Gypsum industry news

Italy: Eco Avant-Garde has launched a new product from its Eco Gypsum 64 gypsum wallboard recycling system. The system can now produce pulverised paper pellets as fuel for dryers at gypsum wallboard plants. Eco Avant-Garde highlighted the evident circular economic potential of the advance in a post to LinkedIn.

Germany: Weig-Karton has started its 'Driven by care' marketing campaign to reposition itself ahead of the 17th Global Gypsum Conference taking place in Poland in October 2017. The initiative originated as part of a process to engage with responsibility concepts for business partners, employees as well as the environment and wider society. It connects to the company's Uniplac plasterboard liner product line and its security of supply. The campaign will be represented by a visual of a globe in the form of two clasped hands.

"As a family-managed company, our thinking and actions are based on dependability, independence and a long-term view. That's why we, as a company group, stand for diligence, reliability and 'taking care of things,' said Michael Balzer, Sales Director at Weig-Karton.

The subsidiary of Weig Group produces its Uniplac line at plants in Germany and Paraguay. Both sites use their own supply of raw material with recycled waste paper.

Russia: Knauf Petroboard and the local government of the Leningrad region have signed a Euro54m deal to upgrade a gypsum wallboard liner plant in Kommunar. Two thirds of the funds will be used to upgrade equipment at the site with the remainder targeted at treatment works, according to the Stroygaz newspaper. Start-up for the equipment is scheduled for the end of 2018. The agreement has been announced as part of the St Petersburg International Economic Forum framework.