Gypsum industry news

US: CertainTeed is introducing a new wallboard solution, the 'Easi-Lite' wallboard. Easi-Lite boards are up to 30% lighter than normal wallboard and can be used in both interior ceilings and walls in residential and commercial applications.

Its lightweight characteristics make it more easy to transport, stock at worksites and install by hand, helping to reduce muscle strain and worker fatigue. The new product is also easier to score and snap for improved installation. It has been designed with sag resistance in mind and as such it is ideal for 12mm (0.5-inch) ceiling applications, allowing for one board type to be used for interior ceilings as well as walls.

Easi-Lite wallboard panels have a high-strength, sag-resistant gypsum core with a 100% recycled face and back paper and they enable installers to achieve the same high performance standards of a traditional wallboard. It is Greenguard® Children and Schools certified and designated as a low volatile organic compound (VOC) emitting product.

"Building professionals are constantly looking for innovative ways to streamline their processes to maximise profitability without sacrificing quality," said President of CertainTeed Gypsum John Donaldson. "The introduction of Easi-Lite complements CertainTeed's comprehensive product line and strengthens our position as a single source for products that meet a wide range of performance attributes and specifications."

Somaliland: GMT Minerals is looking to develop 'undoubtedly one of the largest' gypsum deposits in the world. Located in Berbera, Somaliland, the deposit is exposed for many miles, and extends for approximately five miles to the south of Berbera. It is between nine to 14 miles of a nearby port. The deposit is known to contain many millions of tons of good grade gypsum and anhydrite. It is thought that there are over 13Mt of greater than 90% pure gypsum and a further 9Mt of greater than 85% pure gypsum.

GMT Minerals is intending to establish a new front-end gypsum processing and handling facility near the deposit. The new front-end gypsum processing facility at Berbera will process about 2Mt/yr of gypsum and produce a homogenised, 50mm product that is suitable for pulverisation and calcination prior to use in board production.

Uzbekistan: Germany's Knauf International GmbH (Knauf) has completed the construction of a 20MM²/yr wallboard production plant in Uzbekistan. The project, worth US$48m, was funded through a direct investment from Knauf. The contractor for the construction project was German Samo Engineering.

KnaufGipsBuhara, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Knauf International GmbH, will manage the plant. Following the full commissioning of the new production facilities, the wallboard production capacity in Uzbekistan will be doubled to 40MM²/yr, with demand closer to 60MM²/yr.

France: Sales across the whole of the Saint-Gobain group in the first quarter of 2011 came to Euro9.799bn, an increase of 12.2% year-on-year. Organic growth of 8.8% was seen in France across all operations and in western Europe (excluding France) the figure was 10.2%. The figures for North America and emerging markets (Asia, eastern Europe and Latin America) were 4.2% and 15.6% respectively.

In the Construction Products division, which includes gypusm wallboard and insulation, sales were up by 6.4% to Euro2.658bn. Saint-Gobain attributed the increases to improved trading conditions across the whole of Europe and continuing strong momentum in Asian markets. The results were tempered by poor trading conditions in the US.

The group's sub-section Interior Solutions grew by 8.4% year-on-year, primarily due to an upturn in western Europe and more favourable winter weather conditions than 2010 that allowed more construction work to take place.

Saint-Gobain's targets for the remainder of 2011 are to have double-digit operating growth across all operations and achieve Euro1.3bn free cash flow after spending Euro500m on capital expenditure.

US: National Gypsum Company has announced that the plaintiff in Yee versus National Gypsum, et al. (pending in the US District Court for the District of Arizona) voluntarily dismissed his putative nationwide class action lawsuit filed against the company in October 2009.

"While we are pleased with the outcome of this case, we are hardly surprised. Throughout this litigation, we have never doubted the quality and safety of our gypsum wallboard and were confident we would be fully exonerated," said Craig Weisbruch, senior vice president of sales and marketing. "Our wallboard has passed the industry's most rigorous testing and certification processes for indoor air quality and has been used by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the US Green Building Council in their buildings."

The putative class action, (Raymond) Yee versus National Gypsum, et al., alleged that the company manufactured defective wallboard that emitted high levels of sulphur, damaged property inside homes and caused health problems. These problems have typically been associated with allegedy defective Chinese wallboard and not US wallboard. National Gypsum vigorously defended itself against the claims and denied all allegations. The plaintiff did not produce any credible scientific evidence that could substantiate his allegations. "We have not seen any reliable evidence that our gypsum wallboard poses any of the issues associated with defective Chinese wallboard," said Weisbruch.

"The decision to dismiss the case without prejudice is not a reflection of the merits of Mr Yee's case," said William Anderson, an attorney representing the Arizona homeowner. "The dismissal in no way exonerates National Gypsum and any assertion to the contrary is irresponsible and false. Mr Yee is a member of the proposed class in litigation in Florida and we will watch with great interest how that case proceeds."

Robert Gary, who is working on the Florida case, said it made sense to move Yee's case to the Florida lawsuit. The 93 plaintiffs in that lawsuit say that National Gypsum wallboard caused corrosion problems in their homes. "Everyone has decided that the cases are most appropriately centred in Florida, because that's where the bulk of the victims are," said Gary. "The suit involves the same team of lawyers involved in the Arizona case."

The Consumer Product Safety Commission is leading its own investigation into reported American wallboard problems.