§         February 2006: Launch of the Lafarge North America minority interests buyout, to optimize Lafarge's continued development in North America.

§         March 2006: Launch of the safety roadmap, priority n°1 for the Group's employees. For Lafarge, safety lies at the heart of its humanist values and is a key factor in improving productivity. Lafarge aims to be among the leading industrial companies worldwide in terms of safety, and has made it a strategic priority.

§         March 2006 - Lafarge launches a project targeting energy self-sufficiency in buildings by 2050. Under the auspices of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, Lafarge is the instigator of a debate on energy efficiency in residential and commercial buildings. The aim is to design and construct buildings which do not consume any external energy, which are carbon-neutral and which can be built and managed for the lowest possible cost.

§         June 2006: Announcement of the "Excellence 2008" strategic plan. Concentrating on the group's strengths, focusing on achieving its ambitions and with a more efficient organization, this plan reflects Lafarge's determination to be the best in its industry, for its customers, its shareholders, its workforce and all its stakeholders.  The plan's objectives include a simplified organization, cost reductions and a clarification of the group's growth strategy, focusing primarily on cement in growth markets and on innovation.

§         August 2006: Start-up of the first cement plant in BangladeshThe start-up of the first cement plant in Bangladesh, a market of rapid urban development, is the outcome of a bold challenge, on a technical, political and human level. The cement plant, in the North of the country, receives limestone from neighbouring India, via the world's longest conveyor belt (17 km).

§         September 2006: Bruno Lafont becomes Special Advisor to the Mayor of Chongging in China. Lafarge, the number one cement manufacturer in South-West China, stands out through its commitment to environmental protection and health and safety for its employees and subcontractors.

§         September 2006: Development stepped up on growth markets Population growth, urban development and economic growth generate annual growth of some 100 million tonnes on the world cement market. Lafarge is particularly well placed to take advantage of this growth, which is why the Group has chosen to focus on internal development. In cement and mainly in emerging markets, Lafarge announces a construction programme for 40 million tonnes in additional capacity between 2006 and 2010, corresponding to six times the equivalent of its current cement production in France: in particular in India, China, Ecuador, Russia, Morocco, South Africa and Uganda, as well as North America and France.

§         October 2006: French launch of the Sensium technological cements, which combine three key innovations: dust-free technology, a new production process and innovative properties to improve fluidity and workability on construction sites.

§         December 2006: Sale of the Roofing business for an enterprise value of EUR 2.4 billion. The group maintains a 35% stake in the capital of the new entity.

§         February 2007: Record annual results announced by the Group Sales: +17%                     Current operating income: +23% Net income: +25%               Net earnings per share: +23%

  Career  Bertrand Collomb (1942) is Honorary Chairman of Lafarge. After graduating from the Ecole Polytechnique and the Ecole des Mines in Paris, Bertrand Collomb started a government career, working for the Industry Ministry’s Regional Department in Lorraine (1967-1970). During this period, he also obtained a law degree and taught economics at the Ecole des Mines de Nancy. In 1970, he went to the United States, where he obtained a PhD in Management at the University of Texas.
Returning to France, he held various posts in the Industry Ministry and in ministerial teams of staff. Alongside this, he also taught courses in management theory at ESSEC. Strongly influenced by his research on management during his PhD studies in the United States, he founded and, from 1971 to 1973, managed the Centre for Management Research at the Ecole Polytechnique.
He joined Lafarge in 1975, as Regional Director for the West of France, based in Nantes. After occupying various positions within the group, he was appointed CEO of Lafarge Corporation, the group’s North American subsidiary (1985-1988), before becoming chairman and CEO of the group in August 1989, at the age of 47. In 2003, he became Chairman of the Lafarge Board of Directors, remaining in this position until May 2007, when Bruno Lafont was appointed Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Group.   

Development of the Group  At the helm of the company, he created a new Research Centre at l'Isle d’Abeau, in 1991. He accelerated Lafarge’s international development, while preserving the humanist spirit and entrepreneurial values that have always been a feature of the group. Under his management, the group multiplied in size, particularly with the acquisition of Redland in 1997 and Blue Circle in 2001, becoming the world leader in building materials. In 2002, Bertrand Collomb began preparing his succession and launched Leader for Tomorrow, a far-reaching project to mobilize the group’s 80,000 employees, placing Bruno Lafont in charge of this project.     

