structural timber’s role in accelerating UK housebuilding was pushed at a Palace of Westminster panel chaired by Matt Turmaine MP and Baroness Ritchie, with senior figures from the Structural Timber Association, Egger UK, Lowfield Timber Frames and Places for People addressing major housebuilders and social housing providers. STA CEO Andrew Orriss noted that seven of the UK’s top 15 housebuilders plan to manufacture in timber frame, aligning with DEFRA’s Timber in Construction Roadmap and Net Zero 2050 targets. Timber’s lower embodied carbon and carbon sequestration were positioned as key advantages over traditional materials.

Northern Ireland manufacturer Screencore has appointed RME Solutions as exclusive distributor for its full range of mobile screens and crushers, plus spare parts, across France. RME, led by managing director Benoît Roglet, will provide nationwide after-sales coverage, including service, maintenance and customer support for quarrying, recycling platforms, demolition sites and public works. The Screencore line will be integrated with RME’s existing sorting, grinding, sieving and cleaning equipment portfolio, giving French operators a single supplier for complete materials preparation circuits.

Heidelberg has launched a new range of high-thermal-conductivity, low-resistivity backfill and bedding materials specifically engineered for high and ultra-high voltage underground power cables. The products are formulated to improve heat dissipation from cable systems, reducing localised temperature rise and associated ampacity constraints compared with conventional granular or cementitious surrounds. For civil and geotechnical designers, this allows tighter cable spacing, potentially shallower trench sections, and more reliable performance in dense urban corridors where thermal bottlenecks often limit circuit capacity.

President Donald Trump will appear on a new US one‑dollar “gold coin” for the country’s 250th anniversary, although the piece will be struck in base metals with only a gold‑coloured finish and no precious‑metal content. Production is scheduled at the Philadelphia Mint ahead of a planned autumn 2026 release, with the design showing Trump’s portrait, “In God We Trust”, and the dates 1776‑2026. The move contrasts sharply with bullion issues like the American Gold Eagle and Buffalo and has triggered legal debate over bans on depicting living presidents.

The U.S. National Science Foundation has awarded up to $160 million to the University of Missouri-Kansas City-led NSF Critical Materials Crossroads Engine to build a domestic ecosystem for critical metals and advanced materials used in batteries, aircraft engine components and semiconductors. The Missouri-Kansas corridor initiative, launched in 2022, brings together more than 260 partners to scale production from concentrated ore and spent materials recovered both domestically and internationally, targeting reduced reliance on foreign-controlled supply chains. Economic modelling projects about 10,000 jobs and up to $40 billion in output by 2036, with a $17 billion boost to regional GDP.

Blue Phoenix, an international producer of sustainable secondary aggregates, has signed a three‑year agreement with digital reuse platform MukAway, signalling a shift from traditional waste logistics into online materials trading. The deal will channel incinerator bottom ash and other secondary aggregates through MukAway’s marketplace, matching surplus materials from energy‑from‑waste and recycling plants with nearby construction and infrastructure projects. For contractors and geotechnical designers, this could increase availability and traceability of certified recycled aggregates, supporting specification of lower‑carbon sub‑base and fill materials where local standards permit.

Materials supplier BRCK Group reported full-year revenue to 31 March 2026 up 1.3% to £645.4m, with adjusted pre-tax profit rising 4.9% to £38.3m despite gross profit margins edging down from 19.1% to 18.9% amid price pressure and weak housebuilding. Growth was driven by an 8.8% increase in its design & install division after restructuring into two core units: distribution and design & install. The group completed the acquisition of H S Jackson & Son fencing post year-end, signalling continued diversification and capacity for further bolt-on deals.

CATL has acquired a 20% stake and board seat in New Zealand-based CarbonScape, positioning itself as industrialisation partner for the company’s forestry by-product–derived “biographite” anode material. CarbonScape’s process converts renewable feedstock from major forestry suppliers into battery-grade graphite, targeting US and European lithium-ion supply chains that currently rely on oil-based feedstock for over 75% of graphite. A demonstration plant in Kotka, Finland, will build on an existing New Zealand pilot, with commercial-scale biographite production targeted by the end of the decade.

Marley has launched Edgemere 2.0 concrete interlocking roof tiles using Heidelberg Materials’ evoZero cement, which relies on carbon captured and “banked” from Heidelberg’s Brevik plant in Norway, currently sequestering about 400,000 tonnes of CO₂ per year. The tiles carry a low Global Warming Potential, Green Guide A+ rating and BES 6001 Excellent certification, targeting specifiers seeking verifiable low‑carbon roofing materials. Heidelberg is also constructing a carbon capture plant at its Padeswood cement works in north Wales, designed to capture about 95% of emissions, or roughly 800,000 tonnes of CO₂ annually, from 2029.

Performance Panels, the distribution arm of See Limited, will now supply Broadview’s Formica Compact Collection across the UK, adding to its existing Trespa distribution agreement. The compact laminate range targets high-wear education, healthcare, and commercial interiors where impact resistance, moisture tolerance, and low-maintenance surfaces are critical for lifecycle cost and hygiene performance. Combining Formica Compact with Trespa panels gives architects, contractors, and fabricators a broader specification palette from a single distributor, simplifying procurement and detailing for robust wall linings, worktops, and façade-adjacent applications.

Reynaers Aluminium UK has appointed Jim Smith, a building products veteran with more than 30 years’ experience, as managing director with a mandate to accelerate growth in the architecture and specification markets and strengthen commercial capability. Smith will maintain a core focus on the group’s Science-Based Targets initiative pathway, which commits to a 50% carbon footprint reduction by 2030. For façade, window and door specifiers, Reynaers is pushing aluminium systems designed for energy efficiency, climate resilience, durability and recyclability, embedding circularity and eco-design at project design stage.

Commonwealth Fusion Systems has become the first international partner in the UK Atomic Energy Authority’s Lithium Breeding Tritium Innovation (Librti) programme at Culham, supporting development of tritium-breeding technologies for future fusion power plants. The collaboration will focus on testing lithium-based breeder materials and component designs under fusion-relevant conditions to optimise tritium production and recovery. For civil and materials engineers, the work points to future design requirements for breeder blankets, cooling circuits and radiation-resistant structural materials in commercial fusion infrastructure.

VASO Global has secured £5m from PXN Ventures, Scottish Enterprise, UK Research Innovation and Eco Group to accelerate development of structural composite panels manufactured from recycled glass. The funding will support scale-up of panel production and validation of load-bearing performance, targeting use in building envelopes and other structural applications where composites can replace steel or concrete elements. For engineers, the move signals growing investor confidence in glass-based composites as a lower-carbon alternative material, pending full structural testing and certification.