Connect with us

Concrete

The incomplete packaging solution!

Published

7 years ago

on

Shares

As per a study conducted, on an average, a sack would have eight to nine hook marks by the time it reaches the destination. These hook marks further lead to cement losses, thus making the working conditions of the workers from bad to worse, writes Madhvi Lijhara.

Packaging is a very generic term that has been in existence for ages now. Man has used packaging since times unknown for storage, protection, handling and so on. The ways were quite crude but served their purpose well. With the advancement of time and technology, the purpose of packaging also changed, the ways changed, the materials change and it changed the mindsets too.

Today packaging has a much bigger role to play and satisfy much higher expectations of the consumers, marketeers, manufacturers and others in the supply chain. It’s not just about protecting the goods, giving ease of storage, handling, increasing the life of the product, but also serves as a mode of communication between the manufacturer and the consumer, between the marketer and the buyer. It talks about how to use the product, why to buy the product, why to buy that particular brand, price to pay; when was that particular product manufactured and by when to use. It also takes care of the government regulations and ensures on quality and quantity of the product to the user.

Besides the above mentioned attributes of packaging, we all forget a very important aspect of packaging and that is its contribution to "environment sustainability". In India at large the cement is packed in WPP sacks. The woven polypropylene fabric, PP is a kind of thermoplastic resin material that is produced by the polymerisation of propylene. The weave in two directions of the PP threads gives the strength to the fabric, its light weight and strong enough to carry weight of cement which is high density. The pores in the weave have a role to play – while cement filling, these pores help the air to escape from the sack preventing the bursting of the sacks. But at the same time these pores also lead to cement loss at various junctures of the journey from the factory to the point of use.

On an average, from one kg to 500 grams of cement is lost while in transit. At times the loss can be even more depending on the number of hands it exchanges. This cement lost is not just an economic value lost for the user or manufacturer but it actually leads to much more intangible loss, the loss of cement particles into the environment, polluting the the air we breathe in. It’s a surprising fact that the air quality inside the cement plant is much better than the place of storage of the cement or the place of use of the cement, and the major reason is the way cement is packed. Every time the sack is moved from one place to another it leads to cement loss, so much so that the branding, printing or any information printed on eth sack becomes invisible due to a cement dust layer on the sack. Thus the way in which cement is packed destroys all the attributes of packaging.

These pores also give easy way to the moisture in the air to penetrate inside the sack and thus reducing the shelf life of the product. Cement is hygroscopic and attracts water from the atmosphere to set . Thus the purpose of protection and increasing the shelf life is defeated.

The labourers use iron hooks for loading and unloading of cement sacks even though its banned as per the government directives. As per a study conducted, on an average, a sack would have eight to nine hook marks on the sacks. These hook marks further lead to cement losses thus making the working conditions of the workers from bad to worse.

Even worse is the recycling of the cement sack, although PP is recyclable but a major issue is that the cement is all stuck in the pores of the sack and therefore the sacks cannot be recycled easily. The sack needs to be absolutely clean to be recycled. Another issue is with the collection of the empty cement WPP sacks; there is no defined process under which the cement sacks are collected after the use and taken to recycling plant. In most of the cases these sacks land up into "land-fills". The end of the "product life cycle" of a WPP cement sack is very unfriendly to our environment.

It can be concluded that the way cement is packed in India is actually an "incomplete packaging solution". All the aspects of packaging are defeated when cement is packed in WPP. It neither protects the material, neither increases the shelf life, nor does it increase the brand value; in nutshell it serves no purpose of packaging other than holding the material together and giving it a partial ease of handling; a 50 kg bag with dead weight is really tough to handle. The only driving factor for WPP sacks is the price of the sacks. But the irony is that only the "price per sack" is considered and not the "actual cost of packing" is considered. The actual cost should include the wastage in transit, its contribution to air pollution and its impact on the health of the workers. Even though the industry would agree with this but very little efforts have been made to give a sustainable packaging solution for cement. It’s the need of the hour that we look at creating more cement packaging options that justify all the attributes of packaging including the environment sustainability aspect and improved working conditions of the laborers.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Madhvi Lijhara, a paper and packaging specialist, is an economics graduate from Delhi university and a post graduate in Marketing management from Lucknow University. She has worked with paper and allied companies like APP India, Thomson Press, Ballarpur Industries (BILT) and BillerudKorsnas AB. While on the job, she has been closely associated with various cement companies promoting paper sacks for cement packaging in India. She can be contacted on: madhvi@hotmail.com

Related Topics:
Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

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

Concrete

Cement Margins Seen Rising 12–18 per cent in FY26

Healthy demand and GST cut to boost cement profits per tonne.

