Connect with us

Concrete

We intend to tap housing segment for sale of precast products

Published

on

Shares

Yashovardhan Daga Executive Director, RBBR Infrastructure

Indian construction industry is now slowly embracing precast building technology. Improving socio-economic development has increased demand for affordable housing. Indian government is planning to provide subsidies for builders to meet the shortage of 25 million affordable apartment buildings. Precast is also popular for commercial projects. With growing number of infrastructure projects initiated Precast industry is set to boom in India. The technology has been proven to be a good solution for ensuring work safety and dealing with shortage of skilled labour in the building industry. ICR interacted with Yashovardhan Daga, to understand the growth potential of the sector.

How is precast market evolving in India?
Precast is mostly suitable to companies that take up huge building projects that could be constructed from repetitive simple units. For example, large building companies. However, the demand from such companies is so large that they have their own precast units. So large companies build precast structures for their own captive consumption. Small contractors on the other hand come to precast manufacturers only when they get desperate. They come to us when five months of the six month project are over and now they have to rapidly finish a large chunk of the project in the remaining one month. They might be facing labour shortages and precast is their only way out.

Builders do understand the merit of precast, but the economics do not permit them to setup their own precast units. However, they are getting inspired from success of other builders exploring precast structures and are slowly moving to this method of building. We intend to tap housing segment for sale of precast products.

Why are large infrastructure companies not owning their own precast unit?
It is not necessary that all infrastructure building companies will opt for having a captive precast unit. For example, L&T is one of the largest infrastructure company in India, but they are not setting precast RCC pipe manufacturing units everywhere. Precast RCC pipe manufacturing is not their core business. Neither can one guarantee today how the infrastructure growth will be tomorrow. Today we have lots of road projects in hand, but five year down the line we may not have that many road building projects. So it will be better to outsource precast material, than to have your own unit.

How is the demand for concrete in India?
Concrete is a pretty standard product and there is always a certain amount of demand for this product in the market. However, the demand is low. We are not exactly in the concrete manufacturing business, but we keep interacting with equipment suppliers and we know that the demand is low. However, concrete market in India is large and unorganised and a lot of concrete manufacturing goes unreported.

How is availability of aggregates affecting the business? And what can be done to alleviate the issue?
We are facing aggregate shortage due to ban on mining. In India several mining operations are put to halt for environmental reasons. However, this is not a problem that cannot be solved. Concrete is manufactured in European countries too. European nations have some of the most strictest norms when it comes to environment. If aggregates and concrete can be manufactured there, then India too can find a way to manufacture it here.

One critical aspect here is that in India we do not have concretologists. If you look at the websites of international concrete suppliers, they give in-depth technical details of the material being supplied. Here we are rarely bothered about such details. Yes, we have shortage of aggregates, but then why are we not using granite as aggregate material, which is available in plenty. We are a bit hesitant when it comes to trying out a new technology.

What government initiatives can help precast industry?
Taxation must be rationalised for precast manufacturers. Just because we have a factory we are taxed extra. We often lose customers to competitors who are evading taxes. When a builder purchases a unit from us, they have to pay the VAT as well as Excise. This is an extra burden of around 15 per cent tax on the precast manufacturing industry. We are contributing to construction activity directly and should be treated as construction contractors while designing a tax policy that affects us.

What do you look at while selecting a vendor for suppling equipment?
While selecting a vendor, our first priority is to look at service quality. They must provide support in maintenance of the equipment. If we are churning out tonnes and tonnes of material on a daily basis, the machine is going to require maintenance too. So we want our equipment providers to support us when we need it. This is very important if we are trying a new product for the first time. We expect the vendors to support us for first two months at least. Second is price, but not at the cost of quality.

What about Chinese products? How is their quality?
I have not purchased any thing from china, but I have been visiting the Chinese market and their exploring equipment market. From what I have seen, there is nothing wrong with the quality of Chinese equipment. I saw that their customers are happy, both in and out of China. So, I feel that it is a myth that just because something is from China, its quality is bad.

Chinese manufacturers are perhaps falling short when it comes to marketing skills. We saw that a Chinese company may be selling 1 million units, but when we interact with their people we do not get satisfying answers to our queries. However, when we examine their equipment we do not see anything wrong with it. So I feel that it is just a language barrier.

We rarely develop indigenous products. Are we falling short on technological front?
I think that technology wise we are not lagging behind. A country that can build rockets can also build machinery for precast products. But we have to grow our appetite to take-on challenges. For example, there are only a few big precast manufacturers in India. But if one contacts them for a new product, then they have to contact their foreign partner for the know-how. We must learn to be come self sufficient and develop products indigenously.

