CONCRETING OPPORTUNITIES!

Indian concrete equipment industry has been growing at a rapid pace in recent years after the entry of various foreign players. Growing demand and expansion in all sectors, time-bound projects has made it necessary to use advanced machines rather going for small machines, where large man power is needed.

The Indian concrete equipment market is projected to cross $ 1,300 million by 2024, exhibiting a CAGR of 13% on account of anticipated growth in construction industry, increasing foreign investments, and rising number of smart city projects in the country.

On the basis of value, batching plant segment is the largest segment in the Indian concrete equipment market. The growth of the segment is led by growing customer preference for high capacity and technologically advanced batching plant. Moreover, factors such as increasing number of construction projects, shorter completion time, and the demand for customized solutions by end-users are further fuelling growth of this segment.

Government initiatives towards infrastructure development is further boosting the demand for concrete equipment in India. Some of the construction projects in the country include Smart City Mission, AMRUT, the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation of Urban Transformation, Metro Rail in urban areas, Bharatmala, and Sagarmala, among others.

In addition, government is also supporting the Indian concrete equipment market by liberalizing taxation policies for the construction industry such as GST and custom duty. In 2018, the government of India reduced the GST on concrete equipment from 28% to 18%, which will help the concrete equipment manufacturers to reduce the overall cost of equipment and other operational losses.

Paving and Concreting Equipment Market

Paving and concreting equipment are used to prepare and refurbish concrete and asphalt. A paving machine, also called as paver, is used to lay asphalt on roadways, bridges, walkways, and parking areas. Concreting equipment usually includes concrete batching plant, concrete mixers, and concrete pumps. A concrete batching plant is used for homogenous mixing and blending of concrete ingredients. Concrete mixers are divided into two major categories - batch mixers and continuous mixers.

Key Drivers

Rapid urbanization and increasing investment in infrastructure development are driving the demand for paving and concreting equipment across the globe. Construction companies are increasingly preferring advanced machineries and tools for efficient execution of their projects. Private builders and government authorities use high-performance construction equipment to meet the infrastructure needs of emerging metropolitan areas.

Furthermore, the introduction of new construction materials drives the demand for advanced construction machines. The need and compatibility of the machines may vary for different materials, and hence customers are looking for integrated solutions suitable to different applications that can minimize the maintenance cost and overall investment in equipment and machines.

Opportunities

Growing trend of automation and high demand for low maintenance and small size products is the key opportunity in the paving and concreting equipment market. Automatic equipment are viewed as cost-effective and an efficient alternative in recent years as it uses computerized programs for some operations. Furthermore, automation enables enhanced productivity and safety of workers.

Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic

Major customers of paving and concreting equipment are from the construction industry and are using the services through rental channels. Customers and service providers are expected to renew and update the service contracts to face the economic crisis through mutual understanding and contribution. Furthermore, the progress of some projects is restricted due to the shortage of labor and the city-wide shutdowns.

Technology

Concrete contractors and construction companies must embrace new trends in concrete technology with open arms. Overall, one problem that the whole industry suffers from is a lack of skilled workers. These new trends in concrete technology will reduce construction costs and improve efficiency on and off the job site.

Project Management Software

There is construction management software made specifically for concrete contractors. For commercial construction projects, concrete and masonry contractors set the foundation. They provide services that range from site prep to finishing, timely delivery, and quality. With traditional processes, it can result in significant project delays that can cost additional money and time. With concrete construction project management, you can track real-time labor and production. You no longer have to wait for payroll or accounting reports to be processed.

BIM

Building Information Modeling has been around for decades, but technology is forever advancing. Its 3D modeling design software allows professionals the tools to see their project's design, plan, and construction. Using BIM can help communicate the scope of the concrete project across all parties. Concrete contractors have been trying to push towards 3D, forming from 2-d for fieldwork. The entire building process becomes more efficient because there is an increase in communication with field workers, and they can see as-built formwork. BIM overall has the benefits to improve the supply chain and reduce waste, delays, and mistakes.

Artificial Intelligence (IoT)

GPS trackers and IoT sensors on equipment for concrete construction allows for predictive maintenance and can improve production cycles. Intelligent equipment is one of the newer concrete construction technologies because it can use human knowledge through computer processes. Adding sensors to equipment gives field workers more accurate and timely information about their assets, so there is no need for second-guessing!

Challenges

There are still a number of challenges facing the Concrete Industry. From a political and social viewpoint, improving the sustainability of concrete construction has to be the first challenge, not because concrete solutions are poor when compared with alternatives, but due to the volume needed for the modern economy. To get a fair comparison of alternatives, sustainability has to be at the level of the structure and include all three pillars of sustainability. Finding a system for combining the different indicators is essential if sustainability is to be assessed correctly and in a holistic and comparative way.

A technical challenge is developing a practical, robust, reliable and cost-effective method of specifying durability by performance. There are still unanswered questions that require further research. These include the development of test methods, the relationship between performance in the test and performance in structures, and the impact of normal variations in production on the results of standard tests. There are issues that are known about and solutions are available, but they still blight the Concrete Industry. These are the uncontrolled addition of water on site and the failure to achieve the specified minimum cover in the structure.

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