ABOUT CEMENT & ITS USE -What is Cement?

Cement is a mixture of compounds, consisting mainly of silicates and aluminates of calcium, formed
out of calcium oxide, silica, aluminium oxide and iron oxide. Cement is manufactured by burning a
mixture of limestone and clay at high temperatures in a kiln, and then finely grinding the resulting
clinker along with gypsum. The end product thus obtained is called Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC).
In India, OPC is manufactured in three grades, viz. 33 grade, 43 grade and 53 grade, the numbers
indicating the compressive strength obtained after 28 days, when tested as per the stipulated
procedure. Apart from OPC, there are several other types of cement, most of them meant for special
purposes, e.g. sulphate resistant cement, coloured cement, oil well cement, etc. However, there are
some general purpose cements, the commonest one being Portland Pozzolana Cement (PPC).

2.

Why Cement?

After food and clothing, shelter is the next priority item for humans. Since its evolution, mankind had
been pursuing a relentless search for viable building materials for securing a stable shelter. The history
of mankind traced through its ancient civilizations and the track record of the past two millennia will
show that Man had been using different types of materials for putting up dwelling to provide him
shelter from sun, rain and wind and a home for his family. The building materials used from Stone Age
to the Bronze Age in the progressive march of human civilisation ranged from stone or wood,
cemented with mud or any other naturally occurring cementing materials (volcanic ash - pozzolan of
Italy, natural tuff- Trass of Germany, diatomaceous earth and many others in different countries), to
semi-processed materials like lime, burnt clay. With the march of civilization, better binding
materials like plastic clay, lime in combination with natural gypsum or in combination with sand
(lime mortar), burnt clay ( surkhi), burnt gypsum (plaster of Paris) and powdered naturally occurring
rocks like volcanic ash came to be used in different places. But all these binding materials were not
adequate to provide high strength and long-term durability in constructions. The invention of Portland
cement brought about a landmark change and provided a satisfactory answer to mankind's quest for a
strong and durable binder for constructions. The patent on Portland Cement by Joseph Aspadin in
1824 and subsequent developments have resulted in the cements as we know today. Indeed from the
latter half of the 19 thcentury, Portland cement has emerged as a leading binding material and
continues to enjoy its pre-eminent position amongst the various cementing materials to this day.
Cement ranks second in volume among the industrial products manufactured in the world. The
presence of Portland cement as binding material led to the development of plain cement concrete
(PCC) and subsequently reinforced cement concrete (RCC). It now became possible to construct highrise buildings, sky scrapers, large dams, reservoirs with less consumption of building materials and
much higher strength The use of RCC became very popular from the beginning of 20th century. The
advent of concrete, especially reinforced concrete, significantly replaced traditional construction
materials, such as steel, stone, wood and bricks. This had made concrete the most widely used manmade product and second only to water as the world's most heavily consumed substance. The
widespread use of concrete boosted cement demand spectacularly throughout the world during the last
one hundred years. This in turn led to innovations in the manufacturing technology, storage, handling
and distribution techniques, not to speak of the utilisation of cement, thus giving birth to the modern
cement and construction industries

3.

Is there a substitute for Cement ?

Despite innumerable technological advances in the past century in all spheres of human activity,
including civil engineering, architecture and construction technology, cement retained its
quintessential role as the ubiquitous binding material for all sorts of constructions. In fact, it is playing
a progressively larger role in many other spheres of human habitat. There are a host of reasons in
favour of cement's irreplaceable role in contemporary human society.

1. Unlike all other non-brittle materials for construction (wood, steel, aluminium, etc) cement is a lowcost but high-performance product.
2. It can be used as a binder with almost any hard material.
3. It can be used both as a building block (hardened cement mix) or as a binder of building
components (bricks, stone blocks, sand, rock fragments or any other hard material).

4. Most building materials are prone to decay and loss of property with time, whereas properly made
and cast cement concrete gains strength progressively with ageing.

5. With substitution of very small quantities of cement by other reinforcing materials (steel, polyester,
varied sorts of fibers) or chemicals (epoxy resins, plasticisers) its binding properties can be increased
manifold to satisfy the performance needs of construction for different purposes (High rise buildings,
Towers, Concrete roads, Railway sleepers, Dams, Reservoirs, Canal lining, etc)

6. Cement and its derivative concrete have turned out to be an excellent conduit for recycling varied
types of industrial, agro-industrial and metallurgical wastes (flyash, blast furnace slag, rice husk ash,
etc) providing thereby support to environmental protection.

