The 2025 edition of World of Concrete, the annual exposition dedicated to the concrete construction and masonry industries, concluded after running from January 21 to 23 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

With nearly 58,000 registered industry professionals in attendance, the event featured more than 1,500 exhibitors and offered over 180 educational sessions for contractors and builders. The expo, renowned as the largest concrete-focused event globally, showcased cutting-edge products, machinery, and industry advancements.

Key Takeaways from World of Concrete 2025

Innovations in Concrete Production

The event underscored how the concrete production process is as crucial as the final material itself. Discussions centered on reducing embodied carbon emissions and refining environmental product declarations (EPD) through life cycle assessments (LCA). California-based materials tech company Fortera highlighted advancements in sustainable cement production.

Craig Hargis, vice president of products at Fortera, explained their innovative approach, stating, “The way we do that is through our re-carb process.” He detailed how Fortera's method relies on both limestone quarries and waste sources of calcium. “The first step of that is going to be to calcine the limestone and create lime,” he said. “That’s just traditional lime production processes.

“The next thing in our process, the re-carb process, is going to be the dissolution of that lime. So, we dissolve all the lime into our process solution, so that whenever we take it to the CO2 absorber – and we recapture the carbon dioxide – we can then precipitate it in a reactive form of calcium carbonate.

“And that’s what’s really different about our calcium carbonates [compared to] just limestone; we have activated them and made them reactive,” he added, explaining that this led to the product name, ReAct.

According to Fortera, ReAct’s reactive calcium carbonate polymorph, vaterite, can blend with ASTM C150, C595, or C1157 cements and be mixed into concrete at the batching stage. The company asserts that projects using ReAct can reduce embodied CO2 emissions by up to 70% compared to traditional Portland cement. Chief Manufacturing Officer Keith Krugh expressed confidence in their high-performance brand, ReAct Pure, potentiall achieving zero or negative embodied CO2 emissions.

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“Our only CO2 footprint is going to be from the fuel to drive the thermal processes like the lime calcination and the drying,” Hargis stated, pointing out that their natural-gas-powered method requires 450 degrees Celsius less heat than a Portland cement plant. “But, also, the electricity to run the pumps.

“So, we have no chemical emission of CO2, we totally recapture that. And that’s what allows us to achieve about two-thirds lower carbon footprint than Portland cement.

“The beauty of that though, is that’s off today’s technology, right?

“Once you electrify this process, you have a net zero cement.”

The Ongoing Demand for Concrete

Speakers at WOC 2025 reinforced the ever-present necessity of concrete in modern infrastructure. The American Concrete Pavement Association (ACPA) provided an overview of U.S. infrastructure, emphasizing significant ongoing concrete needs despite funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).

ACPA noted that “Factors including inflation, project backlog, and DOT [departments of transportation] turnover caused IIJA and Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funding to not stretch as far as the industry anticipated, [which] leaves certain key needs and goals unmet.”

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) is set to release its full quadrennial report on U.S. infrastructure on March 25, but early assessments indicate some states are barely maintaining average infrastructure quality, with grades as low as “C” and “C-.”

The ACPA stressed, “This means it is critical for state highway agencies to prioritize better utilization of resources as they continue to pursue their goals.”

Dave Jackson, senior brand manager for Oldcastle APG, discussed the growing trend of repair and rehabilitation work, noting its impact on concrete demand. “A focus on repair is a big deal, and I think we’re seeing that a lot in the industry, overall,” he said.

Jackson highlighted the increasing use of concrete and masonry in homebuilding, particularly in coastal and arid regions. “We bang on the drum of masonry, constantly,” he said, citing recent wildfires in Los Angeles. “The houses that survived were built with masonry and concrete.

“I think there is continued pressure where builders want to build as cheap as possible,” he added. “We need to stop building stick houses that are built to last only 15-20 years.”

Sustainability and Innovation

Industry leaders at WOC 2025 openly acknowledged concrete’s environmental challenges while emphasizing efforts to introduce more sustainable products.

“We know it’s dirty,” Jackson said frankly. “It’s 7-8% of the world’s CO2 emissions.”

A key shift has been the increased adoption of Type 1L cement (Portland Limestone Cement), which reduces CO2 emissions by approximately 10% while maintaining performance in foundations, paving, and some precast applications. Further research into recycled additives, such as plastics, biologicals, and glass pozzolans, is showing promise in achieving deeper carbon reductions.

While major changes may seem incremental, Jackson argued that the industry is making significant progress. The challenge, he said, lies in overcoming traditional preferences and educating contractors on newer materials.

“The main ethos of what we’re trying to do is reteach people about concrete. There are a lot of products that are more efficient, provide faster time, labor savings, and a better end product, but they’re not going to make those material selections if they don’t feel confident in their knowledge of it,” he said.

Jackson emphasized that with a broader understanding of available concrete products, builders and contractors can justify higher pricing based on quality and sustainability.

“It’s just giving folks the license to say, ‘I can charge more because people will pay more because the product is better,’” he added.

The ACPA echoed this sentiment: “Concrete pavement offers economic sustainability along with environmental sustainability, longevity, and resilience.

“In 2025, the ACPA will continue to advocate at all levels of government for continued funding, support state highway agencies in collaborative efforts to effectively use that funding, and leverage the association’s strong industry partnerships to build out the science of concrete pavement’s sustainability including the economic, environmental, and social benefits.”

As the industry navigates sustainability challenges, World of Concrete 2025 reinforced that innovation and adaptation remain central to concrete’s future.