The raw material used to make cement (limestone, clay, sand, iron mineral and gypsum) is extracted from quarries or mines and, depending on the strength and location of the material, several exploitation systems and equipments are applied. Once it is extracted, the raw material is reduced in order to get sizes that can be processed by the mills.

The homogenisation stage can be done through humid or dry way, depending if we use air or water currents to mix the materials. In the humid process, the materials are mixed by pumping homogenisation pools, and then the materials are taken to ovens where the Clinker is produced under temperatures of over 1500°C. In the dry process, the raw material is homogenised in grounds of raw material using special machineries. In this process, the chemical control is more efficient and the consumption of energy is reduced, as we do not have to eliminate the water added to mix the materials, the ovens are shorter and the Clinker requires less time under high temperatures.

The Clinker that is obtained, regardless of the process used in the homogenisation stage, is then ground with little quantities of gypsum alone or with additives – such as limestone – in order to eventually obtain cement.