Nuvoco is committed towards providing greener and smarter solutions to the construction industry.

Pranav Desai

- Vice President, Construction Development & Innovation Center, Nuvoco Vistas Corp. Ltd

Nuvoco Vistas is a leading manufacturer and retailer of building materials in India with a vision to build a safer, smarter and more sustainable world. Today it offers a diversified business portfolio under three business segments, namely, cement, ready-mix concrete (RMX) and modern building materials (MBM). It has nine cement plants and in ready mix there are more than 45 plants spread across India. Pranav Desai, Vice President, Construction Development & Innovation Center, Nuvoco Vistas Corp. Ltd throws light on technology trends and the green initiatives in the RMC industry. Excerpts from the interview…

How the advanced mixing technology and quality control processes, the introduction of new generation construction chemicals to enhance the shelf life and durability of concrete have impacted the design parameters? 

Durable concrete mix must be cohesive and uniform in colour and consistency, when fresh in stage. Advanced mixing technology has been able to modify the variables that are required to ensure complete blending of raw materials to form a cohesive mix. The location, shape and angle of the mixing blades, design of the mixing chamber and speed of rotation, mixing sequence, efficiency, shear application, and mixing time play a major role in forming a homogeneous mix. Cohesive mix eliminates the possibilities of honeycombing and in turn leads to dense and durable structures. With eco-friendly construction becoming the need of hour, construction chemicals like concrete admixtures, waterproofing compounds, grouts, corrosion inhibitors, anti-bacterial agents, coatings, sealers, repair mortars and floor hardeners aid in improving the resistance of concrete against external environment, increasing their service life, reducing shrinkage cracking and ultimately improving the concrete performance. Construction chemicals have helped to meet the demands of high strength, durability, economy and sustainability of infrastructures that glorify the new modern world. In the long run, quality control is an iterative process that needs to be extensively used at every stage in concrete production.

How green the ready mix concrete industry has become, especially in terms of using fly ash / ground granulated blast furnace slag, etc? What are the major challenges in this area?

The versatility of concrete imparts huge carbon footprint in our environment. Production of one tonne OPC requires approximately 4.0 G Joule energy and produces approximately one tonne CO2 gas in the environment. Supplementary cementitious materials like fly ash, blast furnace slag, silica fumes, metakaolin, and rice husk ash have been targeted to reduce the carbon footprint. The RMC industry is aiming at the concept of green concrete today. Green concrete incorporates the by-products of industries and farming. Along with an emphasis on sustainability, these materials enhance the hydration process and help in designing concrete with denser packing at micro levels. Substitution of fly ash / blast furnace slag reduce the permeability of concrete, potential for cracking, offer improved durability, lead to reduced clinker usage and improve the service life. However increased addition levels beyond an optimum point lead to extended setting time of concrete, slower rate of strength gain, low early age strength and delayed rate of construction.

As a leading player in the market, what is your contributory role in transforming the RMC industry into a green industry?

Nuvoco Vistas Corp Ltd., is committed towards providing greener and smarter solutions to the construction industry. Nuvoco's innovation at Construction Development and Innovation Centre (CDIC) has resulted in a range of products that are contributing to sustainability and smart infrastructure. Nuvoco has its efforts driven towards increasing energy efficiency and the adoption of alternative fuels and raw materials represent the most relevant solutions. Concreto Ecodure - a very cohesive and uniform mix by providing durable and impervious concrete for all types of substructure and foundations. It incorporates carefully proportioned cement, pozzolanic materials and specialized admixture, which is effective in reducing the permeability of concrete thereby preventing structural deterioration. Concreto Permadure is another offering which ensures dense and durable concrete structure by providing resistance against water seepage and micro-cracks like plastic shrinkage. We use alternative aggregates, by-products, coal combustion residues and slag residues from metal producing industries. Nuvoco works with extensive research and deeper investigations on a promising strategy of waste integration and by product incorporation in concrete.

What regulatory / policy support do you expect to increase the per capita consumption and also make the industry green? 

More than a goal, sustainability is a strategy that encourages development without compromising the needs of future generations. Cradle to grave analysis needs to be carried out and accordingly material acquisition, production, utility and recycling approaches need to be figured out. Key performance indicators need to be assigned for waste generation and management, lowering carbon footprint, assessing embodied and operational energies. Based on the performance and impact, credits should be evaluated. Energy audit and documentation should be emphasized. Extensive focus should be diverted on greening the supply chain for the RMC industry. The amount of fresh water used at the RMC plant can be significantly reduced through effective collection and recycling of process water and storm water. Energy optimization is the key to an efficient, sustainable, and profitable concrete plant. The ultimate goal should be to lower the plant's carbon footprint, reduce annual operating energy by optimizing energy use, and to use recycled products or industrial by products as a replacement to the existing natural sources.

