The Sucrerie centrale de Cambrai was a company which had a central beet sugar factory in
Escaudœuvres
Escaudœuvres () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.
History
Escaudœuvres is famous for being the location of the sugar factory of the Sucrerie centrale de Cambrai. At the time of its construction, this was one of the b ...
, Nord department, France. This Sucrerie centrale d'Escaudœuvres was fed by about a dozen râperies. In 2003 the company was merged into its owner Tereos. The central factory then continued to operate as Sucrerie Tereos d'Escaudœuvres until 2023. The facilities are now only used for storage and logistics.
Characteristics
The official name of the company that founded the factory was 'Sucrerie centrale de Cambrai'. It was located in Escaudœuvres. The name reflected that for some time, the facility was a central factory which finished the work of satellite factories, so called râperies. These closed down in the 1960s, but the company and factory did not change their names.
The factory's location in
Escaudœuvres
Escaudœuvres () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.
History
Escaudœuvres is famous for being the location of the sugar factory of the Sucrerie centrale de Cambrai. At the time of its construction, this was one of the b ...
is due to geography. The surrounding area is farm land with much
clay
Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4).
Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay par ...
and
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 ...
, ideal for growing
sugar beet
A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and which is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet (''Beta vulgaris''). Together wi ...
. Also, the
Nord-Pas de Calais Mining Basin
The Nord-Pas-de-Calais Mining Basin is a mining basin in Northern France that stretches across the Nord and Pas-de-Calais departments. The region is famous for its long history of coal extraction and its testimony to a significant period in the ...
is close by, which was important to get cheap
coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen.
Coal is formed when dea ...
. There was also a good rail and canal network in the area. The latter consisted of its location on the river
Scheldt
The Scheldt (french: Escaut ; nl, Schelde ) is a river that flows through northern France, western Belgium, and the southwestern part of Netherlands, the Netherlands, with its mouth at the North Sea. Its name is derived from an adjective corr ...
with its many side canals.
The factory is now part of the
cooperative
A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...
industrial group Tereos, which bought its owner in 2002 and then liquidated the Sucrerie centrale de Cambrai company by merging it into
public company
A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) company can be listed on a stock exchange (l ...
At the end of 1873, there were 17 râperies with 87.5 miles of tubing. In order to increase production of the central factory to the designed capacity of 250,000 t of beet, there were plans for 8 more râperies. A boiler-iron reservoir for raw juice of 5,000 hectoliters stood 400 m from the factory. The lime quarry was next to the reservoir and was connected to the factory by a horse railroad.
The main hall of the central factory was of brick, with an iron roof. It measured 100 by 18 m and was 30 m high. On one of its sides, four small buildings extended. The first had the repair shop and milk of lime vats below, and the filter presses above. The second building had the steam boilers. The third building held the bone black revivifying furnaces. The fourth building had below: 45 tanks of 1,000 hectoliters each for the second and third products, and above: the packing and storage room for sugar of 1,800 m2.
The factory's nearby gas works furnished 500 m3 per day. Also nearby was the furnace for
carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide (chemical formula ) is a chemical compound made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in the gas state at room temperature. In the air, carbon dioxide is transpar ...
gas. This held 500 m3 of gas and was fed by an elevator.
The steam boilers were 16, each having a heated surface of 200 m2, giving a total of 2,400 hp. The revivifying furnaces were two from Schreiber, each supplying 150 hectoliters per day.
The main hall had the engines and turbines on the ground floor. Running along one side, on platforms, were: the tanks for the first and second carbonatation; the multiple effect evaporators; and the vacuum pans.
For 1873 or 1874 it was reported that the second and third product (sugar of lower quality) had not been made. The report said that 60 t of sugar had been manufactured daily. The central factory employed about 400 people, the râperies another 1,100.
In 1877 the râperies were in:
*
Avesnes-les-Aubert
Avesnes-les-Aubert () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.
Population
Heraldry
See also
*Communes of the Nord department
The following is a list of the 648 communes of the Nord department of the French Republic.
Th ...
*
Carnières
Carnières () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.
It is about east of Cambrai.
Heraldry
See also
*Communes of the Nord department
The following is a list of the 648 communes of the Nord department of the French Rep ...
*
Crèvecœur-sur-l'Escaut
Crèvecœur-sur-l'Escaut (, literally ''Crèvecœur on the Scheldt'') is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.
Heraldry
See also
*Communes of the Nord department
The following is a list of the 648 communes of the Nord depar ...
Villers-Plouich
Villers-Plouich is a commune in the Nord department in northern France, situated 14 km south-west of the town of Cambrai.
Geography
The commune of has evolved over time to consist of the main village centre and two separate hamlets:
* Be ...
*
Bertincourt
Bertincourt () is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region in northern France.
Geography
Bertincourt is a farming village located 22 miles (36 km) southeast of Arras at the junction of the D7, D18 and D19 r ...
*
Flesquières
Flesquières () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.
Heraldry
See also
*Communes of the Nord department
The following is a list of the 648 communes of the Nord department of the French Republic.
The communes cooperate ...
*
MÅ“uvres
MÅ“uvres () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.
Heraldry
See also
*Communes of the Nord department
The following is a list of the 648 communes of the Nord department of the French Republic.
The communes cooperate in the ...
*
Fontaine-Notre-Dame, Nord
Fontaine-Notre-Dame is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.
Heraldry
Fontaine-Notre-Dame in World War I
Fontaine-Notre-Dame was the scene of intense fighting during the Battle of Cambrai in World War I.
The battle started on ...
