News From Breedon Aggregates Autumn 2014

CELEBRITYSUPPLIERThe Cotswolds is said to be home to

more stars per acre than anywhere

outside the capital and Ashley

Bevington, a driver at our recently-

acquired Huntsmans Quarry in the heart

of the region, has delivered stone

products to a good many of them.

“I supplied the walling stone at GatcombePark, the home of Princess Anne,” saidAshley. “The Queen’s granddaughter,Zara Phillips, said ‘good morning driver’ andwe had a chat. I’ve delivered to PrinceCharles’s Highgrove House. There you onlyget to see the head gardener.

“Most of the time the customer’s nameisn’t on the order form. I delivered stonechippings for a driveway at LowerSlaughter and there was an Aston Martin inthe way. I knocked on the door and it wasGuy Berryman, the bass guitarist of thegroup Coldplay.

“I’ve been to Kate Winslet’s place – Ihad to ask her to move her Range Rover –and to Eric Clapton’s 3,000 acre farm.Steve Winwood, the musician with theSpencer Davis Group and Traffic, and SueBarker, the former tennis player and nowpresenter of A Question of Sport, havealso been on my routes.

“I once went to the home of the scientistwho cloned Dolly the sheep. He asked meto back onto a paddock, at which point agardener came rushing out saying I had tomove. Why? Because he said that underthe paddock was a swimming pool andgym. He didn’t think my 30-tonne truckwould look good down there. The scientisthadn’t considered that.”

For a profile of Huntsmans Quarry, whichwas acquired by Breedon in June this year,see page 9.

Flying highWhen these Tornado aircraft, flying overScotland, return to their RAF Marham basenear King’s Lynn, Norfolk, they have an ultrasmooth runway to land on. For the full storyof Anglia Contracting’s superb surfacingwork turn to page 3 “Smooth operators arementioned in despatches”.

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Follow the Parrot!Safety campaign

special issue

Breedon has made an important strategic investment which expands our operations into

mid-Wales for the first time and also gives us access to a new source of high PSV stone.

We have purchased a 50% interest inH V Bowen & Sons, which owns andoperates the Tan-y-Foel quarry nearWelshpool. The quarry, which has been inthe Bowen family for more than 70 years,has around 3.4 million tonnes of high (+68)PSV reserves and also has a readymix planton site.

Sources of high PSV aggregates are veryscarce and Tan-y-Foel has some of thehighest quality reserves in the country.This type of stone has a high skidresistance and is therefore in great demandfor surfacing roads with heavy traffic flows.

Commenting on the investment Tim Hall,Breedon England’s Chief Executive, said:“We’re pleased to have secured access tosome of the highest quality PSV stone in thecountry, which will provide a ready supply ofthis key aggregate to our asphalt plants. Wealready own a sand and gravel quarry nearMold in North Wales and this joint ventureexpands our operations into mid-Wales forthe first time, opening up an important newmarket for our aggregates and readymix.”

The business will continue to trade asH V Bowen and will be jointly managed bythe Bowen family and our England team.

Photo courtesy of BCL Hydro/Quarryplan

Mid-Wales venture secures access to scarce resources

When the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) visited Clatchard Quarry, as part of

its regular site visit programme, there was praise for the work Breedon is doing

to combat the effects of Respirable Crystalline Silica (RCS).

Crystalline silica is a basic component of soil, sand, granite, and many other minerals. Duringquarrying operations, the particles can be small enough to form a dust and be inhaled and thatcan lead to health problems.

Breedon Scotland has introduced a comprehensive folder system to manage the documentsthat help control exposure to RCS.

It includes Breedon’s Silica Dust Procedure, risk assessment information, Control OfSubstances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) assessments, HSE guides and information sheets,results of monitoring surveys, training records and Respiratory Protective Equipment (RPE) facefit testing certificates.

Each site manager tailors the folder contents to ensure that it contains the informationrelevant to that site so that RCS is being properly managed.

The HSE visit was not all good news. It highlighted some issues regarding uncontrolled use ofladders, some guards not secured with bolts missing, a need to close off stockpile areas whenloading from them to prevent mobile plant gaining access to recharge the stockpile, and anexcavator with defective mirrors causing a lack of all-round operator vision. All these issues havebeen actioned.

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BREEDON CONTINUESRACE CIRCUITCONNECTION

A bike in action at Donington Race Circuit. Photograph by Patrick Mayon.

Following on from the work to construct theFormula E headquarters at Donington Park,Central Contracting have been back at theLeicestershire race circuit.

For two weeks in March and April, CentralContracting upgraded the estate roads outsideof the track itself and also carried out a repair onthe track to take out a bump on a bridge usedfor motor bike racing.

The Breedon team also created a massivestone area inside the track to providepedestrian access and hard standing to beused during the Download Festival, an annualmusic event staged at the venue.

“A lot of investment is going in to DoningtonPark and Breedon is right there helping to make ithappen,” said Tim Hall, Chief Executive - England.

