Foundry Industry - Future Ahead. - Metalworld.co.in

Foundry Industry - Future Ahead.
By S.P. Oudhia; Metallurgist & Foundry Technologist.
Metal casting industry is a Mother industry. Most of industries use
cast metal components in some form or another. Industrial revival,
after steep recession, has given a boost to foundry industry.
Improvement in infrastructure and power generation in particular
shall further increase demand of castings.
After service sector’s record growth in the last decade,
manufacturing sector is poised to have accelerated growth now
due to it’s potential to offer employment to growing population.
This will obviously, result in increased demand of castings for
sustained and increased growth of economy.
Perspective
INTRODUCTION:
The consumption of casting per capita
can be easily considered as an
indicator of development of economy
of a country. As compared the percapita
casting consumption in the
United states of America, Indian
consumption is meager one sixth.
There is, therefore, great scope for
the growth of foundries in India.
F u r t h e r , d u e t o s t r i n g e n t
environmental pollution control norms
in the developed countries and nonavailability
of work force for working
in trying conditions of foundries,
Western economy is procuring their
casting requirements from BRIC
countries.
This situation is poised to escalate
further in the coming decade, helping
metal casting industry to grow to
greater heights in terms of capacity
out put as well as quality standards.
Rapid growth of automotive and farm
equipment business in India, will pose
huge requirement of quality and high
integrity casting on foundry industry.
PRESENT SCENARIO:
There are around 5100 foundries both
large as well small units registered in
India. Of these, around 3000 units are
grey iron foundries, producing about
5.1 million tons of grey iron casting.
About 300 foundries are in the large
sector. Out of total units, 80 percent started to cater to the needs of autoare
small units, 15 percent are industry around Pune. A significant
medium- size and only 5 percent are numbers of around 25 percent have
in large sector.
ISO9000 Certification and export
CASTING PRODUCTION IN INDIA (YEAR 2007)
casting.
Metal
Tonnage Production Most of the foundries use CUPOLA
1. Grey Iron 5,112,000 M.T. as basic melting furnace and about
2. Steel & Alloy Steel 710,000 M.T.
40 percent foundries do duplexing
3. S.G. Iron 710,000 M.T.
4. Non ferrous 568,000 M.T. in induction furnace to make
Total: 7,100,000 M.T. S.G.Iron casting and quality graded
castings.
A peculiarity of foundry industry in
COIMBATORE: There are about 500
India is it’s geographical clustering.
foundry units at Coimbatore. They are
Some of the major foundry clusters
l o c a t e d a t T h a n e e r P a n d a l /
are in Belgaum, Coimbatore, Batala &
Peelamedu; Ganapathy, SIDCO,
Jalandhar, Kolhapur and Rajkot.
Singanallur, Mettupalayam Road and
BELGAUM: There are about 100 Arasur Village Cupola.
foundries in Belgaum, mostly located
BATALA & JALANDHAR: Foundries
at Udyambaug and Macche Industrial
are using conventional cupolas as
areas. These foundries, initially,
June 2010
33

