At Italcementi Group, research is a strategic asset aimed at creating innovation projects that follow up new market trends. Italcementi invests some 25 million Euro a year in Research and Innovation: its innovation index – i.e. the ratio of revenues generated by innovation projects to total Group sales – is currently 2.5%, but the medium-to-long term goal is to bring it up to 5%.
As an integral part of the innovation process, the laboratories of CTG, the Group Technical Center, carry out R&D activities in the field of cementitious materials and related applications.
The distinctive feature of CTG’s research activities lies in the multidisciplinary resources and skills involved; chemists, physicists, geologists and engineers work closely every day thereby generating a value-added mix of expertise that is paramount to fulfill ambitious goals.
The Group’s growth vision and Research & Innovation strategy for new products and enhanced manufacturing processes hinge on Sustainable Development. Current studies are being focused on new clinker and cement production processes entailing lower CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. Other research studies are aimed at reusing secondary materials for manufacturing cement and concrete thereby impacting less on the environment on account of a lower raw materials content. Among more conventional studies, let’s recall here those regarding concrete durability and materials for building rehabilitation programs.
Products of sure environmental interest are the photocatalytic cementitious materials containing the TX Active® principle. These materials are capable of preserving the aesthetic quality of built surfaces and abating the polluting substances occurring in the air. The potential of these materials will be developed on increasingly effective applications.
The research activity is structured as a synergistic network of international scientific partnerships involving research centers, universities and enterprises from the building materials and construction industry. At present, the network is comprised of 10 external centers, 30 enterprises and 26 universities in Italy, Europe and in other non-European countries. The network fosters joint scientific projects on cross-cutting themes (CO2 emission reduction, sustainable development, materials durability, etc.), bilateral cooperation projects focused on industrial objectives, as well as standardization activities within CEN – the European Committee for Standardization – and UNI – Italy’s standardization body. Last but not least, both basic and finalized research projects are carried out.