Published

15 hours ago

on

September 29, 2025

By

Shares
Cement companies’ operating profit for fiscal year 2026 (FY26) is projected to grow by 12–18 per cent, reaching Rs 900–950 per metric tonne (MT), supported by robust demand, improved realisations, and stable input costs, according to ratings agency Icra.
In FY25, operating profit before interest, depreciation, tax and amortisation (OPBIDTA) stood at Rs 806 per MT, declining 16 per cent year-on-year due to weak realisations amid an extended monsoon and subdued government capital expenditure during the general elections.
Icra’s sample covers ACC, Ambuja Cements, JK Cements, JK Lakshmi Cement, The Ramco Cements, UltraTech Cement, Dalmia Bharat, Birla Corporation, Shree Cement, Sagar Cements, and Heidelberg Cement India, which together account for 74 per cent of industry capacity.
The recent GST cut on cement is expected to lower rural housing construction costs by 0.8–1.0 per cent, boosting volumes and supporting additional capacity. Average cement realisations are expected to rise 3–5 per cent in FY26.
Cement volumes increased by 8.5 per cent in the first five months of FY26, driven by strong demand from housing and infrastructure projects, despite early monsoons in some regions. During this period, cement prices rose 7.4 per cent year-on-year, particularly in northern and eastern markets. Input costs, especially for pet coke and freight, remain sensitive to global crude price movements and geopolitical factors.
Anupama Reddy, vice-president and co-group head of corporate ratings at Icra, said: “With the GST rate cut from 28 per cent to 18 per cent expected to be passed on to consumers, the average retail price of cement, currently Rs 350–360 per bag, will offer savings of Rs 26–28 per bag. Driven by strong demand, capacity additions may rise to 41–43 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA) in FY26 from 31 MMTPA in FY25, with the eastern region leading the growth in grinding capacity.”

Continue Reading

Concrete

Adani’s Strategic Emergence in India’s Cement Landscape

Published

2 weeks ago

on

September 16, 2025

By

Shares

Milind Khangan, Marketing Head, Vertex Market Research, sheds light on Adani’s rapid cement consolidation under its ‘One Business, One Company’ strategy while positioning it to rival UltraTech, and thus, shaping a potential duopoly in India’s booming cement market.

India is the second-largest cement-producing country in the world, following China. This expansion is being driven by tremendous public investment in the housing and infrastructure sectors. The industry is accelerating, with a boost from schemes such as PM Gati Shakti, Bharatmala, and the Vande Bharat corridors. An upsurge in affordable housing under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) further supports this expansion. In May 2025, local cement production increased about 9 per cent from last year to about 40 million metric tonnes for the month. The combined cement capacity in India was recorded at 670 million metric tonnes in the 2025 fiscal year, according to the Cement Manufacturers’ Association (CMA). For the financial year 2026, this is set to grow by another 9 per cent.
In spite of the growing demand, the Indian cement industry is highly competitive. UltraTech Cement (Aditya Birla Group) is still the market leader with domestic installed capacity of more than 186 MTPA as on 2025. It is targeted to achieve 200 MTPA. Adani Cement recently became a major player and is now India’s second-largest cement company. It did this through aggressive consolidation, operational synergies, and scale efficiencies. Indian players in the cement industry are increasingly valuing operational efficiency and sustainability. Some of the strategies with high impact are alternative fuels and materials (AFR) adoption, green cement expansion, and digital technology investments to offset changing regulatory pressure and increasing energy prices.

Building Adani Cement brand
Vertex Market Research explains that the Adani Group is executing a comprehensive reorganisation and consolidation of its cement business under the ‘One Business, One Company’ strategy. The plan is to integrate its diversified holdings into one consolidated corporate entity named Adani Cement. The focus is on operating integration, governance streamlining, and cost reduction in its expanding cement business.
Integration roadmap and key milestones:

  • September 2022: The consolidation process started with the $6.4 billion buyout of Holcim’s majority stakes in Ambuja Cements and ACC, with Ambuja becoming the focal point of the consolidation.
  • December 2023: Bought Sanghi Industries to strengthen the firm’s presence in western India.
  • August 2024: Added Penna Cement to the portfolio, improving penetration of the southern market of India.
  • April 2025: Further holding addition in Orient Cement to 46.66 per cent by purchasing the same from CK Birla Group, becoming the promoter with control.
  • Ambuja Cements amalgamated with Adani Cement: This was sanctioned by the NCLT on 18th July 2025 with effect from April 1, 2024. This amalgamation brings in limestone reserves and fresh assets into Ambuja.
  • Subject to Sanghi and Penna merger with Ambuja: Board approvals in December 2024 with the aim to finish between September to December 2025.
  • Ambuja-ACC future integration: The latter is being contemplated as the final step towards consolidation.
  • Orient Cement: It would serve as a principal manufacturing facility following the merger.

Scale, capacity expansion and market position
In financial year-2025, Adani Cement, including Ambuja, surpassed 100 MTPA. This makes it one of the world’s top ten cement companies. Along with ACC’s operations, it is now firmly placed as India’s second-largest cement company. In FY25, the Adani group’s sales volume per annum clocked 65 million metric tonnes. Adani Group claims that it now supplies close to 30 per cent of the cement consumed in India’s homes and infrastructure as of June 2025.
The organisation is pursuing aggressive brownfield expansion:

  • By FY 2026: Reach 118 MTPA
  • By FY 2028: Target 140 MTPA

These goals will be driven by commissioning new clinker and grinding units at key sites, with civil and mechanical works underway.
As of 2024, Adani Cement had its market share pegged at around 14 to 15 per cent, with an ambition to scale this up to 20 per cent by FY?2028, emerging as a potent competitor to UltraTech’s 192?MTPA capacity (186 domestic and overseas).