What is the scope and potential for using recycled aggregates?

Management of construction and demolition waste is a problem faced not only in India but  by  the  global community simultaneously  the quantum  of  waste  produced  occupies  a  huge fraction  of  the  total  solid  waste  generation  by  mass.  The recent initiative to stop sand mining insists the need to recycle, reuse and substitute natural aggregates in order to ensure environmental sustainability.  However, regulatory approvals permit the use of recycled aggregates only for lean concrete. For partial or full replacement of recycled aggregates in concrete, primarily it is essential to classify the kind of recycled aggregates based on their composition and grading. The replacement ratio depends on the aggregate source and concrete exposure class. The major technical concern regarding the use of recycled aggregates is about their heterogeneity and presence of contaminants. Recycled aggregates should be substituted optimally taking into consideration that the strength, elastic modulus, creeps and shrinkage of concrete is not affected. The Equivalent Mortar Volume method, which is particularly applied for recycled aggregates, should be used. This allows designing the recycled concrete mix with similar internal structure to that of natural concrete used as reference as well as addresses the strength losses.

How has the concrete products sector benefited from RMC in launching innovative building/concrete products?

Concrete is a versatile building material. Though its evolution can be traced back to centuries, the pace of transformations, innovations and renovations is rapid. At Nuvoco, we consistently practice innovations and have a wide range of products. User friendly approach has always been the prime focus for the RMC industry. Decorative concrete along with photo luminescent aggregates has given freedom of design with low maintenance and durability.  This has revolutionized the landscaping. 3D printing has showcased an untapped potential to build affordable communities. The innovations have enabled precast manufacturers to produce high detailed concrete elements, panels, slabs and facades. The innovation of self compacting concrete has eliminated the need for compaction and has facilitated concreting in dense mesh. Light weight concrete has enabled to reduce the structural dead load and offer thermal insulation by temperature reduction of approximately two degree Celsius between surfaces. Pervious concrete aids in water conservation through precipitation and other sources. Self healing concrete imitates the automatic healing of cracks generated in concrete. Watertight concrete has helped to keep water either in or out of structure. The innovations are trending towards decorative concrete, user friendliness and are targeting sustainability and longer service life. A few innovations that may excite users are translucent concrete, concrete absorbing CO2, concrete that may eliminate or reduce curing.

What are the major challenges the industry is facing, especially in terms of availability of aggregates and skilled manpower?

Due to the rising volumes for modern economy, improving the sustainability of concrete has to be the major challenge. Sustainability should be addressed in a holistic way. The sustainability aspect has three pillars, however only the environmental pillar is focussed. There is significant scope for improving the environmental impact of using concrete solutions both at the concept design stage and in the material selection. Another challenge is developing a practical, robust, reliable and cost effective method of specifying durability by performance. Elimination of wastages and pilferages is essential. The RMC industry is aligning to the needs of Individual Home Builder (IHB) segment. The consumption of natural aggregate concrete as the largest component material is a key concern because it comprises three-fourths of the ingredient of concrete. Initiatives to stop quarrying and mining should direct extensive research towards partial or full substitution of natural aggregates with recycled or slag aggregates. To meet the ballooning demand of workforce, availability of skilled workers also remains a challenging issue. The industry has typically been slow to adopt new technology to optimize construction schedules and increase efficiency. However, with the increasing gap between supply and demand of skilled workforce, companies are now embracing new methods of building.

To what extent have you been able to leverage the advantages of digital platforms?

We have been able to achieve a few major heights in technological transformation. In the RMC industry, it is every minute that counts. Real time tracking aids supply chain to check at a particular point the number of transit mixers ticketed, en routed, waiting at site, pouring or returning. These digital platforms help to provide comprehensive data to clients, in turn contributing to customer satisfaction - the ultimate goal of concrete industry. Transit mixer operators are armed with navigation details, messaging capabilities. So far digital platforms have enabled to gain operational management insights, increasing the volumes per man-hour, streamline the supply chain and resolve events. Integrating all these aspects on a single platform will efficiently help to transform operations, thereby reducing operational costs.

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