Historical Timeline
2014: On February 4, Continental becomes a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange, trading as CBPX.
2013: On August 30, Lafarge North America sells its gypsum interests to Lone Star Funds, a private equity firm with headquarters in Dallas, Texas. The
new company is named Continental Building Products.
2012: The Lafarge Group announces an organizational change focused on driving the business to be more market and customer oriented; in North
America, 3 new operating business units are created (Lafarge Canada Inc.'s West Canada and East Canada units, and Lafarge North America Inc.'s United
States unit), with each unit managing all its product lines under one senior leader, in addition to Lafarge North America's already existing Gypsum
Division.
2012: Lafarge North America swaps assets with Martin Marietta; Lafarge receives aggregates assets and depots along the Mississippi River and Martin
Marietta receives Lafarge's West US ready mix, aggregate and asphalt and paving assets along the Colorado Front Range.
2011: Lafarge North America divests several of its subsidiary's ready mix and cement facilities in the southeastern United States to Argos, a Colombiabased company.
2006: Lafarge Group purchases minority shares and Lafarge North America becomes wholly owned by the Group.
2005: Lafarge improves distribution
Lafarge North America signs a long-term lease with the New York City Economic Development Corporation for the 25th Street Pier in the Sunset Park
section of Brooklyn to develop the 6.8-acre site into a storage and shipping terminal for its cement products. Lafarge opens its new state-of-the-art cement
distribution terminal in Detroit, Michigan. The highly automated facility will reduce loading times for cement trucks and enhance the firm's ability to
supply environmentally friendly blended cements to the region.
2004: Company sponsors exhibition and invests in upgrades
Lafarge North America announces that it will invest approximately $75 million to substantially upgrade and double the capacity of its gypsum drywall
manufacturing facility in Buchanan, NY. The renovation begins in 2005 and is completed in 2006. [CE: edited to read as current news.] Lafarge sponsors
"Liquid Stone: New Architecture in Concrete", a major exhibition organized by the National Building Museum, presenting nearly 30 recent or current
architectural projects that use concrete in exciting ways. The exhibition attracts thousand of visitors and creates more than 100 million media impressions.
It is extended for an additional year to January 2006.
2003: Lafarge celebrates 20 years on NYSE and TSX
Lafarge North America purchases all shares of Whitestone Supply Company to strengthen its position in the Cleveland and Youngstown markets and to
complement its existing aggregates operations in Northeast Ohio. In July, the company also announced its divestiture of its wholly-owned subsidiary
Lafarge Florida Inc. as a strategic move to improve its overall portfolio margins. On November 23, the company celebrates twenty years of trading on the
New York and Toronto stock exchanges.
2002: LNA expands and modernizes
Lafarge North America acquires Newark, N.J.-based Continental Gypsum, an independent drywall manufacturer with annual capacity of more than 300
million square feet. With Continental Gypsum, Lafarge strengthens its presence in the key Northeast market and complements its existing position in the
New York City area, the single largest metropolitan drywall market in the world. Lafarge dedicates its state-of-the-art cement plant and deep mine facility
in Sugar Creek, Missouri. The plant and 700-foot deep mine form one of the most modern cement production facilities in the world, capable of producing
one million tons of finished cement annually.
2001: Lafarge Corp becomes Lafarge North America; integration with Blue Circle
Lafarge S.A., Lafarge Corporation's largest shareholder, acquires Blue Circle Industries PLC and becomes the world's largest cement producer. Lafarge
Corporation, under a management agreement with Lafarge S.A., will oversee certain former Blue Circle assets in North America. During the period
covered by the management contract, the assets will remain the property of Lafarge S.A. and their results will be consolidated with those of Lafarge S.A.
Lafarge Corporation acquires Buffalo, N.Y.-based Pine Hill Materials Corporation and American Ready-Mix Concrete Corporation. Pine Hill and
American Ready-Mix produce aggregates (primarily sand and gravel), ready-mixed concrete and concrete block at eight locations in the greater Buffalo
area. Lafarge Gypsum opens its state-of-the-art drywall plant in Palatka, Florida. Lafarge Corporation changes its name to Lafarge North America Inc. to
better reflect the significant growth the company has experienced in the last few years. The company now operates businesses or supplies customers in the
construction trades in 46 of 50 states and all provinces of Canada.
2000: Lafarge enters slag business, merges with Warren
Lafarge Corporation signs an agreement with Ispat Inland Inc. to manage up to one million tons of blast furnace slag annually, which significantly expands
Lafarge's market for cementitious materials. The company also acquires Presque Isle quarry in Michigan-one of the largest limestone quarries in the U.S.
Lafarge's gypsum division opens its state-of-the-art drywall plant in Silver Grove, Kentucky. In December, Lafarge completes a merger with Warren
Paving & Materials Group, Canada's largest privately held supplier of aggregates and a leading supplier of asphalt and paving services.