Site visit highlights the goodand room for improvement

FACES of Breedon

When and how did you become

interested in palaeontology?

Since I was very young, when my auntgave me a toy dinosaur as a present.

What is it about palaeontology that you

find interesting?

It’s the mystery of working out how allthese extinct animals and plants lived anddied. Each fossil gives another clue abouthow ancient ecosystems worked.

Where do you find fossils?

You can find fossils all over the country,even in the unlikliest of places. If you lookclosely you can see some fossil snail shellsin the steps outside Breedon head office!

Do you have a collection of fossils?

I’ve collected hundreds of fossils. Myfavourite is a 170 million year old giantnautilus from Rutland encrusted withoysters and seashells. It’s so wellpreserved you can work out exactly whathappened to it after it died.

What do you most like about your job

as Transport Administrator?

Producing The Pit Stop. Researching andwriting the articles is very interesting andit’s great to see how positively people haveresponded to it.

If you weren’t a Transport Administrator

for Breedon, what would be your ideal job?

I would love to work somewhere like theNatural History Museum in London,teaching people about the fossils andspecimens on display.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

I’m an active member of the PortalWargaming Centre in Burton Upon Trent. Ialso enjoy writing, painting miniatures andmaking costumes – I’ve got a creative streak!

What’s your favourite sport?

Archery. I’ve recently joined a club after taking abreak for a while. I’m a pretty good shot!

If you had to wear a T-shirt with three

words that describe you, what would

they be?

Ask Me Things! I’m a sciencecommunicator at heart and love sharinginformation and knowledge.

Lynsey Swift is Transport Administrator

based at head office in Breedon on the

Hill. She produces The Pit Stopnewsletter. She is also possibly the only

palaeontologist in the company.

The outcome of the Scottish independence vote was due to be

announced just as From the Rock Face was going to press..

Whatever the result, we don't expect any major impact on Breedon Aggregates. It will bebusiness as usual with Breedon England and Breedon Scotland operating exactly as before.

IS IT YES OR IS IT NO?

When you're landing a fighter jet aircraft at

160mph the thing you want beneath you is a

smooth runway. Now RAF Marham has just

that after a £450,000 surfacing contract

carried out by Breedon’s Anglia Contracting

Foreman Dave Reeve and his team.

The airbase, near King’s Lynn, Norfolk, is hometo the RAF’s frontline squadrons of Tornadoattack and reconnaissance aircraft. Thesquadrons were relocated to Germany whilethe work was done but a condition of thecontract was that the runways had to beoperational at 24 hours’ notice.

The specification for the work was far inexcess of even the most stringent road or carpark resurfacing work. Fifty-two cores weretaken to ensure compliance with depth ofsurface tolerance of just three millimetres. Fivehundred and forty straight edge tests werecarried out to ensure joints deviated by no morethan three millimetres over a three metre length.

With material supplied by Longwater AsphaltPlant, 45,000 square metres of surface werelaid with a total joint length of more than 10kilometres.

Dave Lewis, Contracting Director, said: “Thisis probably the best surfacing job I have seen in25 years of surfacing all over the world, Praise

should go to everyone involved, inparticular to Dave Reeve, Tom Taylor, MarkNeal and to Kevin Rickaby, who drove thepaver throughout the job and achieved thestraightest joints imaginable – less than 20millimetres of deviation throughout theentire 10 kilometre length.”

Staff at the RAF and at main contractorRed Rose Pavements Limited were full ofpraise for the work done.

A hired materials transfer unit feeds asphalt into the paver during the surfacing work at RAF Marham.

Audits of contracting teams’ work

are underway to help improve the

service given. The audits are being

carried out by independent

assessors who are highly

knowledgeable about the business.

“It’s easy for people too close toBreedon, say as part of Visible FeltLeadership visits, to go on site and seethe job being done but be blind tosome of the aspects of the work beingcarried out,” said Kevin Carmichael,Contracting Director – Scotland. “It isvery useful to have fresh eyes lookingat what we do.”

In Scotland, the audits are beingcarried out by Willie Oswald, whoretired from his job as Special ProjectsManager at Ethiebeaton 18 monthsago, and by Doug Millar, formerlymaterials and quality assurance advisorat Transport Scotland.

Kevin Carmichael said: “Some of thekey issues apparent from the initialaudits carried out were: First Aiderswere not clearly identified by greenhelmets; a number of gas bottles werebeing carried about by some squadseven though they were not required;and some site documentation wasbeing used as “tick boxes” rather thanan aid to carrying out inspections.

“In general the use of PPE wasfound to be very good andworkmanship was also praised asbeing high in quality.”

As these audits are new to Breedon,the criteria used are still beingdeveloped and England will follow suitwith its Good Contracting Audits afterthe roll out of the amended audits inScotland has been completed and theirsuitability gauged.

Smooth operators are mentioned in despatches

Contractingwork comesunder scrutiny

The work was led by Project ManagerGraham Smith and involved most of SouthEast Contracting’s operatives. It also included‘guests’ from other Breedon Scotlandcontracting regions.

