Adbri, formerly Adelaide Brighton Cement, is an Australian manufacturer of

cement A cement is a binder, a chemical substance used for construction that sets, hardens, and adheres to other materials to bind them together. Cement is seldom used on its own, but rather to bind sand and gravel ( aggregate) together. Cement mix ...

lime Lime commonly refers to: * Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit * Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide * Lime (color), a color between yellow and green Lime may also refer to: Botany ...

and dry blended products. Adbri operates manufacturing and distribution facilities in

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

, the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...

, and

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

. Associated brands and companies include Cockburn Cement, Sunstate Cement, Northern Cement, Independent Cement & Lime, and Building Product Supplies. The company's Geelong Cement works, at Fyansford, was closed in 2001. The company is listed on the

Australian Securities Exchange Australian Securities Exchange Ltd or ASX, is an Australian public company that operates Australia's primary securities exchange, the Australian Securities Exchange (sometimes referred to outside of Australia as, or confused within Australia as ...

Mining and processing facilities

* Angaston plant *

Birkenhead Birkenhead (; cy, Penbedw) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England; historically, it was part of Cheshire until 1974. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the south bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liver ...

plant * Klein Point, limestone quarry *

Rapid Bay Rapid Bay is a locality that includes a small seaside town and bay on the west coast of the Fleurieu Peninsula, South Australia. It lies within the District Council of Yankalilla and its township is approximately 100 km south of the stat ...

limestone quarry

History

William Lewis, a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

immigrant, established

lime kiln A lime kiln is a kiln used for the calcination of limestone (calcium carbonate) to produce the form of lime (material), lime called quicklime (calcium oxide). The chemical equation for this chemical reaction, reaction is :Calcium carbonate, Ca ...

s in 1880 on an allotment near the corner of

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

and Shoreham Roads,

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

. Several kilometres south, what is now Marino to

Reynella Reynella is a metropolitan suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is located 20 km south of the Central Business District of Adelaide in the north of the City of Onkaparinga. It is bordered to the east by Main South Road, to the south ...

and Hallett Cove, were rich

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

deposits. The rocks formed part of the great

Precambrian The Precambrian (or Pre-Cambrian, sometimes abbreviated pꞒ, or Cryptozoic) is the earliest part of Earth's history, set before the current Phanerozoic Eon. The Precambrian is so named because it preceded the Cambrian, the first period of the ...

limestone formations known geologically as the Brighton Series. Two years later, Lewis built a larger kiln, closer to the limestone deposits, fifteen feet square and twenty feet high. So began the Brighton Cement Works, which were officially opened on 12 December 1882. There was a bright future for the production of local cement, as at that time, South Australia was importing 8,000 tons of

portland cement Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general use around the world as a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar, stucco, and non-specialty grout. It was developed from other types of hydraulic lime in England in the early 19th c ...

a year. But the promising start soon faded, with Lewis closing the works in 1883 due to poor sales, attributed to the local product being too expensive and not as good quality as the imported cement. However, other colonists took up the challenge. Brompton brickmaker, William Shearing became involved. Some years later, a

syndicate A syndicate is a self-organizing group of individuals, companies, corporations or entities formed to transact some specific business, to pursue or promote a shared interest. Etymology The word ''syndicate'' comes from the French language, Frenc ...

including

John Howard Angas John Howard Angas (5 October 1823 – 17 May 1904) was an Australian pioneer, politician and philanthropist. Early life and education John Howard Angas was the second son of George Fife Angas and his wife Rosetta née French. He was born in New ...

and

Simpson Newland Simpson Newland CMG (2 November 1835 – 27 June 1925), pastoralist, author and politician, was a pioneer in Australia who made significant contributions to development around the Murray River. He was also an author of practical works and novel ...

bought the Works. In 1896, quality of the local cement appeared solid, with the product being used in the construction of the

Happy Valley Reservoir The Happy Valley Reservoir is a water reservoir located in the southern Adelaide suburb of Happy Valley, South Australia. Constructed when the total population of Adelaide numbered 315,200 (1893 census), the Happy Valley Reservoir now supplies o ...

. By 1900 the company had and were selling over 3,500 tons a year. A major setback occurred on 7 November 1909, when the works were consumed by fire. Carting rock and coal was a significant task, with horse and dray being a familiar sight. In 1913, the company owned 74 horses. Stablehands began at 4 am with grooming and feeding. Drivers were ready at 6:45 am for the hour trip from the Works to the city carrying cement, returning via Bromptom, where coke was loaded. Horse-drawn trolleys were also used to cart additional stone from the Reynella quarries to the Reynella railway station, to be freighted to the Marino site by rail. Eventually the Reynella horses were replaced by the

Flying Fox ''Pteropus'' (suborder Yinpterochiroptera) is a genus of megabats which are among the largest bats in the world. They are commonly known as fruit bats or flying foxes, among other colloquial names. They live in South Asia, Southeast Asia, Aust ...

. This labour-saving aerial ropeway became somewhat of a tourist attraction. The Brighton Cement works moved to Angaston in the 1950s. Brighton Cement merged with Adelaide Cement Company to become Adelaide Brighton Cement in the 1970s.

General references

* *

References

External links

Adelaide Brighton Cement website
{{S&P/ASX 200 Companies listed on the Australian Securities Exchange Mining companies of Australia Cement companies of Australia Manufacturing companies based in Adelaide Australian companies established in 1882 Lime kilns in Australia