Cement News tagged under: Cost-cutting

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HeidelbergCement advances in Asia and Africa, but does less well in Europe

07 February 2013, Published under Cement News

The preliminary figures from HeidelbergCement show an 8.7 per cent advance in turnover last year to €14,020m, or by 4.2 per cent on a comparative basis. EBITDA improved by a more modest 6.7 per cent to €2477m and the trading profit advanced by 9.5 per cent to €1613m, or by 5.6 per cent adjusting for currency movements and changes in the scope of consolidation. The number of employees declined by 1.1 per cent to 51,966, as a reduction of around people 1200 in North America and Europe was par...

Holcim France to close Dannes kiln

01 February 2013, Published under Cement News

As western Europe is faced with overcapacity in cement capacity, Holcim France has announced the closure of its wet-process kiln at Dannes. Citing a 20 per cent decline in the demand for cement since 2008, the management of the cement major said it would close down its clinker production in September 2013. The step would remove 0.3Mta of capacity and is expected to be followed by a further cut in capacity of 0.35Mt at some stage. Only 15 of 84 employees will remain onsite to produce a...

Boral lifts 1HFY13 net profit guidance, Australia

23 January 2013, Published under Cement News

Boral Ltd today announced that following stronger-than-expected performance in the December 2012 quarter, it expects net profit after tax (before significant items) for the first half of FY13 to be approximately AUD52m, subject to finalisation of the audit review. At its 2012 Annual General Meeting on 1 November, the company had said that it expected Boral’s first half FY13 net profit after tax (before significant items) to be comparable with that achieved in the second half of FY2012, whic...

Boral announces further job cuts in new restructuring plan

17 January 2013, Published under Cement News

Building materials major Boral has announced a further round of job cuts, predominantly across its Australian operations, following a 100-day review of the company by its chief executive Mike Kane . The company is to cut 700 functional, operational support and managerial positions jobs in Australia. Of those 700, some 200 have already occurred in late 2012, with the majority of redundancies expected to be completed by March 2013.  New South Wales is to bear the brunt of the cuts, accou...

Holcim reduces stake in Siam City Cement, sells minority shareholding in Cementos Progreso

21 December 2012, Published under Cement News

Holcim has announced that it has reduced its stake in Siam City Cement Ltd (SCCC) of Thailand and has sold its minority shareholding in Guatemalan producer Cementos Progreso, contributing CHF375m (EUR310.6m) to the Holcim Leadership Journey programme. SCCC stake reduced Holcim Ltd has reduced its shareholding in SCCC from 36.8 per cent to 27.5 per cent. The shares have been purchased by Bangkok Broadcasting and Television Co, part of the Ratanarak Group, which will increase its shareho...

Holcim Belgique to close Haccourt facility

19 December 2012, Published under Cement News

Holcim Belgique announced it will close its Haccourt cement grinding plant, near Liège, Belgium. The unit currently employs 43 people. This project is part of a reorganisation of Holcim’s European industrial base announced earlier this week. The group said in a statement that the shutdown was due to a “deterioration of market conditions and grinding overcapacity at Holcim Belgique.” "Holcim Belgique, whose clientele goes beyond the borders of Belgium, is facing increased competition in...

Sociedad de Cementos y Materiales looks to cut 35 jobs

19 December 2012, Published under Cement News

Spanish cement and building materials producer Sociedad de Cementos y Materiales de Construccion de Andalucia, is reportedly planning to lay-off 35 members of staff. The company, which is controlled by Portuguese cement major Cimpor, is currently negotiating with its employees and trade unions, according to reports by Expansión. The downsizing measure will affect 25 employees at its Cordoba works and 10 employees at the factory in Niebla. The firm currently employees a total 142 people....

Italcementi announces restructuring plan, Italy

13 December 2012, Published under Cement News

Italy’s leading cement producer Italcementi has approved a 2013-14 reorganisation of its domestic operations to cut annual costs by EUR40m (US$52.2m). The plan, named “Project 2015” forsees a temporary redundancy scheme for up to 665 employees. At present the company employs 2500 staff of whom two-thirds are involved in its productions sites and the rest work at the company's headquarters in Bergamo.

Siam City Cement to boost production, Thailand

11 December 2012, Published under Cement News

Thailand’s Siam City Cement (SCCC) has said it will resume operations of two clinker lines from next year on the back of increased local demand. The company is also looking to construct its first cement plant outside of Thailand. Two of SCCC's six kiln lines have been shut down since the economic crisis in 2008. With local consumption now showing sound levels of recovery, Mr Arto said one kiln will reopen next October, which will add 10 per cent (1.4Mta) of capacity. The other kiln is due...

Union meets workers over Boral job cuts, Austraila

11 December 2012, Published under Cement News

The Australian Workers Union (AWU) is meeting today with workers who are expected to lose their jobs at Boral's Waurn Ponds cement plant in Victoria, Australia, according to reports by ABC News. Around 90 jobs are likely to be axed, after a restructure of the company's operations. Union spokesman Cesar Melhem says the workers are devastated, adding that the decision will have a flow-on affect to other trades, including subcontractors, in the area. Last week Boral announced that it would ha...