Hanson Cement was a

cement A cement is a binder, a chemical substance used for construction that sets, hardens, and adheres to other materials to bind them together. Cement is seldom used on its own, but rather to bind sand and gravel ( aggregate) together. Cement mi ...

production company located in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. It was called Castle Cement until it was rebranded in 2009. The company is now owned by

HeidelbergCement Heidelberg Materials is a German multinational building materials company headquartered in Heidelberg, Germany. Formerly known as HeidelbergCement AG, the company has rebranded as Heidelberg Materials in September 2022. It is a DAX corporation ...

, with the UK business managed by

Heidelberg Materials UK Heidelberg Materials UK is a Great Britain, British-based building materials company, headquartered in Maidenhead. Previously known as Hanson UK, the company has been a subsidiary of the Germany, German company HeidelbergCement since August 200 ...

. Hanson Cement has a long history dating back to the early 19th century, when it was founded as the Portland Cement Company.

History

The company was formed in 1981 through an amalgamation of three firms: * Tunnel Portland Cement Company Ltd (founded 1874) with plants at

West Thurrock West Thurrock is an area, former civil parish and traditional Church of England parish in Thurrock, Essex, England, located 18 miles (28.1 km) east south-east of Charing Cross, London. History West Thurrock was an ancient parish. In 1894 ...

, Essex (1874),

Pitstone Pitstone (formerly Pightelsthorn, with possible variation Pychelesthorn in 1399) is a village and civil parish in east Buckinghamshire, England. It is at the foot of the central range of the Chiltern Hills, centred east of Aylesbury and south o ...

, Buckinghamshire (1937) and Padeswood, Flintshire (1949). * Ketton Portland Cement Company Ltd (founded 1929) with a plant at

Ketton Ketton is a village and civil parish in Rutland in the East Midlands of England. It is about east of Oakham and west of Stamford, Lincolnshire. The 2011 Census recorded a parish population of 1,926, making it the fourth largest settlement in ...

, Rutland. * Ribblesdale Cement Ltd (founded 1937) with a plant at

Clitheroe Clitheroe () is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Ribble Valley, Borough of Ribble Valley, Lancashire, England; it is located north-west of Manchester. It is near the Forest of Bowland and is often used as a base for to ...

, Lancashire. In 2005, the company's depot in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

was sold and subsequently redeveloped as Curzon Gate. The company was acquired by

in May 2007.

Environmental concerns

The company (reported as ''Castle Cement Ltd'') admitted to numerous environmental offences over the years leading up to 2009, during a case in which it was fined £250,000 by the

Environment Agency Wales Environment Agency Wales () was a Welsh Government sponsored body that was part of the Environment Agency of England and Wales from 1996 to 2013. Its principal aims were to protect and improve the environment in Wales and to promote sustainabl ...

(EAW) in February 2010.Flintshire cement factory's £250,000 safety fine
BBC News, 18 February 2010

Operations

The head office was in Castle Hill at

Maidenhead Maidenhead is a market town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the county of Berkshire, England. It lies on the southwestern bank of the River Thames, which at this point forms the border with Buckinghamshire. In the 2021 Census, ...

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; abbreviated ), officially the Royal County of Berkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London ...

, and the works are located in

Rutland Rutland is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Leicestershire to the north and west, Lincolnshire to the north-east, and Northamptonshire to the south-west. Oakham is the largest town and county town. Rutland has a ...

, Buckley in

Flintshire Flintshire () is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, the Dee Estuary to the north-east, the English county of Cheshire to the east, Wrexham County Borough to the south, and Denbighshire to the west. ...

and

Avonmouth Avonmouth ( ) is a port and outer suburb of Bristol, England, on the north bank of the mouth of the River Avon and the eastern shore of the Severn Estuary. Part of the Port of Bristol, Avonmouth Docks is important to the region's maritime eco ...

near

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

. The company had a marine terminal at Avonmouth that is used for the importation of cement in bulk, with samples from there tested at the Ketton site's laboratory each week to ensure they meet

British Standards British Standards (BS) are the standards produced by the BSI Group which is incorporated under a royal charter and which is formally designated as the national standards body (NSB) for the UK. The BSI Group produces British Standards under th ...

. Cement was also imported through the Humber ports.

References

External links

Former Castle Cement website
Building materials companies of the United Kingdom Cement companies of the United Kingdom Companies based in Maidenhead Manufacturing companies established in 1929 1929 establishments in England