The Castellar de n'Hug Asland Cement Museum, one of the three main sites of the National Museum of Science and Technology of Catalonia (mNACTEC) has now opened its permanent exhibition "From Asland to LafargeHolcim. A hundred years of cement”. The displays feature a journey through the history of today's company, Lafarge Cementos, from its founding as Asland (the Asland General Asphalt and Portland Company) in 1901, down to its current position as a multinational belonging to the LafargeHolgim Group.
The exhibition focuses on the constant technological innovation undertaken by the company throughout its history, explaining the Portland cement production process, and the different types and applications of the material.
A century-old company
The LafargeHolcim company, founded in 1901, established its first cement factory in the town of Castellar de n’Hug, at a site known as El Clot del Moro. It comprises a Modernist building, emphasising the spectacular nature of industrialisation in Catalonia, within a striking natural setting, characteristics that led it to be listed as an Asset of National Cultural Interest in the Historical Landmark category in the year 2005. The company offered the landmark building to the Government of Catalonia by way of collaboration with its plans to promote the understanding of science and technology in the industrial history of Catalonia.
Over a hundred years of history, the company, dedicated to the production and sale of cement, aggregate, concrete and mortar, has evolved to become a part of the LafargeHolcim Group, the owner of factories and quarries at various sites around the country, including a cement factory in the municipal borough of Montcada i Reixac.
The Cement Museum
The Asland cement factory closed in the 1960s. Its remains, still visible today, highlight the spectacular nature of the most notable manufacturing complexes involved in the industrialisation of Catalonia. In the year 2002 the factory began a new life, through its conversion into the Castellar d'en Hug Asland Cement Museum, thanks to the creation of a visitor centre and a route around the outside of the factory's industrial ruins.
The Asland industrial cement complex is one of the three main mNACTEC sites, and forms a part of its Regional Structure.
27 October 2016
