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Loma Negra
Our Company In Loma Negra's view, providing the best cement in the country is not enough. That is why its main objective is providing its clients with an excellent service. Because clients are Loma Negra's main concern. And its clients' success are the company's too. For these reasons, Loma Negra works on permanent innovation. As for a company to become a leading one, it needs to anticipate and adjust to changes, providing a unique service that exceeds all expectations. For clients to be outstandingly efficient in their works and competitive in their projects. And that is why our company has enterprised a series of unprecedented initiatives in our country in order to accomplish the mission of providing the construction market with the best product and service combination. In this way, Loma Negra has been leading the industry for over 70 years and remains one of the most prominent companies in Argentina. Our History Loma Negra, don Alfredo Fortabat's initial effort and Grupo Fortabat's most important company since then, started its operations in 1926 when its founder discovered the presence of limestone next to the estancia San Jacinto hills. This stone, essential raw material for the production of cement, led don Alfredo to startup two years later his first cement factory in the district of Olavarría, province of Buenos Aires. And it is in the village of Loma Negra that the factory is located and named after. With years, cement demand increased in line with sustained growth in Argentina. In the 1950s, Loma Negra extended its production capacity in its Olavarría plant by means of a new kiln, and opened a new plant in Barker (Province of Buenos Aires), reaching a level of production of almost half a million tons of cement per year. During the following decade, Loma Negra continued to expand, adding the San Juan factory first and the Zapala factory (Province of Neuquén) in the 70s. These efforts allowed Loma Negra to reach new markets, in Western and Southwestern Argentina, in turn acquiring new kilns for its factories, thanks to the incorporation of the world's first computerized equipment to control industrial processes.
Bakery Factory On January 10, 1976, Loma Negra's president and founder, don Alfredo Fortabat, passed away. His wife, Mrs. Amalia Lacroze de Fortabat, took over as the company's president and personally continued the company transformation by modernizing the factories' productive system. In the 80s, Loma Negra opened a model plant for Argentina and the world, the Catamarca factory, located in the district of El Alto in the Province of Catamarca. Mrs. Amalia Lacroze de Fortabat decided to incorporate the world's most advanced technology in order to produce Portland cement with the highest quality standards available. At the beginning of the 90s the company undertook the biggest transformations and achieved the most ambitious projects seeking to enter the new millenium in the best possible manner. Thus, in 1991, it purchased the Pipinas factory (Province of Buenos Aires) and in 1992 it purchased Cemento San Martín S.A., with its industrial plants in Sierras Bayas (Province of Buenos Aires) and a grinding plant in Paraná (Province of Entre Ríos). These acquisitions allowed Loma Negra to consolidate its position as absolute leader both in the sale of cement in Argentina and of masonry cement, through the production and marketing of Plasticor, leading product in the masonry cement market. To respond to this situation, other cement companies were forced to develop a similar product, but did not manage to prevent Plasticor from becoming the generic name for masonry cement. In 1992, Grupo Fortabat started to diversify its business to activities that supplemented cement production. In this sense, it led the consortium that was awarded the 30-year license for the Ferrocarril Roca cargo railway line. This helped it optimize the distribution network for its products in the province of Buenos Aires, connecting factories and warehouses to speed up the constant flow of materials and improve customer service. As a result of an environmental protection policy, Recycomb S.A. was created in 1995, to recycle contaminating industrial wastes to be subsequently used as fuel in cement kilns. Recycomb operates in a modern building in Cañuelas, Province of Buenos Aires. In December 1998, a marketing agreement was signed in Montevideo, Uruguay with the main cement company in that country, Administración Nacional de Combustibles, Alcohol y Portland (ANCAP). Cementos del Plata S.A. was created under this agreement for the purpose of exclusively marketing ANCAP cement both in Argentina and Uruguay. Likewise, a technical assistance contract was signed to provide ANCAP with advice in all operating areas in its cement plants, including recommending new investments. To consolidate the strategy of providing new products and services to its customers, in 1998 the group purchased Cemmex, Servicon, Decamix and Sermac, four concrete plants in the Province of Buenos Aires. Hormigonera del Litoral joined in later. Thus a concrete producing group controlled by Compañía de Servicios a la Construcción was created to market its production under the Lomax brand. Lomax was born with an unparalleled competitive advantage: a 50% share in the concrete market in its area. In March 1999, Ecocemento S.A. was opened in Ramallo, Province of Buenos Aires. This is the first plant in Argentina especially built to produce cement with blast furnace slag. In September 1999, Loma Negra Technical Center was opened. This is a unique center in Latin America aimed at providing world-class service to its customers. In May 2000, continuing its philosophy of offering more and better products and services, the group opened LomaSer, the first Logistic Supercenter in Argentina, an avant-garde undertaking that is an unprecedented milestone for the Argentine cement industry because of its infrastructure and service capacity. One of Loma Negra's main purposes is to continue to lead the cement industry in Argentina. The new millenium generates many expectations and implies a strong commitment with development for the company. With the approval of Mrs. Amalia Lacroze de Fortabat, the company has started to build the largest and most modern plant in Olavarría. Our Corporate Philosophy Our Mission Our mission is to offer the construction market the best product/service combination and exceed customers' expectations by creating value to our company and contributing to community development. Our Vision Our mission is to offer the construction market the best product/service combination and exceed customers' expectations by creating value to our company and contributing to community development. Corporate Values The company exists for its customers. We must respond to their needs by offering them excellent products and services. All of us are necessary to success: mutual help, teamwork, creativity and self-initiative are essential requirements to make it happen. We respect our principles and values. We therefore have an ethical and responsible attitude in our business, with the community and towards the environment. We are an Argentine firm committed to the communities where we do business, and we intend to cooperate with them. Our People Active human resource policy for all levels in the Organization. Over US$1,300,000 invested on personnel training on an annual basis. Over 90,000 man-hours of training on an annual basis, aimed at creating a fully service-oriented corporate culture. A marked concern for Occupational Health and Safety. Highly committed with the "zero-accident" goal. Over 13,000 man-hours of training on a annual basis to create a risk-elimination culture. A comprehensive on-the-job health plan for our personnel focused on health promotion, prevention and care.