Perspective
THESE INCLUDE-
1. Tata Motor Jamshedpur & Pune
2. Ennore Foundries Chennai
3. Hinduja Foundries Chennai
4. Amtek Auto Gurgaon
5. DCM Engineering Products Ropar
6. Mahindra Hinoday Ltd. Pune
7. Indian Smeltie & Refining co.Ltd. Pune &Mumbai
8. Shakti sugars Ltd. Combatore
9. Jayaswal’s Neco Ltd. Nagpur
10. Simplex Engineering Ltd. Bhilai & Raipur
11. Electro- steel casting Kolkata & Chennai
12. Steel cast Ltd Bhavnagar
13. Suzlon’s Foundry Coimbtore
14. Larson & toubro coimbatore & kansbahl
15. H.E.C. Ltd. Ranchi
And many more
melting units and produce grey iron f u l l y situations are main hurdles. To point
casting. Some units export municipal finished, ready to use engineering out a few are:
casting and machine parts made of part, auto-components etc., foundries 1. High capital cost of modern
grey iron. have been setting up apart from world g e n e r a t i o n m a n u f a c t u r i n g
KOLHAPUR: The foundries here class casting production facilities, a equipments.
started with production of oil engine modern CNC machining facilities as
2. High rate of interest on borrowings.
casting but have now upgraded well.
3. Ever escalating energy cost
t h e m s e l v e s t o c a t e r t o t h e To meet the quality demand in the
4. Industrial relations laws leading to
requirements of automotive, farm international market, a ultra- modern
poor performance and productivity.
equipment and engineering castings. manufacturing set up with high
There are around 250 foundries in and pressure molding line, modern cold- 5. Taxation policy.
around Kolhapur located at Kolhapur, box core shop, robotized fettling etc. 6. Infrastructure constraints in export
Sangli, Iccalkaranji and Hatkanagale. have started finding place in new business.
RAJKOT: There are about 300 generation foundries being upgraded 7. Fluctuating raw material supply and
foundry units at Rajkot located at Aji or being newly setup.
input cost.
Vasahat, Gondal Road and Bhavnagar Elaborate quality management system
WHAT IS COMING:
Road. These foundries, initially, and application of information
1. Industry has to upgrade to produce
started with diesel engine and pump technology for not only manufacturing
right quality first time and right
components and have now diversified m a n a g e m e n t b u t a l s o m e t a l
quality always.
to cater to a wide range of solidification and mold flow simulation
applications. With Tata’s NANO plant has started finding their application 2. Keen competition on pricing. The in
around, Rajkot foundries are poised to amongst new generation set up. efficiency in manufacturing can’t be
start manufacture of automotive
passed on to customer.
THE CONSTRAINTS
castings. In addition to these foundry
3. Top class quality and reliability
clusters, there are foundries located
Although the industry envisages steep casting has to be produced as product
near various steel plants and industrial
rise in demand for domestic as well as liability will be thrust upon very soon.
center. Further, Agra and Howrah
international consumption, certain Foundries will not be able to escape
have foundries producing large
volumes of municipal casting
for domestic as well as export
markets.
In additional to foundries
mentioned above, there are
large captive as well as jobbing
foundries.
THE TREND
Considering export potential of
Annexure - I Foundry Clusters & End - Use Markets.
S NO. USAGE \ CLUSTER Belgaum Coimbatore Batala/Jalandhar Kolhapur Rajkot
1 Atomotive 31% 4% 8% 42% 12%
2 Oil Engine - 42%
3 Pumps / Valves 21% 46% 10% 17% 7%
4 Electric Motors 10% 6% - - -
5 Farm Equipment/Agriculture 7% - 35+6% 4% -
6 Food Processing 5% 7% - - -
7 Textile Machinery - 6% - - 3%
8 Machine–Parts - - 33% - 15%
9 Sugar Machinery - - - 6% -
10 Others 26% 31% 8% 31% -
34
June 2010

Annexure - II World Market For Iron Foundries
Year World market U.S. $ in Millions
2001 55,591
2002 55,658
2003 55,743
2004 55,850
2005 56,230
2006 58,139
2007 60,381
2008 62,716
2009 65,149
2010 67,685
2011 70,329
Annexure - III Iron Foundries of India
Year Out put US $ in Millions % of Region ( Asia ) % of Globe
2001 3058 14.56 5.50
2002 3017 14.54 5.42
2003 2976 14.52 5.34
2004 2935 14.49 5.26
2005 2917 14.47 5.19
2006 3032 14.49 5.21
2007 3173 14.52 5.26
2008 3322 14.54 5.30
2009 3477 14.56 5.34
2010 3640 14.58 5.38
2010 3810 14.60 5.42
foundry industry is
poised for rapid
growth in terms of
volumes, quality,
m a n a g e m e n t
efficiency and costcompetitiveness.
Those, who accept
these challenges,
will shape the future
o f t h i s g r e a t
enterprise.
with free replacement only but will scientific approach to management.
Foundry Associations, trade bodies
have 6. The system design in manufacturing like the institute of Indian Foundry
to compensate for losses both tangible will take over individual skills and lot man, FICCI, etc. have to pool their
and intangible for failed components. of trained technical man-power will resources together to further the
4. optimum efficiency in quality be needed to plan and execute aforesaid approach and make metal
performance and productivity will be manufacturing.
casting industry and cast component
able to keep foundries in the business. 7. Sooner, the automobile companies business truly global.
Those, who don’t adopt to change will start procuring critical casting like
market demands will have to fold up. engine block, cylinder heads, steering
5. There shall be no tolerance for knuckles etc. From local supply
delays, defaults, delivery failure, sources, increasing demand of quality
quality problems etc. Foundries will goods in time.
have to change over to modern From the foregoing, its clear that
Perspective
June 2010
35