CDE’s Kevin Vallelly spoke with Aggregates Business about how the company is adjusting to change within the quarrying and aggregates sector, while also pioneering a key part of its future.
When asked what separates CDE Group in a crowded marketplace, the company’s chief engineer Kevin Vallelly is quick to respond.
“We like to think we’re not just an OEM (original equipment manufacturer) selling products; we’re selling solutions,” he told Aggregates Business. “We have a strong product portfolio, but it’s just the building blocks to the solutions we’re trying to provide to the marketplace.
“The really big projects are what differentiates CDE from a lot of our other competitors. Our capability to provide a full turnkey system and collaborate with the customer and key stakeholders enables us to guide them through the entire process.
“Our ability to provide that full end-to-end solution is what differentiates us.”
Quarry and aggregates operators are known for wanting greater efficiency and higher yields from their materials. But in some key global markets approvals for new quarries have become harder to come by or part of a more drawn-out process. This has presented a new challenge for operators and manufacturers alike: how do you make more material from the existing extractive area? In some cases, customers may need to process finer sand and stickier material while outputting similar materials to before.
The answer itself is not a straightforward one. It can require rigorous planning and, in some cases, upgraded equipment to ensure the material specifications can be met and the lifespan of the deposit can be prolonged.
“We’re currently undertaking a lot of upgrades, where customers are hitting a very different feedstock. We’ve been able to provide upgrade solutions to help them manage that,” Vallelly said.
“We’re seeing more and more where there is a broad range of inputs and there needs to be a consistent output. That means we’ve had to design new plants or upgrade existing plants to ensure the customer can maximise the resource for longer.
“As a business, we are dedicated to mitigating our environmental impact both for our customers and ourselves. CDE implements sustainable practices and seeks innovative solutions. Our strategies focus on resource efficiency, pollution prevention, and promoting circular economy principles.”
With increasing pressure on natural resources, CDE supports quarries in extending the life of their reserves and reducing reliance on virgin materials.
One example that demonstrates this is a long-time customer who had a potential headache. The customer had navigated around its site to extract from areas that avoided the seams of clay on-site. However, these extraction areas were close to exhaustion and presented a problem to the business.
The customer engaged CDE, which was able to upgrade the plant on-site so the operator could process all of the sticky, malleable claybound material into a sellable product for the market.
This solution unlocked an extra decade in the site’s lifespan.
“We pride ourselves on taking on those applications. Extending the lifespans of quarries is a no-brainer as opposed to all of the challenges that exist to set up a new deposit,” Vallelly said.
“Extending the lifespan of a quarry is something we look for with customers. It is one of the first questions we ask, ‘what are your reserves like?’ and from there we can start figuring out if there are more reserves there than they think. There might be material there that the customer thought was impossible to wash but we see those challenges as opportunities.”
Demand for sand
As a company with a sprawling global customer base, CDE Group has seen technologies, trends and patterns come and go in the quarrying and aggregates sector.
CDE has long been a key driver for the UK, Europe and American businesses adopting advanced dewatering systems and adapting recycled materials revenue streams, including abilities to make manufactured sand.
While the original product is a byproduct from the crushing process, the processed material has been rising in demand as natural sand reserves decline globally. This came to a head when the United Nations suggested a “sand shortage” was on the horizon in 2022. Operators in some regions have also seen a reduction in their ability to dredge natural sands from nearby rivers.
“In some regions, the cost and availability of natural sand are driving people to look at what they can do with their own waste materials,” Vallelly said. “For some customers who have ready-mix plants, making their sand is easier. In some areas, where they are short of natural sand, making a manufactured sand means they can get a commercial benefit from a waste material.”
The quarrying and aggregates sector is increasingly shifting to manufactured sand to make up the shortfall, and CDE has played a key role in this development.
The process sees hard rock crusher fines washed and processed to become a sand-like product that can be used in key building materials and cementitious products.
“Historically, it was a waste product which was dormant and there were huge volumes of it sitting on quarry sites,” Vallelly said.