The contract featured planing to reveal theexisting concrete base. A Crack and Seatprocess was used on the exposed base. Thisprocess involves cracking the concrete andreseating it so that thermalexpansion/contraction won’t be reflected indamage to the asphalt above. An EME2 high-strength, long-life asphalt binder course wasused with Transport Scotland’s TS2010 surfacecourse, which gives both durability and skidresistance.

In accordance with the latest best practice,Breedon’s pavers operated in echelon, withpavers working side-by-side, to avoid coldjoints between areas of asphalt.

“On this site we needed to do a lot ofplanning and careful management of deliverywagons to mitigate risks to operatives duringunavoidable lengthy reversing to the pavers,”said Mark Rapley, Area Contracting Manager.

“With the quality of our people working onthe job and with superb service from oursuppliers and sub-contractors, which includedBEAR Scotland and Alba Traffic Management,we completed the works five days early, withThe Courier then printing a glowing account ofour efforts.”

A9 Roadwork Misery Ahead – so read the headline in the Dundee Courier, predicting chaos during

the carriageway upgrade on the trunk road near Auchterarder in Perthshire. But the newspaper

hadn’t counted on the people doing the work and when Breedon Scotland’s South East Contracting

team won the £1.1 million contract, the newspaper headline gave added motivation to prove the

doom-mongers wrong.

Press U-turn for job well done

The new concrete plant at Cannock.

NEW MOVESDave Lewis has beenappointed ContractingDirector for BreedonEngland. Dave retainsresponsibility for ourLongwater and Shrophamoperations.

Tom Griffiths has takenresponsibility for Lincolnshireconcrete. Tom has alsoassumed responsibility forcontracting operations inLincolnshire.

Michael Hardwick hasmoved from the TechnicalDepartment to KettlebyQuarry as a Trainee PlantOperator.

“The school used to visit several years ago but it was noted at a CommunityCouncil meeting that there hadn’t been visits for a while,” said Bruce Young,Operations Manager, Powmyre/Edzell.

Before the visit, Breedon Scotland's Senior Health & Safety ManagerScott McDonald and Health and Safety Administrator Julienne Murray wentalong to both primary schools to give a talk, with a slideshow and video, allabout quarry safety.

“We wanted to explain the dangers that there can be at a quarry andshow why we don’t want people coming on site unsupervised,” said Bruce.

At the quarry entrance, the children planted bee-friendly wildflowerseeds, ably assisted by Breedon Scotland Chief Executive Alan Mackenzie.Within the quarry itself, the children were shown where sand martins werenesting before seeing how the quarry operates and grades gravel intodifferent sized products.

The children were weighed on the weighbridge as part of a guess-the-weight competition. The winning child received a family day pass to theDundee Science Centre.

“The visit was highly successful,” said Bruce. “The teachers wereparticularly impressed by the safety talk we had given.”

West Deeping fills a gap in Lincolnshire

Breedon Scotland Chief Executive Alan Mackenzie helps primary school pupils plant wildflower seeds at Powmyre Quarry.

Innovation leads the way on oil use

Reprocessed oil comes from vehicles after treatment, including the removal of metal filings and cadmium. It’sabout 16p per litre cheaper than red diesel gas oil and it is more environmentally friendly to reuse oil. Theissue is that it can’t be burnt from cold.

The coating plant is started and stopped often during the day. With this, and at night, the oil in a section ofpipe of about five metres length cools down. That’s why before the plant is shut down for the night, the fuel isswitched back to gas oil ready for firing up the next morning. All that takes about 60 litres of fuel at the 16pextra for gas oil.

At Leinthall they have developed an insulated, electrically heated and thermostatically controlled pipe,heating the oil in the pipe to about 60° C. That allows them to use the cheaper reprocessed oil 100% of thetime and save £9.60 every day.

It’s quite usual for the coating plant at an asphalt site to burn gas oil and only switch to the cheaper

reprocessed oil when the plant has warmed up. So how come Leinthall Asphalt Plant near

Leominster, Herefordshire, hasn’t burned any gas oil for the past three years?

It is located two miles outside Cannock,Staffordshire in Great Saredon, within a sandand gravel operation run by NRS Aggregates.

“Before the Cannock plant, we could supplythe Telford area from our Leaton plant,” saidRichard Lamb, Sales Manager, West. “But wedidn’t have the ability to supply concrete to the

Cannock, Walsall, Wolverhampton or Staffordareas. We now have a whole new area we cansupply to.”

Operating the plant is Dan Williams, whojoined Breedon from competitor HopeConstruction Materials four miles away.

A new supply area has been opened up with the launch of the Cannock

Concrete plant.

Cannock is centre of new operation

Breedon is now self-sufficient in concrete aggregates in Lincolnshire after leasing a site at West Deeping, near Stamford, in

April this year.

The site, which comprises a sand and gravel quarry, a concrete plant and a workshop, had been mothballed by Lafarge Tarmac late last year.Breedon has taken a lease on the site for at least the next three years.

