What Is CEMENT? The word Cement has come from the Roman word ‘Opus Caementicium’ Cement is a binder, a substance that sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. The most important use of cement is the production of mortar and concrete—the bonding of natural or artificial aggregates to form a strong building material that is durable in the face of normal environmental effects. Joseph Aspdin, a British stonemason, invented Portland cement way back in 1824. With this invention, Aspdin laid the foundation of today’s cement industry.

MANUFACTURING PROCESS Cement is made out of limestone, shale, clay mined out of quarry close to the plant. The raw material is crushed, and then heated at temperature in excess of 1000 degree Celsius in rotating kiln to become clinker. Clinker is then mixed with gypsum and ground to a fine powder to produce final grade of cement. The technology is a continuous process At present 93% of cement production in India is based on modern and environment-friendly dry process technology and only 7% of the capacity is based on old wet and semi-dry process technology. The cost of Cement is 29% energy; 27% raw materials; 32% labour and 12% depreciation

MANUFACTURING PROCESS

TYPES OF CEMENT The basic raw materials used in the cement manufacturing process are limestone, sand, shale, clay, and iron ore. Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) Portland Pozzolana Cement (PPC) Portland Blast Furnace Slag Cement (PBFS) Oil Well Cement Rapid Hardening Sulphate Resisting Portland Cement White Cement etc.

GLOBAL SCENARIO Today, it is estimated that there are around 1500 integrated cement production plants in the world. It is estimated that world cement consumption is to rise on an average between 3.6% and 4.8% per year in the coming years. Most of the growth is coming from Central and Eastern Europe and Asia, growth in mature markets also looks healthy. The share of the four largest firms account only for 23% of the overall demand. LAFARGE and CEMEX have become very strong global cement players.

ECONOMIC STATUS Growth Rate Investments Exports FDI and GDP

GROWTH RATE India is the world’s second largest producer of cement with total capacity of 224 million tonnes as on April 2010. Indian Cement Industry comprises of 140 large and more than 365 mini cement plants. According to ACC cement report, Government’s continued thrust on infrastructure will help the cement to maintain an annual growth of 9-10% in 2010. With addition in the cement production, it is expected that cement production in India will reach 300 million tonnes in the coming years.

INVESTMENTS Cement and gypsum products have received cumulative FDI of US$ 1708.69 million between April 2000 and March 2010, according to the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion. Madras Cements Ltd is planning to invest US$ 178.4 million to increase the manufacturing capacity of its Ariyalur plant in Tamil Nadu to 4.5 MT from 2 MT by April 2011. Shree Cement, plans to invest US$ 97.13 million this year to set up a 1.5 MT clinker and grinding unit in Rajasthan. Moreover, in June 2010, Shree Cement signed an MoU with the Karnataka government to invest US$ 423.6 million for setting up a cement unit and a power plant.

EXPORTS During 2007-08, the export of cement from India touched the 2.16 million tonnes mark. However during 2008-09, the cement export from India stood at 1.46 million tonnes.  In spite of seeing fall during 2008-09, the export segment of the industry is expected to grow again on account of various infrastructure projects that are being taken up all over the world. India has an immense potential to tap markets of Middle East and South East Asia The negative ACGR (Annual Compound Exponential Growth Rate) of -5.52% in control period has seen ACGR of 35.35% in decontrolled and opened up economy

FDI AND CONTRIBUTION OF GDP The industry occupies an important place in the national economy because of its strong linkages to other sectors such as construction, transportation , coal and power. The cement industry is one of the major contributors to the exchequer by way of indirect taxes. 100% FDI is permitted in the cement industry. It contributes approximately 1.3% of GDP and the industry is employing over 0.14 million people

USES… Production of Concrete Construction Purpose Building (Floors, Beams, Columns, Roofing) Transport (Roads, Pathways, Crossings, Bridge) Water (Pipes, Drains, Canals) Agriculture (Irrigation, Housing)