Merger and Outside Investors Revitalize Company

Arxx Building Products, a longtime leader in the insulating concrete forms industry, has merged with Apex Construction Systems, a maker of cement-EPS composite ICFs. The combined company, which retains the Arxx name, aims to broaden its products beyond the distinctive exposed-tie ICF and offer designers, distributors, and contractors a comprehensive range of green building products for the exterior building element.

“We want to move away from being just an ICF company,” says Gloria Tuck, Arxx marketing director. “We’re now a green envelope solutions provider. In other words, we want to provide everything you need to build a better, green building envelope.”

That’s a radical departure for Arxx, founded in the late 1980s and led for many years by industry legend Ritchie Scott. Then called AAB Bluemaxx, the company was the undisputed leader in flat-wall ICFs for nearly a decade, dominating that marker segment until it underwent a major restructuring in 1998. In the aftermath, a host of competing systems have sprung up

In mid-to-late-2006 the board of directors brought in several new executives, including CEO Frank O’Dea and Robert Coveney, to chart a new direction.

Robert Covney, vice-president of sales and marketing, explains. “We had been developing our strategy over the last year, and realized that green building was picking up some mainstream momentum. In the last 18 months or so, it became obvious that it will create a sustained, long-term change in residential and commercial construction.”

Frank O’Dea and his team put together a long-term plan to capitalize on the movement and presented it to the board of directors last summer. “The board liked the direction but not the financial requirements needed to carry it out,” says Coveney. So he and O’Dea began looking for investors.

They found a good match with DFJ Element Partners, a venture capital firm that invests in eco-friendly products and services – or as their website puts it, “clean technology solutions to global resource and environmental constraints”.

Element Partners was familiar with insulated concrete forms – they provide much of the start-up capital for Apex Block, a composite ICF – and saw advantages to adding Arxx to their portfolio.

“Apex was just getting up and going,” explains Coveney. “They had the technology but not the infrastructure. Arxx had infrastructure and an outstanding distribution base. We saw some great synergies there.”

The deal was finalized on Dec. 15, 2007, and promoted for the first time at World of Concrete the following month in Las Vegas. Their booth featured a redesigned, green logo and the tagline “arxx elements,” accompanied by a stylized, multicolored molecule emblem.

“Arxx elements captures the essence of what we’re really about.” Explains Tuck. “Each of the different points of the element logo represents a different product solution we provide for the green building envelope.” Currently, those elements include Arxx ICF, Apex Block, waterproofing, accessories, scaffolding, and alignment systems. “We’ll add to the mix to meet the needs of the green building community,” she says, “but it has to be complementary with our strategy.”

Coveney claims that despite the apparent competition with two different blocks, distributors are happy with the changes. “We’ve been extremely pleased with the reaction in the marketplace, and from our distributors,” Coveney says. “Obviously, there were some initial concerns and jitters, but once we explained where we were going, the distributors didn’t see it as a negative. What they saw was that we’re driving distributor sales forward.”

Apex has gained impressive infrastructure, including a marketing department tech support, and R-and-D. Potentially, it could be sold by the more than 400 distributors Arxx has in place.

For now, there are no plans to blend the two products. “In the short term, Arxx will be Arxx and Apex, Apex,” says Coveney. “Gray block certainly has its advantages, but for our initial penetration of Apex, we’ll focus on the southwest market, where grey block has proven to be most popular.”

In mid-February, the company received another massive influx of investment capital, totaling $16 million. Once again the investors were “clean technology venture capital firms,” Nth Power and Emerald Technology Ventures.

The funding will help the company expand in the commercial sector where sales lag behind the industry average. “Part of the overall strategy is to set up a stand-alone commercial division and position ourselves as a broader construction products company,” says Coveney.

The new investors have seats on the board of directors, but day-to-day management will remain with Frank O’Dea, current CEO. Jim Miller, former CEO of Apex, is VP of Operations.

“This is the most exciting time in all of Arrx history,” says Coveney. “We’re the only supplier financially supported the way we are, and in a position to capture the green building movement going mainstream. We are ready to aggressively market our solutions in North America and worldwide.”

Credit: ICF Builder Magaizine April/May 2008

Long Beach, California, May 1, 2008 — In response to increasing demand for more durable, energy-efficient building systems, Conduit Development, a Long Beach-based sustainable green builder, supplier and developer, is proud to have joined forces with ARXX Building Products Inc., the leading supplier of Green Build Systems in North America.

“We are pleased to bring the ARXX Green Build System, including the company’s superior Insulating Concrete Form (ICF) Wall System, to the building community and homeowners throughout Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties,” says Denise Gonzales, CEO of Conduit Development. “With its environmentally forward vision, ARXX represents the future of sustainable building and is in line with our business objectives. The company’s comprehensive suite of green products is designed to create more energy-efficient, stronger and safer homes and businesses that will last for generations to come.”

“ARXX has the highest regard for the reputation and customer service that Conduit Development has exhibited in their growing green building solutions services,” says Randy Daniels, Southwest Regional sales manager for ARXX. “We feel Conduit can offer ARXX ICF customers world-class support.”

By becoming a major California distributor for ARXX, Conduit expands its role as a pioneer in eco-friendly building techniques and practices. Most recently, Conduit partnered with Habitat for Humanity of Greater Los Angeles to construct 14 Gold LEED-certified homes for the high-profile Jimmy Carter Work Project 2007.

Heading up the ARXX eco-friendly product line is the ICF Wall System, which is comprised of “stay in place” expanded polystyrene forms that are reinforced with steel bars and filled with concrete. ICF is mold, weather and insect resistant, and provides superior green benefits.

The ARXX Green Advantage:

Significant savings on energy bills

The only ICF with a UL/ULC Fire Rating

Elimination of “cold spots” that occur in conventional frame homes

Interior temperature stabilization

High R-values

High thermal mass

Low air-infiltration

Sound Transmission Classification up to 50 or higher

Proven strength and security for added protection against tornadoes, hurricanes and other natural disasters

To further promote environmentally friendly building techniques, including the use of the ARXX Green Build System, Conduit will conduct a series of one-day ICF technical training seminars for forward-thinking industry professionals, including developers, architects, engineers and builders. The first seminar is scheduled for Friday, June 6, 2008 and will be held at the Energy Resource Center in Downey, CA in partnership with Forming Solutions, distributors for ARXX in Orange and San Diego counties.

To register or learn more, log on to www.conduitdevelopment.com/workshops. To learn more about ARXX Green Build System, log on to Arxxbuild.com.

About Conduit Development:
Based in Long Beach, Calif., Conduit Development is a full-service residential and commercial sustainable green builder, supplier and developer specializing in Insulated Concrete Form (ICF) construction. Under the leadership of COO Simon Gonzales, an industry veteran with more than 30 years of industry experience, and CEO Denise C. Gonzales, Conduit approaches every project with only the highest degree of professionalism, integrity and eye for quality. To-date, Conduit has constructed several private homes and businesses throughout Southern California. To learn more go to: ConduitDevelopment.com