“Acquiring the West Deeping site complements our Norton Bottoms operation, which is about 50 miles north,” said Carl Ashurst,Operations Manager – England. “Geographically, West Deeping is a perfect fit, giving us a presence in south Lincolnshire.” Four newstaff have been taken on to run the site under Manager Andy Crawford who was formerly Asphalt Plant Manager at Mansfield.

The existing workshop at the former C&G premises at Stamford is being relocated to West Deeping following extensiverefurbishment carried out by the staff at Stamford.

Powmyre Quarry sows seeds of Knowledge

The West Deeping site, near Stamford.

It may look like a string of sausages, butthis insulated pipe is saving money atLeinthall Asphalt plant.

Eighty-one children, that’s all the pupils at Glamis Primary School and 15 from the nearby Eassie Primary School, were given a close-up

look at what goes on at a quarry when they visited Powmyre Quarry in Angus, Scotland.

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Rare marsh harriers have been breeding at Powmyre Quarry in Angus, Scotland for many

years. This year RSPB ornithologist Steve Moyes spotted a brood of three birds when he

was ringing the young. A rare marsh harrier at Powmyre Quarry. Photograph courtesy of Joyce Moyes.

The new Stop and Think campaign is a top priority for

Breedon’s senior management. Leaving us in no doubt of its

importance, Group Chief Executive Simon Vivian recorded a

short film last month at Cloud Hill Quarry in which he stressed

how vital it is to improve Breedon’s safety record and explained the

personal commitments that every Breedon employee will be expected

to sign up to from now on.

Every Breedon employee will be receiving a copy of the film on a speciallydesigned key fob, decorated with the Safety Parrot so that every time wepick up our keys we remember to Stop and Think.

Safety briefings by senior management are also underway around thecountry, at which the film is being shown and a variety of Stop and Thinkmemory-joggers will be distributed. The Safety Parrot will be literallyeverywhere in the company, reminding us to Stop and Think before everytask we undertake.

Lights, Camera,Safe Action

Wobblers, posters, parrots and more

Visual reminders of the Safety Parrot and the new Stop andThink campaign will never be far from your eye. Posters willbe going up on notice boards around the company. Shelfwobblers will ensure that office-based staff and drivers arereminded daily of their Commitments. Life-sized parrots andsmaller versions will be available for use at sites holdingtheir own Safety Parrot campaign promotions.

THE COMMITMENTSThe new Breedon Personal Commitments set out what all of us who work at Breedon will be

expected to do to ensure that we come to work and go home safely every day and that our

colleagues do, too. There are five commitments.

Breedon’s Personal SafetyCommitments are printed on aplastic credit card that is beingprovided to all employees.Every one of us will be requiredto read and sign the card, astangible evidence that we willlive by the commitments. Wewill all be required to carry thecard with us during workinghours and be prepared to showit when asked.

The Stop andThink campaign andBreedon’s SafetyParrot willcomplement all theother critical toolswhich have beenput in place overthe last couple ofyears to aid safetymanagement. Inaddition to BreedonBasics, Contractorauthorisations andPoint of Work riskassessments foruse by everyone,

there is also our Visible FeltLeadership programme andtask audits where methods ofworking are discussed withoperatives to ensure they havechosen the safest way. Thereare site rules, drugs andalcohol testing programmesand induction presentations,all aimed at improving safetyacross the group.

“Rather than introducingnew tools, these PersonalCommitments are intended toremind everyone what theirroles and responsibilities areunder the Health and Safety atWork Act 1974 and get themto make that personalcommitment to using the tools,following the rules andbehaving safely,” said ScottMcDonald, Senior Health &Safety Manager – Scotland.

Group Chief ExecutiveSimon Vivian lays it on the line:“Let me be quite clear: theseCommitments are absolutelynon-negotiable. I expecteveryone to adopt them andlive by them, every day.”

COMMITTED TO CREATING A SAFE WORKING ENVIRONMENT

A Breedon Employee

Improvement but must do better

Welcome to the Safety Parrot. It’s going to be sitting on your shoulder in the months and years

to come, reminding you to STOP AND THINK. Don’t rush into a task. Take a few extra minutes to

think about what you are about to do and plan ahead. Ensure all the hazards and risks have

been identified.

“Back in the last quarter of 2013 we had a number of Lost Time Incidents (LTIs), which was disappointingas our LTI rate had been on a downward trend since 2011,” said Clare James, Head of SHE - England.“That’s why we need this Stop and Think campaign, to reinvigorate the safety message to all those whowork for Breedon. The parrot on theshoulder is there to remind everyoneof their responsibilities and duties.”

Group Chief Executive SimonVivian said: “This is a dangerousindustry. Keeping safe takesdedication and hard work. We’vemade great progress in our healthand safety record, but there’s still along way to go. There are still toomany accidents which can be easilyavoided if we stop and think aboutwhat we’re doing before we do it.

