Gypsum industry news

France: Saint-Gobain has been hit by a cyberattack. The building materials producer said that it subsequently isolated its systems in order to protect its data. It added that its production lines were continuing to operate and that it was still serving its clients. It is not known whether the company has been infected with the Petya ransonware virus. However, the company operates a gypsum wallboard plant in Ukraine, where that attack was first reported on 27 June 2017.

Tanzania: Knauf plans to invest an additional US$5m in a production site in Mkuranga district. The German company has already invested US$10m into the unit, according to the Citizen newspaper. The company started operations in the country in 2014 and it employs over 150 people. It is its first unit in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Zachopoulos Georgios, the managing director for East Africa, said that the subsidiary sources most of its raw materials locally and that it mines gypsum in the south of the country. He added that the company is focusing on promoting regular gypsum boards of 9mm and 12mm and boards of 12.5mm for moisture-resistance and fire resistance for the East African region. It will also offer other products from its portfolio, including related powder, steel sections, screws and tape offerings. The company exports 8% of its production at present and it hopes to increase this to 20 – 30% in the coming years.

India: Gyproc India is preparing to open a 30Mm² gypsum wallboard plant in Gujarat by the end of August 2017. The US$62m plant has taken about two years to build, according to the Hindu newspaper. The subsidiary of France's Saint-Gobain currently operates three wallboard plants at Haryana, Maharashtra and Karnataka with a total production capacity of 55Mm².

US: Taishan Gypsum and its owner China National Building Material Company (CNBM) say they have settled with Lennar Homes, LLC and US Home Corporation in one of its lawsuits about alleged defective gypsum wallboard. Fellow subsidiary Beijing New Building Material (BNBM) and Taishan Gypsum have agreed to pay the companies concerned US$0.5m and US$6m respectively in instalments by 31 July 2017. In return the plaintiffs have agreed to drop all claims and allegations within three days of receipt of the payment.

US: National Gypsum has published 17 health product declarations (HPD) for a range of products that cover nearly all of its interior wall systems.

"At National Gypsum, we recognize that sustainable building design isn't just a trend but has become the preferred business practice for top architects and developers in the country," said John Mixson, vice president of sales and marketing.

The HPDs cover all product brands and 40 products. They include: Gold Bond Brand; Fire-Shield Type X; Fire-Shield Type C; XP Fire-Shield Type X; XP Fire-Shield Type C; High Strength Fire-Shield LITE; High Strength Fire-Shield LITE 30; SoundBreak XP Fire-Shield; eXP Interior Extreme; eXP Tile Backer; eXP Sheathing; eXP Shaftliner; DEXcell Brand Glass Mat Roof Board; DEXcell Brand Cement Board; and PermaBase Brand Cement Board.