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Cemex is aiming to improve productivity across its quarries UK with delivery of 15 new Caterpillar machines from Finning. The order placed consists of three Cat 966H wheel loaders, two Cat 962H and two Cat 972H medium size wheel loaders, three Cat 345DL, two Cat 336DL, and a Cat 365CL ME hydraulic excavators, a Cat 735 articulated dump truck and a Cat D6N LGP track-type tractor.

Ratings agency Moody’s has downgraded its outlook on Ireland-based CRH from neutral to negative. The organisation has said that it has changed the rating because of the company’s €3.95billion debts and a drop in share price of 17% in a single day following publication of its first half results.

France’s quarrying industry association has reported that aggregate production in the country rose 25% to 27.6million tonnes in June, compared to the previous month.

Following a €9million investment in new aggregate processing plant at the site to increase automation and reduce dust and noise, Cemex’s Sorèze quarry in France has gained ISO 14001 certification. The upgraded dolomite quarry in south west France was reopened in November last year and has now gained this new standard which demonstrates the site’s sustainable development and environmental efforts.

Cemex Espana has announced that it is to streamline its operations with the merger of its Orionidas and Cementos Castilla La Mancha subsidiaries. Orionidas operates the cement terminal at the port of Castellon and Cementos Castilla La Mancha (CCM) operates a clinker grounding plant in Montalbo. Cemex acquired the 30,000tonne capacity port facility from Buzzi Unicem in 2008.

Cemex UK's Barrington quarry and cement plant is a record breaker when it comes to safety. Claire Symes reports. Achieving zero lost time accidents is a target for almost every quarry operator in Europe but reaching this benchmark calls for continual focus and vigilance. One site that appears to have the right ingredients is Cemex UK's Barrington quarry and cement works in Cambridgeshire.

Improving energy efficiency is the target of a €14million investment announced by Holcim Romania for its Alesd cement plant. Under the plan, the company will develop an electricity production unit that uses the heat generated during the cement production operations. The unit will generate around 25% of the electricity needed by the factory and is expected to be operational in the second quarter of 2012.

Cemex has announced that its German operation has secured an extension to the deal to supply ready mixed concrete to construction work on a new power plant in Hamburg, Germany. Under the deal the company will supply a further 350,000m3 to the coal-fired power station project. The company has already delivered 310,000m3 of ready mixed concrete to the scheme since work began in 2008. Work on the plant is expect to be completed in 2012 when it will produce 11billion kilowatt hours per year and provide 180,000

Austria-based brick manufacturer is reported to be planning a takeover bid for Heidelberg Cement’s brick business. Australian construction firm Boral has also been linked with the acquisition but no discussions have been confirmed. Heidelberg wants to split the operation from its construction materials business following a decline in brick sales.

Construction work on a €250million modernisation of Devnya Cement’s plant in Bulgaria is due to get underway this month, according to an announcement by parent company Italcementi. Main contractor Strabag and China-based CBMI will work on the two year scheme to upgrade the factory in Devnya with the latest environmental control systems and new technology. The new dry production line will have capacity to produce 7000tonnes of clinker per day and an annual cement capacity of 3million tonnes.

Trading practices in the UK aggregates market are to come under scrutiny after the Office of Fair Trading has announced it is to launch a market study of the £4.8billion a year sector. In a statement, the OFT said, “Aggregates is a sector with high barriers to entry, increasing concentration at the local level and Government involvement in the form of a national system of control over outputs. The study will look at all of these factors to determine how they influence competitive conditions and whether the

Cement demand in Russia is forecast to continue growing over the next nine years, reaching 100million tonnes a year by 2020, according to investment organisation CMPro. The company has said that it expects demand this year to be 55million tonnes with the average price per tonne reaching €60. The organisation has said growth in demand is likely to take annual consumption to 70million tonnes per year in 2015 and 100million by 2020.

Finds from an archeological investigation at Cemex gravel quarry near Marburg in Germany have been put on display, revealing the history of the site. Sands and gravels from the Amöneburger basin had been quarried for around 40 years without any remarkable finds being record but in September 2008, Cemex started to unearth pieces of ceramics and wooden posts were also found.

Spain’s cement association Oficemen has reported that demand for cement in Spain increased by 2.73% in February this year – the first increase in monthly demand since October 2007. Nonetheless, the organisation has said that this is not a sign of recovery but more a of a reflection of the low level of demand in February 2010 due to poor weather. Oficement has said that without the impact of the weather on demand last year, the level of demand in February 2011 would show a 10% decrease.

Environmental and safety accreditations are common in the aggregates industry but Cemex Spain's quarry restoration effort means it will soon boast an agricultural certification. Claire Symes visited the quarry at El Clotet to find out why

Aggregates, cement and ready mixed concrete top the list of Cemex Spain's product range in terms of revenue but lower down it also includes nectarines, plums, oranges and mandarins. The company added fruit to its product range over 20 years ago when it started to restor

Greater efficiency and higher quality crusher components manufacturing is promised by Sandvik with the announcement plans for investment in a new 6000m2 factory in Svedala, Sweden. The new SEK300million (€32.4million) plant will be fitted with the most modern production equipment for manufacturing key components for Sandvik’s crushers, which are assembled not only in Svedala, but also in other countries.

Lafarge Cement has announced the appointment of John Lewis as its new health and safety coordinator for its Aberthaw Works site in Wales. Lewis joins Lafarge from Biomet, a medical implant manufacturer based in Bridgend, where he spent five years in the post of health, safety and facilities manager. His previous experience also includes safety and facilities engineer for the Cardiff Bay based Nippon Glass Factory.

Belgium’s concrete federation has reported that concrete volumes rose by 10% during the first half of the year, however most companies in the sector do not expect to see an increase in turnover this year. The sector has reported that the market is still 9% down from levels reported before the recession and gains in the first six months of the year were due to seasonal effects and completion of some large projects.

Harvest of the latest fruit crops planted in restored areas of Cemex Espana’s El Clotet quarry are now underway and the company is celebrating 25 years of the restoration project. The company started to restore worked areas of the quarry near Alicante with fruit trees in 1985 and expects to harvest over 1000tonnes of fruit this year, including 25tonnes of oranges for the first time.

The British Aggregates Association (BAA) has announced that it has won the case against the exemption or derogation from the Aggregates Levy in Northern Ireland in the EU General Court. The Court agreed with the BAA that the Commission had not conducted a diligent investigation of the Northern Ireland exemption where operators pay £0.40 per tonne in levy compared to the £2.00 paid elsewhere in the UK or of the BAA's complaint. The court found that the Commission could not therefore lawfully decide that it w