Concrete

SPECTRAFLOW, now in India

Published

5 years ago

July 1, 2021

admin

Cross belt analysers have been gaining popularity over years especially for the raw material analysis that goes for raw meal preparations. This leads to consistency of raw meal before clinkerisation takes place.

Ramco Cements, an independent Indian group, ordered a Crossbelt and Airslide analyzer from SpectraFlow analytics, for their new integrated plant at Kalvatala, to optimize the stability of their raw meal.

Ramco Cements Limited, founded in 1961, is a reputed cement manufacturer in India, headquartered in Chennai. Ramco Cements produces superior quality cement at their state-of-the art facilities including integrated cement plants and grinding units. The company is the fifth largest cement manufacturer in India and also produces Ready Mix Concrete and Dry Mortar products and operates one of the largest wind farms in the country.

About Ramco Cements Limited, Kalvatala plant:

Greenfield integrated cement plant is being setup at Kalvatala, Kolimigundla Mandal, Kurnool District. The foundation stone was laid in December 2018 and the plant shall be operational in first quarter of 2021. The project will include a Waste Heat Recovery System and a Thermal Power Plant.

FLS was chosen as the main equipment supplier and Ramco Project Team looked after specialized components themselves and choose SpectraFlow Analytics Crossbelt Analyzer for their stockpile and pre-blending management and SpectraFlow Airslide Analyzer for the raw meal optimization of their two raw mills.

SpectraFlow Installation for Quarry/Stockpile Optimization:

The SpectraFlow Crossbelt Analyzer is the online analyzer to be able to measure raw materials on belt conveyors. As raw materials from the quarry are processed through a crusher the raw material on the conveyor belt is statistically homogeneous and therefore the analytical results of the SpectraFlow Crossbelt Analyzer are accurate.

By using SpectraFlow Crossbelt analyzer and a site specific blending strategy at Kavalatala the high variation in the local raw materials shall be balanced out to increase consistency of the stockpile quality.

Summarized benefits are:

– No need of sampling. Sampling from conveyor belts is unrepresentative and slow for process optimization. Additionally, sampling is very work intensive regarding operation and maintenance.

– The analyzer together with a Pre-Blending control software from RAMCO SYSTEMS is fully automating the feed from the hoppers. The analyzer delivers the analytical results and according the setpoint the software is adjusting the feeders into the mixing stage

– The analyzer together with a Pre-Blending control software is informing the quarry/crusher operators of the current composition of the stockpile and accordingly the trucks can be coordinated to reach the setpoint of the stockpile.

– Stockpile quality will be homogeneous and on setpoint. That results in stable and low additive consumption at the raw mill.

– Stable feed from the stockpile leads to stable raw mill operation and fine raw meal/clinker quality.

SpectraFlow Installation for Raw Mill Optimization:

The SpectraFlow Airslide Analyzer is the online analyzer to be able to measure raw materials in airslides. As raw materials in airslides are very homogeneous and dry the analytical results of the SpectraFlow Airslide Analyzer are very accurate and based on these accurate results the raw mix control software can optimize the weight feeders before the raw mill in real time every minute. This results in very low LSF STDEV without the need of extensive sampling and laboratory efforts.

Kalvatala operates 2 Roller Press raw. The raw meal will feed to a joint airslide where the SpectraFlow Airslide analyzer will measure.

For the control of the weight feeders at the 2 raw mills Ramco will use control software from RAMCO SYSTEMS.

By using SpectraFlow an increase in the raw meal homogeneity will be achieved.

Summarized benefits are:

– Two raw mills can be controlled by one online analyzer.

– No need of intensive sampling. No automated sample transport system, no automated laboratory required.

– High cost reduction due to reduced laboratory usage (CAPEX, OPEX, man power,??

– The analyzer together with the control software is fully automating the raw material grinding. The analyzer delivers the analytical results and according the setpoint the software is adjusting the weight feeders of the additive bins.

– Adjustment of the weight feeders in real time every minute. No time delay due to sampling, sample preparation, ??/p>

– Lower LSF STDEV/better and more consistent raw mill quality

RAMCO SYSTEMS

SpectraFlow order

This SpectraFlow order is the 39^th order for the Cement Industry and the 1^st installation in India. This order raises the installed based in India to 2 analyzers (1 Crossbelt & 1 Airslide) and worldwide to 56 analyzers (31 Crossbelt & 25 Airslide).

SpectraFlow Analytics Ltd. Switzerland are the experts in providing online analysis for the cement and minerals industry without any radioactive sources nor neutron generators. The NIR technology used for the SpectraFlow Analyzers is not requiring any permits or licenses and there are no restrictions in buying, importing or maintaining the analyzers. This results in very low operating costs and high availability of the analyzers combined with highly accurate measurement results.

For further information, contact: Vijay Kumar Vemuri, Managing Partner, SPV Engineers, 2242, BHEL MIG,

Phase-I, Serilingampally, Hyderabad – 502032

M no. +91 8885744161, Email:vk.vemuri@spvengineers.com

Concrete

Lokesh Lays Stone For Rs 31 Billion Cement Unit In Kadapa

Line-2 expansion to make Kadapa a major cement hub

Published

18 hours ago

July 20, 2026

admin

Andhra Pradesh Education and IT Minister Nara Lokesh on Wednesday laid the foundation stone for the Line-2 expansion of Dalmia Bharat Cement at Chinnakomerla village in Mylavaram Mandal in Kadapa district. The project carries an investment of Rs 31 billion (bn) and is slated for completion by the third quarter of the financial year 2028. The expansion is intended to boost industrial growth and employment generation across the Rayalaseema region.