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Concrete

India Sets Up First Carbon Capture Testbeds for Cement Industry

Five CCU testbeds launched to decarbonise cement production

Published

on

By

Shares
The Department of Science and Technology (DST) recently unveiled a pioneering national initiative: five Carbon Capture and Utilisation (CCU) testbeds in the cement sector, forming a first-of-its-kind research and innovation cluster to combat industrial carbon emissions.
This is a significant step towards India’s Climate Action for fostering National Determined Contributions (NDCs) targets and to achieve net zero decarbonisation pathways for Industry Transition., towards the Government’s goal to achieve a carbon-neutral economy by 2070.
Carbon Capture Utilisation (CCU) holds significant importance in hard-to-abate sectors like Cement, Steel, Power, Oil &Natural Gas, Chemicals & Fertilizers in reducing emissions by capturing carbon dioxide from industrial processes and converting it to value add products such as synthetic fuels, Urea, Soda, Ash, chemicals, food grade CO2 or concrete aggregates. CCU provides a feasible pathway for these tough to decarbonise industries to lower their carbon footprint and move towards achieving Net Zero Goals while continuing their operations efficiently. DST has taken major strides in fostering R&D in the CCUS domain.
Concrete is vital for India’s economy and the Cement industry being one of the main hard-to-abate sectors, is committed to align with the national decarbonisation commitments. New technologies to decarbonise emission intensity of the cement sector would play a key role in achieving of national net zero targets.
Recognizing the critical need for decarbonising the Cement sector, the Energy and Sustainable Technology (CEST) Division of Department launched a unique call for mobilising Academia-Industry Consortia proposals for deployment of Carbon Capture Utilisation (CCU) in Cement Sector. This Special call envisaged to develop and deploy innovative CCU Test bed in Cement Sector with thrust on Developing CO2 capture + CO2 Utilisation integrated unit in an Industrial set up through an innovative Public Private Partnership (PPP) funding model.
As a unique initiative and one of its first kind in India, DST has approved setting up of five CCU testbeds for translational R&D, to be set up in Academia-Industry collaboration under this significant initiative of DST in PPP mode, engaging with premier research laboratories as knowledge partners and top Cement companies as the industry partner.
On the occasion of National Technology Day celebrations, on May 11, 2025 the 5 CCU Cement Test beds were announced and grants had been handed over to the Test bed teams by the Chief Guest, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology; Earth Sciences and Minister of State for PMO, Department of Atomic Energy, Department of Space, Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Dr Jitendra Singh in the presence of Secretary DST Prof. Abhay Karandikar.
The five testbeds are not just academic experiments — they are collaborative industrial pilot projects bringing together India’s top research institutions and leading cement manufacturers under a unique Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model. Each testbed addresses a different facet of CCU, from cutting-edge catalysis to vacuum-based gas separation.
The outcomes of this innovative initiative will not only showcase the pathways of decarbonisation towards Net zero goals through CCU route in cement sector, but should also be a critical confidence building measure for potential stakeholders to uptake the deployed CCU technology for further scale up and commercialisation.
It is envisioned that through continuous research and innovation under these test beds in developing innovative catalysts, materials, electrolyser technology, reactors, and electronics, the cost of Green Cement via the deployed CCU technology in Cement Sector may considerably be made more sustainable.
Secretary DBT Dr Rajesh Gokhale, Dr Ajai Choudhary, Co-Founder HCL, Dr. Rajesh Pathak, Secretary, TDB, Dr Anita Gupta Head CEST, DST and Dr Neelima Alam, Associate Head, DST were also present at the programme organized at Dr Ambedkar International Centre, New Delhi.

Continue Reading

Concrete

JK Lakshmi Adopts EVs to Cut Emissions in Logistics

Electric vehicles deployed between JK Puram and Kalol units

Published

on

By

Shares
JK Lakshmi Cement, a key player in the Indian cement industry, has announced the deployment of electric vehicles (EVs) in its logistics operations. This move, made in partnership with SwitchLabs Automobiles, will see EVs transporting goods between the JK Puram Plant in Sirohi, Rajasthan, and the Kalol Grinding Unit in Gujarat.
The announcement follows a successful pilot project that showcased measurable reductions in carbon emissions while maintaining efficiency. Building on this, the company is scaling up EV integration to enhance sustainability across its supply chain.
“Sustainability is integral to our vision at JK Lakshmi Cement. Our collaboration with SwitchLabs Automobiles reflects our continued focus on driving innovation in our logistics operations while taking responsibility for our environmental footprint. This initiative positions us as a leader in transforming the cement sector’s logistics landscape,” said Arun Shukla, President & Director, JK Lakshmi Cement.
This deployment marks a significant step in aligning with India’s push for greener transport infrastructure. By embracing clean mobility, JK Lakshmi Cement is setting an example for the industry, demonstrating that environmental responsibility can go hand in hand with operational efficiency.
The company continues to embed sustainability into its operations as part of a broader goal to reduce its carbon footprint. This initiative adds to its vision of building a more sustainable and eco-friendly future.
JK Lakshmi Cement, part of the 135-year-old JK Organisation, began operations in 1982 and has grown to become a recognised name in Indian cement. With a presence across Northern, Western, and Eastern India, the company has a cement capacity of 16.5 MTPA, with a target to reach 30 MT by 2030. Its product range includes ready-mix concrete, gypsum plaster, wall putty, and autoclaved aerated fly ash blocks.

Continue Reading

Concrete

Holcim UK drives sustainable construction

Published

on

By

Shares

Holcim UK has released a report titled ‘Making Sustainable Construction a Reality,’ outlining its five-fold commitment to a greener future. The company aims to focus on decarbonisation, circular economy principles, smarter building methods, community engagement, and integrating nature. Based on a survey of 2,000 people, only 41 per cent felt urban spaces in the UK are sustainably built. A significant majority (82 per cent) advocated for more green spaces, 69 per cent called for government leadership in sustainability, and 54 per cent saw businesses as key players. Additionally, 80 per cent of respondents stressed the need for greater transparency from companies regarding their environmental practices.

Image source:holcim

Continue Reading

Trending News