Behind the Scenes in a Cement Factory

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Sarbottam Cement is a Nepalese cement company established in 2001. This company was established with the motive to produce high quality clinker, which is an intermediate product used in the manufacture of cement. Since its inception, it has been a trendsetter in Nepalese cement industry by producing high quality clinker and cement. It has been consistently producing and supplying quality clinker to various cement factories of Nepal. It has also exported large quantities of clinker to India, Bangladesh, China and other countries.

The factory itself is situated near Dhading Besi on the Kathmandu-Pokhara highway. It is one of the most scenic places in Nepal where people can enjoy the magnificent view of majestic mountains touching the clouds along with the cultural heritage of Dhading district including Nepal’s first ever suspension bridge, Ranighat Suspension Bridge, over Trishuli river.

Sarbottam Cement Pvt Ltd is one of the most innovative and dynamic cement companies in Nepal and thus made significant contribution to Nepalese economy by creating direct as well as indirect employment opportunities for more than 1000 people throughout its supply chain. It has been contributing heavily in infrastructure development by providing quality building materials such as clinker and cement for mega construction projects like

A few miles from Kathmandu, in the village of Sarbottam, a small cement factory is turning limestone and other raw materials into cement. The factory is operated by Himal Cement Company, a subsidiary of the Indian company Shree Digvijay Cement.

To produce cement, a mixture of limestone and other materials are ground into a fine powder, which is then heated at high temperatures to form a hard substance that binds together other materials. In addition to being used for cement, the limestone mined at Sarbottam is also used as a building material.

The Sarbottam Cement factory has been operating since 1979. It currently employs one hundred people year-round and up to four hundred during peak production season. The factory operates twenty hours a day during production season (February to November), and seven hours a day during the winter months.

The factory uses electricity to power machinery and an air compressor, but most of the equipment runs on diesel fuel. The factory has five large generators that run on diesel fuel imported from India. Each generator can produce up to 50 kilowatts of power at any one time.

Sarbottam Cement Industries Ltd is a leading cement brand in Nepal. Sarbottam Cement is an ISO 9001:2008 and 18001:2007 certified company with Nepal Standard (NS) Certified products. This cement is manufactured from world class production facility at Madhyapur Thimi, Bhaktapur which uses technical expertise of FL Smidth & Co. from Denmark and state of art technology with continuous on-line quality control by micro processor based laboratory.

The company aims to manufacture high quality cement with the concept of “quality produced locally”. For the first time in Nepal, a Nepali Cement Company has introduced an environment friendly Euro III Techonology for production of clinker and cement. It helps to reduce CO2 emission up to 30% and energy consumption up to 17%.

Around 2,000 workers are engaged in the production process. The company has now decided to go for expansion and modernization of the existing unit from 1.60 lakh tons to 5.50 lakh tons per annum by installing state-of-the-art technology and machinery.

The company has already invested Rs 1 billion in expansion and modernisation of the cement factory. The first phase of the project will be completed in a year’s time.

The total investment is estimated at Rs 2 billion and out of this, Rs 800 million will be invested in the second phase, according to company officials.

The Sarbottam Cement Industries Limited (SCIL) is a sister concern of the renowned Hetauda Cement Industries (HCIL) which has been in operation for the past twenty five years. Their combined share of market in Nepal is around 30%.

The building material industry of Nepal has been growing by leaps and bounds during the last decade. There are more than 30 cement factories operating in the country, providing almost 500,000 metric tonnes per annum (MTPA) market. The government of Nepal formulated a policy document to boost the production capacity of domestic cement factories to one million tonnes per year in order to minimise import from India. This plan is being implemented through an industrial expansion programme, which will lead to further growth of cement industries within the country.

Sarbottam Cement Industries Ltd is one of the leading manufacturers of cement in Nepal. Its annual production capacity is 240,000 tons. The plant is located in Jitpur Simara, Suburb of Birgunj Metropolitan city. Sarbottam Cement Industries Ltd was established with the prime objective of producing quality cement conforming to standards and requirements of Nepal Bureau of Standards and Metrology (NBSM).

Sarbottam Cement Industries Ltd is an ISO 9001:2008 certified company with Nepal Standard (NS) Certified products. The company has been manufacturing OPC 43 and 53 grade cement conforming to NS: EN 197-1: 2000, Portland Slag Cement (PSC) conforming to NS: EN 197-1: 2000 and Portland Pozzolana Cement (PPC) conforming to ASTM C 595-12 & IS 1489 Part 1: 1991 under the brand name “Sarbottam” which has now become a household name across the country.

The company’s efficient HR Management has resulted in high employee satisfaction. This is reflected in its low employee turnover rate which is less than 10% as compared to the industry average of 20%. The company also provides several benefits to

A large and modern cement plant requires a substantial initial capital investment. The principal and interest charges in the early years of operation will be high. In most cases, the highest cost items are the raw materials, fuel, and power. The other costs are usually of secondary importance. The relative importance of these items, however, varies from country to country and from plant to plant. In some plants, for example, the freight charge on the raw material may be a matter of great importance because of the distance from the quarry to the plant site.

The percentage of capital invested in buildings is relatively small in a cement plant since they do not wear out as do machinery and equipment. For a new plant, however, they may represent up to 15% of the total investment.

The building housing the kilns is usually of steel frame construction with noncombustible walls, floors, and roof. There are no special requirements for fireproofing or reinforcement; concrete construction is satisfactory if reinforced or designed for dead weight loads only. The kiln building is generally designed for quick erection on site with minimum field labor requirements.

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