Cemex has completed a significant investment into its rail solutions facility at Somercotes in Derbyshire, England. This development was undertaken to meet increasing customer demand for its concrete bearers for switches and crossings.
As a result of this investment, Cemex will be able to manufacture an additional 18,000 linear metres of bearers for switches and crossings every year. This additional capacity is vital to meet the requirements of Cemex’s clients in the rail sector.
The improvements entailed the construction of a building which houses a new crane for moving products, and the existing stressing frames were repositioned into this facility; this allowed for space in the main building for a new 50m twin cell rail bearer mould. There is also space for further expansion when this is needed.
As well as rail bearers, the new development can produce the heavily engineered, low-volume complex sleepers required for key rail infrastructure projects. This will further allow Cemex better to facilitate its rail solutions’ complex, bespoke characteristics while meeting the highest standards in terms of safety and sustainability.
Cemex’s EMEA president Sergio Menendez officially opened the new Somercotes facility on his recent visit to the UK.
Damien Allen, director of Building Products, Precast & Modular, Cemex EMEA, commented: “The investment into our Somercotes site is crucial to ensure we can improve our service to our rail customers and continue to meet the increasing demand for highly innovative rail infrastructure solutions, which support the development of safe and sustainable rail mobility. We are now looking to expand the team to provide further support and are excited to see how we can grow this area of our business over the coming years.
“It was a pleasure to welcome our regional president, Sergio Menendez, to Somercotes and give him the opportunity to officially open the new facility and meet the team, who have all worked so hard on the development.”
Cemex’s Rail Solutions are an integral part of the business’s Urbanisation Solutions offering, which is constantly innovating to provide customers with a broad range of sustainable solutions for the challenges of urbanisation. Cemex works closely with its rail customers to tailor solutions to meet the most complex requirements, leveraging Cemex’s global R&D capabilities to help its customers lead the path in fostering safe and sustainable rail mobility.
