Lafarge Cement UK
The
international Lafarge Group took over Blue Circle Industries in
2002, to create Lafarge Cement UK, although Blue Circle branded
cement continues to be produced today. The company's roots are in
Kent where, in 1900, 27 small cement manufacturers merged to form
the Associated Portland Cement Manufacturers Ltd.
Lafarge Cement UK now has over 1,500 employees and eight
cement-producing plants at Dunbar in East Lothian, Hope in
Derbyshire, Barnstone in Nottinghamshire, Cauldon in Staffordshire,
Northfleet in Kent, Aberthaw in South Glamorgan, Westbury in
Wiltshire and Cookstown in Northern Ireland.
The Northfleet works
is due to close, but Lafarge has purchased a new import facility on
the East Coast to help ensure it can continue to supply the market
in the South East.