Cement & Concrete Products Manufacturers
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 3,900 cement and concrete manufacturers in the US produce cement, concrete, and concrete products for the construction industry. Major product categories include ready-mixed concrete; concrete pipe, brick and block; other types of concrete products (structural products, bridge girders); and cement. Large companies may be vertically integrated and own or lease quarries that contain raw materials (limestone, aggregates). Some large cement manufacturers have downstream concrete production operations.
Seasonal Demand
Demand for cement, concrete, and concrete products is seasonal, and drops during the winter months due to unfavorable weather conditions across much of the US.
Capital-Intensive Operations
Cement manufacturing is capital-intensive and requires a significant investment in plants and equipment.
Industry size & Structure
The average cement manufacturer employs 91 workers and generates about $102 million annually, while the average concrete or concrete product manufacturer employs 44 workers and generates $18.9 million annually.
- The cement and concrete manufacturing industry consists of about 3,900 companies that employ about 181,500 workers and generate about $61.5 billion annually.
- Ready-mixed concrete manufacturers account for about 54% of industry sales; cement manufacturing accounts for about 14%: concrete pipe, brick and block manufacturing are about 10%; and other concrete product manufacturing is about 22%.
- About 91 US companies manufacture cement. The cement manufacturing industry is highly concentrated; the top 20 companies account for 91% of sector sales. The concrete product manufacturing industry is less concentrated; the top 50 companies account for 70% of industry sales. The ready-mix concrete industry is least concentrated with the top 50 companies accounting for 47% of industry sales.
- Large companies include CEMEX, LafargeHolcim, Heidelberg Cement, and Martin Marietta Materials. Many large cement manufacturers are owned by foreign companies. Experts estimate 80% of cement clinker capacity is foreign-owned.
- Many concrete and concrete product manufacturers operate within a limited geographical area due to transport issues and costs.
- Jobs that consume concrete include commercial and industrial, residential, street and highway, and public works and infrastructure projects.
Industry Forecast
Cement & Concrete Products Manufacturers Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Apr 30, 2023 - Concrete as a Carbon Sink
- New additives could turn concrete into an effective carbon sink, according to MIT News. Researchers at MIT have found that introducing new materials – including simple baking soda – into existing concrete manufacturing processes could significantly reduce its carbon footprint, without altering the bulk mechanical properties that make concrete the cornerstone of modern infrastructure. In lab tests using sodium bicarbonate (aka baking soda) substitution, researchers demonstrated that up to 15% of the total amount of carbon dioxide associated with cement production could be mineralized during these early stages – enough to potentially make a significant dent in the material’s global carbon footprint. Carbon dioxide sequestration is a priority for the industry as concrete production currently accounts for about 8% of global carbon dioxide emissions. The research findings appeared in the journal PNAS Nexus in March.
- The US Environmental Protection Agency in March revised its “Good Neighbor Plan” to eliminate the requirement that cement kilns meet emissions standards for nitrogen oxides (NOx) more stringent than standards for new kilns, which the industry claimed would have forced cement plants to curtail production or shut down, Engineering New-Record reports. The final version of the rule – which targets emissions from industrial plants in 23 states – removed a proposed source limit cap on daily emissions from individual cement and concrete plants that was in the original version. The agency also established provisions allowing cement producers to use continuous emission monitoring systems data instead of the semiannual performance tests it had originally proposed to exclusively require. However, the agency declined to alter any of its emissions limits for different types of kilns used for cement production included in the proposed rule.
- The price of ready-mix concrete (RMC) continued to climb at an historic pace with the producer price index (PPI) up 0.8% in February after gaining 0.7% in January (revised), according to the Labor Department. RMC prices have risen in all but two months since January 2021. The February increase was primarily driven by a 4.2% increase in the Northeast. Prices rose 0.8% in the West and 0.5% in the South, and were unchanged in the Midwest. Rising concrete prices are partially due to the closure of a large limestone quarry in Mexico. The shortage of concrete isn't limited to the US but is global and driven by the dearth of cement mix. This has resulted in price increases across the board, and there doesn’t appear to be any relief in sight, The National Association of Home Builders reported in March.
- Mass timber – an engineered wood product made of layers of wood bonded with glue or nails – is gaining traction in the US as a low-carbon alternative to concrete and steel, The New York Times reported in March. Mass timber’s durability and sustainability benefits are behind its increasing prominence at US colleges and universities, where it’s included not only as an exciting concept in the building sciences curriculum but also as a material in campus buildings, according to NYT. Despite supply issues and higher upfront costs than steel and concrete, developers are finding that mass timber structures go up more quickly than buildings made from steel and concrete, helping to recover upfront costs faster. Cross-laminated timber (CLT) panels suitable for walls, roofs and flooring capture carbon, keeping it out of the atmosphere, and are more sustainable than other construction materials.
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