RMC is to axe 520 jobs as a result of restructuring to simplify the business to create a single organisation.The new organisation, effective from February 2004, will combine RMC's Readymix, Aggregates and Building Products divisions into a new company called RMC Materials. The UK cement division (Rugby bulk cement, Ash, Seament and Slag) will remain as a separate arm of RMC UK. RMC UK finance and business support director John Robinson said: "The restructure is designed to simplify the customer's experience of buying from us, and make it easy to select from across our wide product range. "The sad bit of the restructure is that it results in 520 job losses; many of which are senior positions right across the group," said Robinson, who will be deputy managing director of RMC Materials. He continued: "Our new structure means that we will be flexible enough to deal with our customers in a way that they prefer - whether at a local or national level. "Customers will have more choice; for example, they will be able to have just one account, they will be able to trade electronically and they can have their own key account manager."We always envisaged that we would, at some point, restructure the business. We began preparing for it in February to ensure an easy transition so our customers won't notice the change. "RMC Materials will have five large regional Readymix and Aggregate businesses and one commercial directorate to oversee national construction products businesses, all UK brand strategies, and relations with national customers and suppliers. The move simplifies the current structure of 21 operating companies across the UK. The restructure has been in the pipeline for three years and is not a result of the group's financial difficulties, Robinson said. RMC's group debt stands at about UK£1.2bn, with its loss-making German division being the main source of the problem. "Irrespective of Germany, we have been improving our situation in the UK and feel confident that we'll meet our borrowing targets this year. I feel we are on target to reduce group debt to less than UK£1bn by the year end; if we don't reach it then we will be thereabouts".