“We deliberately chose a parrotas the campaign mascot becauseit’s repetitive and a bit of a nag,which is how we wantour approach to healthand safety to be. Wewant everyone in thebusiness to constantlyremind themselves andtheir colleagues tokeep safe.”

In Spring 2012, Fromthe Rock Facepublished a chartshowing how Breedonfared with LTIs againstindustry competitors.There has beensignificantimprovement, butthere is still a long wayto go.

The team at Breedon do the same!

The team at Ethiebeatonwelcome the Safety Parrot

Breedon has set a target to reduce the Lost Time Incident Frequency Rate (LTIFR) year on year by 50%.

“The LTIFR at the end of 2012 was 1.0, therefore the target for the end of 2013 was 0.5. We missed the target andachieved an actual end-of-year result of 0.61. That means the revised target for the end of 2014 has gone from 0.25 to0.3,” said Clare and Scott.

“We’re currently standing at an LTIFR of 0.74 following some recent incidents but we are hoping that the new safetycampaign will reinvigorate individuals to make the additional commitment and that it will stimulate everyone’s awarenessand focus their behaviour.”

One of the ways in which we can reduce the number of LTIs is bynear-miss reporting. More near-miss cards mean we can do moreinvestigation and that helps us to prevent actual accidents fromhappening in the first place.

There has been a significant increase in near-miss reporting and thatshows we are moving in the right direction. But we need to keep it up.

Here is a list of the Breedon sites that reported the most nearmisses. There is no suggestion that the sites are not the safest – theyare the most disciplined at reporting near misses.

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As an employee of Breedon Aggregates, I will:

1 STOP & THINK before commencing any task, identify any potential hazards and try to eliminate or reduce the risks involved

2 BE RESPONSIBLE for my own safety and do my best to ensure that my colleagues, contractors and visitors are safe too

3 REPORT INCIDENTS AND NEAR MISSES immediately and share any information that will help prevent them becoming tomorrow’s accidents

4 TAKE ACTION to prevent any unsafe act or condition that I see – “What I walk past is what I accept”

5 ALWAYS behave appropriately in the workplace

MY SAFETY COMMITMENTS

Breedon concrete helps rare disease sufferer

When Kier Construction and Breedon customer Melfort Construction set about creating a garden

for a disabled five-year-old girl, they needed help. They turned to Breedon to supply a couple of

free loads of readymix for the project being undertaken at East Leake, Nottinghamshire.

The child, Maddison Sherwood, suffers from Smard1 (Spinal Muscular Atrophy withRespiratory Distress type 1). It means she has to use a wheel chair and carry a portableventilator to help her breath.

Kier had learned about Maddison through Barnado’s and decided to turn the familygarden into a flat, wheelchair-friendly space that has raised flower beds.

Breedon’s Regional Commercial Manager East, Mike Sciascia, arranged for the readymixto be supplied from Nottingham Readymix, which Breedon acquired in January 2012.

Nottingham Readymix supplies concrete to create agarden for a disabled youngster.

Four colleagues leaving East Anglia Contracting (front, centre).

Leaving Breedon’s East Anglia Contracting after nearly 100 years service

between them are, front row from left: Keith Brown, hand lay operative

with 45 years' service; Ronald Pigney, hand lay operative with three

years' service; Peter Burke, hand lay foreman with seven years' service;

and Cliff Hurren, hand lay foreman with 42 years' service.

Pictured with their work colleagues, the four men, who have been in theasphalt contracting business for most of their working lives, were all near to orbeyond retirement age and have taken early or voluntary retirement.

CRAIGENLOW OPENS ITS DOORS

In June, about 100 people took the opportunity to visit

Craigenlow quarry, near Dunecht, Scotland. Bussed in

from Hazlehead Park in Aberdeen, the visitors were

shown round the quarry by Mike Macaulay, Regional

Director, North East.

“The value of opening Craigenlow to the public is changingthe perception of what actually happens in a quarry,” saysMike. “The quarry was actually working and I was able toexplain better what was happening and people were able tosee it.

“This also helps with planning applications as people cansee what we do to preserve the environment and the wildlife that is present in the quarry. It is all positive and peoplefind it remarkable.”

FAREWELL

New chapter for Cotswolds quarryPhil Stayt (right), Huntsmans Quarry Manager, discusses operations with Julian Veal, Assistant Quarry Manager.

This year’s Best Show Garden and

Gold Medal winner at the Chelsea

Flower Show used Breedon Golden

Amber gravel to great effect.

Designed by Luciano Giubbilei, the

garden was formed with a simple

geometric layout. It was said to

“invite exploration of stillness and

movement through relationships

between the contrasting forms

and materials”.

Elsewhere, Breedon Special Aggregateshave been used far and wide.

• More than 1,000 tonnes of BreedonGolden Amber gravel were suppliedfor footpaths and cycleways at aCambridge housing development.

• 3.500 tonnes of speedway shale weresupplied to the Millennium Stadium,Cardiff, for the British Grand Prix.