1999: Company modernizes and builds state-of-the-art facilities
Lafarge Corporation announces the construction of a new state-of-the-art drywall plant in Silver Grove, Kentucky, which will utilize synthetic gypsum as
its primary raw material. In addition, Lafarge begins building a second greenfield drywall plant in Palatka, Florida, which will be the company's fifth
drywall plant. The company also acquires the assets of Stucco-Mix International Cell-Tex Inc., establishing Lafarge in the drywall finishing products
market. Lafarge's first North American operation, a cement plant in Richmond, British Columbia, completes its modernization into a low-cost plant with
doubled capacity.
1998: Lafarge becomes the largest construction materials company in North America
Lafarge Corporation acquires the businesses of Denver-based Western Mobile Inc.; Redland Genstar Inc. of Towson, Maryland; and the Ontario and New
York-based aggregates operations of Redland Quarries Inc. from majority shareholder Lafarge S. A. These properties became available when Lafarge S.A.
acquired the worldwide operations of Redland PLC in late 1997. The acquisition makes Lafarge Corporation the largest construction materials company in
North America, expanding to more than 10,000 employees and approximately 700 locations.
1997: Lafarge breaks ground in for new Richmond site
Lafarge Canada Inc., a subsidiary of Lafarge Corporation, breaks ground on a $140 (CAD) million, state-of-the-art facility on the site of its existing cement
plant in Richmond, B.C. The new plant will double the old plant's manufacturing capacity to one million tons and significantly strengthen Lafarge's
position in the lucrative Pacific Northwest/Western British Columbia construction market.
1996: The company enters the Gypsum business
Lafarge buys two gypsum wallboard plants from Georgia Pacific in Buchanan, New York, and Wilmington, Delaware. The purchase establishes a new
product line, gypsum wallboard, for Lafarge Corporation, and marks the company's entrance into the lucrative North American market.
1995: Lafarge acquires Port Manatee plant
Lafarge acquires National Portland Cement's 600,000-ton capacity cement grinding plant in Port Manatee, Florida.
1993: Consolidation and divestments make the company stronger
Lafarge Corporation consolidates its operations into three cement regions and three construction materials regions to create a more efficient and cost
competitive organization. That same year, Lafarge begins a two-year process of divesting its assets in Texas and Alabama. Although these locations are
two of Lafarge's lowest cost manufacturing plants, they are too far from their markets and cannot meet the company's long-term profitability objectives.
1991: Cement business grows through acquisition
Lafarge acquires the Missouri Portland Cement Company, Davenport Cement Company and related assets from Cementia AG and Asland S.A. The
acquisition includes three dry-process cement plants, 15 terminals, two quarries and some 30 ready-mixed concrete facilities.
1987: Lafarge makes Virginia Home
The company undergoes major restructuring and executive offices are relocated to Reston, Virginia, a suburb of Washington, D. C. Canada Cement
Lafarge (CCL) changes its name to Lafarge Canada Inc. in recognition of its two businesses, construction materials and cement.
1986: The company builds through acquisitions
Systech Environmental Corporation, an Ohio-based company that processes industrial waste to fuel cement kilns, is acquired. The same year, Lafarge
acquires the Huron Division of National Gypsum including 14 cement terminals and an idle cement plant in Alpena, Michigan. The Alpena plant re-opens
three months later.
1985: Lafarge opens the industry's largest private lab
Lafarge opens a new research and technical center in Montreal. It is the largest private laboratory in the North American cement industry.
1983: Lafarge Corp starts trading on NYSE and TSX
Lafarge Corporation, a U. S. holding company, is formed with a $44 million offering of common and convertible stock. The company is traded on the New
York, Toronto and Montreal stock exchanges. The same year, CCL increases its holdings in Toronto-based Standard Industries Ltd. to 100%. It is now the
largest construction materials division in the Lafarge Group worldwide.
1981: Company acquires 10 General Portland Cement Plants
CCL acquires Dallas-based General Portland Inc., the second largest U.S. cement producer with 10 plants and six million tons of annual capacity.
1973: Citadel is acquired
CCL enters the U.S. market through a joint venture that creates Citadel Cement Corporation. In 1977, the venture dissolves, but CCL keeps Citadel and
two southern U.S. cement plants.
1972: Canfarge is formed
Canfarge Ltd., a construction materials subsidiary, is created to oversee CCL's growing concrete related businesses.
1970: Lafarge becomes Canada's largest cement producer
LCNA merges with Canada's largest cement producer, Canada Cement Company, creating Canada Cement Lafarge Ltd. (CCL). With 11 plants stretching
from coast-to-coast, CCL becomes Canada's largest cement producer.
1956: Lafarge Enters North America
Paris-based Ciments Lafarge enters the North American cement market by building a cement plant in Richmond, British Columbia, near Vancouver and
forming Lafarge Cement North America (LCNA).
1909: Canada Cement Company is formed
Businessman Max Aitken proposes the merger of 10 Canadian cement companies to stabilize an industry that is floundering due to over-production and
fierce competition. The Canada Cement Company is formed and begins a successful cement business in Canada.