CARIB Cement admitted yesterday that a breakdown in quality control systems at the company’s Rockfort plant was responsible for the delivery of more than 500 tonnes of sub-standard cement to the Jamaican market.

The company, however, declined to say if any disciplinary action has been taken against any of its management or technical staff for the error which could cost the company several million dollars.

In the meantime, Dr Rollin Bertrand, the CEO of Trinidad Cement Limited (TCL), which owns majority shares in Carib Cement, said that 215 complaints have so far been received from customers by Carib Cement and they are being processed by the company.

Anthony Haynes, Carib Cement’s general manager, said that one-third of the complaints have been examined and some were found to exhibit breakdown at low strengths. “Those will be compensated fully,” he told the Observer, explaining that the cost of the materials used by contractors was taken into consideration.

After the delivery of sub-standard cement came to public’s attention in February, there was severe dislocation in the construction industry, resulting from uncertainties about the quality of cement used in projects and the subsequent halting of delivery by Carib Cement.

“We had lost control of the formulation of the product and at the same time having challenges with the heavy demand,” Bertrand told reporters at a press conference at the company’s Rockfort plant.

He said the problem started last October when the company ceased quarrying pozzolan (volcanic ash) at Cambridge Hill in St Thomas and used material from another site.

The Cambridge Hill site became unfavourable, he said, because of a combination of reasons, chief among from security concerns, including cases of extortion and the high operational costs.

“The variability of the materials from the new source affected the consistency in the production of clinker which in turn affected the quality of the cement,” said the TCL boss.

The problem, he said, was compounded by a reduction in the grinding efficiency of the main cement mill. “The mill which was scheduled for shut down for maintenance works had to remain in operation to meet increasing market demand,” he said.

According to Bertrand, the high demand for cement exacerbated the situation in the early months of the year resulting in the production of cement going from “mill to market” in a short time period. “In a situation like this quality control vigilance is essential,” he said.

“What we have found in our investigations is that when these issues came together we created a sub-standard product, which unfortunately was not caught by our quality control systems and bad cement was released into the market,” said Bertrand.

Non-conforming materials, he said, should have been identified and quarantined as is normal in manufacturing.

In the meantime, he said corrective measures would be put in place, with the strengthening of the quality control department of the plant. Resources, he said, were already mobilised from the rest of the group.

The company, he added, would also be extending its facility to include the testing of concrete as well as cement, and would also be working closer with the local standards bureau.

“We are going to be strengthening our relationship and obtain the Bureau of Standards’ national certification in the next four months,” said Bertrand. “We are also working to have ISO certification by the end of 2006,” he said.

But while conceding that the problem was based largely on human error and a breakdown in continuous internal quality control, and saying a change in personnel would form part of the solution, Bertrand refused to disclose whether employees at the Rockfort plant would be dismissed.

“I’d rather not discuss the internal matters with the media,” he said.

Meanwhile, Bertrand said corrective action already taken included the resumption of quarrying at Cambridge Hill and remedial work on the mill. The cement company, he added, would be seeking better community interaction with residents of Cambridge Hill in its plan to continue mining at the site.