• 7 bulk bags of Breedon GoldenAmber gravel went to ITV’s LoveYour Garden programme forwheelchair paths at a Luton hospicesensory garden.

• Talks are underway about the UAEpavilion at the World Expo in Milanin 2015 using Breedon GoldenAmber gravel.

GOLDEN AMBERWINS GOLD

Breedon Golden Amber gravel used atChelsea Flower Show’s Best Show Garden.

It was California Dreamin’ until Fiona got on the case

It all started routinely enough. Scotland South Contracting hadbeen given the job by the Scottish roads maintenance companyBEAR Scotland to carry out a detailed inspection of a mile-longsection of the A85 Perth to Oban trunk road.

It’s a remote and scenic section of road on the edge of LochLubnaig in Stirlingshire.

“I had walked the one mile with my measuring wheel,notebook and camera,” said Mark Rapley, Area ContractingManager, who was carrying out the inspection. “I had justcrossed the road when my eye caught something gleamingin the sunlight – a pink digital camera.”

Back at Clatchard, Fiona set to work examining thecamera’s SD card. The pictures seemed to be of someone’sworld tour but there were also some pictures of a militarypassing out parade. Fiona contacted the police, US Consulateand US Navy but none could help.

“Then I realised it was possible to read some names on thecertificates that the people in the photos were holding,” saidFiona. “I chose one name and used social media to ask ifanyone recognised the photo. Finally the husband of the personresponded and passed on details of the camera’s owner.”

A woman from California was astonished at the lengths that Fiona Thomson went to in order to track her down. Thanks

to Fiona, who is the Production Administrator at Clatchard Quarry and has a work station in the Contracting Department

office, the woman has been reunited with the camera and photos she thought were lost forever.

“While my handkerchief is in my top pocket, Iam still bidding.” That was what MauriceHanks told the auctioneer in 1918 beforebuying Huntsmans Farm, near Stow-on-the-Wold for £400. Operated as a farm for a fewyears, the premises were quickly turned into aquarry and it is now entering a new phase.Bought by Breedon in June this year,Huntsmans is one of Breedon's mostsoutherly quarries. It will retain its identity andthe dark green vehicle livery – the name iswell known and respected in the Cotswolds.

“The main thing we do is crush some ofthe hardest limestone in the Cotswolds foraggregates,” said Assistant Quarry Manager,Julian Veal. “But a lot goes on here. Weproduce natural stone products for wallingand rockeries, we make reconstitutedCotswold stone products, roofing slates,agricultural lime, and sand for our twoconcrete plants, one here and one nearby atEvesham. We operate a recycling facility forconstruction waste and we have an inerttipping area in an old part of the quarry.”

Huntsmans produces 250,000 tonnes ofproduct per year. It has reserves of four milliontonnes and is seeking planning permission toquarry additional land to access a further sixmillion tonnes, giving a lifespan of around 30years even if the production rate is increased.

“We don’t drill and blast here,” said QuarryManager Phil Stayt. “We use a hydraulichammer to cut into the quarry face. CyrilHarris, who operates the hammer, has been atHuntsmans since 1964. In fact, staff retentionhere has always been high. When I joined as adriver in 1977 there was a waiting list to getonto a Huntsmans lorry.”

Huntsmans supplies builders’ merchantsand private customers – many of whomoccupy substantial mansions in theCotswolds. One of Phil’s early deliveries afterjoining was to Princess Anne. Once a month ashipment of around 40 tonnes of walling stoneis sent to Japan to satisfy the Japanese loveof Cotswold stone.

With a Site of Special Scientific Interest(SSSI) on the quarry’s doorstep, Huntsmansworks closely with the Cotswold ConservationBoard. It supplies stone free of charge for theBoard’s drystone walling courses. Within theSSSI area are footprints of Megalosaurus, themeat-eating dinosaurs dating back 150 millionyears to the Middle Jurassic period.

It has a long history of getting on well withlocal residents and it opens its doors to regularschool visits and open days to show the vastarray of things that go on at this quarry in theheart of the Cotswolds.

In the second of our regular new series of reports from Breedon sites around the UK, we turn our

spotlight on Huntsmans Quarry, Breedon’s most recently-acquired quarry.

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The long and seldom winding A85 in Scotland where, by chance, the missing camera was found.

Steve plays thelong gameFour rounds of golf, at different courses,

all in one day, starting at 4.45 am and

finishing at 8pm – you’ve got to be a golf

fanatic, or a little mad, or, as in this case,

raising money for a good cause.

When Steve McGarvie’s wife Jayne wasinvolved in a car accident it brought on astroke and she was treated at the GrampianSpecialist Rehabilitation Centre in Aberdeen.She is on the mend and Steve, who is aContracts Supervisor based at CraigenlowQuarry, wanted to raise money so that thecentre could get more of the vital equipmentneeded for it to continue its great work.

“Completing the challenge was harderthan I had anticipated,” said Steve. “It gotmore difficult with each round as tirednessset in. But the money we raised isoverwhelming and I thank everyone whodonated including Breedon Aggregates.”

