LafargeHolcim invested PLN160 million into its Polish business in 2017, the company said in a recent press release, including a PLN150 million upgrade of the Kujawy cement plant. Located in the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone, the Kujawy project included the reconstruction of the kiln, construction of new cement loading terminals, the creation of a fully-automated laboratory, and construction of an alternative fuel (AF) preparation hall. This year s investment in the Kujawy cement plant is one of the most important and biggest projects executed by the LafargeHolcim Group, said emphasised Stanislaw Sobczyk, Director of the Kujawy plant. “Our aim is to make the facility located in Kujawy the most modern plant of this type in the world. That is why, after the project is completed, we plan to continue investing in the modernisation and expansion of the facility.” The construction of a new 2.5 ha. preparation hall for AFs will allow the plant to burn plastics, paper, textiles, or shredded tyres. These AFs will satisfy 80% of the plants overall heat requirements for firing clinker. The hall will house AF production machines and installations, as well as acting as storage area for both waste and processed fuels. “Based on our experience, the fuel supplied by external manufacturers does not meet the quality standards and the irregularity of shipments does not ensure stable operating conditions for the kiln.” said Marek Michalski, Fuel Preparation and Production Director at Lafarge in Poland. The plant s demand for AFs increases each year. Our aim is to have full control over the process, from acquisition of waste, through processing and storage, to burning to generate power. The amount of fuel will not be increasing thanks to the high-quality process that will become more and more efficient. In addition to the Kujawy upgrate, Lafarge in Poland invested PLN10 million in modernisation works at its Malogoszcz plant in the south of the country. The work was aimed at optimising processes at the plant, as well as reducing its environmental impact. According to Jacek Patyk, Director of the Malogoszcz plant, the work included the modernisation of the intake channel to the radiator of the rotary kiln, renovation of the kiln exhaust and the installation of a new raw mill drive. The exhaust stack of rotary kilns #1 and #2 also underwent extensive renovation, which extended its useful life by at least 10 to 15 years.