Once commissioned, the Kadapa facility will become Dalmia Bharat’s largest integrated cement manufacturing ecosystem in southern India, creating over 1,000 direct and indirect jobs and opening new business avenues for regional micro, small and medium enterprises and transport operators. Lokesh said the expansion signalled growing corporate confidence in the state and reflected the practical ease of doing business that secured repeat investment.

He placed the project within the government’s wider economic targets and recalled the Yuvagalam padayatra commitment to generate two million (mn) jobs within five years, noting that the state would cultivate talent while industry created opportunities. Lokesh highlighted Andhra Pradesh’s competitive pursuit of major manufacturing accounts, mentioning past successes and a personal initiative to engage global investors when persuading them to anchor expansion in the state.

The plant will leverage Kadapa’s abundant limestone reserves to scale production and sustainability. Clinker capacity is planned to rise from two point five million tonnes per annum (mn tpa) to six point one mn tpa, while overall cement output will increase from three point six mn tpa to nine point six mn tpa. The unit is designed to operate on over eighty per cent renewable energy and deploy waste heat recovery, zero liquid discharge, water recycling and advanced AI systems to optimise efficiency. Industries Minister TG Bharat, BC Welfare Minister S. Savitha and Jammalamadugu MLA C. Adinarayana Reddy attended the ceremony.

Concrete

Cement Prices to Stay Flat in Q2 FY27 as Costs Squeeze Margins

HDFC Securities warns monsoon slowdown and higher fuel costs

Published

4 days ago

July 17, 2026

admin

HDFC Securities has said the cement industry is unlikely to register a sequential increase in prices in Q2 FY27 as monsoon-related demand moderation coincides with rising fuel and packaging costs that will squeeze margins. The brokerage observed that price gains remained modest, with increases of two to three per cent quarter-on-quarter across regions, and noted subdued offtake in May with improvement in June as a delayed monsoon supported construction activity. The brokerage added that modest pricing gains so far have been insufficient to offset the input cost escalation.

The report stated that input cost pressures intensified in Q1 FY27 owing to the West Asia conflict, which pushed up coal and pet coke prices and is expected to keep fuel costs elevated, with a likely peak in Q2 FY27. It assessed that total variable costs, including packing, could rise by around Rs 150 per t quarter-on-quarter and that lower offtake and seasonal operating deleverage could further raise operating expenditure by about Rs 50 per t quarter-on-quarter.

Overall, cement prices were estimated to remain flat in Q2 FY27 as monsoon-led demand weakness offsets limited upside in realisation, and rising fuel costs alongside seasonal deleverage were expected to compress industry margins by over Rs 100 per t quarter-on-quarter to below Rs 880 per t. The brokerage indicated that the combined impact of energy inflation and higher packing expenditure would be the principal drivers of margin contraction in the near term. HDFC Securities projected a recovery in margins in H2 FY27 should the West Asia turmoil subside and energy and packing costs cool off.

The brokerage expressed optimism on long-term demand fundamentals and said improving realisation together with an anticipated cost cool-off should support a margin rebound from H2 FY27 onward, underpinning favourable industry prospects over the medium term. Its outlook rests on monsoon normalisation and a decline in imported fuel prices in the second half of the fiscal year.

Concrete

Dalmia Bharat Begins Rs 31 Bn Green Cement Unit in Kadapa

New Andhra Pradesh plant to add 9.6 MTPA cement capacity by FY28

Published

5 days ago

July 16, 2026

admin

Dalmia Bharat Limited recently laid the foundation stone for its second manufacturing unit at Kadapa in Andhra Pradesh. The company will invest Rs 31 billion in developing the next-generation integrated cement manufacturing facility.

The foundation-laying ceremony was attended by Nara Lokesh, Andhra Pradesh Minister for Information Technology, Electronics and Communications, Real-Time Governance and Human Resources Development, along with Puneet Dalmia, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Dalmia Bharat, senior government officials and company representatives.

Scheduled to be commissioned by the third quarter of FY28, the Kadapa unit will become Dalmia Bharat’s largest integrated manufacturing facility in southern India. It will have a clinker production capacity of 6.1 million tonnes per annum and a cement manufacturing capacity of 9.6 million tonnes per annum.

The facility is designed to produce what the company describes as one of the world’s greenest cements. It is also expected to generate approximately 1,000 direct and indirect employment opportunities while supporting local MSMEs, transporters, contractors and service providers.

Lokesh said the investment reflected Dalmia Bharat’s confidence in Andhra Pradesh and aligned with the state’s objective of promoting sustainable industrialisation, job creation and technology-led economic growth.

Puneet Dalmia said the project represented the company’s long-term vision of developing low-carbon cement manufacturing assets. He added that the facility would establish new benchmarks in operational efficiency and sustainability while supporting India’s infrastructure and environmental goals.

Dalmia Bharat will also expand its regional community development programmes in education, healthcare, skill development and welfare through its DIKSHa and Gram Parivartan initiatives.

The company currently has an installed cement manufacturing capacity of 54.7 million tonnes across 19 manufacturing units in 12 states. It is also the first cement company globally to commit to the RE100, EP100 and EV100 initiatives.