Economy & Market

Power cuts have affected industries in AP

Published

5 years ago

October 14, 2021

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K Ravi, Managing Director, NCL IndustriesHaving started as a mini cement plant with a modest capacity of 200 tonne per day (66000 tpd) the NCL Cement Division has gone through several rounds of expansion. K Ravi, Managing Director, NCL Industries, talks to ICR about the USP of the company, steps taken for maintaining quality and how the power holiday is creating a profound impact on the industries in Andhra Pradesh.What are your views on the current scenario of the cement industry? The cement industry in India has grown substantially as cement is one of the major elements in construction work. Though majority of the players in cement industry in India are from private sector, the industry is highly regulated. The consumption of cement has also increased gradually in recent times, by over 8 per cent. Demand for cement from the southern part of the country is high, as there have been more real estate and construction activities in that region. The lack of rain this year has allowed construction companies to continue working as usual and this has pushed up demand for cement by more than 10 per cent all over India in the months of October, November and December 2012. However, in the south, even though there is a potential for growth and some more companies (both existing and new) are planning to set up their new units in the coming years, at present there seems to be a mismatch between demand and supply. Consequently, the present cement prices are not favourable for the industry. We feel that the cement industry will play a crucial role in both infrastructure and housing in the near future.By the end of the year 2012, the price of cements in various states dropped drastically, your forecast on 2013?Yes, the price of cement in various states did drop during the last quarter. However, the latest market reports indicate that there has been a slight improvement in pricing on account of the recent diesel price hike. Since the construction activity will be normally at peak levels from now onwards up to June/July, the cement industry is likely to post better performance in the next two quarters. How do you plan to keep in pace with the latest technologies at your cement plant? NCL Industries are always on the lookout for adopting modern technologies in their processing units. Recent Capacity Expansion was completely done using latest technological improvements like Vertical Roller Mills for raw materials and fuel grinding, online sampling equipment, Stack Monitoring and Gas analysers, RABH for preventing dust emission. Latest pendulum no spillage clinker cooler is installed for better heat recuperation. The company has adopted their standards at higher levels for all the products being manufactured i.e, cement, cement bonded particle boards and ready mix concrete.
What is the USP of the cement produced by your company? Quality’ and wide spread retail dealer network (more than 1500 dealers) are the main strengths for our cement.How important is location while setting up a cement plant?Considering the nature of materials to be handled in manufacturing cement, the location should be a balancing act between market and raw materials. Keeping this in view, most of the cement manufacturing companies are operating from split locations. Clinker, which is a semi finished product stage of cement, will be manufactured at the prime location or main factory which will be closer to major raw material sources. Clinker grinding plants are being set up at various locations which will be closer to the market. With this approach, instead of transporting entire cement to the market, only clinker will be transported which will be normally 60 to 70 per cent of any blended cements (PPC / Slag). Thus, substantial transport cost savings can be achieved. ‘What are the measures taken by the company to maintain the standards of the quality of cement produced?A well equipped laboratory is established with X-ray analyser and Sample Preparation equipment where the product i.e, cement is analysed from the first stage of manufacturing to finishing stage, i.e., at every intermittent level to maintain consistent quality and standards. At present, the cement division of NCL Industries is producing different grades of cement like 43 Grade, 53 Grade, 53 Grade S for railways and PPC.How has the power holiday in Andhra Pradesh affected your business?The prevailing situation in Andhra Pradesh (AP). is different as compared to other southern states and rest of India. Drastic power cuts and lack of sufficient coal supplies have badly affected industries in AP. (except those industries having captive power plants). Keeping this in view, we are proposing to set up a 30 mw captive thermal power plant with a capital outlay of app. Rs 150 crores and the financial closure for the project is under final stages of progress.What are the greatest challenges faced by the cement industry today? Cement industry faced many challenges since its inception. These challenges include pricing, Government policies on taxation, demand and supply mismatch/gap, competition, takeover threats and amalgamations, etc. The growth of the cement industry is directly proportional to the growth of the country’s economy, and the current economic slowdown has negatively affected the cement industry. Bank funding has become costlier, and this has affected expansion plans of many companies. Lack of coal is the one of the major hindrances, how do you combat the same. As observed rightly, currently, one of the main problems is that the cement industry is facing lack of sufficient coal supplies at right point of time at reasonable rates. The industry is now dependant on imported coal procured at high costs. This results in erosion of margins.Does the company have any plans of expanding to other markets and what is the strategy behind operating only in AP?As far as cement business is concerned, we are expanding our dealer network in other states such as Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Orissa and Maharashtra (as of now, we have more than 300 retail dealers in these states). Whereas, our cement boards, with the brand name ‘Bison Panel,’ are marketed throughout India. What is the company doing to envisage its retail visibility?We are keeping the Stock Exchanges informed with the developments taking place in the company. We are doing Analysts meets etc as and when there are some significant happenings and sharing the information with the stock analysts. Alot of cement companies have been blamed for malpractices in the industry, what is your take on it?No comments on this as NCL is no way is connected in this.

