Gypsum industry news

India: The Finance Ministry has imposed an anti-dumping duty on wallboard imported from China, Indonesia, Thailand and the UAE. The import tax has been declared valid for five years starting from 7 June 2012 when the provisional anti-dumping duty was first imposed. The duty excludes fire-resistant boards.

For wallboard imports from China, the duty is US$32.9/m³. For imports from Indonesia the duty is US$24.1/m³. For imports from Thailand, wallboard produced and exported by Siam Gypsum Industry (Saraburi) and Siam Gypsum Industry (Songkhla) has received a preferential rate of US$54.5/m³. All other wallboard imports from Thailand will receive a duty of US$73.8/m³. For imports from UAE produced and exported by Gypsemna Dubai the duty is US$12.3/m³. All other imports from UAE will receive a duty of US$20.2/m³.

US: More than a dozen lawsuits alleging price-fixing on the part of major manufacturers of wallboard have been consolidated in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The location was chosen as most of the parties are located in the area and a majority of the parties advocated for consolidation in that district. US District Judge Michael Baylson will handle the case.

"From at least September 2011 to the present the defendants, manufacturers of gypsum board, combined and conspired to fix and raise the prices at which they sold gypsum board in the United States beginning with large and coordinated price increases that all became effective on or about 1 or 2 January 2012," according to the complaint filed in one case originating in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Janicki Drywall versus CertainTeed.

Major manufacturers of wallboard have annual sales of more than US$5bn, according to the complaint and the defendants are seeking treble damages. The defendants in the suit account for more than 99% of wallboard sold in North America, according to the complaint. They are USG, National Gypsum, CertainTeed, Georgia-Pacific, American Gypsum, Lafarge, Temple-Inland and PABCO.

In a previous status conference for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania cases, Steven Bizar of Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney was named as interim liaison counsel for the defence, while H Laddie Montague Jr of Berger & Montague had been named interim liaison counsel for the plaintiffs.

Japan: Daiseki Eco. Solutions subsidiary Green Arrows Kyushu has opened a wallboard recycling plant in the suburbs of Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture. The recycling plant will separate used and dismantled wallboard, collected from construction sites, into plaster powder and paper for sale to wallboard and paper manufacturers, respectively. The plant will begin with 15,000t/yr of processing capacity, which will be raised to 36,000t/yr.

Daiseki entered the wallboard-recycling business in 2009 through a subsidiary named Green Arrows Central, based in Tokai, Aichi Prefecture. Its Tokai plant currently recycles 30,000t/yr of used wallboard from the local area.

India: The Directorate General of Anti-dumping and Allied Duties (DGAD) has recommended that India impose an anti-dumping duty of up to US$73.8/m3 on imports of gypsum plasterboard from China, Indonesia, Thailand and UAE to protect domestic producers. The recommendation excludes certain varieties of fire-resistant boards.

The DGAD's recommendation comes on the basis of its findings that increased imports have caused 'material injury' to the domestic industry. Mumbai-based Saint-Gobain Gyproc India had filed a petition for imposing anti-dumping duty on behalf of the domestic industry. The directorate has recommended different set of duties that range between US$12.3/m3 and US$73.8m3.

The DGAD, which is under the jurisdiction of the Commerce Ministry, said that the boards have been exported to India below its normal value from these nations. However, it said that fire heat boards, impact boards, gypsum ceiling boards with moisture barrier, heat boards, anti-mould boards, thermal boards, gypsum ceiling boards with aluminium edges sealed in white film and ceiling tiles may escape the restrictive duty.

US: Legislation intended to better regulate the use of wallboard in homes and buildings is headed to the desk of US President Barack Obama, several years after the emergence of the 'toxic' Chinese wallboard saga.

The US House of Representatives approved the Drywall Safety Act of 2012 on 1 January 2013, amid the chaos regarding the 'fiscal cliff.' It approved the measure on an overwhelming 378-37 vote.

In December 2012 Senator David Vitter successfully pushed a Senate amendment to loosen some of the bill's language and to win the support of the National Association of Home Builders, which had previously opposed the bill. Once the bill was amended, it sailed to congressional approval.

"Many families were faced with the nightmare of building or repairing their homes with toxic wallboard after Hurricane Katrina and I want to make sure this doesn't happen again. This is good news for homeowners that we were able to pass this swiftly before the new Congress starts," said Vitter on 2 January 2013. "This legislation will make sure unsafe wallboard won't be sold in the future and that wallboard manufacturers are held accountable."

The Drywall Safety Act sets chemical standards for domestic and imported wallboard, and also establishes guidelines for its disposal. The bill allows the Consumer Product Safety Commission to set rules to ensure that existing 'toxic' wallboard is properly disposed of. The legislation also requires all wallboard used in the country to be labeled with the manufacturer's name.

UAE: Gyproc Middle East has launched a new wallboard that actively removes volatile organic compounds (VOC) from the air in indoor environments. Activ'Air board incorporates a mineral-based additive into its gypsum core that captures VOCs such as toxic formaldehyde and converts them into harmless inert aldehydes.

"Initial discussions with building owners and developers have shown there is already significant interest for these products in the education and healthcare sectors," said technical development manager Jason Hird. Gyproc Middle East is marketing the product as a sustainable and cost-effective alternative to traditional powered air filters. The new technology is available across a range of existing Gyproc products.

US: In one of the most important steps in the saga over allegedly-tainted Chinese-made wallboard, attorneys have announced that a US$13m settlement has been reached between homeowners in Virginia, whose properties were built with the product and some of the companies they sued.

The settlement involves companies that imported and sold the wallboard as well as numerous other firms involved in the cases and around 200 local homeowners.

Federal product-safety regulators have found that the wallboard emits gases that corrode metal in homes and recommended that such wallboard be removed, although the legal battle over who will pay to fix the properties is now in its 38th month. Many homeowners have already abandoned their properties or lost them through foreclosure or bankruptcy. Others have sold their homes, sometimes for less than half of what they paid.

In July 2012 the settlement will go before a federal judge in New Orleans for a preliminary approval, with a final approval possible by 13 November 2012.

US: National Gypsum has announced that an Alabama lawsuit against the company has been dismissed. The suit claimed that National Gypsum wallboard exhibited the same characteristics as allegedly defective Chinese wallboard.

Marshall County, Alabama Circuit Court Judge Tim Jolley entered an order dismissing the case, Clark vs. National Gypsum, et. al. 'with prejudice', meaning that the plaintiffs are barred from bringing the same claim against the company again.

"This result is yet another confirmation of the quality and safety of our products and another blow to those making baseless claims against our company," said Craig Weisbruch, senior vice president of sales and marketing. "All National Gypsum wallboard has passed the industry's most rigorous testing and certification processes for indoor air quality and has been used by the US Green Building Council in its buildings."

The dismissal of the Alabama lawsuit follows a similar case in April 2011. A federal judge in Arizona dismissed a putative national class action against National Gypsum that had alleged that the company manufactured defective wallboard which emitted high levels of sulphur, damaged property inside homes and caused health symptoms. These problems have typically been associated with allegedly defective Chinese wallboard, not domestic wallboard. The plaintiff did not produce any credible scientific evidence that could substantiate his allegations.

"All credible scientific evidence - including studies by the federal government's leading safety experts - has led to the same conclusion," said Weisbruch. "National Gypsum wallboard does not pose the issues associated with allegedly defective Chinese drywall."