The speech will discuss the situation in the Polish construction sector against the background of the macroeconomic situation in Poland and the European Union. Forecasts, both macroeconomic and for the construction sector for the coming quarters, will also be presented. Special emphasis will be placed on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and the crisis it has caused. Against the background of the general condition of the construction sector, the situation of its segments will be shown: residential construction, road construction, and non-residential buildings. The growing problem of the shadow economy in the construction industry, the dangers of inflation and rising interest rates, and the major barriers to the sector's operations will be pointed out. The presentation will be based on the latest statistics.

Jacek Fundowicz – economist, graduate of the Faculty of Economics at the University of Warsaw, Vice-President of the Management Board of the Institute for Economic Forecasts and Analysis. Until 2016, a research fellow at the Institute for Market Economics. He specializes, among others, in industry analysis, economic impact assessment of new legal regulations and business trends research. Member of the team that develops quarterly macroeconomic forecasts. Author and co-author of more than 100 reports on investment risk, assessments of current and forecast economic conditions, selected issues related to the functioning of many sectors and industries, articles in the daily press on the situation in the economy and several scientific articles.

Durability of cementitious materials is highly dependent on shrinkage processes and a material’ susceptibility to crack formation. Typical mitigating solutions, such as addition of polymeric fibres (PF), are not always sufficient, particularly in blended cements. 

The experimental data confirmed high efficiency of Superabsorbent Polymers (SAP) as shrinkage reducers in PC-GGBS fibre reinforced mortars (FRM). Significant “additional” reduction in plastic, autogenous and drying shrinkage (compared to a conventional FRM) was successfully achieved. However, the level of efficiency depends on either particle sizes and/or water absorption capacity of polymer.

SAPs facilitate hydration of Supplementary Cementitious Materials by a prolonged supply of water, adhered to smaller pores and by provision of space for deposition of secondary hydration products. This results in creation of a denser and poorly interconnected microstructure and hence in more durable cementitious composites.

With regard to climate change, the construction industry is both, responsible for existing challenges as well as inevitable part of future solutions in equal measure. The pressure to develop climate-friendly, and sustainable but likewise safe and robust construction technologies without compromising the quality of life of future generations demands for consolidated, global actions. The GLOBE Global Consensus on Sustainability in the Built Environment, for the first time calls for paradigm shift and immediate actions supported by important global networks and institutions within the built environment. The article reports about the driving force and the major objectives of GLOBE and elaborates on possible ways, how in particular also the pre-cast industry can find feasible ways towards resource saving and climate friendly technologies and production.

Additive manufacturing or 3D printing, already implemented in all industries is now also more and more used in the construction either on the field or in precast. Chemistry, process but also civil engineering, architecture have to be combined to able a successful and rapid implementation of environmental 3D construction printing. The initial challenges to print high quality and continuously at construction scales have been reached given us now the opportunity to spread the new technology for more efficient construction processes. The construction industry is changing rapidly with the increasing use of precast elements which allow safer, quicker and cheaper high-quality constructions. With the integration of 3D printing into the modular building process, we can further decrease the total cost with less material that can do more. The environmental considerations involve the need to reduce the quantity of construction materials but also to increase their durability. This presentation demonstrates the use of 3D printing technology for the optimization of the construction.

Sika can offer construction expertise with industrial manufacturing and delivering solutions that not only meet the most demanding specifications of the building industry but also improve manufacturing efficiency and quality – that is Sika’s commitment to offsite manufacturer. Sika offers a wide product range for waterproofing, concrete, roofing, flooring, sealing, bonding, fire protection and protective coatings. Whether you are creating modules for commercial, retail, education, healthcare, or residential sectors Sika has a solution for the needs.

The advantages of prestressed precast elements are well known. How- ever, not every precast plant has the necessary equipment. The concept for a mobile prestressing bed can help in this situation. The production table and the lateral ribs themselves are made of precast elements that can be set up and dismantled independently of the location. In con- junction with the two cross yokes, the individual prestressing strands can be arranged in any position on the table. Each strand is prestressed individually with a prestressing jack.

Sustainable cities have to be safe. This is a topic that has increasingly come into focus since terrorist attacks such as those on the beach promenade in Nice or at the Breitscheidplatz in Berlin have increasingly endangered our everyday lives and people no longer feel safe in public areas. “Now more than ever, there is a need to strengthen security and the sense of safety with structured and elaborated concepts and take effective measures to protect public places from 'vehicular attacks'. That's why it is important to invest in security and to offer user-relevant solutions,” says Maximilian Ettel, research associate at IAB Weimar. Together with Markus Tenwinkel, Managing Director of Tenwinkel GmbH & Co. KG, they developed the BLOCKMAXX, a mobile vehicle barrier made of heavy concrete.

Europe has its own plan to stimulate economic recovery from the pandemic crisis. The new Europe is supposed to be greener, more resilient to crises and also more digital. So, what should the future of concrete construction and engineering look like? With huge investments expected, we are witnessing rising prices of cement, aggregates, steel, accompanied by shortages and transportation problems. The number and role of digital solutions in the design, construction and maintenance processes is growing. That's why we need BIM and digital technologies even more today. Without them, we won’t be able to increase the still too low degree of automation and robotization. And this is all a new challenge for concrete engineering.

