Refractory Sector Must Focus On Indigenous Raw Material R&D: IRMA

The Indian refractory industry can grow if the steel industry grows. For every ton of crude steel manufactured, around 11 kg of refractory is required. In the government’s 300 million tons of crude steel production plan by 2030, Indian refractory makers must be allowed to participate. If Chinese refractory makers take away a sizeable share, then it will pose a problem. Also, the stress should now be on developing R&D for indigenous raw materials. Working toward this end, the Indian Refractory Makers Association (IRMA) has just signed a MoU with IIT-BHU, Varanasi for developing a refractory centre of excellence, Anirbandip Dasgupta, Senior Executive Officer, IRMA

- Madhumita Mookerji

What role is IRMA playing and how can it further help the industry?

IRMA has just signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with IIT-BHU, Varanasi to develop an excellence centre in this city.

We will have a laboratory where we will do indigenous raw material characterisation. We will explore what sort of reserves and deposits we have, or we do not have in India, what are the possibilities etc. We will be cataloguing this. This will happen in the first phase. In the second phase, we will have to see how we can develop these.

Already, some work has been done in relation to beneficiation but on a trial basis. It could not be scaled up to a commercial level. This is definitely a shortcoming of the refractory industry.

Secondly, we will have a third party laboratory on quality control. We do not yet have such a unit which gives reliable results.

Thirdly, since the Benares Hindu University (BHU) offers a course in ceramic engineering, we could encourage some of the ceramic engineering graduates to enter the refractory industry. This would address the human resource (HR) problem .

Fourth, we, at IRMA, organise training programmes for our members, which allows for re-skilling.

You spoke of raw material characterisation. Could you take the help of any organisation regarding this?

We have not really thought about this. If needed, we can take the help of the Indian Bureau of Mines in mapping reserves or R&D. There are pitfalls in mapping as well.