Economy & Market

Leonard Unveils Dual-Head Robotic Arm for Hazardous Industrial Demolition

Published

5 days ago

October 30, 2026

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Leonard unveils Descender Duo, a dual-head robotic demolition arm designed to improve industrial safety and reduce shutdown time by up to 50 per cent.

Industrial robotics and refractory services specialist Leonard has launched Descender Duo, a dual-head robotic demolition arm designed to improve safety, accelerate maintenance and reduce shutdown times in hazardous industrial environments. The system made its debut at Lisahally Power Station in Northern Ireland, removing 25 tonnes of slag material within hours.

Developed for the cement, metals, waste-to-energy and petrochemical industries, Descender Duo enables remote-controlled refractory demolition, anchor cutting and welding, and refractory spraying inside boilers, calciners and silos. Its vertical-access design eliminates the need for personnel to enter confined, high-risk spaces during these operations.

Weighing less than two tonnes, the pre-assembled system requires an access opening of just 1.2 m². Supported by an external overhead hoist, it uses electrically operated hydraulic stabilising legs to secure itself inside vessels. The robotic arm offers 360-degree rotation and is suited to vessels approximately 9 m in diameter, with its operating reach extendable through strategically positioned access points.

Equipped with two independently controlled robotic heads, Descender Duo can perform identical or different tasks simultaneously, including refractory demolition, anchor cutting and spraying. Its remote-control system incorporates live camera feeds, allowing operators to monitor operations without entering hazardous environments.

According to Leonard, the technology can deliver time savings of up to 50 per cent compared with manual methods. Its ability to operate at temperatures exceeding 100°C allows maintenance to begin as early as 24 hours after burner shutdown. An all-electric power supply further supports cleaner and more cost-efficient operations.

First Deployment Demonstrates Shutdown Efficiency

The system was first deployed at Burmeister & Wain Scandinavian Contractor’s (BWSC) Lisahally Power Station in Londonderry, Northern Ireland. The facility generates electricity from grade C waste wood, supplying approximately 40,000 homes and businesses.

Leonard and BWSC collaborated to develop a customised solution for the plant’s 26-metre furnace, where extensive external pipework created significant access challenges.

Mark Leonard, Managing Director, Leonard, said, “It required new thinking and rather than step away from the problem we were committed to solving it for the customer, with the customer. We’re relentless in our approach to tackling complex challenges, head-on. We took our years of cement plant experience, coupled with our working knowledge of the BWSC plant, and designed, engineered and tested a completely new vertical solution within just seven weeks from that initial conversation with the customer. That solution was the Descender Duo as we know it today.”

Traditionally, the furnace required a cooling period of up to 36 hours before preparatory work could begin, followed by manual slag removal using rope-access personnel. With Descender Duo, work commenced just 24 hours after shutdown, reducing downtime by up to one day.

The deployment removed 25 tonnes of slag within hours, eliminated the need for at least six workers to enter the hazardous furnace interior and saved 26 hours in the shutdown programme.

“The effectiveness exceeded expectation,” said Martin Doran, Plant Manager at Lisahally Power Station.

“When the Descender Duo concept was first discussed, we had to spend some time with the team from Leonard looking at how it was going to be moved into the furnace. Every site is different and that presented its own challenges, but nothing that the team couldn’t overcome. Once it was installed we were hugely impressed by its efficiency.”

Expanding Industrial Robotics Applications

Descender Duo joins Leonard’s existing portfolio of robotic maintenance solutions, including the Axis horizontal-access arm, Nano confined-space access arm, Charger cement mill media recharging system and Calibre cement mill media grading system.

Headquartered in Northern Ireland, Leonard provides robotic refractory demolition, installation, inspection and industrial maintenance services across the cement, metals, energy, biomass, glass and civil engineering sectors.

Formerly known as G Leonard, the company has more than 35 years of industry experience and operates across Europe, North America, the Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific.

The latest innovation reinforces Leonard’s focus on replacing hazardous manual processes with robotic systems that improve workforce safety, enhance operational efficiency and minimise industrial downtime.

