FEASIBILTY STUDY OF ECO-BRICKS AND BLOCKS MANUFACTURING

COMPANY

Michelle C. Lagumay

BSIE-V

November 2019
 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Building is one of the world's most expanding industries. This is primarily an industrial
sector which deals with the planning and construction of real estate. A person or organization of
contractors who are engaged in the construction process may have construction industry involved.
A contractor involved in the project generally does not go to specialized business or to heavy
works. It provides the material, labor and the equipment necessary for construction of the project,
such as engineering vehicles and tools.

Within today's lives, like the building industry, the use of disposable products has become
a phenomenon and the rapid growth within plastic production has greatly impacted the world. The
effect of significant plastic waste is chemical poisoning. Plastic pollution involves the
concentration in the atmosphere on Earth that has an adverse effect on the ecosystem, wildlife
habitat and human lives of plastic artifacts and contaminants (e.g. disposable containers, etc.).

Philippines is considered to rate 3 among the world's top plastic contaminants. Through
selling goods wrapped in inexpensive, disposable plastic, Western shoppers ' giants pollute the
water. (www.philstar.com) To minimize the plastic waste in the Philippines, the Alliance between
NESTLE, AVD BUILDERS and the Philippines Plastic Industry Association (PPIA) saw the
booming industry as an opportunity to create a compact structural wall made from single-layer
plastic waste, split into microplastic forms as a product blended in concrete. In addition, PPIA
offered important information and technical expertise in the development of the current hollow
block system which was used mostly in structures, including local equipment for the treatment of
flexible plastic materials. In contrast, the organization proposed that the standard concrete hollow
blocks could be substituted for these bricks.

A. Project Rationale
B. Background of the Study
The Philippine Plastics Industry Affiliation, Inc. (PPIA) is the chief voice of the
nearby downstream plastics industry. The industry follows to ecologically neighborly
hones, too to be amplified as a medium to hone corporate social duty. They are effectively
pushing different natural obligation and feasible advancement for the plastics industry.
They actualize ventures and activities that would improve the capability of SMEs in
minimizing their natural impacts as well as advancing of 3Rs and appropriate isolation of
squander to LGUs, Government Offices, NGO and etc. thru conducting arrangement of
gatherings, workshop and related exercises. One of their programs is the GreenAntz
program in collaboration with AVD Builders, a development company, and Nestle
Philippines, where it changes over petrochemicals, plastics lead non-biodegradable
squander by-products into small scale plastic frame that take 450 to 1,000 a long time to
break down, blended it with a cement and shaped it
The development of Eco blocks utilizes compression, as opposed to hollow blocks
created by molding. It undergoes a propriety phase as well and its composition requires a
specific construction agent that enhances it. The system started with a single machine in
one town and is now functional in 4 towns with 15 machines. So far, GreenAntz has made
around 225,000 eco-bricks. The eco-bricks are weightier, thicker, and more lightweight
relative to the Traditional Hollow Block-with just 150 PSI or a lower pressure resistance
of pounds per square inch. Concrete eco-bricks range up to 670, 770 and 870 PSI,
depending on the composition of the broken plastics. This means that the structures built
with them are four times stronger. (Dioniso, Manager of AVD Builders 2018)
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the CALABARZON construction
industry, as of 2019 first quarter, has a registered of 3940 residentials and non-residentials
constructions in Laguna, Batangas and Quezon while on 2018 first quarter has a registered
of 2977 residentials and non-residentials constructions. In a simple arithmetic, there is a
growth of 24.44% in real terms in the first quarter of 2019, based on the industry's total
value in 2018; residential construction was the largest market in the Philippine construction
industry during the review period. Thus, this only means that the demand of the
construction materials will also rise including the demand of hollow blocks. According the
Construction Industry Authority of the Philippines (CIAP), the demand for reasonably
priced hollow blocks is assumed to be growing at 10.5% and other construction materials
by 5.4% which supports the argument that demand is good.
According to Mullins et.al, they claimed that consumer buy for the benefits not the
product. Customers now seem to carefully evaluate the products for their benefits. In order
to increase the demand of environment friendly produce, such as ecosystems with changes
 to their PSI or resistance, depending on their type of building, the introduction of products
with commendable value, particularly with the aim of promoting environmental protection,
sensibilities and better and safe location against natural disasters, can therefore be a means
of increasing their demand. In addition, an active promotional marketing strategy can help
achieve economies of scale and minimize the company's overall costs when delivering a
high-quality product.
C. Objectives of the Study
1. To assess the market feasibility of Eco-blocks in local market.
2. To evaluate the technical feasibility in the processing and production of the said
products.
3. To plan and forecast realistic financial requirements for the establishment of the
company.
4. To develop marketing strategies for the business to prosper.
5. To develop management structure of the business.
6. To consider the socio-economic feasibility and impact of the business.
 Chapter II

Market Feasibility

This chapter sets out the market and its ability to support specific developments. It covers
product description, market opportunity analysis, target market selection, market share
determination and marketing strategies to be used by the company.

