Global building materials solutions supplier CEMEX has made another strategic investment for growth into its Selby Asphalt Plant and Depot to enhance its overall operation efficiency. The Selby site supplies high quality aggregates and asphalt across the Yorkshire region.
Together with Bowker, its logistics partner at Selby, and Potter Space (owners of the business park where Selby is located), more than £200,000 has been invested into new rail freight infrastructure and facilities, ensuring the ongoing reliability of the service from this site and enabling the team to increase the number of trains that can run a week.
Considerable improvements have been made to the track that travels off the main line and into the Selby depot. Following the investment, around 70 per cent of the track has been completely replaced, with other upgrades such as concrete sleepers made to improve the condition of the track further, and the installation of new loading bays.
Additionally, Bowker have made significant investment in its stone discharge facilities at Selby; upgrading safety features to go beyond legislative requirements as well as making significant improvements to equipment and enhancing critical components increasing reliability.
“The features, including new guards and fencing, are focussed on operator safety; and in general, the improvements will deliver reductions in down time during critical discharge periods. The significant investment demonstrates the commitment Bowker have made to the CEMEX partnership,” said Neil Bowker, Bowker’s Commercial Director.
As a result of the developments made at the Selby site, the team have been able to increase the number of services run from this depot to three a week. This means an extra 90,000 tonnes of material can be moved by train, taking trucks off the road and maximising the use of rail as a sustainable mode of transport. All this helps support CEMEX’s climate objectives and minimises its impact on the environment.
“We continue to invest heavily into our rail operations across the country, as this allows us to grow volumes and increase the services we offer. The works at Selby were the latest part of our development programme and it was fantastic to partner with Bowker and Potter Space on the many improvements that have been made – improvements that will enable us to better and more safely support our customers,” commented Dave Hart, CEMEX’s Supply Chain Director for UK and France.
“Enhancing the sustainability of our business is a key priority and the use of rail forms an important part of this – as every rail freight service removes trucks from the road and achieves additional carbon savings. These investments help us to support CEMEX’s climate initiatives and be a more responsible company.”
Jason Rockett, managing director of Potter Space, also added: “Potter Space has a proven track record of working together with customers, so we were pleased to work in partnership with both CEMEX and Bowker at our Potter Space Selby business park. All three parties recognise the value and benefit of rail transportation, so we were delighted to jointly invest in the new rail infrastructure to help meet the needs of CEMEX and support its long-term business plans.”
These improvements come as part of a wider investment into Selby, with £0.5million planned for three new bitumen tanks and a reprocessed asphalt system. These will help to achieve further operating efficiencies and minimise waste while improving safety and customer service.
