History

On the 12th of December 1882, William Lewis’ Brighton Cement Works was officially opened, with the ceremonious lighting of the kiln by the then Mayor of Glenelg, Mr. T. King, M.P. This date marks the commencement of the Portland cement industry within Australia.

During these pioneering years of Australia’s Cement industry, competition from international cement importers was fierce. Due to the lack of financial support and competition from the existing imported cement companies, the Brighton Cement Works closed in early 1883.

Eight years later in 1891, William Shearing, with help from William Lewis, erected an experimental Cement plant in his brickmaking works situated on what is now Port Road at Brompton. Using limestone from the Brighton area and silt (clay) from the River Torrens they manufactured a crude version of Portland cement. After some technical refinement, the first batch of marketable cement was produced in September of 1891 when ‘two bushels’ (approximately 100kg) were manufactured.

On the 6th of April 1892, with William Lewis as the Provisional Director, William Shearing and a number of shareholders formed Shearing’s Portland Cement Company Limited. This name was short-lived however, when just two weeks later, the Board of Directors voted unanimously to change the Company’s name to The South Australian Portland Cement Company Limited.

The Board’s first point of business was to commission the building of a new manufacturing plant, and at a cost of £11,767, construction commenced at Marino in late April. The new Works were opened by the Governor of South Australia on the 20th of December 1892.

Over the next 3 years The S.A. Portland Cement Co. Ltd. battled to win various government tenders and to establish itself as a reliable manufacturer of Portland cement. Although laboratory and practical testing confirmed that the quality of the product was superior to the imported cement, increasing financial debt and a change of government who reduced existing import tariffs, caused the Company to go into liquidation on the 10th of December 1895.