Concrete

Martin Engineering Appoints Ashwini Khunte as India General Manager

Published

5 days ago

October 30, 2026

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Martin Engineering names Ashwini Khunte India General Manager to strengthen operations and drive growth across key bulk material handling sectors.

Pune

Martin Engineering, a global provider of bulk material handling solutions, has appointed Ashwini Khunte as General Manager of its India business, strengthening its leadership as the company expands its presence across the country’s cement, mining, steel, power and infrastructure sectors.

Khunte brings more than a decade of experience with Martin Engineering, having joined its Indian operations in 2013 as a Design Engineer, shortly after the company established its presence in the country in 2012.

A mechanical engineer by qualification, she spent her initial five years developing bulk material handling solutions in collaboration with the company’s operations team. During this period, she gained extensive experience addressing operational challenges in the steel, cement and coal industries. She subsequently moved into project engineering, managing major engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) and original equipment manufacturer (OEM) projects from initial enquiry to commissioning. Her responsibilities later expanded to overseeing Martin Engineering’s conveyor product portfolio in India, involving customer engagement, technical presentations and site visits across heavy industries.

In 2024, Khunte was promoted to Head of Sales & Marketing for the company’s Europe, Middle East, Africa and India (EMEAI) region. The position broadened her international market exposure and strengthened her strategic and commercial leadership capabilities.

Commenting on her appointment, Ashwini Khunte, General Manager, Martin Engineering India, said: “India represents a tremendous opportunity for Martin Engineering. The country’s continued investment in cement, mining, steel, power and infrastructure is creating increasing demand for safer, cleaner and more productive bulk material handling, and that’s exactly what we do. My priority will be to build on the strong foundations already established in India, while continuing to develop our people, strengthen customer relationships and bring practical solutions to the challenges faced by our industry.”

Robert Whetstone, Area Vice President – EMEAI, Martin Engineering, highlighted Khunte’s technical expertise, market understanding and leadership experience.

“Ashwini brings an exceptional combination of technical understanding, customer knowledge and commercial leadership. She has grown as Martin Engineering has grown, and has consistently demonstrated outstanding capability to transform her expertise into practical solutions. Her knowledge of the Indian market, together with her international experience, makes her ideally suited to lead our India business through its next stage of growth for years to come.”

Since establishing its Indian business in 2012, Martin Engineering has expanded its local workforce, manufacturing capabilities and dealership network. The company supplies conveyor products, transfer point solutions, material flow aids, training and technical support to bulk material handling industries. Khunte’s appointment positions the company to further strengthen customer relationships and expand its solutions portfolio in India’s growing industrial and infrastructure markets.

Concrete

Fornnax Wins AIRIA’s Special Export Award for Rubber Machinery in 2025-26

Published

2 weeks ago

October 19, 2026

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Fornnax Technology Pvt. Ltd. has been honoured with the Special Export Award – Rubber Machinery for 2025–26 by the All-India Rubber Industries Association (AIRIA), in recognition of its highest exports of tyre recycling plants to the European region.

With more than a decade of experience in India’s tyre recycling industry, Fornnax has contributed to the development of advanced recycling technologies and infrastructure. The company currently holds a 90% market share in India’s domestic tyre recycling sector, while exports account for 30% of its business, spanning markets such as Europe, Australia and the GCC.

The award marks another milestone for Fornnax, whose tyre recycling lines and advanced shredding technologies are supporting the growth of the circular economy in India and international markets.

Commenting on the recognition, Mr. Jignesh Kundaria, Founder and Director of Fornnax, said:

“This honour from AIRIA is a reflection of an incredible journey we have undertaken over the years. When we started Fornnax, there was no established recycling industry in India to follow. We chose to build for the future instead. Today, when you see India’s tyre recycling sector, it has already transformed into a dynamic, high-growth industry and we are extremely proud to have played our part in building it.”

Unlike standalone equipment suppliers, Fornnax focuses on developing complete, high-capacity recycling infrastructure. Its integrated systems combine multiple stages of shredding and size reduction to enable efficient, continuous operations. This system-level engineering approach helps recycling operators improve throughput, equipment reliability and operational consistency.

The recognition reinforces Fornnax’s commitment to developing engineering technologies that contribute to a more efficient and circular recycling ecosystem.

Looking ahead, the company aims to expand its international presence while continuing to develop advanced shredding and recycling solutions to address the growing volumes and evolving requirements of the global recycling industry.

For more information, visit: www.fornnax.com