A. Product Description
Eco-Bricks and Eco-blocks
A smarter way to build! Eco-block is an environmentally friendly block made from
recycled plastic wrappers and PET bottles. Eco-blocks contain additives that made it fire
resistant and earthquake resistant, essential elements to provide long term housing and
infrastructures. It has a smooth surface where there's no need to use heavy finishing in
certain construction projects and can be used as a decorative wall already. Eco-bricks are
also cheaper than CHB on a per square meter basis for total installed cost. Though it also
needs cement or mortar but since it has smaller holes, mortar is less required compare to
traditional blocks. It is sustainable in a way that it accumulates the plastic wastes that are
usually thrown in the environment. These sustainable bricks could represent the next wave
of sustainable construction.
1. Name of the Product
The name “Eco-blocks and Eco-blocks” is a combination of the word “Eco”
that represents ecology while the words “blocks” and “bricks” are both means a
large solid piece of hard material with flat surface on each side. Eco-bricks and
Eco-blocks as their name imply is an ecological building blocks that will use the
plastic wastes as aggregates to reduce the continuous growth of plastic pollution
and contribute to a sustainable environment campaign.
2. Properties of the Product
Eco-blocks and Eco-bricks have a smoother surface as compare to the
existing building blocks in the market. It comes in two colors, dark gray and light
gray. It also has a smaller interlocking holes that requires less mortar in installation
that can acquire 15% up to 30% less in the overall construction cost. The eco-bricks
 have a size of 10 inches in length by 4 inches in height by 5 inches in thickness
while the eco-blocks have a size similar on the standard concrete hollow blocks that
is 16 inches of length, 8 inches of height and 4 inches of thickness. The weight of
the products are 4.7 kilograms and 13 kilograms respectively. The plastic laminates
make the bricks and blocks less permeable and contain minimal porosity.
The primary advantage of the eco-bricks and eco-blocks is its structural
properties that is its compressive strengths. The Eco-bricks have 3 types of
compressive strengths varying to the amount and type of plastic laminates used
upon making, such us 670 psi if the laminates consist of only plastic sachets, 770
psi if the laminates are consisting of plastic sachets and pet bottles and 870 psi if
plastic caps are added.
3. Uses of the product
Eco bricks and eco blocks are used to build modular items like concrete
furniture, infrastructures, buildings and walls. Primarily it was made to manage
plastic wastes by shredding and laminating it and compressed together to achieve
improved strength, stability and insulation.
4. Major Users of the product
The major user of the Eco-bricks and eco-blocks are all the people that
desire to build an infrastructure, either it is a residential or non-residential
infrastructure and the contractors who will build it.
5. Geographic Areas of dispersion
The first manufacturing plant of Eco-bricks and Eco-blocks Manufacturing
will be constructed at Brgy. Alupaye, Pagbilao Quezon is the actual place of study.
 B. Market Opportunity Analysis
1. Demand Analysis
1.1 Past Demand

Table 2.1.1a Historical Data of the total number of Construction Projects based on Building Permits

Pagbilao
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
1 18 32 40 42 37 27
2 12 27 42 48 32 29
3 9 29 38 43 37 0
4 13 32 35 27 22 0
Total 52 120 156 160 128 56
Lucena
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
1 86 81 92 101 97 72
2 56 69 98 117 86 75
3 45 74 89 104 98 0
4 65 81 81 65 59 0
Total 252 306 360 387 340 147
Candelaria
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
1 13 12 14 15 15 11
2 8 10 15 18 13 11
3 7 11 13 16 15 0
4 10 12 12 10 9 0
Total 38 46 54 58 51 22
Sariaya
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
1 9 8 9 10 10 7
2 6 7 10 12 9 8
3 5 8 9 11 10
4 7 8 8 7 6
Total 26 31 36 39 34 15
Total
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
1 125 134 155 168 158 117
2 82 114 165 195 139 123
3 66 122 149 173 159
4 95 133 137 108 97
Total 368 503 607 644 554 240

The Table 2.1.1a shows the historical data of the total number of construction projects for

each selected town based on the building permits registered on their respective Local Government

Units. On the other hand, the following table, Table 2.1.1b also shows the number of construction

projects specifically to the type of building being constructed on each town.

