Innovation stories

Take a deeper look at 14Trees, a Holcim and CDC Group joint venture dedicated to accelerating sustainable and innovative construction solutions in Africa.

For breakthrough impact on our net-zero journey, we are exploring a range of next-generation technologies to help us decarbonize the built environment. Carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) is one of the most important technologies in our portfolio. With over 30 CCUS projects ongoing, the techniques we’re testing today will lay the foundation to decarbonize our business beyond 2030.

Our open innovation and venture client unit, Holcim MAQER, met the world’s cutting-edge startups and leading investors to fuel innovation in the construction industry.

New partnership to enable roads that recharge the electric vehicles that use them.

Holcim opens local job opportunities and celebrates first class of women truck drivers graduating.

Climate change and urbanization call for new solutions to maintain and improve the quality of life in our cities

The Holcim Awards showcase the cutting edge of sustainable design, green architecture and materials innovation.

At Holcim, we are leading the way to a net-zero future. With ECOPlanet – our global range of green cements – we enable low-carbon construction and create more liveable cities.

In a quiet commune just downstream from France’s Loire river valley, a historic landmark meets the building technology of the future with Ductal®.

Holcim partnered with Block Research Group (BRG) of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH-Zurich) to develop an innovative, lightweight floor system.

Holcim and Block Research Group (BRG) are joining forces to develop an innovative, lightweight floor system that uses 50 less material compared to traditional structures, and lowers embodied CO2 by up to 80 . This cutting-edge solution is proof that smart design can help us build greener cities, achieving more with less.

Holcim MAQER is the leading platform for startups and enterprises who are working on solutions to help the world build smarter and greener.

In the quest to reduce our environmental footprint and achieve our net zero commitment, Holcim Innovation Center leads the ReActiv project: a research project founded by the European Commission that aims at transforming Alumina Industry residue into an active cementitious material.

Striatus, the first-of-its-kind 3D Concrete Printed bridge, has been unveiled in Venice in July 2021. This innovative project is designed by Block Research Group and Zaha Hadid Architects, in collaboration with incremental3D and made possible by Holcim. Striatus establishes a new language for concrete that is digital, environmentally advanced and circular by design.

We need to generate a lot more renewable energy to meet the world’s net zero goals. By 2050, the IEA expects almost 90 of the world’s electricity to come from renewable sources – with 70 from solar and wind. Holcim can play a key role to accelerate the transition to renewable energy. Let’s look at it through the lens of...

Did you know that globally, transportation accounts for around a fifth of the world’s emissions? Holcim has introduced a state-of-the-art digital platform that improves driver safety, enhances efficiency and reduces transportation emissions across its global value chain. This has a positive impact on reducing our Scope 3 emissions - we’re the only company in our sector to have set a...

Technology can truly change people’s lives for the better. The world’s first 3D-printed school has just opened in Malawi - built in record time with technology that can reduce the building’s environmental footprint by more than 50%. This innovative 3D printing process significantly reduces the time, cost and materials used for building housing and schools. Globally, it has the potential...

Building a house for your family in your home country while working abroad fulfils the dreams of migrants and their families across the world. Fintech that enables workers from Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and Africa to use their remittances to purchase cement vouchers that can be used to build decent homes is exactly the kind of innovation that...

Credisensa, a joint collaboration between Disensa and Maqer - our open innovation platform - aims to democratize banking and financial services. Powered by fintech startups, including Centeo, Aliatu and Prestanómico among others, Credisensa offers retailers (B2B) and end-customers (B2C) affordable credit solutions.

Despite the unparalleled health crisis facing many retail markets in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America, LafargeHolcim recorded a 4 strong volume increase of cement bag sales during the second half course of 2020 compared to the previous year. Digital solutions have been instrumental in this success, as they are helping to satisfy the strong housing demand that...

2020 has been challenging. But despite the difficulties, we have continued to innovate, to help build smarter.

In only 40 hours, LafargeHolcim’s hacker teams developed prototypes to solve various business challenges using real data from our operations.

Through LH Engineering, Lafarge Poland contributed to both design and implementation of the A2 highway project, acting as subcontractor to build concrete pavement and to set up new mobile plants. This business unit is our response to the changing infrastructure landscape in Poland.

From flexible orders to increased transparency via dashboards, our customers in Africa are growing their businesses with the help of “Lead Retail”, a mobile app from LafargeHolcim.