TAIHEIYO Cement Philippines, Inc. (TCPI) doubled its capacity to deliver Grand Cement products to markets off Cebu as Solid Earth Development Corp. (SEDC) inaugurated recently its expanded port facilities in South Poblacion, San Fernando, Cebu.
Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Almendras Magpale graced the inauguration with San Fernando Vice Mayor Miguel Antonio Canoy as she inspected the limestone mining quarry of SEDC and the cement manufacturing facility of TCPI in the same latitude and barangay as the pier.
Major cement dealers who serve markets in the whole of the Visayas and parts of southern Luzon welcomed and embraced the development as their capability to distribute Grand Cement products has now equally doubled in volume and timeliness.
They joined the Japanese executives and senior Filipino officials of both TCPI and SEDC to witness the milestone in their collaborative operations, along with officials from Cebu Ports Authority (CPA) that regulates SEDC’s operations of the expanded port.
Civil engineers studied wind and wave patterns brought by the major monsoon winds – Amihan, or the northeasterly winds that carry cold air from Siberia at this time of the year, and Habagat, the southwest trade winds from the Indian Ocean – in designing the pier.
“The pier is secured from big waves that no longer have much effect to the docking vessels in a way that loading cement to these vessels is not interrupted,” noted Eng’r. Rolando G. Buhisan, head of TCPI Engineering Division.
SEDC invested P270 million for the project, according to its president, Atty. Dennis B. Tenefrancia.
“The port we operate could now accommodate five more vessels, double the number before the expansion,” he said, adding: “We have increased by 100 percent our capability to dispatch cement in bags for TCPI to its offshore dealers.”
Stewardship
In his message, and citing it as parallel to the vision of the CPA, SEDC director and technical adviser Takehito Oga said SEDC aims to “deliver effective port services, and help promote regional commerce” with its 10 berthing spaces.
In addressing TCPI and its dealers, he said: “We hope and trust that this (inauguration of the expanded port) will pave the way for stronger ties, among us, that will extend our relationships for many, many years to come.”
“Foremost in all level of our operations is the engaging of responsible, environmental stewardship,” he added, something that Vice Gov. Magpale personally noticed when she inspected the facilities of TCPI and SEDC earlier.
“I see in your operations that you have key reverence for nature, something that I will relay to my colleagues in government,” said Magpale who grew after World War II in the environs of a cement plant when her father managed what was then the Universal Cement in Danao City.
Magpale assured the continued support of the provincial government to both TCPI and SEDC, especially that both “have been observing the cardinal rule in taking care of nature, plus the fact that your operations bolster Cebu’s capacity for growth and role as agent for a better economy for the Philippines.”