 Table 2.1.1b Historical Data of the number Construction projects in terms of the type of the building

According on the data that came from the Local Government units of the selected towns as

shown in the Table 2.1.1b above, the total number of duplex/quadruplex and commercial building

construction projects in the four towns in terms of building permits are 196 that has a total land

area of 25737 sqm. as of 2019. According to the Construction Industries Association of the

Philippines, the average consumption of a regular concrete hollow blocks used in commercial
buildings and duplex/quadruplex housings is 40 pcs per sqm of hollow blocks To arrive at the

total number of blocks consume per quarter of the year 2014 up to 2019, the researcher multiplied

the total land area by the standard consumption. The table 2.1.1c below shows the tabulated

historical data of the number of CHB in pcs consumed per quarter.

Table 2.1.1c Historical Data of the number of CHB in pcs per quarter in terms of the type of the building
1.2 Projected Demand

Table 2.1.2a Total number of CHB in pcs of the four towns per quarter

Based on the historical data of the CHB in pcs unit shown in the table above, the

researcher then calculated the standard deviation by using the four demand projection

methods. The least standard deviation among the four methods as shown in the Table 2.1.2b

below is the Statistical Straight-Line Method with a standard deviation of 49623.

Therefore, the researcher will use the Statistical Straight-Line method to project her future

demand ranging from year 2020 up to year 2025.

Table 2.1.2b SUMMARY TABLE OF STATISTICAL METHODS FOR DEMAND

Statistical Method Standard Deviation

Arithmetic Straight Line 70968
Arithmetic Geometric Curve 98814
Statistical Straight Line 49623
Statistical Parabolic Curve 1003077

Table 2.1.2c Projection of the Demand of CHB in pcs

PROJECTED DEMAND PER QUARTER

2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
1 742356 804818 867280 929742 992204 1054666
2 707929 768876 829824 890771 951719 1012667
3 559933 600634 641334 682035 722736 763437
4 333647 350137 366628 383118 399608 416098
TOTAL 2343864 2524465 2705066 2885666 3066267 3246867
 The Table 2.1.2c shows the projected demand of CHB in pcs using the Statistical
Straight-Line Method of projection. It was shown in the table that there is an expected
increase of demand by 11% on year 2020.

Table 2.1.2d Projection of the Demand of Duplex, Quadruplex and Commercial

Construction Projects

The Table 2.1.2d shows the projected demand of construction projects using the
Statistical Straight-Line Method of projection. It was shown in the table that there is an
expected increase of demand by 11% on year 2020.

2. Market Segmentation Analysis

The total population of the individual contractors in Pagbilao, Lucena, Sariaya

and Candelaria are 20, 20, 10 and 10 respectively. There are 12 construction firms

resided in Pagbilao, 15 in Lucena, 9 in Sariaya, and 11 in Candelaria. To arrive at the

total sample size subjected for survey for every town, the researcher uses the Slovin’s

Formula.

Table 2.2.1 The total number of Individual Contractors, Construction Firms, Engineers
and Architects

Municipality/ Individual Construction

Engineers Architects
City contractors Firms
Pagbilao 13 8 8 3
Lucena 20 15 19 5
Sariaya 8 9 13 3
Candelaria 7 11 13 3
 To get the sample size, of the individual contractors, construction firms, engineers

and architects, the sum of the population of contractors, construction firms, engineers and

architects is calculated for each town representing as the total population size and is used

to substitute for N as the population size and a 5% margin of error is used. The researcher

came up with an actual sample size presented on the Table 2.2.2. The sample size

determined the number of questionnaires to be floated to random contractors, firms,

engineers and architects to be segmented.

Table 2.2.2 The tabulated result of the total sample size for every town and municipality

Municipality/
N n
City
Pagbilao 32 30
Lucena 59 51
Sariaya 33 30
Candelaria 34 31
Total 143

3. Industry Analysis

Eco-bricks and Eco-blocks Manufacturing will be the first to launch

ecological building blocks in the province of Quezon. Since Eco-blocks is a

substitute product of the regular hollow blocks, these manufacturers represent the

supply needed for the study. Nonetheless, there are already launches of Eco-blocks

and eco-bricks in some markets outside the province of Quezon like the GreenAntz

Builders in Bulacan, Batangas, Cavite and the Teresa Eco-brick Hub in Rizal which

may eventually become a threat to the company. Currently, there are 3 hollow

blocks manufacturer in Lucena (namely Alex Hollow Blocks, Durabilt Construction

Products and the Lucena Mabuhay Lumber and Hardware), 1 in Candelaria (Nardo
 Alcantara Hollow Blocks), and 3 in Pagbilao (Dekatan Builders and Construction

Supply, Monica Lustado Hollow Blocks and B-Valm Construction & Supply).

