hiolcim uk and hs2 partnership nears one million metres cubed of readymix concrete across key sites

Holcim UK has continued its partnership with High Speed 2 (HS2) with the successful supply of nearly a million cubic metres (m³) of low-carbon ready-mix (RMX) for key sites across the project.

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Sunrise over Old Oak Common HS2 Station in London during its construction

The leading building materials supplier recently delivered 103,000m³ of low-carbon RMX for the construction of prefabricated tunnel sections in Birmingham, bringing the total supply of RMX to date to approximately 900,000 m³.

One of Europe’s largest infrastructure projects, HS2 represents the future of rail travel in the UK, and is set to provide high speed connectivity between London and Birmingham when it becomes operational in the 2030s. The project is a huge undertaking, but one that has already created thousands of new jobs, and will continue to boost the UK business and the economy for decades to come.

Work continues on Holcim’s largest contribution to HS2 in west Birmingham, where it has delivered more than 500,000m³ of RMX concrete to date. The ongoing supply of RMX concrete here and to other northern sections of the project is supported by Holcim’s three nearby concrete plants. Thanks to the proximity of these plants to the N2 segment of HS2, Holcim has brought the average distance that its RMX solutions travel to site to within two miles, thereby significantly reducing the carbon footprint of the logistics process.

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Holcim's Old Oak Conmmon Readymix team

Furthermore, Holcim has already supplied roughly 300,000 m³ of RMX concrete to the Old Oak Common railway station in West London, a new transport superhub specially built as part of HS2.  An additional 30,000 m³ of RMX concrete is due to be installed at Old Oak Common between now and 2030. 

Since it started work on HS2 in 2021, Holcim UK has also supplied over two million tonnes of bulk fill aggregates to the South(S)1 and 2 and North (N)1 and 2 segments of the project. In addition to this, Holcim has directly supplied cement for tunnel grouting to the project’s Central (C)1, as well as its N1 and
N2, segments.

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Inside a factory building containing pre-cast concrete tunnel segments for HS2

Andrew Hockey, HS2 Operations Director at Holcim UK, said: "We are delighted to have hit this significant milestone in our partnership with HS2.

"Forging vital partnerships like this will be key to unlocking the potential we have to make sustainable construction a reality across the UK, and collaborations of this significance are truly what will drive the construction industry’s success – the nation’s most visible sign of progress."

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