A two-stop tour rounds out the final day of the IEEE-IAS/PCA Cement Conference with exclusive access to the National Cement Company of Alabama, Inc.’s Ragland plant and Reworld Birmingham, an alternative engineered fuel (AEF) processing facility. 

The tour on Thursday, May 8, will depart Birmingham in two groups -- Group A will tour the cement plant first, and Group B will tour the alternative fuels facility first. Approximate timelines are below. The tour is an additional $50 option available during the badge registration process. For more information, email conference@cement.org.

Tour Group A

8:00      Depart BJCC for National Cement Company of Alabama, Inc. (Ragland, AL)

9:00      Arrive at National Cement

10:30    Depart National Cement

11:30    Arrive at Reworld Birmingham

12:00    Depart Reworld Birmingham with box lunch

12:30    Arrive at BJCC

Tour Group B

8:30      Depart BJCC for Reworld Birmingham

9:00      Arrive at Reworld Birmingham

9:45      Depart Reworld Birmingham

10:45    Arrive at National Cement Company of Alabama, Inc. (Ragland, AL)

12:15    Depart National Cement with box lunch

1:15      Arrive at BJCC

 

About the National Cement Company Plant Tour

Located approximately one hour from Birmingham in Ragland, Alabama, National Cement Company of Alabama, Inc.’s cement manufacturing plant is committed to the PCA Roadmap to Carbon Neutrality. 

As of mid-2023, the Ragland plant produces 100% portland-limestone (Type IL) cement while lowering its clinker factor and using more than 50% alternative fuels. Combined with low electrical consumption, these measures position the Ragland plant as one of the U.S. cement producers with the lowest portland-limestone cement carbon footprint.

The Ragland plant has produced cement in Alabama since 1908. After numerous investments, including a major $350-million investment in 2019 to build a new kiln, the new pyro line was commissioned in 2022. Designed and built with the latest technology, the plant can operate using 100% alternative fuels. 

Currently, more than 70% of fossil fuels are replaced with locally sourced alternative fuels, most of which are biomass.

The latest EPD for Ragland’s Type IL cement stands at 707 kgCO2eq/t, a number set to decrease with the continued use of alternative fuels. The Ragland plant can produce more than 2 million tons of cement annually, with plans to increase production to exceed 2.3 million tons by early 2026. 

National Cement Company, Inc. operates two cement manufacturing plants in the U.S. -- one in Alabama and one in California -- as part of the Vicat Group.

About the Reworld Birmingham Tour

Reworld Birmingham is one of Reworld’s newest alternative engineered fuel (AEF) processing facilities in the U.S. As the largest independent producer of refuse-derived fuel for cement kilns, Reworld is dedicated to repurposing hard-to-recycle plastics and other industrial byproducts into cleaner, high-quality fuel. Tour-goers will see Reworld’s state-of-the-art processing equipment in action, in conjunction with the opportunity to see how their fuels are used at National Cement’s Ragland.

By turning materials that would otherwise head to landfills into a sustainable fuel that matches coal’s energy properties, Reworld’s process eliminates 0.5 tons of CO2 for every ton of coal replaced. Get an up-close look at how Reworld helps power three Alabama cement kilns (including National Cement in Ragland) while helping the environment and learn more about Reworld’s ambitious plan to open five new facilities each year as the organization continues to expand AEF solutions nationwide.