Bantigny
Bantigny () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.
Population
Heraldry
See also
*Communes of the Nord department
The following is a list of the 648 communes of the Nord department of the French Republic.
The communes ...
*
Épinoy
Épinoy (; pcd, Spineu) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France.
Geography
A farming village situated southeast of Arras at the junction of the N43 and D21 roads.
Population
Places of interest
...
*
Bullecourt
Bullecourt () is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region in France.
Geography
Bullecourt lies on the Upper Cretaceous plain of Artois between Arras and Bapaume and east of the A1 motorway. Thisatellite photographs ...
*
Beugnies
Beugnies () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.
Population
Heraldry
See also
*Communes of the Nord department
The following is a list of the 648 communes of the Nord department of the French Republic.
The communes ...
* Demicourt
*
Lagnicourt-Marcel
Lagnicourt-Marcel is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France.
Geography
A farming village situated southeast of Arras, at the junction of the D18, D14 and the D5 roads.
Population
Places of interes ...
Situation in 1896
In 1896 the Sucrerie centrale de Cambrai was the biggest sugar factory in France, and one of the biggest in the world. It could process 3,000 t of beet per day. For this, the raw juice of the sugar beet was extracted in 16 râperies, one of which was located at the factory itself. These râperies spread out up to 15 km from the factory and were connected by 130 km of pipeline of different diameters. The scale of the factory was easily 10 times that of regular sugar factories.
In 1896 the location of the facilities was very favorable. The facilities were in an area which was very well suited to grow sugar beet. This allowed the creation of the network of râperies and guaranteed the steady supply of beet at a competing price. The factory was close to the northern northern coal mines. Its huge demand for limestone was supplied by a nearby quarry. For transport it had a canal with quays and its own railway connection to
Cambrai station
Cambrai is a railway station serving the town Cambrai, Nord department, northern France.
Services
The station is served by regional trains to Douai, Valenciennes, Saint-Quentin and Lille.steam cranes on rails. These beet could either be unloaded to the reception area, or to rail carriages which brought them to storage. The râperie at the central factory could process 300 t per day. The reception area with its long gutters assured a good cleaning. After cleaning, the beet were transported to the top of the building by means of a screw.
The central factory itself consisted of a great machinery hall of 100 by 18 m. It was surrounded by smaller buildings like the scum works, the generators, repair shops etc. In the great (machinery) hall the ground floor held: the vacuum pumps for the evaporators and vacuum pans, those for the ventilation system, the scum pumps and other pumps. One floor up were the boilers for the first and second carbonatation. Below these were the clearing tanks and filters. The triple effect evaporators and multiple vacuum pans were also at this level. The scum works were in a separate building. This also applied to the steam engines, which were in two parallel buildings separated by two railway tracks used to supply coal.
In 1896, the factory at Escaudœuvres was remarkable for its huge production and its perfectionism. Together with its râperies, it employed 2,000 workers, and could process 3,000 t of beet per day, which could lead to producing 3,000 bags of sugar per day. For this it used 30 wagons of coal, 15 of lime, and 3 of cokes. In 1894-1895 241,665 t of beet had been processed, and 246,822 bags of sugar of 100 kg each had been produced. This had required 31,000 t of coal.
Gruesome accident (1897)
On 14 October 1897 a gruesome accident happened in the central hall. The lower tank of one of the quintuple effect evaporators was not functioning well. The director of the factory, the chief engineer, two sous-chefs and 11 laborers were investigating and working on the malfunction in a place below the evaporator when the boiler exploded. The evaporator normally contained 30,000 liters of juice. This boiling juice now spread over the people below it. The lid of the boiler which had blown up meanwhile ripped open some steam pipes, the steam knocking out some people which were still standing after the initial shock.
Chief engineer Cottereau had been burned so badly that he was unrecognizable and died soon after. Sous-chef Croisier was found dead below a broken pipe. Sous-chef Dizy was severely burned and died of his wounds. 5 laborers were expected to die of their wounds, while 7 more were seriously wounded. In the end four laborers would die. Director Camuset had been working below the boiler with the others, but had been called to his office just before the explosion.
Twentieth century
During World War I, the area saw a lot of fighting. E.g. in the Battle of Cambrai (1917). Some of the râperies of the company were destroyed. The factory itself was heavily damaged. The war also led to a strong modernization and concentration of the sugar industry in northern France, with many small factories not reopening.
In 1923 the factory made its first post war campaign after a rebuilt and modernization. In about 1930 the factory in Escaudœuvres had a capacity of 3,000 t of beet per day. It used 9 râperies at a maximum distance of 24 km. The juice travelled at a speed of 1 km/h. In 1939 the capacity was also 3,000 t of beet per day.
In 1960 Sucrerie centrale de Cambrai merged with Les Sucreries Millet. In 1965 it acquired the Sucrerie de Bohain. The râperies were closed, and capacity at Escaudœuvres was increased to 5,000 t per day.
In 1971 a sugar silo of 35,000 t was taken into use.
tender offer
In corporate finance, a tender offer is a type of public takeover bid. The tender offer is a public, open offer or invitation (usually announced in a newspaper advertisement) by a prospective acquirer to all stockholders of a publicly traded corpo ...
to the shareholders of Sucrerie centrale de Cambrai. In 1990
owned 68.12% of Sucrerie centrale de Cambrai.
In 1974 capacity was increased to 8,000 t of beet per day. In 1987, a sugar silo of 80,000 t was taken into use.
Controlled by Tereos (2002-2023)
In 2002 the
cooperative
A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...