The days of sand mafia in India appear numbered if the sand-free construction products launched by an Ahmedabad-based company on Tuesday take wings in the country’s infrastructure sector.

 

Perlcon Premix Pvt Ltd, which launched a range of 12 self-curing products for the first time in India, said its sand-free solutions are eco-friendly, light weight and long-lasting. It has set up a manufacturing facility with a capacity of one lakh tonne per annum at Kadi, 45 km from Ahmedabad, with an investment of Rs 20 crore.

 

“The continued nefarious activities of sand mafia in different parts of India prompted us to look for alternatives to sand. After some three years’ research and development, we have imported this technology from Europe for exclusive use in India and the Middle East,” an official said. Perlcon uses imported expanded silica, as a replacement to sand, which floats on water and when mixed with cement makes a solid useable plaster.

 

Perlcon Premix is in the final stages of a tie-up with a prominent construction company to lift its entire production. The demand is expected to be huge as the quantity of sand used in construction is about four times that of the cement used.

 

“Constructing a 12-floor building with this material would save 1,100 metric tonnes of sand, 6,000 kilolitres of water, 7,500 kilowatt of electricity and 15,000 kilowatt by way of energy conservation due to insulation in plasters, besides huge savings in time and labour costs,” said Shreyas Sheth, Chairman. Besides, sand-free material reduces dead load on building structures, is anti-fungus, and its self-curing property minimises ill-effects of hard water used in construction. These materials have already been used in some buildings in Ahmedabad.

The company’s products include sand-free masonry mortars, plasters, putties, tile-fixing mortars and filters and special plasters. The pre-mix mortar formulations are also self-curing, meaning one would not have to use water to strengthen the structure, thus speed up construction and completion process.

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