7. Cement manufacturing process can absorb a host of hazardous, obnoxious and toxic wastes (from
petroleum refining, pharmaceutical, pesticides industries) through their effective incineration in the
cement kiln, providing dual benefits of energy conservation and waste recycling inter alia
environmental protection

Sector Overview
India is the second-largest cement producing country in the world after China. The countrys cement
production was 300 million tonnes in 2010; the figure is expected to double to reach almost 550
million tonnes by 2020, as per estimates by the Cement Manufacturers Association (CMA). As of 2011,
there were 137 large and 365 mini cement plants in India.
The Indian cement industry is globally competitive with lowest energy consumption and CO2
emissions. Apart from fulfilling domestic cement requirements, the industry also exports cement and
clinker to around 30 countries across the globe.
In India, cement demand emanates from four key segments housing, accounting for 67%;
infrastructure for 13%; commercial construction for 11%; and industrial sector for 9%. The cement
industry has evolved in the form of clusters across the country due to the location of limestone
reserves in certain states. Presently, there are seven clusters, namely the Satna cluster in Madhya
Pradesh; Chandrapur in north Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra; Gulbarga in north Karnataka and
east Andhra Pradesh; Chanderia in south Rajasthan, Jawad and Neemuch in Madhya Pradesh;
Bilaspur in Chattisgarh; Yerraguntla in south Andhra Pradesh and Nalgonda in central Andhra
Pradesh.
During 2009-10, the Indian cement industry grew at a robust rate of 12.7%, according to CMA. With
the government promoting construction activities across the country through various stimulus
packages for building roads, bridges, houses, etc., the Indian cement industry added a capacity of 37
million tonnes in 2009-10, which is the highest capacity ever added in any single year so far.

The governments focus on building infrastructure is likely to continue in the near future and the
Indian cement industry is expected to sustain an even higher growth rate of 15% over the coming
years.
Policy and Promotion
Some of the policy measures adopted by the Indian government to support and aid the growth of the
Indian cement industry include the following:
No custom duty on non-coking coal: In Budget 2012-13, the government has exempted non-coking
coal, one of the main raw materials for cement production, from basic customs duty (earlier at 5%).
This will have a positive impact of 1-1.5% on the cement industrys operating profit, according to
Crisil, a global analytical company providing ratings, research and risk policy advisory services. The
Indian cement industry sources close to one-fourth of its total coal requirement through imported
coal.
North-east package: The Government of India has also approved a package of fiscal incentives and
other concessions for the countrys north-east region, namely the North East Industrial and
Investment Policy, 2007.
Highway development funds: Further, to attract foreign investors to its ambitious highways
building programme, the Ministry of Road Transport plans to roll out projects worth USD 120 billion
by 2016.
Boost to infrastructure sector: The government is increasing allocation for the infrastructure
sector. In FY 2011-12, it allocated USD 46.5 billion funds to the sector, tax-free bonds worth USD 6.5
billion and debt funds for the infrastructure sector, and a comprehensive policy for developing publicprivate partnership projects. The government has further enhanced the tax-free bond limit enhanced
to USD 30 billion in FY 2012-13. It has also established an infrastructure debt fund worth USD 1.8
billion.
Rural road development: The government has allocated a fund of INR 24,000 crore for the
development of rural road projects in FY 2012-13.
Major Players
The major domestic cement companies in India include Ultratech Cement, Ambuja Cement, JK
Cements, ACC Cement, Century Cements, India Cements, Sanghi Cements, Dalmia Cements,
Saurashtra Cements and Madras Cements.
With booming cement demand in India and abroad, many foreign cement players are also establishing
and expanding their presence in India. The worlds top cement companies are present in India,
namely France's Lafarge, Holcim from Switzerland, Italy's Italcementi and Germany's Heidelberg
Cements.
Holcim, one of the largest global cement industry players, has established its presence in India by
buying a major stake in two established brands of ACC and Ambuja Cements. Collectively, these
companies have the largest market share in India, close to 50% of the total market size. As of 2012,
Holcim has an annual capacity of 57 million tonnes, higher than domestic player Aditya Birla Group's
UltraTech Cements capacity of 52 million tonnes. Holcim is planning to raise its capacity by investing
INR 1,800 crore in Ambuja Cements by the year 2013.
Sector Outlook
During the current plan (2007-12), cement players invested INR 50,000 crore to add fresh capacities
of 150 million tonnes. As per projections in the 12th Five Year Plan, the cement sector would need to
raise its capacities to 470 million tonnes by 2017 to meet the rising requirement for the commodity.