4. Competitors (Supply) Analysis

The product’s direct competitors for its product present in the market of the

province of Quezon are those who manufactures construction masonry units that is

the regular concrete hollow blocks. There are 3 hollow blocks manufacturer in

Lucena (namely Alex Hollow Blocks, Durabilt Construction Products and the

Lucena Mabuhay Lumber and Hardware), 1 in Candelaria (Nardo Alcantara

Hollow Blocks), and 3 in Pagbilao (Dekatan Builders and Construction Supply,

Monica Lustado Hollow Blocks and B-Valm Construction & Supply). The table

2.4.1 shows the quarterly production capacity of each manufacturer. The following

Table shows the Product capacity of the manufacturers starting from the 2014 and

present.

Table 2.4.1 Production Capacity

Years in the Annual

Manufacturer Address
Business 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Alex Hollow Blocks 4 19200 19200 19200 19200
Durabilt Construction Product 7 18000 19500 20000 24000 24000 24000 Lucena
The Lucena Mabuhay Lumber and Hardware 10 9000 9000 10000 10000 10000 10000
Nardo Alcantara Hollow Block 7 20000 20000 20000 20000 20000 20000 Candelaria
Dekatan Builders and Construction Supply 5 14000 14000 15000 15000 15000
Monica Lustado Hollow Blocks 2 9000 9000 Pagbilao
B-Valm Construction & Supply 3 2000 2500 4000
Total 47000 62500 83200 90200 99700 101200

5. Chanel Analysis
The company will launch the product on the different construction supplies

shops and retailers located within the municipality of Pagbilao and on its neighbor
 towns such as Lucena City, Municipality of Sariaya and Candelaria since it was

easily accessible in terms of distribution and has a high construction growth rate.

C. Target Market Selection

The target market of the product are those contractors, engineers, and firms that
build duplex, quadruplex and commercial building located in the Pagbilao, Lucena,
Sariaya and Candelaria and that are willing to use Eco-bricks and Eco-blocks in their
future subjects. The researcher will also target those that serves as middleman in selling
construction materials as well as the construction supplies shops within Lucena, Pagbilao,
Sariaya and Candelaria.
D. Market Share determination
E. Marketing Strategy
1. Marketing Program

2. Pricing Scheme

To put a price tag on Eco-bricks and Eco-blocks Manufacturing made considerations

which included the following:

a. Cost of Production

The prices indicated includes the direct and indirect costs that were used to manufacture

every unit of the product including a mark-up in order to generate the profit the company

targets.

b. Prices of Competing Products

Including the fact that Eco-bricks and Eco-blocks is a substitute product for hollow

blocks that was already launch in the market decades ago, Eco-bricks and Eco-blocks
Manufacturing direct competitors has already earned the loyalty of the customers, there are

many distribution shops has already selling their products in the market which pose as

direct threats to the company. So, the company considered the effect of the manufacturers

that supply these shops and the price they charge to the demand for Eco-bricks and eco-

blocks. The company will charge Php 22.00 for a 1 unit of Eco-bricks and Php 26.00 for 1

unit of Eco-blocks.

3. Promotion and Advertising Strategies

4. Market distribution Strategies
 Chapter III

Technical Study

The technical feasibility of the study assesses the details of how the business will
deliver the product or service. It is the systematic approach of the procedures and
organizations of the business. It consists of manufacturing process, plant size and
production schedule, the machinery and equipment, plant location, building and facilities,
raw materials and supplies, utilities, waste disposal, labor requirements and the
production cost.

A. Manufacturing Process

Figure 3.A Operation Process of manufacturing the Eco-products

The process of manufacturing the eco-blocks and eco-bricks starts in preparation

of all the raw materials to be use. It includes preparing the cement mixture and shredding
of plastics. After that, plastic is then laminated and added into the mixture and compress
it unto the mold to form a block. When the mixture is molded and slightly hardened, the
block is removed in the mold and transfer into the drying shelf. Once the block is
completely hardened, it will be tested of its resistance and modules of ruptures test for
classification and labeling. After the blocks are classified according to its PSI, the blocks
are then stored in the warehouse.
Mixing
The sand and shredded plastics are stored inside a semi-covered warehouse in
piles and are transferred into storage bins in the plant by a backhoe truck as they are
needed and then transferred by the conveyor belt in the mixers. The Portland cement is
stored outside in large vertical silos to protect it from moisture.

