Displaying items by tag: logistics

Russia: SLK Cement has ordered 100 gondola railway wagons to improve its logistics operations over the busy summer sales period. It increases the company’s fleet of railway wagons - including hoppers, gondolas and dump cars – to 570 units. Yevgeny Grishchenko, the Logistics Director of SLK Cement, said that the expanded railway fleet would reduce delays in deliveries and reduce transport costs.

Mexico/US: GCC plans to spend US$450 - 500m on upgrade projects to its cement business over the next three years to 2024. It is considering building a new 1.1Mt/yr clinker production line at an unnamed existing plant but the board of directors has yet to make a final decision. Other projects include strengthening the group’s cement distribution network in Minneapolis, Minnesota and Utah in the US. This would also include building two new cement terminals. A debottlenecking project is being planned at the Samalayuca plant in Chihuahua state. This would increase the plant’s production capacity by 0.2Mt/yr and is scheduled for completion by the end of 2022. A final project is also scheduled for the Chihuahua plant to improve operational efficiency, and enhance social and environmental responsibility.

In earnings conference call notes for the second quarter of 2021 the cement producer reported for the US: “Every kiln at GCC is up and running; for practical purposes, our system is sold out.” It also noted bottlenecks in its grinding, storage and shipping installed capacity.

Paraguay: Industria Nacional del Cemento (INC) says that it will not increase its cement prices despite the high cost of petcoke. The state-owned producer reports that both increasing international prices for the fuel and logistical challenges, such as varying river water levels, have raised overall prices. It added that stopping production would cause negative impacts to both the construction sector and the local economy.

UK: Cemex UK says that use of MP Connect contractor and haulier cards will be mandatory across its operations by the start of 2022. The Mexico-based Cemex subsidiary is presently rolling out the cards in its London and Southern ready-mix locations. It previously launched them at aggregates sites in its Central and Southern business areas. The system is now live at 39 sites and is used over 2000 times weekly, according to the company. It said that the initiative will help to streamline internal processes and enhance management of hauliers and contractors, legislative and site requirements are complied with.

Supply chain director Dave Hart said “Safety is Cemex’s number-one priority and we are always looking for ways to make our processes in this area more streamlined and effective. Implementation of the MP Connect system across our business will ensure that all drivers meet the standards set through checks of qualifications and competencies, while also providing them with more support and making their visits to different sites easier.” Cemex said that this will ‘enable the business to continually raise standards and lead the industry in safety and compliance.’

The MP Connect system was launched by the Mineral Products Qualifications Council (MPQC) in late 2020. It is intended to provide a single unified record of driver and operator working achievements that, when presented on a reader at site, can be viewed by logistics personnel. The information on the card then allows the logistics team to grant access, safe in the knowledge that the correct safety criteria applicable to the site, have been met by the person carrying the card.

Switzerland: Holcim has launched its Transport Analytics Center (TAC) software platform across its logistics fleets in 50 countries. The centre optimises route mapping, increasing deliveries’ predictability and safety, according to the company. This enables transport emissions tracking, including those of its third-party suppliers. Holcim says that the platform will cover 1.4bn kilometres of journeys by over 60,000 trucks annually. The producer hopes to use the software to reduce its Scope 3 emissions related to transportation and fuels by 20% in 2030 compared to the 2020 baseline of 29Mt of CO₂.

Chief information officer Jochen Werling said, “TAC is a great example of how we are becoming a data-driven organisation. With our extensive industry expertise and advanced technologies we are developing cutting-edge digital solutions that are tailored to our specific business needs. TAC is a breakthrough for us as well as for our broader industry.”

Mexico: Cemex has joined a partnership for the development of OpenBuilt, a digital platform aimed at connecting supply chains for the construction industry. The initiative is intended to increase the safety and sustainability of construction practices. Companies using the system will be able to securely connect their current technology and digital platforms to partners, suppliers or subcontractors in their supply chain via a single integration hub. The platform will be developed on the Red Hat OpenShift hybrid cloud platform and run on the IBM Cloud.

Chief executive officer Fernando Gonzalez said "OpenBuilt is a strategic initiative that will help integrate the construction value chain by increasing productivity, innovation, and collaboration." He added "We are constantly seeking to provide a superior experience to our customers through the innovative use of digital technologies."

Peru: Cementos Pacasmayo subsidiary Cementos Selva has begun shipping 2550t/yr of cement produced at its 0.4Mt/yr integrated Rioja, San Matrín plant to the city of Iquitos via the Huallaga, Marañon and Amazon rivers following refurbishment of its Port of Yurimaguas cement terminal. The company said, “The facilities provided by the Port of Yurimaguas with its modern infrastructure and equipment, together with a coordinated logistical operation with the Rioja plant, has made it possible to considerably reduce reception and shipment times, demonstrating that good practices in the jungle are possible,” according to the Diario Gestión newspaper.

UK: Mexico-based Cemex has published plans for the redundancy of its entire South Ferriby, Lincolnshire logistics team. A total of 26 jobs are at stake. The Lincolnshire Today newspaper has reported that “it is no longer financially viable for Cemex to continue to operate the fleet at South Ferriby” following the mothballing of its 0.8Mt/yr integrated South Ferriby cement plant, according to the company. Its Rugby, Warwickshire fleet, Tilbury, Essex fleet and Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire fleet will pick up the remaining footprint.

Cemex said, “We understand that this news will be a further disappointment to the local community following the previous announcements about mothballing the South Ferriby plant. Thank you for your on-going support – we remain proud to have been such a valued part of the community. We would like to reiterate that all commitments to the local community will be maintained, including the work agreed as part of the Environment Agency flood protection project.” The South Ferriby plant was devastated by a tidal surge and resulting flooding in December 2013.

China: The China Building Materials Federation and the China Silicate Society have named Hauxin Cement as the winner of the Science and Technology Award 2019 for its digitisation project. The project, entitled ‘Development and Innovation of a Cement Enterprise Operation Digital System,’ aims to modernise management at a pan-business level by using monitoring and analysis, intelligent logistics and a service centre system across 11 different software platforms. 39 Huaxin-affiliated companies currently use the product.

Japan: Mitsubishi Materials and Ube Industries have signed a letter of intent to start discussing a potential merger of their cement businesses and related concerns. If the discussions and a subsequent study are successful, the companies plan to sign a definitive agreement in late September 2020 ahead of an anticipated integration around April 2022. Any formal decision to merge the companies would be subject to approval from the Japan Fair Trade Commission.

The companies have decided to explore merging their cement operations following slowing demand and increased costs due to higher energy prices. They have worked together since 1998 in a joint venture called Ube-Mitsubishi Cement, which integrated their cement sales and logistics operations.