Polycor Acquires French Quarries
QUÉBEC – The limestone quarries that help build some of France’s signature landmarks now belong to a North American owner: Polycor Inc.
Polycor announced the acquisition July 9 of four limestone quarries located in Burgundy, France, that previously belonging to Rocamat.
Click photo for gallery
Polycor plans to invest equipment and infrastructure updates, as well as return 18 employees back to their original activities at the quarries, now under Polycor’s leadership.
The acquisition of these French limestone quarries allows Polycor to further diversify its offering, now including the well-known Massangis stone.
For centuries, this limestone has been used to build some of the most important structures in France, including the Parisian landmarks of The Louvre, the Louis Vuitton Foundation and the base of the Eiffel Tower. It’s also used extensively at the Russian Orthodox Spiritual and Cultural Center of Paris, a project that gained recognition last year with a Award of Excellence: Commercial Exterior from the Natural Stone Institute’s Pinnacle Awards competition.
In the United States, the limestone clads the exterior of the modernist Katzen Arts Center at American University in Washington, D.C.
The French-quarry acquisition is the latest move from Polycor, one of North America’s largest stone processors. Since coming back under North American ownership in 2015, the company expanded its holdings that year with stone quarries in Maine, Oklahoma and Quebec, and also purchased Swenson Granite/Rock of Ages in 2016.
The North American quarrier is known for its vast portfolio of stones, many of which are the building blocks of heritage sites such as the Washington Monument benches and New York’s Saint Patrick’s Cathedral and Union Station.
This acquisition furthers Polycor’s global presence as the company aims to expand its scope of activities and line of products from one continent to another. With the company’s existing sales infrastructure, U.S. and world clients alike will now be able to purchase iconic French limestone in a variety of shapes and sizes: slabs, tiles, blocks and custom-made projects.
Celebrating its 30th anniversary, Polycor employs approximately 900 and owns over 30 quarries and 15 manufacturing plants across Canada, the United States and now, France.