As a production run starts, the required amounts of shredded plastics, sand and
cement are transferred by gravity or by mechanical means to a weigh batcher, which
measures the proper amounts of each material.
The dry materials then flow into a stationary mixer where they are blended
together for several minutes. There are two types of mixers commonly used. One type,
called a planetary or pan mixer, resembles a shallow pan with a lid. Mixing blades are
attached to a vertical rotating shaft inside the mixer. The other type is called a horizontal
drum mixer. It resembles a coffee can turned on its side and has mixing blades attached
to a horizontal rotating shaft inside the mixer.
After the dry materials are blended, a small amount of water is added to the mixer. If the
plant is located in a climate subject to temperature extremes, the water may first pass
through a heater or chiller to regulate its temperature. Admixture chemicals and coloring
pigments may also be added at this time. The concrete is then mixed for six to eight
minutes
Molding
Once the load of concrete is thoroughly mixed, it is dumped into an inclined
bucket conveyor and transported to an elevated hopper. The mixing cycle begins again
for the next load.
From the hopper, the concrete is conveyed to another hopper on top of the block
machine at a measured flow rate. In the block machine, the concrete is forced downward
into molds. The molds consist of an outer mold box containing several mold liners. The
liners determine the outer shape of the block and the inner shape of the block cavities. As
many as 15 blocks may be molded at one time.
When the molds are full, the concrete is compacted by the weight of the upper
mold head coming down on the mold cavities. This compaction may be supplemented by
air or hydraulic pressure cylinders acting on the mold head. Most block machines also
use a short burst of mechanical vibration to further aid compaction.
The compacted blocks are pushed down and out of the molds onto a flat steel
pallet. The pallet and blocks are pushed out of the machine and onto a chain conveyor. In
some operations, the blocks then pass under a rotating brush which removes loose
material from the top of the blocks.
Curing
The pallets of blocks are conveyed to an automated stacker or loader which places
them in a curing rack. Each rack holds several hundred blocks. When a rack is full, it is
rolled onto a set of rails and moved into a curing kiln.
The kiln is an enclosed room with the capacity to hold several racks of blocks at a
time. There are two basic types of curing kilns. The most common type is a low-pressure
steam kiln. In this type, the blocks are held in the kiln for one to three hours at room
temperature to allow them to harden slightly. Steam is then gradually introduced to raise
the temperature at a controlled rate of not more than 60°F per hour (16°C per hour).
Standard weight blocks are usually cured at a temperature of 150-165°F (66-74°C), while
lightweight blocks are cured at 170-185°F (77-85°C). When the curing temperature has
been reached, the steam is shut off, and the blocks are allowed to soak in the hot, moist
air for 12-18 hours. After soaking, the blocks are dried by exhausting the moist air and
further raising the temperature in the kiln. The whole curing cycle takes about 24 hours.
Another type of kiln is the high-pressure steam kiln, sometimes called an
autoclave. In this type, the temperature is raised to 300-375°F (149-191°C), and the
pressure is raised to 80-185 psi (5.5-12.8 bar). The blocks are allowed to soak for five to
10 hours. The pressure is then rapidly vented, which causes the blocks to quickly release
their trapped moisture. The autoclave curing process requires more energy and a more
expensive kiln, but it can produce blocks in less time.
Cubing
The racks of cured blocks are rolled out of the kiln, and the pallets of blocks are
un-stacked and placed on a chain conveyor. The blocks are pushed off the steel pallets,
and the empty pallets are fed back into the block machine to receive a new set of molded
blocks.
 If the blocks are to be made into split-face blocks, they are first molded as two
blocks joined together. Once these double blocks are cured, they pass through a splitter,
which strikes them with a heavy blade along the section between the two halves. This
causes the double block to fracture and form a rough, stone-like texture on one face of
each piece.
The blocks pass through a cuber which aligns each block and then stacks them
into a cube three blocks across by six blocks deep by three or four blocks high. These
cubes are carried outside with a forklift and placed in storage.
Quality control
Three aspects should be monitored to ensure quality masonry units: strength, dimensions
and shrinkage.

B. Plant size and Plant Production Schedule

C. Machinery and Equipment
D. Plant Location
E. Building Facilities
F. Raw Materials and Supplies
G. Utilities
H. Waste Disposal
I. Labor Requirements
J. Production Cost