Sustainable development  Convinced of the private sector’s role in the field of sustainable development, he has been the driving force behind Lafarge’s approach in this domain. One of the rare CEOs to attend the Rio Summit in 1992, he understood very early on the importance of the issue of climate change. In 2000, he personally initiated the pioneering partnership between Lafarge and the WWF International – a partnership in the context of which Lafarge made ambitious commitments to reduce its CO2 emissions. In 2003, on behalf of the group, he endorsed the ten commitments of the United Nations Global Compact, as well as the Diversity Charter in 2004. In an ever more complex environment and in a much wider dimension, he has continued the group’s humanist tradition, insisting on respect for the men and women who work at the company, anticipation and preparation for change, and social dialogue.        

A committed player As a committed player, Bertrand Collomb has contributed for many years to initiatives involving the corporate world in the vital issues of modern citizenship. From 1992 to 2000, he presided over the creation of ANVIE (French association for the inter-disciplinary valorisation of social sciences in companies), and, at the same time, was Vice-President of the French association “Entreprises pour l’Environnement”.  From 1996 to 2001, he chaired the “Institut de l’Entreprise” and, in 2000, was co-Chairman of the Trans-Atlantic Business Dialogue, an organisation bringing together European and American companies to facilitate trade. Since 2003, he has been Vice-Chairman of the Global Business Coalition against HIV/AIDS, an organisation grouping together companies from all over the world to combat AIDS.  Chairman of the WBCSD (World Business Council for Sustainable Development) in 2004 and 2005, he pushed for the creation of the Cement Sustainability Initiative, the world’s first sectorial initiative in support of sustainable development and against climate change.  A long-standing participant at Davos, Bertrand Collomb has been a member of the European round table of Industrialists since 1989 and has been Chairman of IFRI (the French Institute of International Relations) since 2004. Today, maintaining his great interest in economic and social issues, Bertrand Collomb continues to play an active role in several institutions. He has been president of AFEP (Association Française des Entreprises Privées), which brings together the 80 biggest French groups, since 2002. In 2001, he was elected as a member of the “Institut de France” (Academy of Moral and Political Science).  Bertrand Collomb is also a director of Total, DuPont and ATCO.     

 Key dates for the group

1989            Bertrand Collomb becomes Chairman and CEO

1991             Inauguration of the Central Research Laboratory in Isle d’Abeau, the world’s leading building materials research facility

1997             Acquisition of Redland

2001             Acquisition of Blue Circle

2001    Listing on the New York Stock Exchange

2002    Launch of Leader for Tomorrow, a far-reaching corporate project to mobilize the group’s 80,000 employees, after the group doubled in size following the Blue Circle buyout

2003    Separation of the functions of Chairman and CEO (permitted under a new company             law). Bertrand Collomb steps down from his post as the group’s CEO. Bernard Kasriel, previously COO of the group, becomes CEO. He remains in this function until his retirement, at the end of December 2005. Bruno Lafont is appointed Chief Operating Officer of the group, with joint responsibility for the cement division.

2004    Bruno Lafont is appointed as a director of the group

2006    Bruno Lafont becomes the group’s CEO on January 1^st

2007    Bertrand Collomb steps down as Chairman and becomes Honorary Chairman

            Bruno Lafont becomes Chairman and CEO 

International development

1990    The group enters the East European market, a few months after the fall of the Berlin wall (East Germany in 1990, then the Czech Republic in 1992, Poland in 1995, Russia in 1996, Romania in 1997, Ukraine in 1999…) 

1994    First plant in China

1997    Entry into South Korea, at the time of the Asian crisis  Acquisition of Redland, raising the group to the rank of world leader in Aggregates

1998    The group moves into South Africa

1999    The group moves into India

2001    Acquisition of Blue Circle, making Lafarge the world’s leading cement company and the world leader in building materials The group moves into several countries: Malaysia, Chile, Greece, the UK, Nigeria

2005    Joint venture with Shui On in China: Lafarge becomes one of China’s top three cement producers and the leader in South-West China

2006    Start-up of the first cement plant in Bangladesh, supplied with limestone from India by a 17 km-long conveyor belt.  

Sustainable development

1996            Creation of the European Works Council

2000            Signature of the pioneering partnership with the WWF

2001            Voluntary commitment to reduce the group’s CO2 emissions throughout the world by 20 % per ton of cement.

2002            Signature of the partnership with CARE to design and implement a Group programme to combat AIDS in the most severely affected zones, primarily in Africa

2003            Signature of the United Nations Global Compact

2004            Signature of the Diversity Charter

2004            Group-wide mobilization following the tsunami that struck its cement plant in Banda Aceh in Indonesia. After initial emergency relief work, the group launches longer-term aid projects to help the local population and starts rebuilding the plant.

2005            Signature of an agreement with the international trade union federations concerning social responsibility and international social relations.