Steve and his friend, Colin, took on the72-hole golf challenge and raised £4,433 forthe centre.

Steve McGarvie (right) takes a break at Alford golf course.

John Middleton (second from left) receives his MPQC AdvancedOperators (Gold Card) qualification at the Finning stand at this year’sHillhead exhibition. From left to right are: Jason Howlett, Director ofEquipment Solutions, Finning; John Middleton; Mike Phillips,General Manager, Institute of Quarrying; Tim Hall, Chief Executive,Breedon Aggregates England; Keith Oakes, Head of SHEQ, Finning;and John Vardy, General Manager for Mining and Core, Finning.

Kevin Goodhand, Weighbridge

Clerk at Kettleby Quarry in North

Lincolnshire, retired in June.

Kevin started in the industry withJW Hurdiss as an HGV driver beforechanging to Weighbridge Clerk withC&G and then Breedon.

Iain Davidson, OperationsManager -- North East Cluster, said:“Kevin always had a cheery wordfor drivers and customers and willbe greatly missed.”

Iain and Carl Ashurst, OperationsManager – England, presented Kevinwith a laptop computer andcolleagues presented gift vouchersand a Breedon-coloured oil can –Kevin liked to oil anything thatsqueaked.

Kevin says farewellLong Service

Les Peacock, Loading Shovel Driver at Clatchard Quarry, has notchedup 40 years’ service. At a celebratory dinner, attended by his workcolleagues, Les, centre, was presented with a watch and travelvouchers by East Regional Director Brad Murphy.

Mick Harrison (right) receives his 30-years’ service certificate from Shaun Cozens.

Rodger and out

Rodger Barratt, left, is presented with a certificate on his retirement.

Bob hares round Edinburgh

The driving force behind taking part wasone of Bob’s daughters who had saidlast Christmas that she wanted to runthe marathon. She pulled out, leavingBob to go it alone.

“I trained about four nights each weekrunning a total of 25 to 30 miles weekly.It does take up a lot of your time but thehigh spot was finishing at Musselburghwhere my two daughters were there togreet me.

“The low spot was probably at about17 miles when I ran past a person who

had collapsed and was being worked onby the paramedics. That knocked me forsix a bit but I just carried on.”

Bob thanks all those who supportedhim, and with Breedon matching the£665 Bob himself raised, half theamount went to the Cornhill MacmillanCentre in Perth, where Bob’s wife,Pauline, had been treated after beingdiagnosed with cancer three years ago,and the other half went to the mainMacmillan Cancer charity.

Raising £1,330 for the Macmillan Cancer charity was Bob Hare, Breedon

Scotland’s South East Regional Production Manager, who ran the Edinburgh

marathon in May, completing the course in four hours 39 minutes.

A relieved Bob Hare, greeted by his daughters, Emma on left and Rachael, afterhe completed the Edinburgh marathon.

Cloud Hill Shovel Driver among the first to gain new qualification

10 11

Rodger Barratt, Roller Driver with Central Contracting, has

retired after 18 years’ service. He was presented with a

certificate and travel vouchers.

“Rodger was a hard worker and an excellent operative. He will besorely missed,” said Chris Simpson, Operations & General Manager.

Kevin Goodhand cuts his celebratory cake.

Mick Harrison, Concrete Mixer Driver at Boston, has notched up 30years’ service. Mick started with C&G in 1984 and over the past 30years has had eight trucks ranging from a 1973 Leyland Bison to hiscurrent 2007 DAF. To mark the occasion, Andrew Dawney, OperationsManager, South Lincolnshire, and Shaun Cozens, Concrete Supervisor,presented Mick with a certificate and Marks & Spencer vouchers.

“We put forward John Middleton, aLoading Shovel Driver at Cloud HillQuarry,” said Neil Gamble, Cloud HillQuarry Manager. “He is an exceptionaldriver and we knew he would be just rightfor this new qualification.”

To gain the MPQC Advanced Operators(Gold Card) qualification there is an initialassessment of competency that takes twodays. Then an assessor watches theoperator for a further three days.

The operator has to be absolutelyprecise in their work, understand the

mechanics of the machine they areoperating and be able to carry out full day-to-day maintenance.

“When an operator is working to the veryhigh standard of this new qualification, theyare operating the machine in a safe way. Italso makes for greater efficiency andproduct yield by using less fuel,” said Neil.

John was one of the first four people togain the qualification. He is now also amember of the Institute of Quarrying afterthe Institute introduced a new Techniciangrade of membership.

Father and daughter team, Eric and Sarah Walker, completed this year’s Motoscape

Rally in early September to raise money for CLAN Cancer Support, an independent

charity for anyone of any age, affected by any type of cancer.

Eric is a Concrete Batcher at Breedon’s Dyce concrete plant, near Aberdeen, and Sarah isAdministrator at Craigenlow Quarry.

“The rally involved spending nine days in a car together which was a challenge in itself,”said Sarah. “We drove through 12 countries as we went from France, down to Italy thenback up to Prague, where the Motoscape Rally finished. After the homeward journeythrough Germany and the Netherlands, to catch the ferry home, we went through 14countries in total.”

