Hope updates on UK development plans

On the anniversary of its third year in business, Hope Construction Materials has announced advanced plans to open new depots – and extend existing sites – in the southeast of England.

Use of the railway network features heavily in Hope’s plans, with four of the five sites able to receive raw materials (aggregates and cement) by rail. This follows the success of Hope’s new rail-linked cement, aggregates and concrete depot at Walsall in 2015.

Details of the latest developments – all of which are expected to be open for business during the first quarter of 2016 – are:

Dagenham: A new rail-linked cement distribution depot and state-of-the-art packing facility that will, for the first time, see Hope’s cement supplied in its own branded bags.

Southampton: A new ready-mix concrete plant and rail-linked aggregates depot to receive concreting aggregate for this site and Hope’s other concrete plants in Hampshire.

Stratford: A new rail-fed aggregates depot adjacent to the Olympic park which is the result of a partnership with rail freight operator DB Schenker. Hope is bringing high-quality crushed rock to the East London market as well as supplying its own depots in the area.

Theale: Already a rail-linked cement depot, the site is now home to a rail-fed aggregates facility and a ready-mix concrete plant supplying both materials to the Reading market.

Woodham: Part-way between Aylesbury and Bicester, Hope’s Woodham depot will supply ready-mix concrete across North Bucks.

Located in the Hope Valley, in the Derbyshire Peak District, Hope cement works originally opened more than 80 years ago and has played a major role in UK cement production ever since. Today the twin-kiln plant supplies more than 15 per cent of the UK’s cement consumption.

More than two thirds of Hope’s cement is distributed by rail. Hope also transports much of its aggregate by rail, notably from Dowlow limestone quarry near Buxton.

In the past year alone Hope Construction Materials sold 1.5Mt of cement, 4.7Mt of aggregates and 2.3Mm3 of concrete.

CEO of Hope Construction Materials, Chris Plant, said: “Hope has been growing steadily since launch three years ago and these latest depots are the culmination of our strategy to develop our plant network and improve the service we are able to give our customers. Together these developments represent a major investment in the business and their South East locations mean that they are sure to add value in the future.”