The Power of Collaboration and Innovation

Holcim Honours Outstanding Performance in Annual Awards Celebrating Excellence

The Annual Excellence Awards for Holcim Australia & New Zealand brought together outstanding teams and individuals to celebrate achievements from 2024, in financial growth, innovation, sustainability, safety, diversity, and collaboration.

The ceremony, held on the Gold Coast as part of Holcim’s Senior Leaders Conference - New Era of Growth - highlighted the exceptional efforts that have driven continued success in safety, diversity and performance.

Accelerating Growth: Driving Financial and Commercial Success

(Pictured L-R: George Agriogiannis, Ben Thornton, Nigel Chamberlain and Scott Buchanan).

The Humes Western Australia and Mobile Teams took home the Award for Growth in Financial Results or Workforce Output, having achieved record-breaking success in the Western Australian precast concrete products market. By embracing a “One Holcim” approach to create a more unified, efficient, and customer-centric organisation, they maximised efficiency and commercial excellence across three facilities, setting a new benchmark in business performance.

(Pictured L-R: George Agriogiannis, Steve Thomas and Greg Price)

The Queensland Aggregates Sales Team was recognised with the Award for Commercial (Customer Outcomes) for their resilience and market leadership. Despite a challenging economic landscape, the team enhanced pricing strategies and customer engagement, delivering strong commercial results and maintaining Holcim’s competitive edge.

Expanding Products & Solutions: Pioneering Innovation

The ECOPact Active and ECOPact Max low-carbon concrete products to support sustainable construction practices, developed by the Victoria and South Australia teams, received the Award for Products. By closely collaborating with customers and technical experts, they successfully introduced low-carbon concrete solutions, driving adoption across residential, precast, and infrastructure projects. ECOPact Active delivers embodied carbon reduction, early-age strength and low shrinkage, while high-performance ECOPact Max maintains strength and quality to meet rigorous structural requirements.

(Pictured L-R: George Agriogiannis, Sushant Mane, Sasa Ivkovic and Guido Dewilde)

For their advancements in sustainability solutions, the Holcim Sustainability Team was awarded the Award for Solutions. Their enhancements to a digital platform streamlines the creation of Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) on Demand. EPD 2.0 expands its coverage to a wider range of sustainable products, enhancing environmental transparency and data accessibility. With an automated system that generates EPDs in hours instead of 12–18 months, customers gain faster, more reliable insights to drive informed sustainability decisions.

(Pictured L-R: Michael Miller, Evan Smith, Cyril Giraud and George Agriogiannis)

Leading in Innovation & Sustainability: Pushing Boundaries for a Greener Future

(Pictured L-R: George Agriogiannis, Paul Rocker and Jess Blomfield)

The Queensland Concrete, Technical, and Value Added Products Teams received the Award for Innovation for their groundbreaking use of SMARTCast technology. By integrating real-time concrete strength monitoring, they helped accelerate low-carbon ECOPact concrete adoption in major infrastructure projects. By providing precise information on strength development, SMARTCast enables faster formwork removal and structural loading, potentially reducing construction time by up to four days per floor in high-rise buildings.

(Pictured L-R: George Agriogiannis, Opinder Saggi, Dave Barker and Jess Blomfield)

The New Zealand Ready-Mix Concrete Technical Team won the Award for Sustainability for their work in low-carbon concrete mix development. By increasing the use of supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs), they made significant progress in reducing emissions in concrete production, setting a new industry standard in New Zealand.

Delivering Superior Performance: Achieving Outstanding Business Results

The Lang Lang Quarry Team in Victoria was honoured with the Award for Superior Performance for their transformational improvements in efficiency, output, and overall business operations. Their strategic approach has enhanced productivity and strengthened Holcim’s market leadership.

(Pictured L-R: George Agriogiannis, Nathan Thomas and Joe Di Mento)

We Keep Each Other Safe: Prioritising People and Wellbeing

(Pictured L-R: George Agriogiannis, Colin Mckeown and Helen Jones)

The Humes Pooraka Team in South Australia won the Award for Physical Safety, Mental Health, Wellbeing, or Volunteering for their proactive approach to employee health and wellbeing. Their “We Keep Each Other Safe” initiative has fostered a supportive and health-conscious workplace culture, benefiting both employees and their families.

(Pictured L-R: George Agriogiannis, Yew Yang Tan and Helen Jones)

For their commitment to creating an inclusive workplace, the 2023 Graduate Program Cohort was recognised with the Award for Diversity and Inclusion. Their research and development of Employee Resource Groups have laid the foundation for advancing diversity and inclusion across Holcim in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand.

The One Holcim Spirit: Embodying Company Values

The Award for Values was presented to Ricky Elatm, who exemplifies Holcim’s core principles through his dedication and customer-first mindset. His commitment to service excellence and willingness to go above and beyond have made a lasting impact within the organisation.

(Pictured L-R: George Agriogiannis, Ricky Elatm and Helen Jones)

The Western Australia Concrete, Aggregates, and Humes Businesses received the Award for Community for their Landcare Week Volunteering Day. In partnership with the Armadale Gosnells Landcare Group, the team planted native vegetation to restore wetland areas, demonstrating Holcim’s commitment to environmental stewardship.

(Pictured L-R: George Agriogiannis, Sam Russell and Brad Tallon)

The evening’s final honor, the Award for Collaboration, was presented to the team behind Holcim’s Sustainability Value Proposition Training. Led by Cyril Giraud, Evan Smith, Steve Mossie, Scott Tunkin, Paul Adams, and Josh Marks, this program empowers teams with the expertise to advocate for low-carbon solutions and integrate sustainability into operations, reinforcing Holcim’s leadership in sustainable construction.

The Excellence Awards for Holcim Australia & New Zealand were a remarkable celebration of teamwork, innovation, and leadership. Congratulations to all winners for their exceptional contributions!