Location:
- Grid reference: TQ57347555
- x=557340
- y=175550
- 51°27'25"N; 0°15'53"E
- Civil Parish: Stone, Kent
Clinker manufacture operational: 1879-1914, 1919-1922
Approximate total clinker production: 460,000 tonnes
Raw materials:
- Upper Chalk (Seaford Chalk Formation: 85-88 Ma) solely from the Stone Court Chalk Land and Pier Co., from Stone Court Lodge quarry at 556900,174600, plus (1900 onwards) Cotton Lane East quarry at 556400,174800. No chalk was sourced north of the railway.
- Alluvial Clay from Stone Marshes and from the Medway.
Ownership:
- 1879-1890 Williams Fry and Co. Ltd
- 1890-1903 Albion Portland Cement Co. Ltd
- 1903-1911 Artillery and Albion Cement Co.
- 1911-1922 BPCM (Blue Circle)
One of three plants installed at the Stone Court ballast pier, the starting date and configuration of the plant is unclear. Jackson puts it as early as 1873, but the estate was up for sale in 1975 solely as a chalk exporter, with prospects of cement manufacture. Because the site was re-arranged at an early date, the initial equipment is also uncertain, but might have been five wet-process bottle kilns (130 t/week), perhaps later extended to ten. In 1889 a pair of Dietzsch kilns (100 t/week) were installed, and perhaps a second pair was installed a few years later. At some stage in the 1890s, probably around 1896, the kiln area was entirely cleared, and Batchelor kilns were installed. By 1907, there was a set of six (188 t/week), and two sets of four (126 t/week each), bringing capacity to 440 t/week. Its activities were amalgamated with those of Artillery in 1903. There was no rail link, and all product was shipped from Stone Court pier. The kilns were demolished in 1923 and the site was entirely cleared before 1930. The remaining plant was described in a 1924 schedule. An extended Stone Court pier now serves a large container terminal covering the Albion, Greenhithe and Shield sites.
Power supply
The plant was entirely direct-driven by 300 HP double-expansion steam engine.
Rawmills
The plant used a rough- and an intermediate washmill, followed by three Clarkes screeners.
No rotary kilns were installed.
Sources::
- Primary Sources:
- Greenhithe Archive
- 1924 schedule
- Ordnance Survey 1:2500 mapping
- Confirmatory Sources: