March 31, 2008
CEMEX’s Barrington Plant Scoops Three Awards For Outstanding Health & Safety Record

Barrington cement plant with adjoining quarry in Cambridgeshire, which is owned by global building materials company, CEMEX, has scooped three Health and Safety Awards following the plant's record four years without a lost time injury.

At a special lunch hosted by CEMEX's UK President Gonzalo Galindo, awards were presented to the plant for being best in class among the company's 15 cement operations in Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia and Australia, and for being the Best in Sector and Overall National Winner in the UK. As part of the ceremony, Barrington was presented with a sword, which has been presented on an annual basis since 1966 in recognition of the best overall health and safety performance by a CEMEX UK business unit.

In the past eight years, Barrington has only had one lost time injury. This safety record has been achieved on the back of a campaign to change peoples' habits of a life-time and encourage them to stop and think before they carry out tasks.

During 2007, the plant identified four key areas of improvement, including site housekeeping, slips, trips and falls, manual handling and 'get a grip' campaign to encourage employees to maintain three points of contact on ladders and stairways.

By tackling these challenges head on by using an approach that combines innovation, visible leadership, training and worker involvement initiatives, Barrington plant has shown that significant results can be achieved.

All employees have contributed to improving safety, and company management provides visible leadership by discussing unsafe practices as part of regular work activity observation exercises.

CEMEX has more than 500 sites across the country, including a diverse mix of cement works, ready-mixed concrete plants, quarries and other manufacturing plants. At the forefront of heavy industry, it faces health and safety challenges every day.

Work-related injuries and ill health incidents are preventable and it should be the right of every employee to go home unharmed at the end of a working day, which is why CEMEX has set a target of achieving ZERO Injuries in the UK as quickly as possible. So, while the current records are good news, the people who work at Barrington plant and associated quarries are now focussed on reaching the next milestone of no lost time injuries for the remainder of 2008.

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

1. Photo caption:
Philip Baynes-Clarke Plant Director collected the award for best Cement Operation in the EMEA, A & AU region, whilst Tom Gemmell (pictured above with Gonzalo Galindo), Health and Safety Manager collected the prestigious Safety Sword. The UK Award for the Best in Sector and Overall national winner was collected by Dave Cooper an operator maintainer. Congratulations to everyone involved.

2. More information and additional photographs:
For photographs and further information contact Elizabeth Young, tel: 01932 583214 email: Elizabeth.young@ext.cemex.com.

2. CEMEX
CEMEX is a global building solutions company and leading supplier of cement, ready-mixed concrete and aggregates. In the UK, CEMEX also has a significant share of the asphalt, concrete block and mortar markets. The company has a national supply network in the UK with over 500 locations, to ensure that quality building materials is available to customers locally. For more information, see www.cemex.co.uk or www.cemex.com.