In the years ahead, there are several advantages to investing in the Indian cement sector, the most
important of which include the following:
Structural advantages: Cement demand in India will be driven by a high push from the residential
sector. Factors that will influence this trend in coming years will be increasing per capita income,
nuclear families, rapid urbanization and government stimulus to various rural and affordable housing
schemes.
Low per capita consumption: The Indian cement industry holds tremendous future growth
potential. This is evident from the fact that the per capita consumption of cement is much less
compared to the world average. In 2011, it was around 150 kg per capita, compared to the world
average of over 350 kg per capita, which shows great potential for growth. The corresponding figure is
660 kg per capita in China, 631 kg per capita in Japan and 447 kg per capita in France. In fact, Indias
low per capita consumption of cement is one of the main reasons for strong interest shown by the
foreign players in India.
High construction activity: Sized at USD 360 billion, Indias construction market accounted for
5% of the USD 7.2 trillion global construction market in 2010. Further, the Indian construction
market will replace Japan as the third largest, after China and the US, by 2020, during which,
emerging markets will outweigh mature markets.
High infrastructure spending: According to India's 12th Five-Year Plan (2012-17) document, the
two segments most important to construction activity are infrastructure and housing. Since
infrastructure spending is expected to go up to 9% of gross domestic product (GDP) or USD 1 trillion
for the Plan period (2012-17), this will translate into double-digit growth for the demand of cement.
Useful Links

Jagat Singh
Jagat Singh R.
Consultant Erection,Commisioning & Operations, Global Cement Industry
For sustaining and retaining the customer's loyalty ,you always have to be one notch
above your competitors.For achieving this ,you have to think out of the box ,through
innovative ideas and schemes to bind the customers ,through product and after sales
service innovations.
In a depressed cement demand scenario , though it is quite a Herculean task and quite
difficult one ,but nevertheless a sincere attempt should be always made. Uniqueness and
product /service differentiation are a few factors ,that go a very long way ,even though
slowly ,for retaining the customers loyalty ,in the long run.
Even deferred incentive scheme sometimes is welcome, for enjoying the fruits to be
shared at a later date when the demand strengthens in the near future. A suitable
mechanism to be devised for fructifying such scheme of things in the market place, for
sustenance in the long run

o an outsider the offers by different cement companies all look the same. But this is not correct.
Several companies including ACC and smaller guys have attempted points schemes similar to
Payback equivalents earlier.. and mostly failed.Cement I feel is more of a distribution game and the
brand/company which can hold high ground here will succeed. The difference in price between the top
and the last brand in multibrand markets like Hyderbad, Pune etc can be as high as Rs. 50 per bag.
Here, the last guy does not have a bad product. He is paying the price for perceived low quality and
inefficient logistics plus bad salesforece. As the dealers can also change the brand ( say about 20% of
his total sales ) for more profits, the lower brands suffer more in a fallling market. majority of a dealer
counter potential is held by brands with higher perceived quality in the market ( and hence preferred
by the users) or by brands having superior logistics ( direct lorry load from factory etc which the
dealers re-route and earn higher profit per bag). So overall, this is a complex variables case and mere
loyalty schemes offering minor gifts etc will not work. Most cement professionals at the high table also
are not very knowledgeable ( having worked in the sector for a long time and hence not able to think
beyond the sector!!) and hence unable to see the multiple variables and devise better ways to corner
marketshare/ attract retailers etc..
In my view in our country for a low involvement commodity product like cement, SERVICE &
ATTENTION to the customer, has to be the main differentiator to increase loyalty & retention. I do
agree with Debasis that most tread on the common road of discounts, gold and foreign trips etc as a
tool to promote loyalty & retention. But concurrent creation of a knowledge exchange & recognition
platform can be a different step in the right direction, to manage the long-term aspirations of key
stakeholders in the value chain.
Listening to our customer is key to customer success. A CRM solution can help target customers
more effectively by finding out what they want, what they respond to best and delivering that service.
If businesses aren't actively researching what works and what doesn't they will continue to have less
loyalty and lose loyal customers.