August 24, 2006

Cement Firm Moves US Headquarters to Lowry

Denver, CO -- GCC, a Mexico-based cement company, has moved its U.S. headquarters to the former Lowry Air Force Base. The firm is consolidating executives currently based in Texas, New Mexico, Colorado and South Dakota at the Rampart Campus office complex at Lowry.

Groupo Cementos de Chihuahua (GCC) was founded in 1941 in Chihuahua, Mexico and started exporting cement products to the United States in the 1970s. GCC acquired its first US cement plant in 1994 and now GCC of America, Inc. (GCCA) has U.S. assets of $760 million and 1,060 employees in eight states. It owns three cement plants, including one under construction in Pueblo that is scheduled to open next summer, nine cement distribution terminals, a coal mine in Durango, CO and 45 ready-mix concrete plants.

The firm considered numerous locations in metro Denver before selecting Lowry. "Denver is the geographic center of our operations and we knew we could attract good talent there," said Enrique Escalante, President and CEO. "Lowry has good access to the airport and provides a strong quality of life for our employees."

The wide variety of home types and prices was particularly appealing to Escalante, who recently moved in and enrolled his teenage son at nearby Bishop Machebeuf High School.

Approximately 15 executives, managers and analysts will move to Lowry through this fall, and the firm plans to hire an additional four to five people in the near future.

GCC of America is leasing approximately 9,000 square feet of space in Rampart Campus, a three-building historic redevelopment by Coughlin and Company. The campus is nearly 100 percent leased; other tenants include Colorado Allergy and Asthma Centers, Family Medicine at Lowry, Denver Nephrology and Space Age Credit Union.

Enrique Escalante joined GCC in 1999 as director of the Mexico Division. He has been president of the U.S. Division since 2000. Mr. Escalante earned a degree in industrial and systems engineering from the elite Instituto Technologio in Monterrey, Mexico and a master's degree in business administration from Cornell University.

More than 100 employers have located at Lowry, occupying 3.4 million square feet of space and employing 7,100 people. Lowry employers are private businesses, nonprofit organizations, state and federal government and schools. About one-third of the employers are medical office firms and 71 percent are small businesses, with less than 50 workers. Seven percent of employers have more than 250 workers.