Displaying items by tag: Safety

US: Ash Grove Cement, part of CRH, has deployed Boston Dynamics’ autonomous robot ‘Spot’ at its cement plant in Washington in a year-long pilot to boost efficiency and safety. Operating more than 80 hours a week, the four-legged robot conducts routine inspections using a 4K camera and laser scanning, detecting anomalies and alerting teams before failures occur.

The company said that the robot can measure refractory bricks inside cement kilns, reducing risks by keeping employees out of hazardous environments. During the trial, Spot detected a failing bearing in rotating equipment, preventing unplanned downtime. Ash Grove said that the technology improves site safety, frees skilled teams for complex work and enables real-time monitoring in the hot and dusty conditions at the plant.

Plant manager Andy White said “Our aim for Spot is that, at the moment, we don’t have preventative or proactive maintenance routines on night shifts and the weekends. And, also, our labour force has to spend a lot of time recording data rather than analysing it… Spot can do this for us. When we come in the mornings, we already have reported generated, so we can proactively fix those issues thather than spending eight hours trying to find them.”

Philippines: Governor Gwen Garcia has called for an investigation into all cement plants in Cebu over environmental and safety risks from large-scale quarrying operations, according to Sugbo News.

The governor called attention to mineral production sharing agreements (MPSAs) granted to companies like Apo Land and Quarry Corporation (ALQC), which cover over 3300 hectares, including populated areas. ALQC supplied materials to Cemex Philippines. Garcia also requested a review of other cement plants, including Solid Earth (owned by Taiheiyo Cement), Mabuhay Filcement and Republic Cement, advocating for stricter oversight.

Portugal: Cimpor has published new standard procedures for the prevention of intoxicants use at its sites. Cimpor will conduct toxological screening of employees and third-party contractors to ensure a blood alcohol level of 0.0, as well as testing for narcotics and other psychotropic substances. The new protocol aims to protect the safety of everyone at Cimpor sites and host communities. The company says that it will support the screening regimen by implementing additional education and training.

Australia: Boral's Berrima cement plant team has successfully concluded its annual kiln shutdown and maintenance period. The producer invested US$13.1m and 100,000 working hours over a period of three weeks. The project required coordination with 50 different contracting companies to undertake mechanical repairs and replace the kiln refractory, which is crucial for protecting the kiln shell from heat damage and ensuring operational safety. Employing Cement 4.0 technology and advanced diagnostic tools, the team efficiently identified the necessary repairs. About 300 employees and contractors were engaged in the specialist tasks, facilitating a rapid resumption of kiln operations.

Ghana: The Ghana Standards Authority has enacted new quality standards for cement products. BNN Breaking News Ghana has reported that the new standards are intended to uphold safety for users of concrete buildings. This will reportedly be accompanied by increased enforcement against substandard products, including the roll-out of a new licensing system.

US: The Portland Cement Association (PCA) has voiced its concerns over the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)'s newly finalised standard for particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5). The new standard reduces the level of particulate matter below 2.5μm diameter permitted in flue gas emissions to 9μg/m³ from 12μg/m³. The PCA says that it is concerned that the new rule may restrict US cement producers’ operations and ‘further complicate’ their efforts to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.

President and CEO Mike Ireland said “This new rule strikes at the heart of the US cement industry's ability to deliver on the Biden Administration's infrastructure goals, as it would lead to fewer hours of operation at plants, which would mean layoffs, as well as less American cement and concrete at a time when the country needs more.” He added “The previous EPA standard on particulate matter emissions — arrived at by government officials working with industry — significantly drove down those emissions by 37% over the last 20 years. This downward trend would have continued without the new standard imposed."

However, EPA administrator Michael Stanley Regan said that the updated standard will prevent 4500 premature deaths and 290,000 lost workdays annually by 2032. Regan said “We do not have to sacrifice people to have a prosperous and booming economy.”

France/Middle East: The Court of Cassation, France’s highest court, has upheld Lafarge’s indictment on charges of complicity in crimes against humanity, Reuters has reported. A lower court previously concluded that the company had paid US$15.5m to armed groups in the Middle East, including ISIS, via its subsidiary Lafarge Cement Syria. In its latest ruling, the Court of Cassation quashed another charge of endangering the lives of employees, on grounds that Lafarge’s foreign labour relations are not subject to French law. The group had reportedly not appealed a further charge of financing a terrorist enterprise.

Read the latest on Lafarge’s on-going trials in this week’s Global Cement analysis.

Australia: Western Australia’s environment minister Reece Whitby has questioned the efficacy of tests submitted by Cockburn Cement in relation to its Munster lime plant in May 2023. The tests showed successes in odour reduction during sand feeding at the plant’s Kiln 6. Business News Western Australia has reported that the government and an independent expert have raised ‘areas of concern’ as to whether the trial represents normal operating conditions for the kiln.

David Scaife, who represents Cockburn District in the Western Australia Legislative Assembly, said "My gripe is not with the workers, it is with the senior management and the directors of Cockburn Cement and its owner, Adbri, who have refused to do the right thing either by moving the lime manufacturing operations to its Kwinana facility or at least making the investments necessary to eliminate the odour."

Thailand: China-based intelligent dumptruck supplier Waytous has partnered with Siam Cement Group (SCG), as well as Thailand Advanced Info Service, Huawei, and Zhengzhou Yutong Mining Equipment, to develop full-scope automated operating systems for limestone mines. SCG will host a study at its Saraburi limestone mine in Central Thailand. The study will use Waytous’ driverless vehicles, supported by 5G, AI, cloud computing and new battery technologies.

Waytous CEO Chen Long "We've carried out two phases of unmanned mining research for this project and found the most comprehensive, efficient, and effective unmanned solution for cement mines in Saraburi.”

UK: Holcim subsidiary Aggregate Industries has installed Driver Status Monitoring Systems supplied by Spillard Vehicle Safety Systems in the cabins of its Cauldon cement plant truck fleet. The systems use cameras and AI software to detect signs of tiredness, as well as mobile phone use, lane deviation, not wearing a seatbelt and smoking. In the case of tiredness, this triggers an alarm which continues to sound until the vehicle comes to a stop.

Cement supply chain manager Matt Owen said “Health and safety is a massive priority for us as a company and the industry, so anything that can serve to continuously improve our approach to it is very welcome. Driver fatigue is always a potential issue across any business involved in transport and fleet, so we’re delighted to be utilising the latest technology with our partners to ensure that everyone gets safely home from work.”