Cemex cement works, Rochester, March 2010

A visit to the Cemex cement at Halling near Rochester in Kent with Kent-Urbex and tom46. Thanks for driving K-U, especially with the horrible traffic, and for the local tour and nice to meet you tom46.

Some background:

Cemex plans to redevelop the last Medway cement works after moving production to a new grinding plant in Tilbury. Medway Council has granted permission for a 'mixed-used lakeside community' of 500-700 homes.

Manufacture of cement clinker in the kiln ended in 2002 but the plant continues to mill clinker brought in from other Cemex plants, so part of the site is still live.

Demolition of the 11 hectare works, including a 300 ft chimney is being carried out by Hydrock which has demolished other former Cemex plants including the Lytag Manufacturing Plant in North Humberside and its former works at Chinnor. Work officially began on 1 March 2010 and is expected to take six to nine months. No activity during our visit but there is some machinery on site and mobile CCTV towers so the remaining buildings probably won't be standing much longer.

Big place, lots to see. On with the pics. Hope you like them.



Light at the end of...





Enough to make your hair stand on end...









Cuppa?

Nice shots mate. Was good to meet you as well

Particularly liking the first shot, it's great.

I'll stick 2 or 3 of mine up on this report later maybe, if that's alright with you.

Cheers for coming out

Cheers tom46, look forward to seeing your pics. Good trip.

Nice little day trip this was

Excellent pics of a great site. Looks like a really good explore.
Good stuff, both of you.

love the first shot Nocturno, how did the image of inside the kiln come out like? here are a few of my shots. feel free to put some of yours up on my other thread

inside the chimney


machinery


kiln & Crane


would of had alot of fun apart from they didn't leave the key

Superb stuff,I love the look of the control room,all those knobs and buttons that along with Homer Simpson,only I could have such comprehensive knowledge of,and therefore total control of??
Hell! That is that one big chimney/tower? Kudos to the shot up the chimney/tower?
I guess many people on this forum have a fair knowledge of the former workings of industrial sites,I however am just quite simply perplexed,in a very nice way by all that great engineering,it looks more like art to me than a once functioning system.
Many thanks.