Holcim reaches key milestone with Malarkey Roofing Products

Driving circular construction, an average Malarkey roof contains more than 3,000 upcycled plastic bags inside.

With circularity at the core of our business, Holcim continually innovates to build better with less following the principles of reduce, recycle and regenerate. Holcim is at the forefront of reducing the footprint of buildings across their entire lifecycle, from low-carbon construction to more energy-efficient buildings in use, all the way to green retrofitting. That’s why we are always looking for new members that share this vision to join the Holcim family and help us expand our solutions and products to drive the transition to a circular economy.

Holcim reached a major milestone in this journey when it acquired Malarkey Roofing Products, a leader in innovative and sustainable residential roofing in the US.Founded in 1956 and headquartered in Portland, Oregon, Malarkey provides complete solutions for residential roofing, from shingles to ice and water barriers.With its highly circular business model, Malarkey lives those values every day. The company has been a pioneer in upcycling rubber and plastic in shingles, using everything from used tires to wax pellets made from used children’s plastic markers. An average Malarkey roof contains more than 3,000 upcycled plastic bags and five rubber tires inside. In just a few years, Malarkey has diverted approximately 4.5 million rubber tires and 3.1 billion plastic bags from landfill, incorporating this upcycled rubber and plastic into their shingles.

"Not only does Malarkey have a portfolio that fits exactly what we were looking for, they also believe, just like Holcim, in building progress for both people and the planet."

The company has also just eclipsed a goal of 1.0 million trees “planted” by Malarkey to help clean the air by adding smog-reducing granules atop the shingles. Methane sourced from a nearby wastewater treatment plant supplies 68% of the company’s manufacturing power on average. These efforts earned Malarkey 16 GreenCircle® certifications - 13 for Recycled Product Content and 3 for more than 90% Waste Diversion from Landfill at all its manufacturing facilities.

Today Malarkey uses proprietary NEX® technology to achieve 30% stronger shingles while lowering CO2 emissions by 60%. All Malarkey’s shingles are fortified with sustainable NEX™ polymer modified asphalt technology, as well as 3M™ Smog-Reducing Granules (featured in TIME Magazine's 50 Best Inventions of 2018). These granules are engineered to harness sunlight to photocatalytically convert smog into water-soluble ions, actively reducing air pollution with technology that is itself based on repurposed materials. One standard-sized roof has the same smog-fighting potential as two or more trees.Malarkey also uses 3M™ Cool Roofing Granules in several shingle colors and commercial cap sheets. These highly-reflective granules help reduce “heat islands” in urban areas, where the built environment has more heat-absorbing surfaces like roads, roofs, and buildings. Solar reflective roofing is one of the key ways for cities to help offset the urban heat island effect, supporting efforts by the Cool Roof Rating Council, (CRRC) Climate Resolve, and the State of California to conserve energy and improve air quality.

Fully complementary to Elevate in the commercial segment, the addition of Malarkey now positions Holcim as a full spectrum roofing provider.The acquisition advances “Strategy 2025 – Accelerating Green Growth,” and especially our goal to expand the Solutions & Products business to 30% of Group Net Sales by 2025. Projected net sales for Malarkey for the full year 2022 are USD 600 million, with EBITDA of USD 120 million. This is a big step in our ambition to become a global leader in innovative and sustainable building solutions by entering the most attractive construction segments, from roofing and insulation to repair and refurbishment, and reach our target of recycling 100 million tons of material across our business by 2030.