As From the Rock Face went to press, Eric and Sarah were still counting the money theyraised but it is hoped that it will be more than £2,000 for CLAN.

Duo complete European banger rally

Eric Walker, far left, and Sarah Walker, far right, with their Motoscape Rally car photographed at a concert with Irish countrymusic singers Philomena Begley and her son Aiden Quinn.

FAMILY DAY RAISES MONEY FOR HOSPICEMelanie Looker, Administrator at Norton Bottoms,

organised a Family Day in early September.

Held at the Bracebridge Heath Cricket Club, north-east of thequarry towards Lincoln, the event featured bouncy castles,face painting and a barbecue. Local Police and Fire andRescue services came along with a selection of theirvehicles for people to examine closely.

A raffle was held, with prizes that included entrance to GoApe, the forest adventure firm that has sites around the UK,and Colchester Zoo, as well as meals at local restaurants.Proceeds from the raffle went to the St BarnabasLincolnshire Hospice.

As From the Rock Face went to press, Melanie washoping to raise more than £1,000.

When Caterpillar launched an advanced level of the MPQC Operators qualification it

turned to Breedon to put forward an operator of exceptional capability who it was

thought could meet or exceed the high standard required by the qualification.

12

From the Rock Face is produced by the Breedon Aggregates’ Communications Department.

If any readers have ideas for stories to be included in future issues, please contact Stephen Jacobs on 07831 764592 or email stephen.jacobs@breedonaggregates.com

Rugby club scrums down with new kitUp and coming Clee Hill Rugby Club has new kit after Breedon sponsored the team.

The event, which has been staged forseveral years, raises money for the ScottishDisabled Golf Team.

It raises about £3,000 each year, whichhelps send disabled golf teams to matchesacross the country and abroad.

Leinthall Quarry Fitter, John Hartwright (pictured),

took part in this year’s Isle of Man TT Classic race

after being sponsored by Breedon.

John rode a 1972 Honda 500 Four. The four-cylinder, four-exhaust-pipe bike is capable of reachinga top speed of around 100mph.

John is no stranger to motorcycle racing. He has ridden in the Tonfanau and Aberdale road racesand at Leicestershire’s Mallory Park circuit.

Robert Mackenzie, a Driver at Inverness, and his brother-in-law were sponsored by Breedon

to take part in the Disability Golf Day at Castle Stuart Golf Links course, near Inverness.

The club, based at Clee Hill near Ludlow, Shropshire, was promoted last season to the Midlands3 West (North) league. The club’s chairman is David Edwards, Quarry Manager at Leinthall.

“Our club is in the local catchment area of the quarry and we travel all round the WestMidlands, Herefordshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire playing rugby,” said David. “Having‘Breedon’ emblazoned on the new kit is a way to promote the company and get its name morewidely known.”

Robert Mackenzie, second from right, with the Breedon-sponsored golf team.

Classic bike racedat classic event

Sponsorship helps disabled golfers

Breedon has partnered with North

Wales Wildlife Trust (NWWT) to help

conserve 24 hectares of woodland next

to the company’s Fron Haul Quarry at

Nannerch, near Mold in Flintshire.

NWWT had already obtained a grant ofjust over £41,000 from SITA UK to fundconservation work at a number ofwoodland sites in the area. However, inorder to accept the grant, the Trustneeded to secure a proportion of the totalfrom a contributing third party andBreedon agreed to donate £4,000 tobridge the gap.

The project will initiate an intensiveprogramme of woodland managementwithin NWWT’s Alun and Chwiler LivingLandscape area: a landscape-scalescheme in which conservation work isundertaken in partnership with otherorganisations and private landowners. Thework will involve coppicing, tree thinningand the creation of woodland glades, withlocal communities involved whereverpossible. Among the species that willbenefit are the dormouse, pied flycatcherand pearl-bordered fritillary.

In the future, NWWT hopes to explorethe potential for production of sustainabletimber products, like charcoal, which willcontribute to the longer-term sustainabilityof the site management.

Commenting on the partnership TimHall, Chief Executive of BreedonAggregates England, said: “We’redelighted to be playing a role in protectingthis beautiful area of north Wales forfuture generations. NWWT doeswonderful work in this part of the worldand as a business with deep roots in thiscommunity through our Fron Hall Quarry,we’re proud to be involved in thisexcellent scheme.”

Dr Graeme Cotterill, NWWT’sfundraising director, added, “NWWT isvery grateful to Breedon and all ourfunding partners for supporting thisproject. Working with private companies,in particular, demonstrates exactly what aLiving Landscape is all about: bringingtogether all stakeholders to form asustainably used, wildlife-rich landscapeeven beyond our protected sites.”

BREEDON HELPSPROTECT FLINTSHIREWOODLAND

Tree thinning underway near Fron Haul Quarry.Photograph courtesy of Mike Klymko.