The objective of the speech is to inform fair participants about external financing opportunities for their planned projects. The speech pertains to financing possibilities with the EU budget for 2021-2027 and what is known as the EU Covid-19 pandemic recovery fund. The EU programs have the following major directions:

-     Develop and implement innovative process and product technologies

-     Carry out research projects dedicated to the development of innovative technologies

-     Invest in industrial cogeneration i.e. combination of own electricity and heat production.

The speech will also present the province's financial mechanisms and subsidy amounts for companies.

Concrete is the most popular building material produced by people in the world. Major constituent of this composite is cement. These two facts are implication a thesis green building means green cement. Green cement is therefore cement produced by an energy-efficient technological process with using alternative fuels as energy carriers in the clinkering process instead of fossil fuels and containing significant amounts of nonclinker major ingredients. Assuming, that the carbon footprint in concrete is depend in 75-90% on cement, it is possible to imagine potential of CO₂ emission reduction in case of use low-emission cement in different construction segments.

The patented Ducon technology offers various application possibilities in the field of renovation, re-pair, and reinforcement of horizontal to vertical surfaces. Ducon impresses with a high load-bearing capacity and abrasion resistance from a layer thickness of just 30 to 40 mm. A version in accordance with the Federal Water Act (for facilities handling substances that are hazardous to water) is available from 55 mm (Ducon55). Construction measures for renovation can be executed with minimal disrup-tion to ongoing operations. The low layer thickness makes it unnecessary to demolish the existing surfaces. This results in enormous savings in downtime. The preparation of the substrate is also shortened, as the material properties of Ducon make separate treat- ment of existing joints and cracks in the substrate unnecessary.

As the dominant building material of the present, concrete must also be given priority when it comes to the circular economy. On the way to- wards increased circular economy, a wealth of research results has been developed, much of which is hardly used in current practice. In contrast to natural aggregates, recycled concrete aggregates are composites of aggregates and hardened cement paste. The ratio of these two compo- nents depends on the respective “parent concrete” and the particle size, and determines the properties of the recycled aggregate. If applied for manufacture of new concrete elements and structures, the total ce- ment paste content in the concrete increases. This results in systematic changes in mechanical properties and a higher deviation in material properties. In the national regulations, recycled aggregates that are to be used for concrete production must meet certain requirements for material composition.

The global pandemic and the war in Ukraine have significantly affected many factors in global economies. Disrupted supply chains and changing demand on global markets generated anxiety and thus fluctuating prices of raw materials. Planning was difficult and some investors looked into the future with uncertainty. All of this might seem like a global challenge, but it has also been reflected in local markets such as the paving products sector.

Most of the raw materials used in the production of paving stones are obtained locally. For most companies, only admixtures are a product based on the global market. Despite the impression that the raw materials used for the production are not influenced by global trends, it should be noted that the raw material input is only one component of the finished product. Energy and fossil fuel prices and labour costs are equally important when looking at the overall production process and its impact on final sales and interest in the sector's products.

Two years after the outbreak of the pandemic and since the armed conflict behind our eastern border has started, we can fairly say that both have left a permanent mark on the sector that many may have perceived as local.

In a project between the University of Kassel and the company F.C. Nüdling, a paving stone based on recycled aggregates and CO2-reduced binders has been developed, optimized and tested for durability. For the CO2-reduced binders, two different options were tested. For one formulation a CEM III A was used and another one with alkali-activated material based on slag activated with sodium hydroxide. The objective of using recycled aggregates only could be met and good results regarding strength could be achieved in laboratory tests and in tests on site of a concrete plant. The durability tests did not yet show the required results for the paving stone of both the laboratory tests as well as those produced on site in the concrete plant. Two-layered pavers generally show higher durability, which could be confirmed in the laboratory tests for the adapted formulations but have not yet been tested for industrial trials. The reduced durability of one-layered paving stones is mainly due to the recycled aggregate, which has a relatively high porosity compared to the natural aggregate. In general, it was clearly demonstrated in this project with the aid of a life cycle assessment that an improvement in the CO2, material, water and energy footprint can be achieved both through the use of recycled aggregates and through the use of alkali-activated binders instead of Ordinary Portland Cement.

The conference program is complemented by a technical seminar presented by Dipl.-Ing. Dietmar Ulonska. The graduate civil engineer has been Managing Director of the renowned concrete association Straßen, Landschaft, Garten e.V. (English: Roads, Landscape, Garden) since 1999. He is also a member of national and international committees, the author of numerous specialist publications, and a presenter of various lectures with a focus on “paving construction with concrete blocks”. Mr. Ulonska will provide fundamental aspects and practical examples based on expert reports, focusing on the topic of planning and execution of conventional and infiltration-capable paved surfaces. One focus will be on the increasingly popular infiltration-capable eco-pavers in Poland.