Laser Focus World is an industry bedrock—first published in 1965 and still going strong. We publish original articles about cutting-edge advances in lasers, optics, photonics, sensors, and quantum technologies, as well as test and measurement, and the shift currently underway to usher in the photonic integrated circuits, optical interconnects, and copackaged electronics and photonics to deliver the speed and efficiency essential for data centers of the future.

Our 80,000 qualified print subscribers—and 130,000 12-month engaged online audience—trust us to dive in and provide original journalism you won’t find elsewhere covering key emerging areas such as laser-driven inertial confinement fusion, lasers in space, integrated photonics, chipscale lasers, LiDAR, metasurfaces, high-energy laser weaponry, photonic crystals, and quantum computing/sensors/communications. We cover the innovations driving these markets.

Laser Focus World is part of Endeavor Business Media, a division of EndeavorB2B.

Laser Focus World Membership

Never miss any articles, videos, podcasts, or webinars by signing up for membership access to Laser Focus World online. You can manage your preferences all in one place—and provide our editorial team with your valued feedback.

Magazine Subscription

Can you subscribe to receive our print issue for free? Yes, you sure can!

Newsletter Subscription

Laser Focus World newsletter subscription is free to qualified professionals:

The Daily Beam

Showcases the newest content from Laser Focus World, including photonics- and optics-based applications, components, research, and trends. (Daily)

Product Watch

The latest in products within the photonics industry. (9x per year)

Bio & Life Sciences Product Watch

The latest in products within the biophotonics industry. (4x per year)

Laser Processing Product Watch

The latest in products within the laser processing industry. (3x per year)

Get Published!

If you’d like to write an article for us, reach out with a short pitch to Sally Cole Johnson: [email protected]. We love to hear from you.

Photonics Hot List

Laser Focus World produces a video newscast that gives a peek into what’s happening in the world of photonics.

Following the Photons: A Photonics Podcast

Following the Photons: A Photonics Podcast dives deep into the fascinating world of photonics. Our weekly episodes feature interviews and discussions with industry and research experts, providing valuable perspectives on the issues, technologies, and trends shaping the photonics community.

Editorial Advisory Board

  • Professor Andrea M. Armani, University of Southern California
  • Ruti Ben-Shlomi, Ph.D., LightSolver
  • James Butler, Ph.D., Hamamatsu
  • Natalie Fardian-Melamed, Ph.D., Columbia University
  • Justin Sigley, Ph.D., AmeriCOM
  • Professor Birgit Stiller, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, and Leibniz University of Hannover
  • Professor Stephen Sweeney, University of Glasgow
  • Mohan Wang, Ph.D., University of Oxford
  • Professor Xuchen Wang, Harbin Engineering University
  • Professor Stefan Witte, Delft University of Technology

Titan America Is Gearing Up For Continued Growth Following IPO

by Meg Flippin Benzinga

The company is aiming to take the U.S. construction industry by storm with what it sees as its innovative and green approach to producing cement, ready-mix concrete, blocks and aggregates. Claiming to pioneer the future of low-carbon, high-performing cement, Titan America says its approach produces cement that has 10% less carbon emissions than its competitors. That should be welcome news given America is facing a housing shortage that is only expected to get worse with the formation of more households that need a place to live. Over the next decade, housing starts (the construction of new units) on average are projected to be 1.6 million per year. 

Deregulation To Spur Growth 

On the commercial side, thanks to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which was passed in November 2021 and commits over $1 trillion to fix the nation’s ailing infrastructure, the construction industry is expected to see more growth. That’s particularly true of green building materials which may play a role in the broader goal to lower overall emissions. If that’s not enough, President Trump is expected to bring in a new era of deregulation to the construction industry that could speed up the process of approving and completing projects. 

"The demographics, also the household formation, supports strong build-up in the construction industry, especially in the residential, but also the infrastructure. The deregulation that this administration is going to bring is going to shorten the time between planning a project and executing a project. We feel that this is going to accelerate the growth,” says Titan America CEO and president Bill Zarkalis. 

“Tariffs? What Tariffs?” 

That’s a sentiment shared by Titan America’s investors who participated in the company’s recent IPO. On its first day of trading, shares opened slightly higher than its IPO price of $16 per share and have continued to trade higher. The stock has remained slightly above its IPO price and the company is confident it will perform as the growth drivers play out and any uncertainty about tariffs impacting its business dissipates. According to Titan America, much of its production is on the east coast in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Florida. The imports it does rely on come from the European Union and other countries that shouldn’t be impacted by tariffs, it reports.  

It doesn’t hurt that Titan America isn’t a small player in the U.S. construction market, with $1.6 billion in annual sales. It operates in regions that are reportedly expected to see future growth, including Florida, the Mid-Atlantic and Metro New York and New Jersey.

“We have a strong position and a proven business model that allows us to grow faster,” says Zarkalis. He points to the company’s pipeline of ultra-high performance and low carbon products that differentiates itself from competitors. “It allows us to take advantage of the explosive growth in regions growing faster than the average of the US.”

IPO Boosts Titan America’s Coffers 

Net proceeds of the IPO in which Titan America issued 24 million shares, were $136.8 million, which will be used for capital expenditures, investments in technology and to pursue strategic acquisitions, the company says. Titan Cement International received net proceeds of about $228 million from the IPO. Citigroup and Goldman Sachs & Co. acted as joint lead book-running managers for the IPO. Bank of America Securities, BNP Paribas, Jefferies Financial , HSBC, Societe Generale and Stifel Financial acted as bookrunners for the IPO.

The IPO of Titan America comes as some European companies are looking at listings on the New York Stock Exchange for their U.S. businesses, drawn by higher valuations and a broader pool of investors to tap. Given Titan America’s contribution to the economy, Zarkalis says the IPO made a lot of sense. “We have grown to the point that we became 60% of Titan Cement International and we are a pure-play,” says Zarkalis. “It made sense ahead of the explosive growth we expect to have Titan America carved out as a standalone public company, with its own strong balance sheet.”

Featured photo courtesy of NYSE.

This post contains sponsored content from the NYSE and Titan America. This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be investing advice.

This content was originally published on Benzinga. Read further disclosures here.

Stock Quote API & Stock News API supplied by www.cloudquote.io
Quotes delayed at least 20 minutes.
By accessing this page, you agree to the following
Privacy Policy and Terms Of Service.