CEMEX make strategic rail investment at Selby

Company invests for growth at asphalt plant and depot with partners Bowker Group and Potter Space

CEMEX have made another strategic investment in their Selby asphalt plant and depot to enhance its overall operational efficiency in the supply of aggregates and asphalt across the Yorkshire region.

Together with Bowker, CEMEX’s logistics partner at Selby, and Potter Space, owners of the business park where the Selby site is located, more than £200,000 has been invested in new rail freight infrastructure and facilities, to ensure the ongoing reliability of the service from the site and allow the team to increase the number of trains that can run each week.

Considerable improvements have been made to the track spur from the main line into the Selby depot. As well as the installation of new loading bays, around 70% of the track has been completely replaced, including the use of concrete sleepers.

Additionally, Bowker have made significant investment in their stone-discharge facilities at Selby; upgrading safety features beyond legislative requirements, making significant improvements to equipment and enhancing critical components for increased reliability.

Neil Bowker, Bowker’s commercial director, said: ‘These features, including new guards and fencing, are focused on operator safety; and in general, the improvements will deliver reductions in downtime during critical discharge periods. The significant investment demonstrates the commitment Bowker have made to the CEMEX partnership.’

As a result of the developments, the team at Selby have been able to increase the number of services run from the depot to three a week. This means an extra 90,000 tonnes of material will be moved by train, taking trucks off the road and maximizing the use of rail as a sustainable mode of transport.

Dave Hart, CEMEX’s supply chain director for the UK and France, commented: ‘We continue to invest heavily in 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.

‘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, added: ‘We have 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 recognize 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 their long-term business plans.’

These latest improvements come as part of a wider investment into Selby, with a further £500,000 planned for three new bitumen tanks and an asphalt reprocessing system, to achieve further operating efficiencies and minimize waste, whilst improving safety and customer service.