Strategic advantages and competitive benefits
The consolidation simplifies decision-making by reducing legal entities, centralising oversight, and removing redundant functions. This drives compliance efficiency and transparent reporting. Using procurement power for raw materials and energy lowers costs per ton. Integrated logistics with Adani Ports and freight infrastructure has resulted in an estimated 6 per cent savings in logistics. The group aims for additional savings of INR 500 to 550 per tonne by FY 2028 by integrating green energy, using alternative fuel resources, and improving sourcing methods.

Market coverage and brand consistency
Brand integration under one strategy will provide uniform product quality and easier distribution networks. Integration with Orient Cement’s dealer base, 60 per cent of which already distributes Ambuja/ACC products, enhances outreach and responsiveness.
By having captive limestone reserves at Lakhpat (approximately 275 million tonnes) and proposed new manufacturing facilities in Raigad, Maharashtra, Adani Cement derives cost advantage, raw material security, and long-term operational robustness.

Strategic implications and risks
Consolidation at Adani Cement makes it not just a capacity leader but also an operationally agile competitor with the ability to reap digital and sustainability benefits. Its vertically integrated platform enables cost leadership, market responsiveness, and scalability.

Challenges potentially include:

  • Integration challenges across systems, corporate cultures, and plant operations
  • Regulatory sanctions for pending mergers and new capacity additions
  • Environmental clearances in environmentally sensitive areas and debt management with input price volatility

When materialised, this revolution would create a formidable Adani–UltraTech duopoly, redefining Indian cement on the basis of scale, innovation, and sustainability. India’s leading four cement players such as Adani (ACC and Ambuja), Dalmia Cement, Shree Cement, and UltraTech are expected to dominate the cement market.

Conclusion
Adani’s aggressive consolidation under the ‘One Business, One Company’ strategy signals a decisive shift in the Indian cement industry, positioning the group as a formidable challenger to UltraTech and setting the stage for a potential duopoly that could dominate the sector for years to come. By unifying operations, leveraging economies of scale, and securing vertical integration—from raw material reserves to distribution networks—Adani Cement is building both capacity and resilience, with clear advantages in cost efficiency, market reach, and sustainability. While integration complexities, regulatory hurdles, and environmental approvals remain key challenges, the scale and strategic alignment of this consolidation promise to redefine competition, pricing dynamics, and operational benchmarks in one of the world’s fastest-growing cement markets.

About the author:
Milind Khangan is the Marketing Head at Vertex Market Research and comes with over five years of experience in market research, lead generation and team management.

Continue Reading

Concrete

Precision in Motion: A Deep Dive into PowerBuild’s Core Gear Series

Published

1 month ago

on

August 16, 2025

By

Shares

PowerBuild’s flagship Series M, C, F, and K geared motors deliver robust, efficient, and versatile power transmission solutions for industries worldwide.

Products – M, C, F, K: At the heart of every high-performance industrial system lies the need for robust, reliable, and efficient power transmission. PowerBuild answers this need with its flagship geared motor series: M, C, F, and K. Each series is meticulously engineered to serve specific operational demands while maintaining the universal promise of durability, efficiency, and performance.
Series M – Helical Inline Geared Motors: Compact and powerful, the Series M delivers exceptional drive solutions for a broad range of applications. With power handling up to 160kW and torque capacity reaching 20,000 Nm, it is the trusted solution for industries requiring quiet operation, high efficiency, and space-saving design. Series M is available with multiple mounting and motor options, making it a versatile choice for manufacturers and OEMs globally.
Series C – Right Angled Heli-Worm Geared Motors: Combining the benefits of helical and worm gearing, the Series C is designed for right-angled power transmission. With gear ratios of up to 16,000:1 and torque capacities of up to 10,000 Nm, this series is optimal for applications demanding precision in compact spaces. Industries looking for a smooth, low-noise operation with maximum torque efficiency rely on Series C for dependable performance.
Series F – Parallel Shaft Mounted Geared Motors: Built for endurance in the most demanding environments, Series F is widely adopted in steel plants, hoists, cranes, and heavy-duty conveyors. Offering torque up to 10,000 Nm and high gear ratios up to 20,000:1, this product features an integral torque arm and diverse output configurations to meet industry-specific challenges head-on.
Series K – Right Angle Helical Bevel Geared Motors: For industries seeking high efficiency and torque-heavy performance, Series K is the answer. This right-angled geared motor series delivers torque up to 50,000 Nm, making it a preferred choice in core infrastructure sectors such as cement, power, mining, and material handling. Its flexibility in mounting and broad motor options offer engineers’ freedom in design and reliability in execution.
Together, these four series reflect PowerBuild’s commitment to excellence in mechanical power transmission. From compact inline designs to robust right-angle drives, each geared motor is a result of decades of engineering innovation, customer-focused design, and field-tested reliability. Whether the requirement is speed control, torque multiplication, or space efficiency, Radicon’s Series M, C, F, and K stand as trusted powerhouses for global industries.

Continue Reading

Trending News