Tarmac has announced that its Cement and Lime business has been awarded an ‘Excellent’ rating under BES 6001.

The company’s UK business has held a BES 6001 rating of ‘Very Good’ across its entire product range since 2011. But according to Tarmac, the latest certification makes it the first company within the cement and lime sectors to be awarded the ‘Excellent’ rating.

The independent BRE standard assesses the systems that a company has in place to ensure that materials are sourced and managed responsibly against a national set of criteria. This accreditation endorses Tarmac’s commitment to monitoring its supply chain and ensuring its adherence to environmental, social regulatory and legislative benchmarks.

Commenting on the rating, Dr Martyn Kenny, sustainability director at Tarmac, said: “We are delighted to have received this rating as recognition of our commitment to upholding exacting standards for responsible sourcing. We know this is a key issue for our customers, and also for government. People need to trust who they’re doing business with, and know that they’re not being exposed to reputational risk via the materials they’re using.

“Responsible sourcing is a key part of our sustainability strategy, and we’ve targeted ourselves with gaining an ‘Excellent’ rating across our whole business.”

Dr Kenny continued: “Each of our Cement and Lime sites has been certified to BES 6001, so customers get the consistency and assurance of knowing the precise input our products can make to their overall rating on schemes like BREEAM, irrespective of which Tarmac site they work with. With an ‘Excellent’ rating, we can make a real difference to the sustainability credentials of projects.”