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This year, 2023, marks the centenary of the construction of the Vicálvaro cement factory, where Cementos Portland Valderrivas manufactured and distributed its products for al- most 80 years. In recognition of the contribution that the factory has made to the environment, the Vicus Albus Association has held an exhi- bition where a multitude of historical documents describing the factory’s relationship with the town have been on display. The president of the association, Valentín González, known as the ‘mayor of Vicálvaro’, said during his speech that the Cementos Portland Valderrivas Group “marked a befo- re and after in this neighbourhood of Madrid”. History of the factory The Valderrivas Group was created in 1905, in the old neighbourhood of Doña Carlota in the Vallecas area, where the first founders had a mo - saic and brick factory. In this factory, its manager, Mr. Ynzenga, opted to diversify the business and, in addi- tion to bricks, decided to produce ce- ment, a novelty at the time. Between 1921-1922, the Ynzenga fa- mily looked for a suitable area for the construction of the cement factory and decided to settle in Vicálvaro, as it was an enclave rich in clay and other natural materials, which were necessary for the manufacture of cement. In 1923, cons- truction began on the Vicálvaro factory, which was to last two years, and its first cements were to be used for asphalting the streets of the town. 100th anniversary of the construction of the Vicálvaro cement factory in Madrid A new life for Vicálvaro The start-up of the Vicálvaro fac- tory meant the development of the municipality, transforming it from an eminently agricultural town into an industrialised locality, provoking a re- volution in which a large number of workers from the countryside moved to industry. The cement factory, as well as being one of the main sources of wealth in the town, also became a national reference point with the construction boom in Spain. In the words of the president of the Vicus Albus Association: “the com- pany was a milestone in the deve- lopment of the expanding neigh- bourhood and in providing work for several generations”. After the factory moved to Morata de Tajuña, more than 6,000 homes were built on its site, creating the new neighbourhood of Valderrivas in the municipality. Aerial view of the old cement factory in Vicálvaro, Madrid. Photo courtesy of the Vicus Albus Association. Interior of the plant. T H E P L A C E 62