🏗️ Cementing the Future: Smarter, Greener, Stronger
Connecting Grassroots to "Grasstops" for a Sustainable Tomorrow
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Inside the largest cement plant in Florida – a hub of progress in R&D, digitization, and circular economy. Watch our latest On Site video feature with Titan America.
The largest cement plant in Florida sits on the outskirts of the Everglades in the southwestern town of Medley. You can see the massive silos of the Pennsuco plant from miles out, a prominent feature since its earlier days as a sugar plant in the 1920s.
Today, the Pennsuco operation serves as the flagship facility of Titan America, where they are extracting a major source of economic revenue for the state: limestone.
“Some of the highest quality limestone is right here in South Florida, which is why we’re here and also because the market is here,” said Eric Koehler, Vice President of Innovation & Quality at Titan America. “South Florida is really blessed to have this high-quality reserve.”
Limestone is mined, crushed, and then turned into cement – all on-site here at Pennsuco – before being loaded onto the train tracks conveniently adjacent to the facility for export across the nation.
But the plant also serves as a major research facility, developing new technologies to innovate the industry while setting a new industry standard for environmental responsibility.
Opportunity Miami recently toured the plant to see its operations and innovations in the industry. Watch here.
Titan America is a nearly $3 billion cement company in the $2 trillion construction industry, operating across the Eastern U.S., from New York to Miami. The company has over 100 facilities, including some of the largest cement plants such as Pennsuco, supplying cement, ready-mixed concrete, aggregates, cementitious materials, and more.
Titan is located in one of the top five aggregate quarries in the country. Coupled with the limestone, the site is a cornerstone of construction in the region that supports Florida’s rapid urban development.
“This is where it all starts,” Koehler said on our tour. “We mine the limestone that gets turned into cement used across the state of Florida.”
Pioneering Research & Development in Miami
Also on site is Titan America’s research and development laboratory, which is at the forefront of developing and launching new cement products that have higher performance and are more sustainable. By innovating down to the nanoscale, the lab has developed and recently launched Type IL cement incorporating new cementitious materials that meet higher-standard performance requirements.
“We are reimagining how our end product, which is concrete, is used in construction,” noted Koehler. “Our products already help increase the productivity of construction and our customers are asking us to do more. Society is demanding more resilient, more sustainable, stronger materials. And so we’re answering that need.”
The new product line reflects Titan’s commitment to not just performance but also the environment.
AI at the Core of Operations
Digital innovation drives daily operations here. Opportunity Miami also toured the control room or the “heart of the plant,” as described by Carolina Corzo, a processing junior who has worked at the facility for nearly six years. Her role is to ensure all the equipment throughout the plant is operating at its maximum throughput. “Optimizing, optimizing, optimizing.”
That includes digitalization. AI algorithms control equipment based on sensors and robotics throughout the plant. Titan has predictive analytics that tells operators when a part may fail so the crews can fix it before it does.
These AI-powered systems are also licensed to other cement plants globally, extending Titan’s impact across the industry.
Closing the Loop: Recycling & Circular Economy
When you see trash coming off a cruise ship in Port of Miami, Corzo said there’s a good chance it’s going here to fuel the plant.
Titan takes in waste like plastic, tires, and oil that can’t be conventionally recycled and shreds it on site, processing it into fuel that is then used to substitute one-third of the fuel needs of the plant. The company plans to expand its upcycling operations to meet the plant’s fuel needs through these alternative sources.
The company is also reclaiming and upcycling construction debris, integrating it into low-carbon concrete products.
“Our products are circular,” noted Corzo on this last leg of the tour.
Reducing Cement’s Carbon Footprint
The cement industry is one of the largest industrial sources of greenhouse gas emissions—an undeniable factor in the global climate crisis. Titan America recognizes this challenge and is doubling down on its efforts to create more sustainable practices in cement production.
At the heart of these efforts is the Pennsuco Plant, which has been recognized as one of the most environmentally responsible cement facilities in the nation. This year, the Medley site earned its 17th consecutive ENERGY STAR® certification from the Environmental Protection Agency, highlighting its ongoing commitment to energy efficiency.
It was also the first cement plant worldwide to receive the TRUE Platinum Zero Waste certification, attaining ISO 50001 certification for energy management, and investing in alternative fuel technologies that have significantly reduced CO₂ emissions.
The company has also pledged to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050, aligning with global climate goals and industry-wide transformation.
Having a local cement plant in a region like South Florida—prone to flooding and major storms—makes economic sense. But by embedding sustainability into its operations, Titan America is doing more than just meeting demand; it’s setting a new industry standard for environmental responsibility in the face of climate challenges.
Future Of The Industry
Titan America is reimagining how concrete is used in construction, the backbone of the South Florida economy. With 3D printing, the company can print completely new geometries with new functionality, such as for resilient urbanization and coastal protection.
“People think cement is grey and it hasn't changed, but we're actually continuing to upgrade our product line,” said Koehler.
Titan America is actively involved in the Risk and Resilience Tech Hub. Led by the Miami Dade County Innovation Economic Development Office, the tech hub focuses on developing and deploying technologies for resilience and sustainable infrastructure. Titan has partnered with local universities and other companies such as Carbon Limit (featured previously on Opportunity Miami), to advance concrete technologies, improve building codes, and support startups in the region.
“The Risk and Resilience Tech Hub has aligned the key stakeholders in South Florida around a common mission of resiliency, creating an opportunity for the region to lead through innovation and economic development,” Koehler said in a statement.
One such partnership with Florida International University is Clean Concrete, an innovative system that lowers carbon footprint while creating thousands of high-paying jobs for the local community.
As Florida’s economy grows and demands more resilient construction materials, Koehler added, Titan America will continue to play a vital role in building a more sustainable and resilient South Florida.
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