Grupo Fortbat Mrs. Amalia Lacroze de Fortabat Contact Bouchard 680 - Planta 20 Services Offering the best cement in the country is not enough for Loma Negra. Its main objective is, therefore, to offer excellent quality services to its customers. Because customers are the reason why Loma Negra exists. And their success is Loma Negra's success. As a result, the Company is committed to ongoing innovation. Because a market leader is that which knows when to be ahead of and adapt to changes and provide unique quality service far beyond customers' expectations. So that our customers will achieve top efficiency and competitiveness in each of their projects. As a result, Loma Negra has undertaken a number of unprecedented initiatives in Argentina to comply with its mission: offering the best product/service combination to the construction market. Thus, and as for the past 70 years, Loma Negra is still at the lead of this industry and remains one of the top Argentine firms. Main Investments Our main investments since 1990 were:
L’ amali On December 1, 1998, a project was approved to build a cement plant in Olavarría, Province of Buenos Aires, known as "L'Amali".
The construction will be completed by the beginning of 2001. The plant will have an unprecedented production capacity and technology in South America. This investment is in the order of US$250 million and aims at guaranteeing a seamless production flow to the metropolitan, the Argentine pampas' and eastern region's markets. Engineering and equipment will be provided by the German company Krupp Polysius. Ferrosur Roca With the purpose of doing business that allows a synergy with its main focus (cement production) Loma Negra purchase the formerly government-run Roca railways in 1992. This is very important for the distribution of its products, since Ferrosur Roca joins the factories of Olavarría, Sierras Bayas, Barker and Zapala. Ferrosur has two new specialized means of transport: Frigotren, guaranteeing the continuity of the cold chain necessary to maintain food quality, and Trenes de Seguridad (Safety Trains), that meet all of the measures required by national, provincial and Civil Defense authorities for safe transport of liquid fuels. In addition, jointly with the Chilean railway FEPASA, Ferrosur Roca has started up the Corredor Bioceánico (two-ocean lane), joining Argentine harbors in the Atlantic with Chilean harbors in the Pacific. This water-ground transport system is an appropriate alternative as a multinational connection to dispatch goods. Since it became part of the group, Ferrosur Roca has turned into the main transport company in the area, and was given the Invertir Award in 1996 by Fundación Invertir Argentina. Hormigones Lomax As part of the strategy of providing new services to its customers, in 1998 Loma Negra acquired Cemmex, Servicon, Decamix and Sermac, four concrete factories that will allow it to consolidate its leadership in the concrete industry by marketing their production under the Lomax brand.
Subsequent to that, a new concrete plant, Hormigones del Litoral was purchased. It is the market leader in Rosario. Lomax has 11 dispatch centers, 14 fixed plants, 4 mobile plants, 140 trucks and 22 pumps. It produces approximately 80,000 cubic meters (105,000 cubic yards) of concrete per month and employs over 350 people. Lomax is closely linked to Ferrosur Roca, a railway company licensed to Grupo Fortabat. Ferrosur Roca transports cement from Olavarría and stone from Barker to Lomax. Recycomb As a result of a policy of respect for the environment, Recycomb was born in 1995. It is an environmental service company specifically engaging in waste fuel treatment. Its modern plant in Cañuelas (Buenos Aires) allows it to obtain a special product (Recyfuel) that replaces traditional fuels and is used by Loma Negra in its own kilns. Its operations have been recognized by Argentine environmental control agencies, and in 1996 it received the Environmental Suitability Certificate issued by the Environmental Policy Secretariat of the Province of Buenos Aires. Estancias Unidas Del Sud Founded in 1935, this company groups 13 rural establishments and bills 32 million dollars per year. It has an area of 155,000 hectares in the provinces of Buenos Aires, Entre Ríos, Córdoba and Río Negro. Its main activity is cattle raising, wintering and milking. With 160,000 head of cattle, it is one of the most important beef suppliers in the Argentine market. This activity is supplemented by milk production in model facilities in the Argentine industry. Given the high quality of its products (marketed with the "Delicias del Valle" brand) it has received important awards in Argentina's most renowned cattle fairs, and its production is exported to the most demanding markets. Fundacion Fortbat Since 1971, Fundación Amalia Lacroze de Fortabat, named after the chairwoman and main driver of the growth of the holding, has performed a very intense philanthropic action intended to contribute to the advancement of a large number of communities throughout Argentina. Its efforts cover a wide range of concerns: social assistance, health, education, research, science and technology, culture and sports. All these activities are extremely important for the full development of human beings. The foundation supports national institutions of all kinds to perform activities contributing to community progress and security. Most of its budget (averaging 6 million dollars per year at present and which has far exceeded 30 million in the past 7 years) is used to build and equip public hospitals and schools, emphasizing children care and wellbeing. The foundation's permanent actions have reflected on a number of concrete actions, such as building an Infantile Medical Center in Olavarría in 1994, supporting FUNCEI to take care of children infected with HIV since 1993, contributing with the "Together for Peace Foundation" that brought humanitarian help to Central American countries in 1992, permanently supporting Fundación Vida Silvestre in its task to protect the environment since 1992, entirely building and supporting children's homes in 1997, granting scholarships to Argentine professionals for them to have further training in various countries worldwide since 1992, stimulating writers, artists and sculptors by means of awards and contests since 1984, recent donations to the Kosovo war-stricken region, etc. |
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