Grand Canyon National Park’s popular South Rim now has an improved system of roadways, intersections, bus pads, sidewalks and ADA ramps—just in time for summer tourists.

Southwest Concrete Paving Co. teamed up with CEMEX, the U.S. Forest Service and the Grand Canyon National Park Service to complete the work on project, called Desert View Drive, over a span of three months. Beginning in February 2018, CEMEX supplied 4,000 cubic yards of concrete for the job, all batched out of the Flagstaff Ready-Mix Plant.

The newly paved surfaces cover the areas that are most frequently used by the park’s more than 5 million annual visitors.

“When we were choosing the concrete supplier for this project, we selected CEMEX because we knew that they would provide a top-quality product, safely, when we needed it. This job was built under very challenging circumstances, and required quite a bit of technical skill and coordination. We were very pleased with how well CEMEX performed,” said Chad Nuttall of Southwest Concrete Paving Co.

To deliver the concrete from Flagstaff, which is 80 miles away from the jobsite, the concrete was first dosed with a hydration stabilizer to extend the working time, and then with an accelerator upon arrival to prep it for the pour.

“CEMEX is committed to providing superior customer experiences so our customers can accomplish their goals and build their businesses,” said CEMEX West Region President Eric Wittmann. “Southwest Concrete Paving Co. improved both the aesthetics and safety of Grand Canyon National Park’s roadways with the Desert View Drive project, and we are proud to have been able to supply them with the right concrete for the job.”

CEMEX is a global building materials company that provides high quality products and reliable service to customers and communities in more than 50 countries throughout the world. Its U.S. network includes 11 cement plants, more than 50 strategically- located distribution terminals, 50 aggregate quarries and nearly 270 ready-mix concrete plants.