The ERMCO 2018 congress is also a meeting place for the members of the Norwegian Ready Mixed Concrete Association. For them it is a good opportunity to meet colleagues from Norway and other countries as well. "It has been very interesting! says Tor Magne Johansen from the Norwegian concrete producer Nordland Betong. "It is very nice to meet and listen to colleagues from Chile, India, USA and the rest of Europe. Usually, we meet regionally in the Norwegian association FABEKO, but this is inspirational. I especially appreciated the presentation about the E39 road project. I also appreciate the focus on [...]

Coming from all over Europe, as well as India, Panama, Canada, India and other countries, the ERMCO 2018 congress is truly international. But so is concrete. And problems and challenges are similar in most places on our planet. However, some countries has more specific challenges than others. Turkey is the third largest concrete producer in the world, and one of the challenges the country is facing is earthquakes. “Turkey is located over a fault line, and the country has many earthquakes. In 1999 we had a very strong earthquake with 50 000 dead, and many thousand houses destroyed,” explains Caglar [...]

Norway has a lot of scenery and nature, but for many years it was neglected by the road authorities. Then, a national project with the aim of refurbishing the scenic routes was established. And with a goal of using architecture to promote them. Now, after 20 years of development, the scenic routes has become national icons and images of them has gone viral with international interest. And, of course, the tourist are coming. "In Norway, the journey is the destination," was one headline in the New York Times for an article describing the routes. One of the newest, a rest [...]

Do you think the cheapest way to store energy is a traditional battery like the one you have in your car? Well, there are other ways - with a fraction of the cost. With the increased share of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar, there will be more variances in availability of energy. And sometimes energy will be really cheap – the ones that are capable of buying energy at these times could save a lot of money if they can store it for days with less sun or wind. Sebastian Spaun, manager of the Austrian Cement Industry [...]

The ERMCO 2018 congress was officially opened by ERMCO president Mr. Yavuz Isik. Close to 300 participants are attending the conference in Oslo, Norway, to share knowledge and inspire each other on the use, production and influence of concrete. “Concrete is the construction material of all times!” was the opening statement of ERMCO president Yavuz Isik. “Through this congress, we would like you to engage in an open and constructive dialogue about concrete.” The ERMCO congress is attracting managers, technologist and many others from ready-mix producers all around Europe, but also representatives from countries outside Europe. As well as several [...]