“We’ve got the capabilities to take that material and wash it, refine it and shape it to make a concrete-sand product. That is something which is growing in the quarrying sector.
“There are a huge number of reasons to do it, but the biggest one we’ve seen is turning a waste product into a commercial product, especially as sustainability has become a bigger focus in the industry.”
Eyes on key markets
CDE finds itself in a similar position as it helps shape the recycled materials sector in the existing and emerging quarrying and aggregates markets. In part, CDE has leaned on its previous experience in other global markets to understand how it can support and grow this emerging sector.
By its estimations, CDE has delivered more than 2000 global projects, ranging from small independents to multinational producers. In 2024, CDE was successful in the tender process for two large recycling plants for a large multi-national public limited company (PLC). The two recycling plants needed to be capable of processing 150 tonnes per hour (tph) and deliver a fully turnkey solution. One plant was recently commissioned, and one is in the installation phase. The plants marked a milestone moment for the company.
“In more recent years, PLC companies have decided to make acquisitions of smaller recycling companies to gain assets and landfill licences. Instead, these are two flagship projects because it is the first of their kind,” he said.
“The customer has taken the initiative to acquire these pieces of equipment specifically for recycling and processing construction demolition waste. At CDE, we’re not exclusive to recycling plants, but we see huge growth in the recycling markets.”
Europe remains a key market when it comes to sustainable practices and recycling regulations, The European Union’s Critical Raw Materials Act and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) framework have been credited with new standards for circular economy practices, encouraging industries to rethink waste and resource management.
CDE has supported a series of flagship projects in France, Germany, Sweden and Norway. One of the standout examples is in France, where Entreprise Spiess developed a wet processing facility that recycles over 200,000 tonnes of construction, demolition, and excavation (CD&E) waste annually.
The wash plant incorporates several advanced technologies from CDE, including three EvoWash™ units, a Counter Flow Classification Unit (CFCU), ShearClean™ attrition cells, and an organics screen. The system enables maximum fines recovery and contaminant removal, and the ability to produce quality construction sands.
It features a suite of technology that allows operators to monitor performance and optimise production in real-time. This is achieved through CDE SmartTech and CDE OptiMax, which provide Entreprise Spiess with live material data to make informed decisions.
The eco-materials from Entreprise Spiess have been used in civil engineering, infrastructure, and public works projects. The facility’s natural materials have been proven to meet CE standards for use in concrete production.
These projects are helping to shape how CDE is working with US operators as the country’s recycled materials sector continues to grow, particularly in the north-east. In the past six months, CDE has commissioned two large 250tph plants in Long Island and Philadelphia. But there are always specific considerations between each region, as the geography and types of CD&E waste differ between each market.
“We’ve got good credibility now; we’ve established almost 50 recycling plants across the UK and Ireland,” Vallelly said. “They’re all scattered over different areas, and they’re all dealing with different types of feed. Some have high sand, some have more clay, some have more organic material, and some have more plastics in the material.
“We believe we can develop a solution for any customer. We have a highly skilled team of engineers that can take the inputs and determine how we can consistently deliver the right output quality that is needed.
“Our systems help divert millions of tonnes of material from landfill each year, contributing to a more sustainable construction supply chain.”
Still, CDE is eyeing the North American market, particularly the US, as a key market where it can support the fledgling recycled materials sector. In addition to the Long Island and Philadelphia plants, it has plants commissioned in San Francisco and Maryland in the US, and Calgary in Canada, and one will soon be installed Vancouver, Canada.
“We see that as another growth area for ourselves,” Vallelly said.
“In America, recycling materials is less common, but CDE is seeing greater adoption. We want to demonstrate that it works and that the market is open to taking the material.
“There is going to be a lot of material there … it makes financial sense for everybody to do it, and [that’s why] we’re planting the seeds and working with the early pioneers to do it.
“It comes down to outlook: where others see problems, we see opportunities.” AB
