Pramod Khosla, Managing Director, Khosla Filters
Being widely appreciated in the filtration industry worldwide, Pramod Khosla, Managing Director, is of the opinion that the government must introduce stricter environment norms for dust prevention.
Bag filters are a key component of a cement plant. How is the regulatory requirement changing in terms of permitted emissions?
In cement plants, there are different applications such as coal mill (12-24 months), cement mill (12-24 months), raw mill (kiln) (36 months to 60 months) and packing plant (24 months). Here, the life of filter bags depends on the application and operating conditions as well so it can vary. Previously, the emission norm for the cement sector was around 50 mg/Nm3, but now, the same has been reduced to 20 mg/Nm3. Hence, the customer needs upgraded quality in terms of emission and DP throughout the life. Meanwhile, Indian environmental require-ments are a bit lenient compared to western countries, especially, Europe. However, due to India’s commitment towards carbon emission, the norms are likely to become more stringent and will match other countries in the future.
What are the latest technology offerings?
Micro fibers, nano fibers and membrane lamination are the latest technologies used to reduce emission these days. As far as Khosla Profile is concerned, our advance machine can reduce the air permeability while maintaining the micron size. This is the technology that we are offering. The impact of our quality (product) can reduce the usage of micro fibres or membrane lamination and further control the emission. This will lead to cost savings and can give a better life span for filters. All our equipment is 100 per cent imported. Our manufacturing capa-city is 50 per cent and we are planning to expand two more lines in the next two years.
Is there a competition between Electrostatic Precipitators (ESPs) and bag houses?
Most ESPs are being replaced with bag filters due to change in emission norms and limitation of the ESP. As ESP cannot reduce the emission below certain range with its existing fields, bag filters can solve the purpose by changing the quality of the bags.
How do you see the cement capacity expansion market?
At present, the cement sector is in a slow motion mode. This is evident from the fact that cement plants are not utilising capacity to the fullest. However, as per a recent ICRA report, the sector is likely to rebound in the current year. This is mainly due to the government’s increased focus on the infrastructure sector, which will also compliment the bag filter replacement market.
How is the ‘Make in India’ movement helping your order-book?
We have substantial amount of orders in the pipeline. (This is) thanks to the government’s ‘Make in India’ programme, which has helped us in this direction. That apart, this programme has also helped our company gain confidence of customers. Here, our customers get the opportunity to witness how technologically advanced is our manufacturing facility.